Photography Thread

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  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    They are pretty endearing chaps - one very big one flew haplessly into the conservatory and despite opening the door wide, couldn't work it out but he climbed on my finger and I popped him on a flower. He carried on as normal.
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,871
    pinno said:

    They are pretty endearing chaps - one very big one flew haplessly into the conservatory and despite opening the door wide, couldn't work it out but he climbed on my finger and I popped him on a flower. He carried on as normal.


    Apparently there are about 270 species of bees in Britain, and 250 of those species are solitary bees... maybe yours liked the company of your finger for a few moments.
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601

    ...and 250 of those species are solitary bees...

    Interesting.

    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    Should I set up a singles bee dating point to do my bit for conservation?
    Would they prefer to meet in a sphere, a tube, a cone, a cube or even a Polyhedron?
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • elbowloh
    elbowloh Posts: 7,078
    I have a bug hotel thing in the garden now that was given to us as a gift. It's supposed to be ideal for solitary bees.
    Felt F1 2014
    Felt Z6 2012
    Red Arthur Caygill steel frame
    Tall....
    www.seewildlife.co.uk
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    elbowloh said:

    I have a bug.

    FTFY

    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    Sat having coffee on my bench in the garden this morning and there were two observations.

    One was Mum (or Dad) sparrow giving a fledgling the brush off in no uncertain terms. Fledgling is waaay fatter then parents.
    2 sparrows had a fight and both landed on me before scuttling off into the bushes to continue it.

    Yesterday in the afternoon, fat fledgling sparrow was sat on the remains of a trellis I had to remove because the cat was using it as a convenient ladder to access a nesting site.
    Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep - regularly and incessantly (not 10 feet from me).
    Every time another bird passed, said fledgling would cease chirping, crouch and beak would open in anticipation...
    No joy.
    Back to incessant cheep cheep cheep until another bird flew bye.
    Same again.
    And so it went on.

    I guess the point has come to forage for itself.

    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • elbowloh
    elbowloh Posts: 7,078
    pinno said:

    elbowloh said:

    I have a bug.

    FTFY

    Need to check it actually to see if anything has moved in. If not, i need to find a better location.
    Felt F1 2014
    Felt Z6 2012
    Red Arthur Caygill steel frame
    Tall....
    www.seewildlife.co.uk
  • rjsterry
    rjsterry Posts: 29,861
    pinno said:

    Sat having coffee on my bench in the garden this morning and there were two observations.

    One was Mum (or Dad) sparrow giving a fledgling the brush off in no uncertain terms. Fledgling is waaay fatter then parents.
    2 sparrows had a fight and both landed on me before scuttling off into the bushes to continue it.

    Yesterday in the afternoon, fat fledgling sparrow was sat on the remains of a trellis I had to remove because the cat was using it as a convenient ladder to access a nesting site.
    Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep - regularly and incessantly (not 10 feet from me).
    Every time another bird passed, said fledgling would cease chirping, crouch and beak would open in anticipation...
    No joy.
    Back to incessant cheep cheep cheep until another bird flew bye.
    Same again.
    And so it went on.

    I guess the point has come to forage for itself.

    Cuckoo? If it's much larger than the parents.
    1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
    Pinnacle Monzonite

    Part of the anti-growth coalition
  • laurentian
    laurentian Posts: 2,584
    rjsterry said:

    pinno said:

    Sat having coffee on my bench in the garden this morning and there were two observations.

    One was Mum (or Dad) sparrow giving a fledgling the brush off in no uncertain terms. Fledgling is waaay fatter then parents.
    2 sparrows had a fight and both landed on me before scuttling off into the bushes to continue it.

    Yesterday in the afternoon, fat fledgling sparrow was sat on the remains of a trellis I had to remove because the cat was using it as a convenient ladder to access a nesting site.
    Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep - regularly and incessantly (not 10 feet from me).
    Every time another bird passed, said fledgling would cease chirping, crouch and beak would open in anticipation...
    No joy.
    Back to incessant cheep cheep cheep until another bird flew bye.
    Same again.
    And so it went on.

    I guess the point has come to forage for itself.

    Cuckoo? If it's much larger than the parents.
    A cuckoo would be very unlikely in a garden and would be considerably larger than a sparrow
    Wilier Izoard XP
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,655
    Stumbled across this little thing whilst out running on Sunday morning. It was at the side of the road and not moving so I initially thought it was dead before seeing it's eyes move. I stopped to take a photo expecting it to scurry off but it just stayed there so I gave it a squirt of water and put some on the ground for it to drink.

