Birdwatching
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Wildlife On The Farm - July 2017
Last year the Shelducks attempted nesting in a quite exposed badger sett but they must have been disturbed so failed to breed. The pair returned again in late March but I only saw one of them on odd occasions thinking the other had moved away. I did check last year’s nest site but no activity […]
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A Decline in Starlings
I am sure that many will have seen on TV the spectacular and hypnotic flying displays made by starlings about to go to their winter roosting sites. Lucky ones among us will have seen it in real life – good sites are spread across the country from the Somerset reed-beds to coastal piers and there […]
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Stone Curlews: Thick Knees and Goggle Eyes
No I’m not looking in the mirror – but thinking about a rather strange bird that fits the above description rather well. Not only that but it is a very rare species in this country, nesting in only a very few places, one of them being on Salisbury Plain. That being so, I have actually […]
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Wildlife On The Farm - January 2017
Since writing last a lot of water has run under the bridge in more senses than one. Although it hasn’t rained today (5th Jan) our garden is flooded in places. Our daffodils are not yet in flower in the garden but odd gardens in the village have had flowering daffodils for a couple of weeks […]
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Wildlife On The Farm - 2016 Report
I’m sure the usual farmland bird species all had a good breeding season as I saw good numbers singing, holding territory, carrying nesting material or food for young. These include Yellowhammers, Reed buntings, Meadow pipits, Linnets and Skylarks. I actually found a Skylarks nest with 4 eggs and kept an eye on it and all […]
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The Big Dipper!
For me, the dipper is one of those frustrating birds which, although the species does occur in Wiltshire at the very eastern edge of its range, I have only ever seen it in other parts of the UK. It is a bird of the tumbling rocky streams that are found in the more mountainous areas […]