On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 04:23:16 GMT, Jaques d'Alltrades
wrote:

The message
from martin contains these words:
On Sat, 28 Feb 2004 20:38:04 +0000, klara King
wrote:
In message , martin
writes

Well, unless they look *exactly* like a robin ... They've been around
and under the bird table all day, though never two on the table at the
same time. Maybe a cock and his harem?
Must be my delicious fat/ground peanut/seed mix!

I think you have more than your fair share and I am jealous :-)

I'll trade you a couple for a few sparrows - the sparrowhawk must have
caught all of them

but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.
--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 04:23:16 GMT, Jaques d'Alltrades
wrote:

The message
from martin contains these words:
On Sat, 28 Feb 2004 20:38:04 +0000, klara King
wrote:
In message , martin
writes

Well, unless they look *exactly* like a robin ... They've been around
and under the bird table all day, though never two on the table at the
same time. Maybe a cock and his harem?
Must be my delicious fat/ground peanut/seed mix!

I think you have more than your fair share and I am jealous :-)

I'll trade you a couple for a few sparrows - the sparrowhawk must have
caught all of them

but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.
--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 08:45:33 -0000, "Sue da Nimm"
. wrote:


"martin" wrote in message
.. .
Jackdaws are probably our most intelligent birds, they always feed in
pairs, one keeps a look out, whilst the other eats.
--
Round here the Jackdaws fly in flocks - often over a hundred birds or more.
When they descend on the garden they are always mob-handed and will strip
the bird feeders in minutes.

I have put CDs over the nets of nuts and fat balls this keeps the
bigger birds off.
I did see a jackdaw hanging upside down from a thin branch trying to
do a tarzan act to get at the fat balls.

--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 08:45:33 -0000, "Sue da Nimm"
. wrote:


"martin" wrote in message
.. .
Jackdaws are probably our most intelligent birds, they always feed in
pairs, one keeps a look out, whilst the other eats.
--
Round here the Jackdaws fly in flocks - often over a hundred birds or more.
When they descend on the garden they are always mob-handed and will strip
the bird feeders in minutes.

I have put CDs over the nets of nuts and fat balls this keeps the
bigger birds off.
I did see a jackdaw hanging upside down from a thin branch trying to
do a tarzan act to get at the fat balls.

--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 04:23:16 GMT, Jaques d'Alltrades
wrote:

The message
from martin contains these words:
On Sat, 28 Feb 2004 20:38:04 +0000, klara King
wrote:
In message , martin
writes

Well, unless they look *exactly* like a robin ... They've been around
and under the bird table all day, though never two on the table at the
same time. Maybe a cock and his harem?
Must be my delicious fat/ground peanut/seed mix!

I think you have more than your fair share and I am jealous :-)

I'll trade you a couple for a few sparrows - the sparrowhawk must have
caught all of them

but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.
--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 08:45:33 -0000, "Sue da Nimm"
. wrote:


"martin" wrote in message
.. .
Jackdaws are probably our most intelligent birds, they always feed in
pairs, one keeps a look out, whilst the other eats.
--
Round here the Jackdaws fly in flocks - often over a hundred birds or more.
When they descend on the garden they are always mob-handed and will strip
the bird feeders in minutes.

I have put CDs over the nets of nuts and fat balls this keeps the
bigger birds off.
I did see a jackdaw hanging upside down from a thin branch trying to
do a tarzan act to get at the fat balls.

--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

Xref: kermit uk.rec.gardening:189721

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

--
Klara, Gatwick basin

Xref: kermit uk.rec.gardening:189721

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

--
Klara, Gatwick basin

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 10:30:55 +0000, klara King
wrote:

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

I wondered the same. It was certainly nothing to do with change of
habitat.
--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 10:30:55 +0000, klara King
wrote:

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

I wondered the same. It was certainly nothing to do with change of
habitat.
--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

Xref: kermit uk.rec.gardening:189721

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

--
Klara, Gatwick basin

Reply-To: "Franz Heymann"
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Xref: kermit uk.rec.gardening:189731


"martin" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 28 Feb 2004 20:42:48 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:


"Sacha" wrote in message
.uk...
Sue da Nimm27/2/04 4:59
snip

We've got three pairs sharing our plot which is about 320ft long by
120ft
wide, with a hedge border and a copse beyond.
They have clearly defined territories, with one pair regularly coming
to
the
kitchen windowsill for tidbits.
The male in the "copse-end" pair is very distinctive because he is
mottled
white. (Melanistic?)
We have seen three together on occasions - probably offspring rather
than
pairs mingling.


