Birds in the garden

[Sajehar]

Oh dear; I'm not doing very well at this bird spotting stuff am I. I thought perhaps it might be a thrush, but it's front wasn't spotty enough.

[Scally]

Well it's OK, we all have to start somewhere. I find coming onto this thread makes me more willing to ask questions about birds. Just come back from a nice wet walk with the dog and spotted loads of stuff by the loch: too dark for the camera: heron, cormorants, jackdaw, mallards, coots etc .. maybe goosander: I'll try to capture them soon.

[Sajehar]

I can't wait to see what a goosanda is. Me crossed with a goose!

[david c]

it's a duck that eats fish and nests in holes in trees.
i bet you don't believe me.

[crocus]

I must try and get a camera capable of photoing birds
I had a charm of about a dozen goldfinches come down on the feeder today - they were so pretty. There is also a male wren building a nest in the ivy - though whether a female will pick it, I dont know.

Just to explain the above comment - in wrens its the male that builds the nest. He usually builds several and the females go round and inspect them, choose which one they want and mate with the male that built it. Sounds like a good plan to me.

[Sajehar]

Crocus, you must get a birdie camera. You know so much about them it's a shame you can't photo them. Your charm of goldfinches (I love that:charm) sounds beautiful. If I can manage to take clear photos (finally) anyone can.
It's extremely therapeutic being a twitcher. Mum had her worst night ever last night; very distressing all round. So while she slept this morning I spent 2 hours twitching in my hide, despite awfulish weather. By the time my camera ran out of charge I was practically in a state of Zen, and I am the least Zen person I know. I was fighting fit and ready for anything.
For me anyway, twitching is better than Prozac. You become so involved in just waiting, and then gawping/photographing birds/waiting again that you completely lose yourself. Twitching has taught me in just two days that I have levels of patience in me that I didn't know existed.
I'm putting the best shots into a laptop slide show for mum, which she loves looking at. If mum can't go to the birds then, this way, the birds can come to her.

[Sajehar]

David C, I believe you. A duck that lives in a tree sounds too ridiculous to be true, so it's got to be.

[Sajehar]

It was too. I checked with Ask Jeeves and Wikipedia... Phew!
A teeny weeny bit of me though maybe, David C, you were pulling my leg. You weren't.

Basically, these goosandas are the magpies of the aquatic avians; but with red bills.

"Have you seen the price of branches? Switch of those twigs! Those bloody beavers are definitely running a cartel. What's with this red bill? Those effing goosandas..."

[Scally]

Here are some common redpolls: you can see that they all look a bit different depending on the time of year: I'm pretty sure mine is the winter one. Or a breeding female. ??

[Sajehar]

I think it's a winter male; going by you're thingagummy.
Who cares..... you got a shot of a red whatamacallit.... worth it's weight in goldfinch gold.
Those Scottie tits are magnificent.

Still don't know the difference between a sparrow and a dunnock.