Nature watch - leggy birds

There's a heron that parks it's arse. On a house roof across from me every few days. Glad I ain't got a fish pond. Previous owners did. And lost the lot to these.

 

They are very adept at fishing! We get quite a lot in the local parks which is quite surprising with how dense the residential areas are that surround them. Good sign for them to be about though. If there are herons, there are (were) definitely fish around.

 

I used to live up Blenheim Road as a kid and we'd regularly have exotic looking birds in our garden when they escaped from their cages up at Locke Park, I wonder if the parakeets are relatives of theirs?

 

It's good that they've survived and reproduced if they are

 

Anyone remember those 2 flamingoes on Broomhill flash back in the seventies?

 

No chance of that happening up here, we can't afford to cut back the trees and shrubs because of, well.....the tory cutbacks.

 

Yes there the ones can't miss them with the screeching they make.

 

Isn’t he the German comedian?

 

Lorraine Chase was a leggy bird from Luton Airport apparently.

 

If you're lucky and out a bit more into the wetlands around Smithies there is a white heron like bird that could well be some sort of Egret that hangs around during the summer.

 

One of them will empty your fish pond for you.

 

I'm all for diversity, be it human or animal, but I'm not sure about the parakeets. I don't know enough about them to say, but they are an invasive species and my concern is, which native birds have they ousted/will they oust? They have spread over the country from a few escapes in, I think, Kent.

 

There are loads in London. They commonly nest in holes in mature trees, so any species that would typically nest there, they will be displacing. We get them in the park by us and its not uncommon to see one on the bird feeder. Sadly becoming more common than seeing a woodpecker now.

 

Saw 2 last week on our street (parakeets not woodpeckers).

Whilst there’s lots of birds in our gardens, there’s not much in the way of diversity.

All of this not helped by everyone digging up hedges and putting up fences. And 3 neighbours this year have replaced their lawns with plastic.

 

Don't even start me on plastic lawns. Its the first thing I'd ban. Sadly, and surprisingly, it seems more prevalent in Barnsley than London, that or completely paving the back and even putting plastic fake flowers in pots outside (like my mums neighbour). The other thing..... sheds. Looking out from the top floor at my mums theres literally more sheds than anything else. To the left, they have 5 outbuildings (and plastic lawn at the front), to the right they have 3. At the bottom of the garden, they have 2 sheds, a man cave and a hot tub under a very shonky frame. But how many sheds does a person need?

It's really quiet in the garden the last few days with the butchery of the park, I'm hoping the birds return as it quietens down again, but the stress of their habitat being attacked while in nesting season, I don't know how resilient birds are to that sort of activity.

To say we're not far from a main road and in zone 2 of central london, we do get a lot of wildlife locally. Loads of different types of moths and butterfly and i'd say probably around 15-20 species of birds. Even saw a redwing perched on the neighbours shrubs last year. There is a big piece of preserved land which is left to naturalise. Plenty of foxes live there, even get bats and very rarely a few stag beetles.

 

Me too!
The whole nation sits down to watch David Attenborough and weeps for some turtle with the plastic from a 4 pack wrapped round its neck.
Next morning looks out the window and sees the grass needs cutting and thinks fu ckthat I’m having one o them plastic lawns. I genuinely despair.
Likewise anyone who litters takeaway packaging, it should be ground up and fed to the fu ckers. It probably has the same nutritional value as the crap that was in it anyway.