3 June 2001

Well, the news on the blackbird front is this. It looks as though only one blackbird chick survived unless something happens to suggest otherwise in the next day or two. The one definite survivor has announced himself by appearing openly in the back garden. Mind you, I knew he was there somewhere because the parents have been collectin anything they can get their beaks on right through until now, and still are. He appeared yesterday looking very healthy indeed. He is a good shade of brown with a suggestion of speckling on the front, but I quess that in time he will turn jet black if a male but not so black if a female, Forgive me for refering to him as "he" all the time when I don't even know what he is yet. I would hate to be referring to him as an "it". So "he" it is..I will be looking out to see if any more of his kin show themselves in the next few days. I hope at least one more shows up. Now, regarding the robin. One young robin definitely left the nest and can now be seen feeding in the back garden. Some times he feeds himself from the ground mixing with the sparrow, and if you can't pick him out just watch until something happens to cause the sparrows to up and away, which invariably it does, the young robin will be the only one to stay where he is. I notice too that sometimes he stands and does a lot of flurrying with his wings and making little squeaks in the presence of a parent robin as though waiting to be fed. If the parent flys into a tree the young one ups and flys after him to the same branch. But what is going on in the garage. Do you remember I found that there were three eggs left in the nest. Well there is a robin still going in and presumably sitting on them. I'm really puzzled by this. It would seem to suggest that the pair have now split to take care of the two parts of the family, the as yet unborn part on the one hand and the fellow being fed in the garden on the other.A lovely pair of chaffinches have been nesting somewhere nearby but I don't know where. They are also collecting lots of food from the ground and so are feeding young one. In fact, I think i might have seen a young one. He had all the feather patterns of a male bird except for the lovely red colouring which the adult male has. But he was not at all as plain as the female chaffinch.From the comfort of the Hazeler over the last few days I have been watching a willy wagtail. He seems to have a nest in a hole in the wall opposite the front window. He collects all his food in the carpark and then flys up onto a telephone wire and surveys the place for a while. He seems to spot food from there and every now and then drops suddenly to the ground, picks up a few bits and straight up again to the wire. Eventually he flys in a twisting fashion to the nest as though to mislead, rather than going in a straight line. He did this for as long as I was there, which was probably too long. Say no more. The pint was good and the craic was mighty. Oh, while I'm at it, The jackdaw is still feeding the family in the chimney pot. I spotted him going in a few times yesterday. About every 15 minutes.Now. We have a poor little magpie in the back garden. He is young, skinny and skrawney, very unsure of himself and a bit nervous as magpies are anyway. I suspect that he fell from his nest at an inappropriate time and was refused re-entry. Didn't have a pass-out I suppose. So now he is feeding himself. When I saw him first about a week ago he would pick up a piece of food and then put his head in the air to get the food to fall into his mouth. He has obviously got enough this way to keep him going. Every now and then adult magpies come and assault him badly and he has to mak a run for it. Does that ring any bells. Do you remember my magpie of a couple of years ago in the garage. I'm beginning to think that there is a bit of sociological behaviour attached to the magpie that I don't know about. Anyway I think this fellow is going to survive because over the week he has definitely improved.I hear a bird singing profusely over the last few weeks. I can't put a name on him. I first noticed him down near Killucan beside the canal. But now I hear one all the time out around the house. The trouble is that I can't ever see him. If I find out what he is I will let you know. Watch this space.