Notable Recent Sightings

16/04 Purple Heron 1, Cors Dyfi
05/03 Firecrest 1, Lake Vyrnwy
05/03 Short-eared Owl 1, Lake Vyrnwy
14/01 Pink-footed Goose 1, Dolydd Hafren
03/01 Waxwing 20, Meifod; also 5 Welshpool by canal on 01/01. Last: 6 Bwlch-y-Garreg 17/03
23/12 Waxwing Newtown College, first arrivals 04/12, 47 on 23/12, 67 on 01/01, 30 on 04/02
09/12 Cattle Egret 1 roosting with 8 Great Egrets and some Little Egrets, Llyn Coed-y-Dinas
02/12 Waxwing 21 Guilsfield, 12 Montgomery, 1 Welshpool, and 1 on 01/12 Llanfyllin
16/11 Dotterel 3, just west of Dyfnant Forest on RSPB land
16/11 Great Grey Shrike 1, on edge of Dyfnant Forest on RSPB land, last reported 19/01
15/11 Waxwing 25 or 30, just west of Lake Vyrnwy along the Dinas Mawddwy road
08/11 Great Northern Diver A juvenile was found near Anchor, rescued and released
30/10 Black Redstart 1 in garden at Hendomen, near Montgomery
06/10 Hawfinch 5 in treetops at Powis Castle, by main car-park
04/10 Cattle Egret Dolydd Hafren, a flock of c.30
29/09 Red-flanked Bluetail Dyfnant Forest: a county first
23/09 Manx Shearwater 1st year bird grounded in Llanfyllin; released at coast
03/09 Cattle Egret 10 at Cors Dyfi, rising to 32 on 05/09
01/06 Turnstone 1 at Caersws with Little Ringed Plovers
03/05 Wood Sandpiper 1 at Dolydd Hafren
18/04 BLACK-WINGED KITE 1 video-ed at Glan Mule, near Kerry: a likely FIRST for UK
07/04 Black Redstart Female on Carno roof
07/04 Little Ringed Plover Llandinam Gravels
25/03 Osprey Female 5F 'Seren' arrived back at Llyn Clywedog
25/03 Pied Flycatcher An early migrant near Llanfechain
22/03 Hen Harrier Female in flight near Berriew
15/03 Sand Martin 5, Dolydd Hafren
15/03 Golden Plover c.50, Heldre Hill, Long Mountain, nr Welshpool
05/03 Whooper Swan 1, between Caerhowel (Montgomery) and The Gaer, with Mute Swans
05/03 Pink-footed Goose 1, Caersws, with Canada Goose flock
05/03 Jack Snipe 2, Caersws
05/03 Hawfinch 24, Powis Castle, feeding behind orchard
28/02 Pink-footed Goose c.25, flying north over Welshpool
26/02 Merlin 1 male, chasing Meadow Pipit, Long Mountain near Welshpool
26/02 Pintail 3, Llyn Coed-y-Dinas, 1 since 14 Feb
14/02 Hawfinch 1, Powis Castle car-park, very vocal
23/01 Jack Snipe 1, Moel-y-Garth near Guilsfield
17/01 Brambling 80, in beeches at Pen-y-Waen near Cefn Coch with Chaffinches
07/01 Hawfinch 2, bathing in puddle, Cwm Lane, Castle Caereinion
   
See Sightings Archive for older records

Sunday, December 01, 2013

Leucistic Goldfinch?

Thought I'd spent some time in the garden today, and this Leucistic (?) Goldfinch appeared.  Also, since switching from black Sunflower seed to Sunflower hearts, the Goldfinch have ceased to eat Nyjer seed in favour of the hearts; the change was 5 weeks ago.  Could this be that the hearts have been shelled or it is more accessible through a large holed feeder (vs thin slits on Nyjer feeder).  Thoughts welcome!


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6 comments:

  1. phil owen1 December 2013 at 15:53

    they make such a mess with the Nyjer seed might have to make the change

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kev Joynes1 December 2013 at 16:12

    I have large holed Niger feeders and hearts and the Goldies spend most of their time on the hearts , so it's a straight preference. When it gets much colder they seem to spend equal time on both : odd really as the hearts are so much biggger and require less effort, but clearly the niger has extra oil or something which they like at times. You're right there Phil-I have a table under the niger to catch the spillage. Nice bird .

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous2 December 2013 at 10:01

    Weird - is it just my eyes or is the beak slightly deformed as well - seems to have a bit of crossbill about it

    ReplyDelete
  4. Edd Cottell2 December 2013 at 10:58

    Yep, the two halves of the beak aren't aligned, it didn't seem to have trouble eating though. Thanks Kev, it will be interesting to see if they eat the Nyjer seed when the temperature drops. I read King Solomon's Ring earlier this year, and there is a section on bird keeping, and the author mentions how tricky Goldfinch are to look after when kept in an aviary (written in 1949 - it is illegal to keep wild birds/animals now), and as you say, they require a balance of oily seed to survive. Phil, since making the switch to hearts, there is much less cleaning to do!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Montgomeryshire Birds2 December 2013 at 16:18

    Edward, the BTO are currently conducting a survey of deformed beaks and would be pleased to receive your photo. See http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/gbw/about/background/projects/bgbw

    ReplyDelete
  6. Edd Cottell2 December 2013 at 20:08

    Thanks Mike, I have sent in the picture to the survey.

    ReplyDelete

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