Birds springing to life

As winter came to a close I decided to try get some shots of the birds out and about preparing for nesting. What I really wanted was some good song trush shots. Another species I regularly see but whose photographs rarely seem to work out. I guess because it’s hard to get to their eye level and because they tend to be in shadowy parts. Anyway, here’s some early attempts at finding some of the more common species of songbird in the city at the moment.

Hooded crow

Little magpies. There was five of them fighting on the ground. 

Starlings in a field, showing the yellow bill colour that they develop for the breeding season

Always nice to see the various colours hidden in the starlings plumage

House sparrow

A female chaffinch which decided to pose for the camera

Long tailed tit. Frustrating bird to photograph as it sits still for only a few seconds. Some day I'll actually get a good shot of one!

Needs no introduction. Robin patrolling UCC

Same bird

One very nervous blackbird in UCC

Some song trush shots

Easily overlooked. Personally I like all the patterns in the plumage

A single redwing trush in the city. Hardly a sign of spring, but since I have 2 other turdus trushes in this post, I figured, why not.

Back to Basics

Since Cork city itself has once again become a more satisfying place for birding with the influx of Iceland and ring billed gulls I have been making an increased number of visits to the old haunts. Whilst hundreds of photos remain as yet unsorted I decided to throw up some photos of the ‘Old familiars’.

UCC is still a great place to photograph blackbirds since they often sit on the various railings which allows for better backgrounds. The two below made for quite an entertaining watch as they interacted with each other.

Here is my latest attempt at a Goldcrest shot, I say attempt as if it was planned but this tiny bird decided to land right next to my by Sunday’s well and obligingly posed, which added to my irritation when I found the other shots where ruined. Still I got this one and at least it shows the characteristic crest. Along with long tailed tits these guys are the smallest birds in Ireland.

Also got a not so picturesque shot of this robin. A correction on previous blog posts, I always assumed as a studious child that robins where members of the trush family like the above blackbird. Turns out that these guys along with wheatears and stonechats are probably more closely related to old world flycatchers like the spotted flycatcher. Must say I am finding it hard to get used to the reclassification, probably because I have been thinking of robins as trushes since I was 4! (There seem to still be people that consider them trushes. More research is undoubtedly required.)

Additionally I have been trying to get some good shots of Common gulls around the city. Mostly because it’s my favourite resident gull and because in summer it is quite challenging to find one in the city centre. Results where mixed, the detail is there, unfortunately the lighting is not, it’s been a somewhat grey January (on my days out anyway). The final shot really shows why this species is also often called a mew gull, it really does mew :)

Your garden variety birds

We put up a bird feeder in the garden, set up so I can point and shoot through the window of the kitchen for rainy or study filled days. The lack of nearby cover seems to be discouraging some birds but I’m getting sporadic groups of blue tit / chaffinch. So far I have blue tit, great tit, greenfinch, chaffinch, blackbird, jackdaw, magpie, rook, collared dove, woodpigeon  & song trush. Not too shabby!

I’ll be keeping tab of what shows up anywhere in the garden, in this page here, which can also be found to the right under sub pages (over there -> )

Here’s some past shots I have gotten of these individuals.

Collared dove

Blue tit

Great tit

Greenfinch

Chaffinch

Song trush

Blackbird

Blarney

Today I’ll venture outside the city to the town of Blarney which lies about twenty minutes drive (or bus ride) outside Cork city. The castle within its grounds is world renowned and visited by rather a lot of tourists yearly who like to get their picture taken whilst they kiss a stone. No I’m not mocking the place I’m just poking fun at a tourist industry that adds a somewhat whimsical dimension to genuine archaeology (I understand the need for reservation and safety, but adding concrete floors to a castle, really!?). Ahem...anyway, this place is not just a castle but also has a large wooded area that surrounds it full of interesting creatures.

The presence of a large lordly house and extensive gardens make the whole place feel like a miniature model version of Killarney national park. Plenty of rooks, jackdaws, hooded crows (below), magpies, rock doves and wood pigeons to be found all around the place this time of year.

