Amorous pigeons!

[ditchdwellers]

Over the weekend, I noticed the pigeons in the garden getting very frisky!  We have a pair of them, that together with the two fat squirrels, empty all three of my feeders with sunflower hearts in as quickly as we we can fill them up!
The pigeons make me laugh. They're so clumsy and often fall off the branch their balancing on. I took their amorous behaviour as the first sign of spring and have noticed the afternoons staying light for longer, so that gives me something to look forward to.


I get a lot of joy watching the birds and other wildlife in the garden. I also get various members of the tit family, sparrows, goldfinches (I have a niger seed feeder), a pair of black birds, a robin, magpies, and more. But no starlings. When I was a kid, starlings were everywhere and now it's really patchy.
We also have a fox family living at the end of the garden and they are great fun. They drive the dog crazy and I'm sure they deliberately taunt him! And they can be very vocal at night.

[oldtone27]

I have couple of clumsy pigeons that visit my garden too. They make a lot of noise as they fly though the nearby trees as they seem to collide with branches regularly. Haven't noticed them falling their perches though.

The squirrels which inhabit a large oak at the bottom of my garden seem to be continuously active all year round. I've given up feeding birds because regardless of feeder types the squirrels scoff the lot. they are however a constant source of amusement.

I just wish they would stop digging up any plants in patio pots. Mesh covers are a nuisance, unattractive and not completely successful.

Only occasional passing foxes (which are vocal at this time of year) and no dogs to annoy.

I agree that I see many fewer starlings than I remember as a kid. Just occasional visits usually with young a bit later in the year.

One frequent visitor is a greater spotted woodpecker which can be frequently heard as well as seem at this time of year. Setting up territory I think.