Wildlife in your Garden

[Stephen Gibson]

The wood pigeons that live in the trees in my garden are awesome. My garden backs on to woods & some of our trees are large ferns so all the different birds love nesting in them. We also get a lot of badgers every night too but during the day the garden is alive. Our neighbours either side of us & ourselves all put food & water out for the animals & have done for years so we attract allsorts which have made our gardens thier homes. The one male wood pigeon we have is very protective of the area. Any animal whether it be the many baby squirrels running around or the multiple different varieties of birds that walk around our lawn care free are absolutely fine but if a new anything comes along that wasn't born & raised in the garden or surrounding wooded area he will attack at all costs to protect all the other animals. A kite came swooping down to kill one of the ring necked doves & the wood pigeon jumped off the fence (where he spends all day just patrolling) and with no fear went for the kite. The kite hauled ass........with the dead dove. Ok so he's not a superhero pigeon but he tries. I think he sees himself as the protector of the community. Anyways, we see these animals as pets now with no names as our home is thier home too & when you see one get carried away by a kite it's quite sad so the wood pigeon is alright in my books trying his best.

 

[RAFUH]

 

[COYBL25]

The wood pigeons that live in the trees in my garden are awesome. My garden backs on to woods & some of our trees are large ferns so all the different birds love nesting in them. We also get a lot of badgers every night too but during the day the garden is alive. Our neighbours either side of us & ourselves all put food & water out for the animals & have done for years so we attract allsorts which have made our gardens thier homes. The one male wood pigeon we have is very protective of the area. Any animal whether it be the many baby squirrels running around or the multiple different varieties of birds that walk around our lawn care free are absolutely fine but if a new anything comes along that wasn't born & raised in the garden or surrounding wooded area he will attack at all costs to protect all the other animals. A kite came swooping down to kill one of the ring necked doves & the wood pigeon jumped off the fence (where he spends all day just patrolling) and with no fear went for the kite. The kite hauled ass........with the dead dove. Ok so he's not a superhero pigeon but he tries. I think he sees himself as the protector of the community. Anyways, we see these animals as pets now with no names as our home is thier home too & when you see one get carried away by a kite it's quite sad so the wood pigeon is alright in my books trying his best.

Are you sure it wasn’t a Sparrowhawk ?

Red Kites tend to be birds of rolling farmland in the U.K, with Sparrowhawks being the apex predators in gardens.

 

[MondayHater]

We have some woods by where I live. My cat was chasing somthing in the back garden....had a look it was a red frog. Bright red. Wish I had phone on me. I took my cat inside in case he licked him and started tripping

 

[Stephen Gibson]

View attachment 98982
Are you sure it wasn’t a Sparrowhawk ?

Red Kites tend to be birds of rolling farmland in the U.K, with Sparrowhawks being the apex predators in gardens.

We have several red kites who spend thier days circling the air above the house. They make a distinctive screeching noise & are a very common sight for miles around. Over the last 5 years or so they have expanded rapidly it seems. We have had Sparrowhawks but it's a rare sight whereas the kites i could probably look out my window now & see one within a minute or two. I live on the edge of the Chiltern Hills.

 

[Stephen Gibson]

I just googled about the red kites & didn't realise they were essentially extinct in this country until being reintroduced.

Red kite 30-year Chilterns project a 'conservation success' - BBC News

The "near-extinct" species is thriving 30 years after being reintroduced in England.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[COYBL25]

I just googled about the red kites & didn't realise they were essentially extinct in this country until being reintroduced.

Red kite 30-year Chilterns project a 'conservation success' - BBC News

The "near-extinct" species is thriving 30 years after being reintroduced in England.

www.bbc.co.uk

I`ve saw a Red Kite last Winter, sat on the cross bar of a goal on a park by me in Woolton last year. It will have been a juvenile looking for it`s own territory, after being forced out by the adults.

I saw one last weekend in North Yorkshire, on the edge of the moors, so they`re spreading all over the UK.

In Victorian times they were common scavengers in central London. It was only persecution that drove them out.

There`s a farmer in mid Wales who takes a lot of credit for their survival in the UK, as for years he was quietly feeding a tiny population that was clinging on in mid Wales, which grew and grew, due to him feeding them.

