Friday 29 March 2013

Chattering Jenny

Although I have been bemoaning the absence of birds in the garden I also know that they are around. I work in a home-office in the garden and though I haven't see many birds lately I can hear them well enough, singing from the hedges.

Yesterday evening as I came out of the office door I heard a rustle and a chattering behind me and slowly turned to see a wren chittering around deep in the hedge, visible mainly in silhouette but audible enough. I was pleased to see it - despite their common-ness they only show themselves rarely in the garden and I haven't seen one here for a while.

Hopefully the wren will be first of many more. A garden behind us had a large leylandi cut down last week and I think that was where some of the local magpies had their nest. Perhaps fewer magpies will mean more garden birds will show themselves.

Wednesday 20 March 2013

Tapping fingers

I'm starting to think the the general absence of birds from the garden is of more interest than those that are there. We are getting the occasional dunnock and blackbird and more pigeons, jackdaws, magpies and gulls, but in nothing like the numbers I would normally expect.

I know that they are around because I can hear them and the bird feeders are being visited because I can see peck marks on the new suet balls, but they are staying out of sight for most of the day. Whether the ongoing wintry weather is causing a problem or the number of predators I don't know. But it isn't what I expected to be writing about when I started up this blog and I'm wondering what has happened.