Woodpigeon eating elderberries

The elders are now fully laden with a plentiful berry harvest. Early this morning, a group of nervous starlings came up and down to one, feeding on the berries. A relaxed woodpigeon stretched and fed as well. The light wasn't perfect, and the birds a bit far, but I like that the berry bunches are still pretty much intact. Elder provides berries from mid August to early November. In their monograph on Birds and Berries, Barbara and David Snow recorded 16 species of seed dispersers and 6 of seed predators feeding on elder berries, the largest diversity of species for any other fruit. Numerically, Starlings were the most common, followed by Blackbirds, but other thrushes, migrating warblers, robins, corvids and even moorhens were recorded feeding on berries. Woodpigeons, after Blue Tits, were the main seed predators, although woodpigeons can also be seed dispersers of this fruit.

Bald Blackbirds

 During July and August, the breeding season is pretty much over for blackbirds. Males, after weeks of feeding young look pretty worn and some have lost many of the feathers of their heads. Males take care of the fledglings of the first brood, while females lay the second clutch and incubate. Blackbirds might have a third clutch, so that males spend more time feeding chicks - that is, sticking their beaks into their chicks' open beaks. The stresses of the long breeding season and offspring demands might be responsible for most of the bald blackbirds at this time of year. Not to worry, they will moult in the next few weeks and look black and glossy again in time for winter. The top photo, of a very bald one, was taken a couple of weeks ago.

Another bedragled looking male from this morning 

This male collecting food for his young was not looking too bad on the 10th of July.

School Martins

I always keep an eye for House Martin's nests near home. So far I had only counted three lone nests under house eaves, with evidence that before there were more together. Despite this lack of local nests, I see plenty of House Martins around in summer, and I often wondered where they nested. Last week I took a different route to work, hoping to see the last chasing swifts of the season. As I walked, I noticed the soft chirping of many House Martins, they were flying, circling just over a street and coming close and away a building. I approached them, a group of more than 30, probably including many juveniles. Some juveniles were still inside nests, and the coming and going of feeding adults was well underway. Their nests were located in a hundred year old building, a local primary school. The roof has wide eaves with paired beams, and many of the nests were placed in between the beams. I counted 18 nests on the east south side, some looking very fresh, and there were as probably as many more on the other sides. Lovely to see the activity of the colony, and also how vocal House Martins are when young are around, some chirping with a more shrill high call.
 I know now that these house martins spend the summer at school.

Nest tucked between the beams

Some of the nest on the building

Woodpigeon portrait

Woodpigeons are one of my favourite birds. It was the first species I identified through a bird guide (in Spain, it is not as widespread in towns and much shier than here). I took this photo yesterday, a Woodpigeon just sitting on a roof, just like they do.

Sunbathing Carrion Crow

A couple of weeks ago, I surprised a male blackbird sunbathing. I thought it was dead, so contorted and stiff he looked, and stepped forward scaring it away. I missed a great photo opportunity as it was so close. Today I was luckier. On the way to work, I couldn't believe my eyes a Carrion Crow was sunbathing on the lawn, just a few meters away. I stopped, looking away and prepared the camera thinking it would flee, but it didn't. Only in the first two shots it is eyeing me, then it relaxed and carried on, sat, wings spread on the ground, head to the side, all feathers fluffed up, looking entranced as birds do when they sunbathe.

Nest building woodpigeons

On a walk in my local park, I came across two different Woodpigeons collecting nest material. This is likely to be the second brood of the season. I stopped to try and get some shots of the second one. The nest was in a large Horse Chestnut. The Woodpigeon would come to the ground, walk to the pile of sticks that had fallen from the nest, peck them until one suited him, and then fly up to the tree. Occasionally, the stick would come tumbling down a few seconds later. I wonder if they were in the early stages of nest building and the platform wasn't stable enough. Usually one of the individuals of the pair bring the nest material to the other, which is sitting on the nest, and this individual arranges the sticks.
 I had a long session while sitting at the base of the horse chestnut. Every couple of minutes or so, I would have a chance to take a shot or two of the woodpigeon choosing a stick or flying up. The woodpigeon continued its merry-go-round taking no notice of me.

Rook picnic

People were not the only ones enjoying the sunny and warm Sunday. A Rook walked around the picnic tables, intently looking around and underneath in search of scraps. A few people threw scraps to the rook and she filled her gular pouch with the tidbits. Its fledgling, precariously perched on a nearby tree, called. The Rook went back and forth taking food to its offspring.