I can`t remember the name of the farm, but you can pay to go there and watch him feed them - there`s hundreds of them now !

Stunning bird, especially when it`s " wheeling " in flight and also when it does its courtship display in the sky.

 

[Stephen Gibson]

I`ve saw a Red Kite last Winter, sat on the cross bar of a goal on a park by me in Woolton last year. It will have been a juvenile looking for it`s own territory, after being forced out by the adults.

I saw one last weekend in North Yorkshire, on the edge of the moors, so they`re spreading all over the UK.

In Victorian times they were common scavengers in central London. It was only persecution that drove them out.

There`s a farmer in mid Wales who takes a lot of credit for their survival in the UK, as for years he was quietly feeding a tiny population that was clinging on in mid Wales, which grew and grew, due to him feeding them.

I can`t remember the name of the farm, but you can pay to go there and watch him feed them - there`s hundreds of them now !

Stunning bird, especially when it`s " wheeling " in flight and also when it does its courtship display in the sky.

Thanks for questioning my original post. I have just spent the last hour reading & learning about the Red Kite just to make sure & now i have a greater appreciation for what i have on my doorstep.

 

[JimmyJeffers]

I`ve saw a Red Kite last Winter, sat on the cross bar of a goal on a park by me in Woolton last year. It will have been a juvenile looking for it`s own territory, after being forced out by the adults.

I saw one last weekend in North Yorkshire, on the edge of the moors, so they`re spreading all over the UK.

In Victorian times they were common scavengers in central London. It was only persecution that drove them out.

There`s a farmer in mid Wales who takes a lot of credit for their survival in the UK, as for years he was quietly feeding a tiny population that was clinging on in mid Wales, which grew and grew, due to him feeding them.

I can`t remember the name of the farm, but you can pay to go there and watch him feed them - there`s hundreds of them now !

Stunning bird, especially when it`s " wheeling " in flight and also when it does its courtship display in the sky.

I don’t see them up my way just yet but on a recent drive to London saw 2. One was roadside scavenging. We get a lot of buzzards round here and I’d have thought they wouldn’t live alongside each other too well.

 

[COYBL25]

Thanks for questioning my original post. I have just spent the last hour reading & learning about the Red Kite just to make sure & now i have a greater appreciation for what i have on my doorstep.

Another one that`s around by you on the Chilterns is the Merlin.

Chances are you may have seen one and not known that it was a Merlin.

It`s like a tiny Spitfire as it hunts other small birds, hugging the ground as it chases down the bird.

I`ve only ever seen one on moorland in West Cumbria, but they are up by you.

I had no idea what it was and had to look it up, as it was flying that fast all I saw was it`s back !

 

[JimmyJeffers]

Also this is a great friendly thread

 

[JimmyJeffers]

Another one that`s around by you on the Chilterns is the Merlin.

Chances are you may have seen one and not known that it was a Merlin.

It`s like a tiny Spitfire as it hunts other small birds, hugging the ground as it chases down the bird.

I`ve only ever seen one on moorland in West Cumbria, but they are up by you.

I had no idea what it was and had to look it up, as it was flying that fast all I saw was it`s back !

I saw a glimpse of a small falcon last year that I think was a merlin or a hobby. Wouldn’t know the difference to be honest.

 

[COYBL25]

I don’t see them up my way just yet but on a recent drive to London saw 2. One was roadside scavenging. We get a lot of buzzards round here and I’d have thought they wouldn’t live alongside each other too well.

I`d imagine that the Kite would defer to the Buzzard due to it being smaller, but if there`s enough dead stuff there for them both, they`ll both co exist quite happily.

Same with the Golden Eagle Buzzard in the mountains in Scotland.

 

[COYBL25]

I saw a glimpse of a small falcon last year that I think was a merlin or a hobby. Wouldn’t know the difference to be honest.

It`ll be a Merlin, as Hobby`s aren`t that much smaller than a male Kestrel.

 

[kev]

I don’t see them up my way just yet but on a recent drive to London saw 2. One was roadside scavenging. We get a lot of buzzards round here and I’d have thought they wouldn’t live alongside each other too well.

May be something in that.
We get plenty Buzzards around here and although I have also seen Red Kites here, I don't see them regularly.