It’s always a surprise when I’m woken to the song of a wren (gjerdesmett) in the garden at this time of year. This is not only the second smallest bird in Norway, but along with the smallest bird goldcrest (fuglekonge) they rely almost only on natural food and don’t come to bird feeders. It’s been a relatively snow rich winter with stable conditions over long periods, but somehow this bird has made it through the winter. There have been reports of wrens regularly through the winter in this area, so it’s likely that it has overwintered (some of the local population migrate to milder areas in western Europe). I haven’t heard them in the daytime yet this year, so it’s probably spending the night in one of the bird boxes in the garden and finding food elsewhere!
Tag Archives: Wren
Woken by Troglodytes troglodytes
Even though it was only 5 am, I was happy to be woken this morning by a wren (gjerdesmett) singing in the garden. Good to hear that at least one has survived the cold winter.
Foraging wren
I hadn’t seen a wren (gjerdesmett) in the garden for a couple of weeks, so it was nice to see one today foraging outside the kitchen. Luckily there’s some snow-free patches near the fjord which will help them find food during the next 4 days of sub-zero temperatures, day and night!
Wrens at Ringve Botanical Garden
My new “job” and office: a dream come true!!
I always dreamed of working in a botanical garden and somehow my wish has come true only 7 months after retiring from job as an ocean wave climatologist!
Even better, I can come and go as I wish (more or less)…I now have an office where I will be able to document and tend (in summer) my onion garden, as visiting researcher :)
WOW!
…and the staff are lovely people too :)
090118: Wren foraging and joined by a second bird120118: It’s quite a few years I’ve seen two-barred crossbill (båndkorsnebb), but then I’ve never deliberately sought them out at Ringve Botanical Garden in Trondheim which, because of its collection of conifers, is one of the best places to see this species, the less common of the 3 crossbills here…only one female with a single common or parrot crossbill…
090118: Wrens (gjerdesmett):
120118: What are these redpolls (gråsisik) feeding on?:
120118: Magpie (skjære):
120118: Dark red squirrel (ekorn):
090118: Fieldfare:
090118: Blackbird under Ribes alpinum
Autumn bird song gives hope
I’m full of hope!
The autumn songs of the European robin (rødstrupe), heard in the video from the garden this morning and wren (gjerdesmett) always puts me in a good frame of mind despite everything
It’s still very mild here and still no proper frost (just a slight ground frost one morning) and no frost forecast either in the next 10 days! Just as well as I’ve hardly started harvesting and preparing for winter! On my bike ride to town yesterday I heard 4 singing robins, and in Bakklandet (central Trondheim) a singing wren on my way into town and with the full moon accompanying me on the way home, all the signs are good!
The autumn songs of the European robin (rødstrupe), heard in the video from the garden this morning and wren (gjerdesmett) always puts me in a good frame of mind despite everything
It’s still very mild here and still no proper frost (just a slight ground frost one morning) and no frost forecast either in the next 10 days! Just as well as I’ve hardly started harvesting and preparing for winter! On my bike ride to town yesterday I heard 4 singing robins, and in Bakklandet (central Trondheim) a singing wren on my way into town and with the full moon accompanying me on the way home, all the signs are good!
Redpoll and that wren again
A redpoll (gråsisik) next to the front door…and once again Mr. Wren turns up (calls in the background) ;)
Nervous Onions or Magic Wren?
I certainly didn’t think I would make a blog post with this name today! This is possibly my strangest post ever….
To explain, I was cleaning and packing seed in the garden today (a beautiful sunny day here) and I noticed that the seed of an Allium I’d just cleaned seemed a bit “nervous” or jumpy, jumping as soon as I touched them! They don’t have an English name, they are simply Allium ovalifolium var leucoNERVUM….. I decided to film this strange phenomenon (see the video below)…..and at about 1 minute my friend the wren decided he wanted to be part of the action and starts to call next to me (see also yesterday’s wren film)…and then at the end my neighbour can be heard calling me, unaware of the drama going on….wanting to know if I wanted some hen (not wren) manure…..let me know what you think?
To explain, I was cleaning and packing seed in the garden today (a beautiful sunny day here) and I noticed that the seed of an Allium I’d just cleaned seemed a bit “nervous” or jumpy, jumping as soon as I touched them! They don’t have an English name, they are simply Allium ovalifolium var leucoNERVUM….. I decided to film this strange phenomenon (see the video below)…..and at about 1 minute my friend the wren decided he wanted to be part of the action and starts to call next to me (see also yesterday’s wren film)…and then at the end my neighbour can be heard calling me, unaware of the drama going on….wanting to know if I wanted some hen (not wren) manure…..let me know what you think?
Wren encounter
I met a wren (gjerdesmett) in the garden this morning! I’d heard him singing to me so went to say hello :)
A robin (rødstrupe) is calling in the background..