Owl Central

The tawny owls have been out and noisy over the last few days. The male and female calls are straightforward enough to recognise but there was an additional sound that I was puzzled by. It sounded a bit like a bird imitating a dog barking or a deer grunting. At first I didn't make the connection with the owls but listening to some tawny owl recordings I heard a similar sound on just one recording. It was described as a female impersonating the male cry so at the moment that it is my conclusion. I shall see if it disappears when the owls stop calling.

New bird species - Bullfinch

Spotting a species that I have not seen on site before is becoming increasingly rare after three and a half years living here. Today I saw the first bullfinch on site - this has got to be one of the handsomest birds in the UK. As a child living in the suburbs of London in the late fifties and early sixties I remember them as fairly common but they seem to have declined drastically. Living in Appleby for fifteen years I can recall a couple of sightings in the area, both whilst cycling, so this is only the third bullfinch I have seen in that time.

Kingfisher fishing (sort of)

I saw the kingfisher actually dive into the moat on Friday and come up with apparently something in its beak. It flew in and perched briefly on a sycamore twig that is over the water. I saw it dive in and then return to the perch. Unfortunately the handblown glass I was watching through makes everything a bit hazy so I could not be sure what it had in its beak. I can only think that is it is dragonfly larva or something similar as I have never seen fish in the moat.

Fox sightings

I am seeing a fox regularly for the first time since we moved here in 2004. Early on there was a large dog fox that came crashing through a hedge by the back door at night but nothing since. Last week one came into the garden in daylight - running on three legs with blood on its other leg. It made a hasty exit when I went out and clearly knew its way around. Since then I have seen it regularly in daylight typically heading up the field from the wooded area as I am walking through the trees. I don't know whether it has its den on the property but I am concerned about the moorhens. I found a pile of moorhen feathers yesterday and my assumption would be that the fox had taken it.

Bat in the bedroom

I went into the bedroom at around 7:30 this evening to find a bat circling. I am pretty sure it was not a pippistrelle by the way it flew and the wingspan so I am guessing it was probably a long eared. I was surprised how long it took to exit by the window I opened despite flying right by the window several times. The mystery is how it got into the bedroom, although the door was open so it could have entered the house in another room and then flown into the bedroom. I will check the attic above the bedroom to see if there is any sign of long eared roosting there.

Not many pips about

My last four bat counts have totalled a measly five bats - just over one bat per count. There are still some pippistrelles around but they don't seem to be sleeping in this particular roost. Earlier this year I counted a record 115 bats leaving the roost. It looks like I may have to wait until next year to see if they will return in numbers.

Sparrowhawk in the garden

Confirmed sparrowhawk as a new species yesterday although previously I thought I had seen one flying in the distance and there had also been some suspicious collections of pigeon and dove feathers.......

I heard a magpie making warning calls around 7pm. I looked out the window and a sparrowhawk had hold of a collared dove on the lawn. My movement, as I appeared in the window, scared him and he flew away with the dove in talons.

I had not got a close-up view of the prey and there was a residual concern just in case it had been one of the juvenile moorhens as they spend a lot of time on the lawn. However the colour of the feathers at the scene and the reappearance of all four juveniles today means it was a dove.