Anser caerulescens

28/09/2022

The garganey is a scarce and very secretive breeding duck in the UK. It is smaller than a mallard and slightly bigger than a teal. The male is most easily recognised with a broad white stripe over the eye. In flight it shows a pale blue forewing. It feeds by 'dabbling'. Garganeys are listed as a Schedule 1 species.

What they eat:
Plant material and insects.

Measurements:
Length: 37-41cm
Wingspan: 60-63cm
Weight: 250-450g
Population:
UK breeding: 105 pairs
Identifying features:
This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.

28/09/2022

Smaller than a pheasant, the male is very brightly coloured with a yellow crown and lower back, dark wings and upper neck, red underparts and long finely barred tail. The female is paler brown than a female pheasant. It is a shy bird, keeping to dark, dense woodland. Roosts in trees at night.

What they eat:
Leaves and buds, insects and spiders.

Measurements:
Length: 60-115cm
Wingspan: 65-75cm
Weight: 550-710g
Population:
UK breeding: 15 males
Identifying features:
This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.

27/09/2022

The cuckoo is a dove-sized bird with a blue-grey back, head and chest, and dark barred and white under parts. With their sleek body, long tail and pointed wings, they are not unlike kestrels or sparrowhawks.



Cuckoos are summer visitors and are well-known brood parasites. Instead of building their own nest, the females lay their eggs in other birds’ nests, especially meadow pipits, dunnocks and reed warblers. When a female cuckoo finds a suitable nest, and the hosts aren’t looking, she removes one of their eggs and lays her own egg in its place. Cuckoo young hatch after just 12 days, and push the hosts’ eggs or babies out of the nest, allowing it to eat all food brought by the host bird. By the time the cuckoo leaves the nest, it is far bigger than the host bird, but the adoptive parent continues to feed the young cuckoo for a further two weeks.



With their young being raised by another bird, adult cuckoos are free to leave the UK much earlier. Most leave during June for Africa, where they winter. The young cuckoos leave later on, once they’re fully fledged.



Their recent population decline makes this a Red List species in the 2021 UK Conservation Status Report. Red is the highest conservation priority, with species on this list needing urgent action. Species on this list, such as cuckoos, are globally threatened, with big declines in breeding populations and ranges.

What they eat:

26/09/2022

These large wading birds are a Schedule 1 species. In summer, they have bright orangey-brown chests and bellies, but in winter they're more greyish-brown.

24/09/2022

What did the mom cat say about her intuition? "I just had a strong feline.

24/09/2022

These streamlined diving birds sit low in the water and dive with consummate ease. On land they are clumsy, barely able to walk with their legs so far back on their bodies.

24/09/2022

The males are black with bright orange-yellow beak and yellow eye-ring. Females are brown often with spots and streaks on their breasts and brown beak. Blackbird is one of the most common UK birds and one of the most striking. Its mellow song is also a favourite.

22/09/2022

A small, rather nondescript bird, Cetti's warbler (pronounced chetty) is a skulking bird and can prove very difficult to see. It usually makes its presence known with loud bursts of song and the first glimpse will probably be of a dark, rather stocky warbler with short wings and a full, rounded tail, diving for cover.

22/09/2022

Slightly smaller but much rarer than the little egret, cattle egrets are visiting the UK in increasing numbers. They often spend time close to livestock and grab insects and worms which their hooves disturb. Cattle egrets have yellow or greyish legs and a yellow beak, compared to the black legs (with yellow feet) and black beak of the little egret.

20/09/2022

The all-black carrion crow is one of the cleverest, most adaptable of our birds. It is often quite fearless, although it can be wary of man. They are fairly solitary, usually found alone or in pairs, although they may form occasional flocks.

20/09/2022

The capercaillie is a huge woodland grouse, the large black males are unmistakable. They spend a lot of time feeding on the ground, but may also be found in trees, feeding on shoots and buds. They are a localised breeding species found in Scottish native pinewood, a rare and vulnerable habitat, and in commercial conifer plantations. The UK capercaillie population has declined so rapidly that it is at very real risk of extinction (for the second time) and is a 'Red List' species.

18/09/2022

What do cats look for in a significant other? A great purrsonality.

18/09/2022

What do cats quote from the movie Bridesmaids? "Help me, I'm paw!"

18/09/2022

The canada goose is a large goose, with a distinctive black head and neck and large white throat patch. An introduced species from North America, it has successfully spread to cover most of the UK. It forms noisy flocks and is often regarded as a nuisance in areas where large numbers occur on amenity grassland and parks.

18/09/2022

14/09/2022

The snow goose is a medium-sized goose, rather thin-necked with a stout bill. It occurs in two colour forms, one all white with black wing feathers which are obvious in flight, the other white-headed with a blue-grey body and wings. It does not breed in the UK, except where escaped from captivity. Wild birds breed in Greenland, Arctic North America and Siberia - some migrate south in the autumn to spend the winter on the Atlantic coast of the USA.

14/09/2022

14/09/2022