Birds

Chaffinch Eggs & Chaffinch Chicks

I have been sent this wonderful photo of a chaffinch nest with four chaffinch eggs inside.

Chaffinch Nest With Four Chaffinch Eggs

Chaffinch Nest With Four Chaffinch Eggs

The chaffinch nest is usually made from grass, moss and hair with an inner lining of feathers and hair, which you can see in the above photo. It is normally a round shape and can sometimes have an outer covering of moss added for camouflage. The nest is normally located in the fork of tree and shrub branches. You can see that the nest in the above photo is resting in some conifer branches.

The chaffinch eggs are a greyish-blue spotted which are laid from April to June.  The female will lay about 4-8 eggs and thenshe will generally incubate the eggs for 11-13 days.

Click on this link for more information about the Chaffinch.

White Pigeon Or A Dove

On Monday I noticed a white bird on my garden path and upon closer inspection I saw what looked like a white pigeon or dove. It’s legs had been cut on something but as I got closer it managed to fly up onto the barn roof.

It seems to be quite tame and I think when I first saw it, the bird had just injured itself. Later that day I saw if fly from our orchard acorss the neighbouring field and thought that this pretty bird had now found the stregth to resume it’s journey.

However the following day the bird had returned and was sitting on our garage roof so I was able to take this photo.

White pigeon or a dove

White pigeon or a dove

On and off this week I have seen this bird in various locations around the farmyard but I am still unsure whether it is a white pigeon or a dove, can anyone help?

Swallow Chicks Fledge

Last weekend there were five swallow chicks in  a swallows nest in the mill house. The parents had been busily flying in and out of the mill house to feed them.

Male And Female Swallows

Male And Female Swallows

Adult Swallow

Adult Swallow

On Saturday morning the chicks were resting on the roof truss in the mill house before they fledged over the weekend. All this week there has been alot of swallow activity with 7 swallows all flying around, resting on the roof of the barn or the electricity wires.
Have you seen swallow’s, their nest or chicks?

Click on the image below to visit Amazon.co.uk to find out more about this book or visit one of the Farming Friends Bookshops.

Swallow Chicks In Swallow Nest

Over the past month or so a couple of swallows have been flying in and out of the millhouse. I have been ducking my head as I enter just in case one of the adult swallows is in mid flight!

Swallow's Nest

Swallow's Nest

It took me a while to locate the nest they were making but eventually I saw the nest and then I have been waiting and waiting to see some little beaks peaking over the nest edge.

Yesterday I went into the millhouse and made some bird noises and then saw a couple of beaks appear at the rim of the nest.

Swallow Chick In Nest

Swallow Chick In Nest

I have tried to peer into the nest without disturbing the chicks and the adults feeding the chicks to see how many chicks there are . I think there are at least 3 but could be 4.

3 Swallow Chicks

3 Swallow Chicks

I tried to photograph the nest with the flash off but standing on tip toe doesn’t make for a great photo!

Have you seen a swallow’s nest or chicks?

Click on the image below to visit Amazon.co.uk to find out more about this book or visit one of the Farming Friends Bookshops.

The Claro Tree Sparrow Project

David at treesparrow.com has initiated a project in the Claro area of North Yorkshire to place 300 nest boxes for Tree Sparrows throughout the area. The project is very keen to hear from the farming and rural communities if they see Tree Sparrows on their land or in their gardens. 

Their website has plenty of helpful information about tree sparrows and a special page where you can submit a sighting using an easy online form.

Tree Sparrow

Tree Sparrow

Your help would be very much appreciated, so please visit the treesparrows website to find out more about tree sparrows  and let them know about your sightings even if you live outside the Yorkshire area!

Sparrow Eggs Found

I received an email about founding sparrow eggs.

Hi, my dad found 11 sparrow eggs. We dont know how old they are. 5 were in one nest. 4 in the other and the last 2 in the third. there is no mom. Is there a possibilaty that they will hatch? If so, how do i keep them warm without an incubator? Lexi

Hi Lexi,

Thanks for visiting farmingfriends website and sending your email.I have read that sparrow eggs incubate for 12-14 days before hatching.You can keep the eggs warm by placing them in a box in the airing cupboard. You can create some humidity by placing a damp cloth inside the box but not on the eggs. If you don’t put the box in an airing cupboard then you could place a lamp over the box to get the heat from the bulb. The eggs also need to be turned 3/4 times a day. Make sure that the pointed end is facing down.

Hope this helps. Let me know how you get on.

Kind regards

Sara @ farmingfriends

If anyone has any advice about what to do when you find sparrow eggs then I would like to hear from you.

Tree Sparrows In Garden

We get alot of sparrows in our garden but I was unsure of the difference between the house sparrow and the tree sparrow.

Tree Sparrow At Feeder

Tree Sparrow At Feeder

One of my forum readers gave me this information:

Tree Sparrow

Tree Sparrow

“Tree sparrows are smaller than house sparrows and have a completely brown head.” Campbell Ridge

Tree Sparrow

Tree Sparrow

This helped me to identify the sparrows in my garden as tree sparrows. Do you have sparrows in your garden and are unsure whether they are tree sparrows or house sparrows?

Sparrowhawk Roosting In Barn Roof

Last night I went out to check on my sows who are due to farrow shortly and after leaving the pig barn I went to see what the cats were up to. Stripe who has an injured leg got chased by Fluffy but I managed to stop Fluffy from getting Stripe, phew! Anyway whilst I was outside I shone the torch into the roof rafters of the barn that houses the bales and doesn’t have any walls. I was thrilled to see a bird that wasn’t a pigeon. At first I thought it was an owl, maybe a tawny owl as I know owls roost in this barn as I have seen their pellets. Anyway it wasn’t an owl, it was a sparrowhawk. I managed to get a few photos although they are quite dark, so I will post them soon. The sparrowhawk didn’t seem to be put off by the torch or the camera flash although eventually I think the bird wanted some peace and flew off very swiftly I might add!

What birds do you have roosting in your barn or outbuildings?

Fieldfare Spotted In Garden And Orchard

Fieldfare

Fieldfare

Fieldfare
Fieldfare

Last year I kept spotting a fieldfare in the orchard and early this year the fieldfare was back and this thime there were two of them. The fieldfare makes a clacking sound and it’s plummage is brown on it’s back and wings with a lighter brown and dappled breast and grey head. I  haven’t seen the fieldfare since mid January. Has anyone else seen the fieldfare lately?

Great Tit Spotted In Garden Feeding On Fatball

I have some fatballs hanging in the garden near the kitchen window. I spotted a great tit feeding on the fatball.

Wild Bird - The Great Tit Feeding On Fatball

Wild Bird - The Great Tit Feeding On Fatball

Wild Bird - The Back Of A Great Tit Feeding On A Fatball

Wild Bird - The Back Of A Great Tit Feeding On A Fatball

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I believe this is a great tit and not a blue tit because of the dark head but I will be checking with my friend Trisha over at Bird Table News. What birds have you seen in your garden or feeding on a fatball, please leave a comment to let me know.