Birds

I'm sitting here watching the rain beat down on the windows above me - after almost ten days of lovely sunshine and blue skies, it's been getting greyer and greyer as the week progressed.

But while I was able to sit out more in the garden last week, that also gave me a chance to see more of the birds...The blackbird was certainly enjoying the sun. I saw a magpie sunning one day as well.

A great tit in the hawthorn trees at the end of the garden, and another one enjoying a sunflower seed snack...

Juvenile and adult robins

And a goldfinch just because I don't often get a good photo of one in the squirrel-proof feeders, but the bright sunshine helped.

And our own mid-morning "snack" - halfway to making cappuccino :D. The gaskets for our Dualit coffee machine are no longer available except by buying a whole brewhead as well,  but I was able to buy  Krupps gaskets exactly the same size. It was about time for a new one!!

Birds of a feather...

Our squirrel-proof feeders don't lend themselves to bird photography - but with the warm sunny weather we've had all week, I've been able to catch a few shots of birds in the garden - we have quite a few wood pigeons who keep the grass around the feeders short as they trample round looking for any fallen seed.

I also managed to capture the semi-juvenile robin that I saw the other day. And another one that I am sad about - one of his legs is trailing loosely behind him and I feel sure that he won't survive - although I'd love to be wrong.

Somehow I feel as if I've been seeing a lot of cards with wild roses on them recently. Here's one growing over our end wall.

Bath Time

It was a mild day today, dull when I went shopping early in the morning but getting sunny and bright as the day wore on. In fact, we went out blackberry picking in the afternoon and came home with 2 3/4 lb blackberries and another handful of sloes to toss into my current batch of sloe gin.
Before lunch C was power-hosing our organic waste bin. It usually ends up being me who cleans it, because it's collected on Tuesdays and I can rarely wait till the weekend before using it again - it was a treat not to do it this time round. Anyway, while he was out in the back yard working away getting ready to clean it,  I went out to fill the bird feeders, and out of the corner of my eye, saw a robin fly into a pot tray that only has a couple of pots in it. He had a lovely bath - and I spent about 5 minutes watching him before I decided to risk coming in for the camera and hoping he would still be there. He was nearly finished - but here's a quick video of the end of his ablutions.

Young Robin and July Favourites

We've had so much rain over the last couple of weeks, the windows are very dirty indeed. But when I spotted this little robin this morning, I was so entertained - he just has one patch of juvenile plumage left and I thought he almost looks as if he's wearing a necklace. No memory card in the camera, so by the time I'd found the camera and then found my spare memory card (in my handbag, faster than trying to find the "regular" one), he was no longer in the best position either.

Not very many favourite cards for July what with being away and the general summer business. August will more than compensate - after Dare To Get Dirty over on SCS I have plenty of favourites already.

  I know I don't normally post Christmas cards. But I had a lot of fun working out how to make a proper spinning pinwheel  - here's the spin. with a link to the tutorial.

Young robin

From a couple of weeks back. We seem to have a lot of robins around at the moment. In the first photo, I am quite sure he was sunning himself the way I have seen blackbirds do; wings spread out, beak open, glazed look in their eyes - but I've never seen an adult robin do it.

I'm pretty sure it's what the adult starling in the first of these pictures is doing too - you can see his wings spread wide out. The second picture is a juvenile starling - he just been bathing in the water dish, but by the time I got my camera he'd flown up into the tree.

Heads You Win

I was treated to a trip to the zoo the other day with friends. I can't tell you the last time I was in Dublin Zoo - over thirty years ago, I'd say.
More photos to follow, but here are a few head-shots.

A Tale of Tails

One of our robins is moulting at the moment, and has just the stubbiest of little tails. It hasn't affected his aggression and territorial behaviour - he's still chasing the other two (who seem to be a pair) away from the feeder if he gets there first! He looks such a scruffball in comparison to the others.

The cormorant and duck photos were both taken at Heuston Station the other morning.

Birds

This was going to be a post with a couple of birds and then my pick of April cards. But time has run away from me, so tonight it will just be birds, the cards will have to be selected over the weekend.
As the goldfinches become a bit more accustomed to us, it's becoming easier to grab a few photos of them other than on the feeder. Of course with the robins that is never a problem! One of the current ones is already venturing up to the back door if it's open, they certainly know where their food comes from.

And how did I come to think my blogaversary was May, when actually it was 22nd April.
Thank you to those who have kept on visiting through the years and have become such good cyber friends.

Mixed Bag

A couple of photos from an alternative route to work that I've recently started walking occasionally. It helps that I pass the HSQ Superquinn where they have one of the best yoghurts I've tasted outside France. C is pretty fond of them too.

First photo is, I assume, an extractor hood on the roof of Heuston station.
Second photo is the Brunel building in HSQ (Heuston South Quarter) - the curved one on the right. See that blue sky!! It's been pretty windy (enough to get hand-washed Aran sweaters dry yesterday), but a lot milder and how lovely to see some more blue skies. I know Brunel worked on the railway line from Dublin down to Greystones, including the tunnels between Bray and Greystones, so I know for sure there's a railway link with him. I haven't looked at what any of the other buildings are called.

Shadows on a fence

The robins are still squaring off any time I put food out. The one on the wall is the less dominant male, the one on the log has puffed himself up to look big and intimidating.

I had to order a large bag of nyjer seed online recently; between the goldfinches, the redpolls who are back in force and the siskins it's going down pretty fast, and it's hard to find reliably in any of the shops here - and expensive! More blue sky and a goldfinch. I think some time C is going to get me a better zoom lens!!

April Showers

C was pretty wet when he got home too. He'd put on all his waterproof gear in the morning and didn't really need it, so he decided to take a chance on the way home. I saw this little robin just when C drove his bike into the back yard.
But at last we have a little warmth! I've taken a gamble and planted a few seeds...