We have several in different parts of the Nursery and garden - you can
see
them together but apart, as it were. But the blackbirds! They're as
bad
or
worse than robins. One gets inside a glasshouse and one is outside and
they
go at each other hammer and tongs against the glass. The other day, I
saw
two trying to kill each other, I swear and I clapped my hands so that
both
flew off, overturning a 1l. pot of Euphorbia as they went. Those
critters
are vicious and we have a lot of them!

My male blackbird follows me into the garage (where I keep my birdseed)
every time I open the door. He now eats sunflower seeds from my hand.

If your blackbird becomes too tame, watch out for cats!

I know. It's a bind. There are 6 cats in the vicinity and my garden is
their stamping ground. I keep trying to maim them with my catapult, but my
aim is not good enough.

Jackdaws are probably our most intelligent birds, they always feed in
pairs, one keeps a look out, whilst the other eats.

They are also the most voracious birds known to man. Whenever I hang up a
fatty cake for the birds, the jackdaws polish it off in quarter of an hour.
(I love them, even though they are expensive friends)

Franz

Reply-To: "Franz Heymann"
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Xref: kermit uk.rec.gardening:189731


"martin" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 28 Feb 2004 20:42:48 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:


"Sacha" wrote in message
.uk...
Sue da Nimm27/2/04 4:59
snip

We've got three pairs sharing our plot which is about 320ft long by
120ft
wide, with a hedge border and a copse beyond.
They have clearly defined territories, with one pair regularly coming
to
the
kitchen windowsill for tidbits.
The male in the "copse-end" pair is very distinctive because he is
mottled
white. (Melanistic?)
We have seen three together on occasions - probably offspring rather
than
pairs mingling.


We have several in different parts of the Nursery and garden - you can
see
them together but apart, as it were. But the blackbirds! They're as
bad
or
worse than robins. One gets inside a glasshouse and one is outside and
they
go at each other hammer and tongs against the glass. The other day, I
saw
two trying to kill each other, I swear and I clapped my hands so that
both
flew off, overturning a 1l. pot of Euphorbia as they went. Those
critters
are vicious and we have a lot of them!

My male blackbird follows me into the garage (where I keep my birdseed)
every time I open the door. He now eats sunflower seeds from my hand.

If your blackbird becomes too tame, watch out for cats!

I know. It's a bind. There are 6 cats in the vicinity and my garden is
their stamping ground. I keep trying to maim them with my catapult, but my
aim is not good enough.

Jackdaws are probably our most intelligent birds, they always feed in
pairs, one keeps a look out, whilst the other eats.

They are also the most voracious birds known to man. Whenever I hang up a
fatty cake for the birds, the jackdaws polish it off in quarter of an hour.
(I love them, even though they are expensive friends)

Franz

On Sun, 29 Feb 2004 10:30:55 +0000, klara King
wrote:

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

I wondered the same. It was certainly nothing to do with change of
habitat.
--

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit;
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

Xref: kermit uk.rec.gardening:189721

In message , martin
writes
but we only have two sparrows left :-((

I've got plenty, 'cos they've got plenty of cover. The local sparrowhawk
is quite skinny, and the sparrows know where the ivy is....

nearly all the sparrows disappeared here at the same time and at least
a year before I saw reports that the same had happened in UK. One year
they were everywhere as normal, the next year they had all gone.

The last cock sparrow in our garden went quite mad: throwing himself
against the shed window, then, when we covered that, against the bedroom
window; then he 'adopted' the baby bluetits in the nesting box: he sat
on the box all day, trying to keep the parents away. The woodpecker also
attacked the box, so we hung a cage over the box. (After that all went
well, and the bluetits raised their young. We left the cage on there for
years.)
In any case, I wondered whether it was some sort of bird flu that had
this strange effect.

--
Klara, Gatwick basin