We had a very active evening in the garden a few days ago. Several birds that I've never seen before stopped by for a visit.
We had at least three long-tailed tits swooping around. As you can see, they live up to their name!
This is a great spotted woodpecker. They're supposedly common in England and Wales, but the only ones I've seen have been in our garden, and they only stop by now and then. Quite different from the green woodpecker I used to see in Hyde Park!
I think this is a juvenile goldfinch. Its red face simply hasn't grown in yet.
The pigeons are obsessed with this seed-filled feeder, and they're constantly bumbling around it and knocking into each other like NFL players. We don't see as many smaller birds here as we used to, I think, because the pigeons scare them away.
Finally, here's the state of some of our ladybird larvae at the moment -- they've turned into pupae, particularly on our apple tree. Presumably at some point a mature beetle is going to emerge from this pupa. I'm not sure how long they have to "cook" in their little shells before they're ready to face the world. Insects are so bizarre, aren't they? On the other hand, it seems like a good way to manage adolescence.
Our ladybugs have been coming indoors and entertaining the cats!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful bird shots.
ReplyDeleteLooks like your backyard is as much fun as ours :)
ReplyDeleteI love all the bird sightings. The two top ones I've never seen before. We have ladder-back woodpeckers here but, I don't think I've ever seen one like this one.
ReplyDelete"A good way to manage adolescence" made me laugh.
I think insects are so interesting in all their stages and forms. and birds are very entertaining too.
ReplyDelete