The Darkling Thrush and friends

As winter continues onwards towards a hopeful Spring, we have seen some interesting visitors in our garden.  We are so pleased that we regularly see about fifteen different bird species at Hazel Cottage.  Many of the relatively new arrivals such as the sparrows and starlings have become very regular in the last months.  We are also seeing more of the collared doves.

 

 

 

We are both trying to learn more about birds.  I'm pretty certain I can tell the difference between the sound of a collared dove (coo-coooo-coo) and a woodpigeon (coo-coooo-coo-coo-coo).  It is all rather subtle written down like that, but more obvious when you hear it, honestly.

 

We were excited to see this chap the other day.  At first from a distance I thought it was a female blackbird or a starling, but it moved very differently, and had longer legs. 

 

Luckily he moved far closer to the back door, and for once I had the camera to hand.  Wandering around our lawn was a thrush!  We don't remember ever seeing one in our garden before, although we have often wished for a flock of them to deal with our slug and snail population.

 

It is always great to see a new bird in the garden.  We are also seeing a lot of what we discovered was a Black Cap these last few weeks.  He seems to be on the feeder every day now, and Mr C zoomed in madly the other day to discover him sat in a hedge with our resident robin.

Much as I have enjoyed this winter far more than the last, we are both looking forward to Spring enormously.  The days are lengthening now and the daffodil leaves are peaking above the ground, so even if Spring isn't here, it seems at least a possibility.

"Surely as cometh the Winter, I know
There are Spring violets under the snow."
-  R. H. Newell