I’m going to use these pages to list and ID by photograph the birds that we commonly get visiting the feeders or the garden in general, I may create another page for those less common appearances.
I will try to use only shots from the garden but will label any that aren’t but used as examples.
I’m also going to try to keep images of the young birds to a separate blog.
Carrion Crow
Because we live in the country, on a farm, we are surrounded by Carrion Crows which are member of the Corvid family and not liked by all.
They’re not common visitors to the garden at all but we’ve had adult birds bring their young to the garden, I guess to grab a free feed of Suet & Mealworms to supplement the diet of the growing birds.
The shot above is from 2023 and shows an adult Carrion Crow next to the tree outside my window, they’re pretty wary of us humans so getting good shots can be difficult.
This shot shows how clever these birds can be, an adult Carrion Crow on our fence, peeping under the leaves on the tree to check if I’m still around!
As I’ve said before, I’ll keep the young bird shots for another page.
Chaffinch
Now, this is definitely a common and regular visitor to the garden and all around us, a very common bird which can get quite tame when there’s food around, often seen in and around picnic areas and anywhere we might have and drop food.
Our Chaffinches mainly live in the mixed hedge running down the side of the garden and also feed out in the fields, anywhere there’s a supply.As is often the case in nature, the males are more brightly coloured than the females and they all “colour up” a bit more as breeding season comes along.
I have a terrible tendency to think of them as “just a Chaffinch” when I’m out and about.
They really have gorgeous markings, just not as bright as the male.
I think because there are so many that visit just outside my window, I’m starting to notice the variation in colours and the increased colouring in Spring.
Coal Tit
We’ve now been here for three years and the number of Coal Tits visiting has definitely increased, that and they are becoming bolder and a little more stable, therefore I’m able to get decent shots of them. I put this down to the young birds being brought here as they grow and so show less fear.
They are a tiny wee bird and very fast but quite bold, even in the wild. I have a couple of sites where I bring food with me and these are usually the first to drop in for a look.
As I’ve been writing these pages, I am discovering which birds I photograph most often and those less so, it appears that the Coal Tit in the garden is one of the less photographed, which surprises me a bit, might be the fact they are so fast?
That last shot might give you some idea of size beside a Goldfinch. I have lots of shots in the wild, just very few in the garden!
I can get very close to these birds up at my local feeding post.
Collared Dove
Very shy, unassuming but beautiful birds, my mum has had a pair nest in the hedge next to the seating area in her garden for a few years now. Here, they only seem to appear in breeding season and then drop in, grab a snack and get out again. They also seem to avoid all other birds as much as possible, hanging around and watching for ages before they take their chance.
These shots were from 2023 and as you can see, one bird actually landed on our old tray feeder, they’re usually ground feeders.
This set are from last year, 2024, you may notice there are no other birds in the shot, that may just be me cropping them out but, Collared Doves are very shy birds. They make a lovely quiet cooing sound, listen out for it, quite calming 🙂
Dunnock
Now these are definitely very underrated wee birds, many people probably don’t even notice them at all.
I suppose to many they are just a wee brown bird, like a Sparrow that hops around under hedges and bushes but catch them in good light and they’re gorgeous.
Here seen in the snow in 2024.
Another 2024 shot in the garden that shows off the Dunnock’s colouring well.
They’re also a beautiful singer, unless you’re tuned in to bird songs or you happen to see it while it sings, you’d probably not even notice.
Scozmo's Photery 