When is a Woodpigeon not a Woodpigeon?

You can just make out the Gardenpigeon in the tree

Tuesday 5th January 2010

Looking out at the winter wonderland that is my garden I'm thinking, why cant it always be like this? The lawn doesnt need mowing, all the weeds have disappeared, slabs, bricks and bits and pieces which will one day become a sort of patio area are hidden by a snowy blanket. For one day in the year I'm not reminded of the tasks ahead, the tasks I'll get round to sometime.

I'm not tempted to go looking for Great White Egrets or Barn Owls in this weather, you wouldn't see a thing. No its a garden watch day. I remember it was a day such as this many, many years ago when a Woodcock literally dropped into the garden. It prodded about in the snow for quite sometime, wish I'd had a camera.

So what has been in the garden during the current freeze up. Best bird so far has been Blackcap, but also had fly over Buzzard, Cormorant, Common gull and Grey Heron. There have also been decent flocks of Golden plover, Fieldfare and Redwing which frequently perch up in neighbouring trees, the thrushes that is not the Goldies. Woodpigeons are everpresent soon to be split and renamed Garden pigeons as they never go near a wood. There are genuine flyover Woodpigeons plus the migrant winter visiting sub species of continental Woodpigeon which at present are flying about in large flocks.

The feeders are being visited by the regular garden species,but in very small numbers max 6 House sparrow, pair of Chaffinch and Greenfinch a few Blue and Great tits and maybe 6 Goldfinches. with the odd Coal tit and Long tailed Tit also visiting the garden.