birds not in the garden

[Sajehar]

Earlier today I asked mum what a Jackdaw was. I'd seen a crow (normally jet black all over)with white bits on it's wings, but it wasn't a magpie... I know what those f..kers look like.
It looked like a crow, sounded like one, but had white feathers by it's wings underneath. Is this a juvenile crow? Or maybe the magpies had been breeding with some crows?

[david c]

sajehar ,you have a bird book ,look it up

[david c]

oh all right sajehar here is a photo of a jackdaw

[Scally]

These birds were all spotted near Aswan at the botanical gardens four years ago when I cruised the Nile with my son: a wonderful holiday with so much to see and learn.

[Scally]

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You see some nice birds when you are out sailing. Sorry these are a bit small. Pics taken within a short distance of the Forth Rail Bridge at Queensferry.

[Scally]

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Here are some from todays walk by the loch:

[Scally]

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Gooseanders: they keep their distance:(but that's a black-headed gull on the bottom right by the way)

And it gets even better:

[madeliaette]

love that 'heron +' shot, Scally!

[crocus]

Love the shot of the cormorant displaying. I think cormorants look really reptilian - they make me think thats what pterodactyls looked like.

[Scally]

Love the shot of the cormorant displaying. I think cormorants look really reptilian - they make me think thats what pterodactyls looked like.

I think they do that to dry their wings, it's the classic cormorant pose. Another bird thats easy to mistake: shags are similar but cormorants are larger, goose sized, which is why its handy that there were a couple of geese in the shot too!

"Birds of a feather flock together" isn't really true: some do, like the goosanders and swans, but its fun to see different kinds of birds getting along fine in the same shot: it's a tip of a tiny island on the Banton loch which is very safe for the birds, and you need maximum zoom and a steady hand to get a picture as it must be a good 100 yards away.