With the huge shift in temperature this week, spring is suddenly here and several bird species are now singing in the garden: blue tit (blåmeis), great tit (kjøttmeis), greenfinch (grønnfink) and, down in the bay about 20 goldeneyes (kvinand) have been displaying. Yesterday, for the first time, I heard singing woodpigeon, bullfinch and this great spotted woodpecker (flaggspett) drumming on the metal cap of the electricity pole:
..and this nuthatch (spettmeis) was inpecting what I have in offer for nesting sites. The oldest painted bird boxes predate my time here and were put up for starlings (stær) originally.
For the second year running, a pair of great spotted woodpeckers (flaggspett) have set up a territory including the garden. I’ve heard drumming several times recently!
I’ve never seen more than 2 great spotted woodpeckers (flaggspett) at one time in the garden, so it was a surprise to see 3 of them around the bird feeder yesterday! Does 3 qualify as a flock?
Spring can’t be stopped and this woodpigeon (ringdue) could be heard singing from the house today and I was woken at 6am (was 5am) by a robin (rødstrupe) singing in the garden (no complaints, always a beautiful moment to hear a returning Robin) ;) A black-headed gull (hettemåke) was also my first of the year and 4 pairs of Oystercatcher (tjeld) were feeding in the bay!!
I also heard singing siskin, great tit, blue tit, greenfinch and coal tit today!
Reports are also coming in of starlings (stær) arriving!
The first day of spring, snow showers and, right on the dot, I heard my first yellowhammer singing this morning whilst I was in the outhouse….managed to capture one short “Little bit of bread” phrase.
“1896, Edward Marston, By meadow and stream: pleasant memories of pleasant places
It is delightful to hear the yellowhammer’s song — his only song : “A little bit of bread and no cheese.”
1937, Lovely places I remember (in The Rotarian, volume 50, number 2, February 1937)
“A little bit of bread and no cheese!” cry the yellowhammers petulantly. But no one takes any notice of them.”
This time, a treecreeper (trekryper) on the bird feeder looking for tidbits, bird diversity under the feeder, my resident pair of great spotted woodpeckers (flaggspett) and the last video taken from my home office shows a white-tailed eagle flying across the bay and landing in a tree on Malvikodden (I hadn’t noticed when I was filming that there was a second bird in that tree and the first bird looks like he lands on her back and flaps his wings….more than that I can’t see…. ;) Eagles start the breeding season early!
Perennial vegetables, Edimentals (plants that are edible and ornamental) and other goings on in The Edible Garden
