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Suzy's assortment of birds
Topic Started: Oct 5 2015, 11:56 PM (1,992 Views)
africamfan
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Jane, I remember seeing Thrushes around when I was a child too., although even then (a loooong time ago!) I don’t think there were very many, where as the amount of Blackbirds seems to have stayed the same.

John 🤣😀 Ha Ha. Thanks for the reminder to put that water pistol on my list, I keep forgetting!
There are 4 Cats all together that seem to be making a point of visiting every morning. One has been using a large plant plant pot that was on a level with a low wall as a litter tray 🤮
Thank you Paula 🙂
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Eric Hardy
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Great Starling phots Suzy, for some reason we never see them round here.
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africamfan
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Thank you Eric.
We used to get loads of them but until this recent lot, I hadn’t seen any for ages either.
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africamfan
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I just wanted to show you what the Starlings are up against with all the Cats that keep coming into my garden. Some pics were of a couple of weeks ago or more but they are are the same Cats that keep coming back.
This morning a Starling was screaming at the top of its voice again while sitting on the low wall and I know it seems daft to say this but I felt like it was asking me to get rid of the Cats. I have found that I only have to open the door or rattle the keys though and the Cats generally get the message and go away but they keep coming back!
Excuse the messiness of what you can see of the garden. These last few days,Sam has had the stones and dirt pile etc taken away and he bought his Jcb here to level it off and put top soil down. It is now going to be a wild area for flowers and whatever else appears from the little clay wild flower bombs that I bought off Amazon. I hope the Bees will appreciate it 😀


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Davebutterflyman
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Crikey Suzy, that's a serious cat issue isn't it, very hard to know exactly what to do to deter them. Sounds like a great plan for your garden and a wild area for bees in the form of a meadow will be superb.
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Tabatha
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That's a lot of cats Suzy :think:
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Night Owl
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Wonderful close up shots of the Starlings Suzy :encore:
:scream: I though we had a problem with cats but yours is on another level! :(
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Jane
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We have the same cat problem here Suzy. We're not allowed to have dogs where I live so everyone has cats instead....and they use my garden as a toilet...as well as everyone elses!
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AnnB
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Oh my goodness, what a lot of Cats!
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africamfan
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The Starling Chicks are still in the nest and still very vocal.

Yes Dave, it isn't good :-( I have only seen one Cat today but I have also been out and about on a walk, so they could have been getting up to all sorts while I wasn't here :-/. A friend of mine told me today that they sell a Cat repellent in Morrisons, I am going to give it a try. One time I used Pepper because I had heard that works but the next day I looked out to see a Cat rolling in the area where I had put it! I didn't put enough I suppose.

Tabatha and Julie, Yes it is :-( Have you any tips other than the water pistol idea? I still haven't used that, I feel cruel lol but I will resort to it in the end I think.

Jane, Its horrible isn't it! The area that we recently cleared for my little Wild flower area is being used like one big litter tray now. I have just had to go out and clear up yet another mess :-(

Ann, yes, far too many!
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Davebutterflyman
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Hope you find something that works Suzy.
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africamfan
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Latest update on Starlings.
well they are still in the nest, it can't be much longer now before they venture out Im sure.
Yesterday I filled one of the feeders with meal worms and today they have all gone!The Starlings get through the suet pellets nearly as fast too.
The parents don't seem to mind me being around too much, they hang around longer when I'm about than they used to.
I try not to disturb them of course when they are at the feeders but sometimes it can't be helped. They didn't fly off yesterday when I had to walk in and out of the garden a couple of times and I still say they like me to go out and scare away the Cats lol. There is a Magpie hanging around too but Im not going to interfere when thats around. Its different with the Cats, although I don't blame them for doing whats instinctive, they are domestic and well fed, where as the Magpie is doing what it does to feed its family or to stay alive itself.
Sometimes the Starling parents seem to scoff down something for themselves as fast as they can and then fly off with a beak full for the chicks. In the process they have made a heck of a mess as is to be expected. At this rate those chicks are going to be too fat to fit through the roof gap lol.

No photo's again because I was busy and then out and about with my camera. I walked to Upton Warren again.
Pics from that at some point.
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Jane
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It will be lovely when the youngsters are out of the nest, and noisy too from what I remember! :grin:
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AnnB
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Thank you for the update, Suzy. I hope the youngsters continue to visit after they've fledged.
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Davebutterflyman
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Thanks for the update Suzy.
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feedyourhedgehog
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Thansk for the udate Suzy :cool:

I have some too under the eaves ...next to my bedroom.....they wake us up nice and early :lol2: I love the noise, Spring wouldn't be the same without them
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Dovetail-Marg
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Goodness Suzy, that's far too many cats, what a nightmare! :scream:

I've got a water pistol that I used to use on a couple of cats, but as you've said the cats soon come back when you're not there.
Since I've had the doggies I never see a cat in my garden in the day, but looking through the trail cam there are three that are down the bottom of my garden most nights.
I know what you mean about their poo being left in your garden, it's a nightmare when you come to do any gardening, but again, at the moment anyway, they seem to be going somewhere else to do that. :)

I hope that the baby starlings fledge successfully, but seeing all those cats, it's going to be a bit dodgy for them. :fingersx: for them.
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africamfan
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Sorry that I have not posted about Starlings for a while.


Drama in the garden!
The first Starling from the roof nest has fledged.
The chick has been wandering around the patio and hiding behind plant pots when the Magpie is around.
I could hear it’s little wings flapping from behind a plant pot.
Mum has fed it a few times but it seems the others are still in the nest and it’s now 8.45pm and it hasn’t even been able to jump/fly onto the low wall where mom was calling for it.
I’m wondering if it left the nest too early.
Anyone know if it usual for fledging to happen over more than one day?
I’m worried for it. It’s wandering around the patio again and now it’s cooler I bet the cats will start coming out. There has also been a Magpie about but the chick hunkered down in my little corner of the garden where there is a fairy house and it tucked it’s self away there but it’s moved again now and it is in a corner behind a plant pot,which is a tighter fit and no cat would get in there.
I hope it survives the night.
Should it be flying by now? It’s har to tell if it’s injured, it’s walking ok and it looks like the wings both flap but it’s hard to tell.
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africamfan
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Well im not sure if this was right thing to do or not. I haven’t interfered directly with what the chick does or where it goes of it’s own free will but I had a Hedgehog house in the garage and I have put it on the patio a few feet away from where the chick is,(was!) I have positioned it so cats and large birds can’t get in. The chick has wandered over and gone inside. I think it will be cold on the patio though but I don’t think I should do anything further because I would feel like I have crossed a line.
I bet you all must think I’m bonkers.
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