    After posing for the photos it did eventually walk back into the hedge but had an injured leg. I'd initially thought it was a mouse due to its size but looking at the tail and having spoken to the people in the nearby house, who came out to see what I was doing, I think it was a baby brown rat.



  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601

    rjsterry said:

    pinno said:

    Sat having coffee on my bench in the garden this morning and there were two observations.

    One was Mum (or Dad) sparrow giving a fledgling the brush off in no uncertain terms. Fledgling is waaay fatter then parents.
    2 sparrows had a fight and both landed on me before scuttling off into the bushes to continue it.

    Yesterday in the afternoon, fat fledgling sparrow was sat on the remains of a trellis I had to remove because the cat was using it as a convenient ladder to access a nesting site.
    Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep - regularly and incessantly (not 10 feet from me).
    Every time another bird passed, said fledgling would cease chirping, crouch and beak would open in anticipation...
    No joy.
    Back to incessant cheep cheep cheep until another bird flew bye.
    Same again.
    And so it went on.

    I guess the point has come to forage for itself.

    Cuckoo? If it's much larger than the parents.
    A cuckoo would be very unlikely in a garden and would be considerably larger than a sparrow
    This ^.

    (I'm not that silly BT).
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    Pross said:

    Stumbled across this little thing whilst out running on Sunday morning. It was at the side of the road and not moving so I initially thought it was dead before seeing it's eyes move. I stopped to take a photo expecting it to scurry off but it just stayed there so I gave it a squirt of water and put some on the ground for it to drink.

    After posing for the photos it did eventually walk back into the hedge but had an injured leg. I'd initially thought it was a mouse due to its size but looking at the tail and having spoken to the people in the nearby house, who came out to see what I was doing, I think it was a baby brown rat.



    Not a short tailed Vole?
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • surrey_commuter
    surrey_commuter Posts: 18,867
    pinno said:

    Should I set up a singles bee dating point to do my bit for conservation?
    Would they prefer to meet in a sphere, a tube, a cone, a cube or even a Polyhedron?

    I set up a dating site for chickens - just trying to make hens meet
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    edited June 2021

    pinno said:

    Should I set up a singles bee dating point to do my bit for conservation?
    Would they prefer to meet in a sphere, a tube, a cone, a cube or even a Polyhedron?

    I set up a dating site for chickens - just trying to make hens meet
    Boom boom!
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • elbowloh
    elbowloh Posts: 7,078
    pinno said:

    Pross said:

    Stumbled across this little thing whilst out running on Sunday morning. It was at the side of the road and not moving so I initially thought it was dead before seeing it's eyes move. I stopped to take a photo expecting it to scurry off but it just stayed there so I gave it a squirt of water and put some on the ground for it to drink.

    After posing for the photos it did eventually walk back into the hedge but had an injured leg. I'd initially thought it was a mouse due to its size but looking at the tail and having spoken to the people in the nearby house, who came out to see what I was doing, I think it was a baby brown rat.



    Not a short tailed Vole?
    Definitely a vole rather than a rat i'd say.
    Felt F1 2014
    Felt Z6 2012
    Red Arthur Caygill steel frame
    Tall....
    www.seewildlife.co.uk
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    Not a happy one i'd say after getting nearly drowned by Pross.

    Rescued a fledgling Goldcrest off the road yesterday.
    Tiny thing. Amazing that something so small. light and fragile can survive.

    ...and Wren's (for all their stature) are mainly carnivorous so I discovered.
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • rjsterry
    rjsterry Posts: 29,861
    pinno said:

    rjsterry said:

    pinno said:

    Sat having coffee on my bench in the garden this morning and there were two observations.

    One was Mum (or Dad) sparrow giving a fledgling the brush off in no uncertain terms. Fledgling is waaay fatter then parents.
    2 sparrows had a fight and both landed on me before scuttling off into the bushes to continue it.

    Yesterday in the afternoon, fat fledgling sparrow was sat on the remains of a trellis I had to remove because the cat was using it as a convenient ladder to access a nesting site.
    Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep - regularly and incessantly (not 10 feet from me).
    Every time another bird passed, said fledgling would cease chirping, crouch and beak would open in anticipation...
    No joy.
    Back to incessant cheep cheep cheep until another bird flew bye.
    Same again.
    And so it went on.

    I guess the point has come to forage for itself.

    Cuckoo? If it's much larger than the parents.
    A cuckoo would be very unlikely in a garden and would be considerably larger than a sparrow
    This ^.

    (I'm not that silly BT).
    Sorry, that was me.
    1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
    Pinnacle Monzonite

    Part of the anti-growth coalition
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,655
    edited June 2021
    pinno said:

    Not a happy one i'd say after getting nearly drowned by Pross.

