Your day's wildlife

[nogoodnamesleft]

You learn a little every day.
I thought buzzards were scavengers or took small stuff like mice/voles etc.
I had to google it.

Living rurally and being lucky to have a good sized garden, periodically (maybe every month or so) I find a circle of feathers on the ground <2m diam. but no carcass. Initially I assumed a fox but then couldn't quite work out how a fox was catching pigeons on open grassland. Then when I noted a buzzard perching in a tree I decided the feathers were much more likely from a buzzard having caught a pigeon (much more likely) starting to eat then getting concerned about being on the ground so carrying the carcass off.

I've never seen anything beyond the resulting circle of feathers so very open to others telling what they are really from.

 

[Rezillo]

We've had a pheasant as a regular garden visitor in the last few days, which we have named Kung Fu Pheasant. As seen on our garden cam, it had a run in with a pigeon and ended up raking it down its breast with one blow from its left leg. The pigeon left a huge cloud of feathers behind but it flew off ok.

 

[Poacher]

Living rurally and being lucky to have a good sized garden, periodically (maybe every month or so) I find a circle of feathers on the ground <2m diam. but no carcass. Initially I assumed a fox but then couldn't quite work out how a fox was catching pigeons on open grassland. Then when I noted a buzzard perching in a tree I decided the feathers were much more likely from a buzzard having caught a pigeon (much more likely) starting to eat then getting concerned about being on the ground so carrying the carcass off.

I've never seen anything beyond the resulting circle of feathers so very open to others telling what they are really from.

Don't rule out Sparrowhawk - a female will kill prey up to the size of a Woodpigeon. This happened in our back garden, she ate some of the Woodpigeon, left it on top of a Mahonia overnight, came back next day and carried off the rest of the carcase.

Edit: link to photo

 

[Gillstay]

I have seen Buzzards carry off woodpigeon when doing bird surveys. Always record both birds despite one being gone by the time the paperwork goes in.
A dog spooked a male sparrow hawk on my cycle ride and he almost clipped me. Both of us swerved.

 

[Rezillo]

Don't rule out Sparrowhawk - a female will kill prey up to the size of a Woodpigeon. This happened in our back garden, she ate some of the Woodpigeon, left it on top of a Mahonia overnight, came back next day and carried off the rest of the carcase.

Edit: link to photo

When we found a pile of feathers on the lawn, I expected the cam to show a sparrowhawk, not some kind of ninja pheasant. Cropped picture shows the start - unfortunately the frame rate is slow to max recording time so two seconds later, all you see are feathers and a pheasant.

 

[laurentian]

I have seen Buzzards carry off woodpigeon when doing bird surveys. Always record both birds despite one being gone by the time the paperwork goes in.
A dog spooked a male sparrow hawk on my cycle ride and he almost clipped me. Both of us swerved.

@Gillstay What/which bird surveys?

 

[matticus]

I have seen Buzzards carry off woodpigeon when doing bird surveys.

@Gillstay What/which bird surveys?

Apparently the Buzzard surveys; I have no idea how they fill the forms out, but good for them!

 

[Andy in Germany]

I have seen Buzzards carry off woodpigeon when doing bird surveys.

To be fair, that's how I'd expect Buzzards to do bird surveys.

 

[Andy in Germany]

This morning waiting at the station I turned off my headphones to listen to the dawn chorus from the forest across the track.

On the way home, I saw a green and black woodpecker flying in front of my while cycling from the station to my flat.

 

[Gillstay]

@Gillstay What/which bird surveys?

For the Nat Trust to see if crop changes are leading to greater numbers of birds.

 

[Gillstay]

Not sure what's happening this week, but a Sparrow Hawk was sat out the front on the gate one day and killed a Blue tit the next day out the back garden. Plus nearly hitting the one on my bike makes for a rather odd week.

 

[Jenkins]