Additionally an impressive amount of songbirds can be found enjoying the scattered trees of the gardens. Robins, Chaffinches, Greenfinches, blackbirds, song trushes, house sparrows and linnets can all be seen regularly around the grounds and can be quite approachable. The aged walls of the castle too allow for tree creepers, goldcrests and tits to nest (blue tit on right).

Again, like Killarney, the grounds are surrounded by a mixture of farmland and woodland with various paths running through them. The forest path is quite an enjoyable twenty minute stroll, (not sure why the sign says an hour and a half ??) and has an impressive variety of vegetation including deciduous, pine and even some very fancy looking ferns. These trees are filled with the sounds of songbirds going about their routines, especially robins and blackbirds but also the occasional blackcap warbler (left). Notably a lot of rabbits live in the forest and can regularly be glimpsed from the path.

The forest eventually opens out to a small lake surrounded by forestry. This time of year only the occasional moorhen, heron, warbler or mallard can be seen from the lakes limited access points but an impressive number of insect species can be seen here.  Several species of butterfly and damselfly can be seen here and are so common that photographing them is relatively easy. 

 

The forest and lake walk can be done as one circular journey which takes about an hour to complete, it may not be the largest place but the fact that it’s close to the city, its picturesque views and its varied flora and fauna certainly make it worth visiting for a photograph or two or just a day in the sun!

 (Please note, bird photographs weren't actually taken in Blarney but are rather indicative of actual sightings)

Common songbirds

Hello, I thought I would try the blog thing, if not for anyone to read then at least for a record. I have been taking pictures for over a year now and like everything else I tend to forget many of the bird details of my trips. This then will allow I hope, a way to keep said record and perhaps even share what little I have learned about bird photography.

I am situated in Cork City, a place that offers upon close examination a surprising variety of wildlife, particularly birds. These birds go largely unnoticed by most who simply assume that the countryside is the place to be if you want to see anything with wings. Here’s a brief list of some of the birds living in and around the people of Cork City. 

Little grebe, Mallard, Pochard, Tufted duck, Shoveler, Ring billed duck, Teal, Greylag goose, Canada goose, Mute swan, Oystercatcher, Common gull, Herring gull, Lesser black backed gull, Ring billed gull, Mediterranean gull, Black headed gull, Kingfisher, Pheasant, Great cormorant, Moorhen, Coot, Woodpigeon, Rock dove, Collared dove, Little egret, Grey heron, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Rook, Jackdaw, Hooded crow, Magpie, Blue tit, Coal tit, Great tit, Long tailed tit, Dunnock, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Siskin, Linnet, Goldfinch, Bullfinch, Wren, Treecreeper, House sparrow, Blackbird, Song trush, Mistle trush, Robin, Redwing trush, Barn swallow, House martin, Sand martin, Starling, Goldcrest, Chiffchaff, Willow warbler, Blackcap, Pied wagtail, Grey wagtail, Rock pipit and so on....

Anyway, if you are doing some walking in the city this is a great time for nesting birds, in particular Blackbirds, Robins, Song trushes and grey herons which can all be seen at the moment feeding newly fledged chicks, the robins (above and right) in particular are entertaining to watch and easy to find as they are very common.

Wrens too can be seen all over the place singing and tending to their tree hollow nests. They are quite twitchy, constantly moving through the underbrush and are therefore hard to catch on camera. The best time to catch them is when they sing. Its tiny size and brown colouration also make it difficult to spot but closer inspection is worthwhile as its plumage is actually very nice.

The two most common members of the trush family; Song trushes and Blackbirds can also be seen on every piece of green in the city scavenging for worms, snails and material for their nests. Blackbirds in particular aren’t usually bothered by the presence of people so getting a picture is easy. The male is jet black whilst the female is a dull dark brown, in spring and Summer the bill and eye ring of the male becomes a particularly bright yellow. Song trushes have a similar build but are a light brown with streaking.

Blackbird, Male (above), Female (below)

 

Song trush