    Rescued a fledgling Goldcrest off the road yesterday.
    Tiny thing. Amazing that something so small. light and fragile can survive.

    ...and Wren's (for all their stature) are mainly carnivorous so I discovered.

    I did wonder about a vole but thought the tail might be a too long.

    It certainly appreciated the shower and drink, if it hadn't limped away following me helping revive it the car that passed shortly afterwards would probably have squashed it. I was rewarded by good karma anywa as I was feeling terrible running up until then but after the brief stop my legs loosened up and I felt much better.
  • elbowloh
    elbowloh Posts: 7,078
    edited June 2021
    Put two birdfeeders up a week ago, not so much as a peek from anything yet. Can hear a lovely blackbird call right now in the tree behind the shed though.

    Just looked at the bug hotel and half the holes at the top, designed for solitary bees, look like they have pollen in them / around the edges. some have been completely sealed up.
    Felt F1 2014
    Felt Z6 2012
    Red Arthur Caygill steel frame
    Tall....
    www.seewildlife.co.uk
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    rjsterry said:

    pinno said:

    rjsterry said:

    pinno said:

    Sat having coffee on my bench in the garden this morning and there were two observations.

    One was Mum (or Dad) sparrow giving a fledgling the brush off in no uncertain terms. Fledgling is waaay fatter then parents.
    2 sparrows had a fight and both landed on me before scuttling off into the bushes to continue it.

    Yesterday in the afternoon, fat fledgling sparrow was sat on the remains of a trellis I had to remove because the cat was using it as a convenient ladder to access a nesting site.
    Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep - regularly and incessantly (not 10 feet from me).
    Every time another bird passed, said fledgling would cease chirping, crouch and beak would open in anticipation...
    No joy.
    Back to incessant cheep cheep cheep until another bird flew bye.
    Same again.
    And so it went on.

    I guess the point has come to forage for itself.

    Cuckoo? If it's much larger than the parents.
    A cuckoo would be very unlikely in a garden and would be considerably larger than a sparrow
    This ^.

    (I'm not that silly BT).
    Sorry, that was me.
    Silly me - that was him.
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    elbowloh said:

    Put two birdfeeders up a week ago, not so much as a peek from anything yet. Can hear a lovely blackbird call right now in the tree behind the shed though.

    Just looked at the bug hotel and half the holes at the top, designed for solitary bees, look like they have pollen in them / around the edges. some have been completely sealed up.

    They are very wary to start with.
    When I revamped the bird table area (cordoned off brick and chick pea gravel), the birds stayed away a while.
    When I moved the bird feeder onto a stick, they stayed away.



    If i'm late feeding them, the Sparrows assemble and en masse and fly across the road to the neighbours.
    When the neighbour went into hospital over the winter, many extra birds came across here. I was feeding them 3 times a day to keep up.
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • laurentian
    laurentian Posts: 2,584
    elbowloh said:

    Put two birdfeeders up a week ago, not so much as a peek from anything yet. Can hear a lovely blackbird call right now in the tree behind the shed though.

    Just looked at the bug hotel and half the holes at the top, designed for solitary bees, look like they have pollen in them / around the edges. some have been completely sealed up.

    Where are they situated? Birds don't really like feeding in exposed places - better to put them close to trees or a hedge to give them good cover when flying in and feeding. Also the type of seed/nut/pizza may not be the staple of the birds in your garden. One sure way to attract anything around is to offer water . . . all birds need water
    Wilier Izoard XP
  • elbowloh
    elbowloh Posts: 7,078

    elbowloh said:

    Put two birdfeeders up a week ago, not so much as a peek from anything yet. Can hear a lovely blackbird call right now in the tree behind the shed though.

    Just looked at the bug hotel and half the holes at the top, designed for solitary bees, look like they have pollen in them / around the edges. some have been completely sealed up.

    Where are they situated? Birds don't really like feeding in exposed places - better to put them close to trees or a hedge to give them good cover when flying in and feeding. Also the type of seed/nut/pizza may not be the staple of the birds in your garden. One sure way to attract anything around is to offer water . . . all birds need water
    They're hanging from the shed (there is some hedge fairly close, but other recomendations say stay away from hedges as that's where predators (cats or other) can hide and pounce. One contains seeds, the other peanuts. I've thrown some seeds on the roof of the shed also to see if that helps.

    I don't have water out, i'll look into that, thanks.

    Felt F1 2014
    Felt Z6 2012
    Red Arthur Caygill steel frame
    Tall....
    www.seewildlife.co.uk
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,871
    Is this the 'big birds' thread?
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    Didn't you tell that Bee to go to the left a little?
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,601
    I do like B&W photo's.
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!