A Haven for Birds

Lovely blog, David..
you are lucky to see so many birds ...

Will it be obvious which photos you take before you drink the mulled wine .. and which pics you take afterwards ? ;o) x

what fantastic photos david, how did you get so close? they are amazing! we also have a pair of buzzards circling but i have never got so close as your photo!!

we have had long tailed tits visiting occasionally this summer too.

David, you are so lucky to work there, these pictures are a treat :-)
Now if only you could make and post a video of it all :-)))

Some fab shots there David - well done you!

Brilliant photographs, David. Love the grumpy Great Tit! Good to see them so close.

Some smashing photo`s there David, I`ve only ever seen the buzzards when on holiday, we don`t get them around here, the red kites used to fly over but I haven`t seen them in ages.
Will look out for nightshots of The Haven..

Hope the switch on goes well

The first photo is my favourite, David ... Bluetits are such pretty birds ... and the Buzzard is such a handsome bird ... thanks for showing these ... I hope the lighting looks good tonight! ... :o)

Fabulous photos David ,we don't see Buzzards here , I'm sure your decking will look magical at night with the lights on , have a lovely evening enjoy your mince pies and mulled wine , don't fall into the Lily pool ;o))

Oooh I do fancy a mince pie now! Lovely shots of the birds David. Aren't Squire and M'Lady lucky to have all those visitors! Thanks for posting them. That Great Tit does look a tad on the scary side!

Great photos David. Really enjoyed scrolling down through them. We get the little finches in our garden here in NZ too, & little waxeyes & silvereyes, but the more aggressive sparrows keep chasing them away when they dare to come in for a feed, so I can never get a photo of them.

Wonderful photos of the birds at the Haven. Is that the Christmas dinner walking around in pic 8. Great close up shot of the buzzard. I was very enamoured by them soaring high above our house and the local area until I discovered they are scavengers rather than hunters.

great blog david and wonderfull photos, so enjoyed looking at them, look forward to pics of the haven, enjoy the mince pies haha ;o))

So glad you enjoyed my bird pics from "The Haven", folks. Have just got back, later than planned, and up at 5.00am for the next 2 days for 13hr shifts", so the "light show" will have to wait. Got some pics, but, frankly, I think it is awful!! Held a "post mortem", drinking the mulled wine, with us all sat on the sofa, and loved it!.Reminded me, a lot, like the Royle Family, as they made their opinions known, whilst "Strictly Come Dancing..." blared out on the "The Box". (and I don't even watch TV). Loved watching their faces, and listening to their comments on both the garden lighting, and the dancing!!!!!

Quite a lot to reply to,indviduallly, here already, but will get back to them. Will post pics of the "enlightened" garden area, soon!

Many thanks!! :-)))

I do sympathise David. I remember when the Forth Road Bridge was illuminated it too looked awful. So many people said how wonderful it was that I decided to keep my opinions to myself but I stopped taking clients out to see it in the evenings. Not illuminated it seemed to pulse with vitality, power and strength, illuminated it looked like a badly decorated Christmas tree. I was so sad to see the tawdry down grading of such a famous landmark. I'm a great believer in treating all structures with the same care as one would a listed building.

hi david great to see ur back i am allways looking for ur blogs ............. so interesting . i love birds too and am glad u put them on here . lovely................i get the long tail tits here a lots , i love them and really look forward to them poping in !! thanks for a love blog , going in favs x

Didn't take any "after" pics, Tt, lol, but the "befores" are blurry, anyway. :-))

The birds visiting the feeders are used to people, and 5 greyhounds, milling about the garden, Sticki, so I can usualyy get within 10ft of them. The Buzzard shots were, I believe, down to pure Luck, and believing that I would get lucky - some day. :-))

I still have a video recorder, Louise (Many Thanks, for dropping in). :-)) But, it isn't working anymore. Gr8 idea, though! :-))

Now, reading down, I know where all the Long-tails (or Long Toms, as I call them (confusing my birds with garden pots) have gone. :-))

Oh Dear, Lincslass....hope that you see some Kites in your local sky, again, soon. That must be a wonderful sight. :-))

Not Christmas Dinner, Scotsgran, as Squire and M'lady are vegetarians, and so they are safe, lol!! Wondering, however, if you meant the Forth Rail Bridge, with regards to lighting? I remember well the first illuminations, as was on my birthday many years ago. The lighting has never worked, i agree, due to the bridge almost always being covered with scaffolding and covers. Years have been spent coating it with something which means that the repainting era will come to an end, shortly. The work is due for completion by Christmas. It will mean a final end to the saying "like painting the Forth Bridge", but was dismayed to read in the newspapers very recently of an inquiry into the death of an employee who plunged several hundred feet.

Like to think of our buzzards being our countryside cleaners, though - a bit like crows/magpies. etc. in the "middle of the road", so to speak. :-))

Didn't fall into the pool. Amy.....just! :-))

Well, Dwyllis! Of course, I now have to Google those wax- and silvereyes - they sound wonderful - Thank You! :-))

Thanks, Cristina, Have been catching up on stuff, and noted that you had a "big" birthday!! Many congrats!!
Had one, myself, but only my "Hawaii 50"! Not surfing, but went skateboarding/stunt scootering, and BMXing that day with the kids, as was also my daughter's 9th birthday - LOL!! Nothing was broken, hasten to add, not even Olympic records! :-))

:-)))))) to all of you

Happy Hawaii 5 - O David!! ~ [and Cristina] surfing would have been a great idea, and happy birthday to your daughter David
OH and son also share a birthday here!!

Your half century blog would be amazing, David ..
Did Eilidh and James take action shots of the birthday wheelies ? ;o)

What a great collection of birds you have, David! I'm so glad that you decided to putt hem all in a blog on here so that we could all share in them with you.

Haven't been back to "I Spy" since it was first opened up & I love birds it's just that growing things comes first for me.

Congratulations on the Hawaii 5 - O! Been there, done that! LOL!

Happy birthday to your daughter, too!

I've had to add this blog to my favourites!

Happy birthday to you and Eilidh from me too.

There were pics, Tt, but any including me were sent straight to "Wheelie Bin 101". :-))

Many Thanks, Sticki - enjoy having a younger family member to take away the limelight, lol. Interesting to hear from someone else with a joint birthday. Did you make them lots of goodies???? :-))

Many Thanks, Balcony. Am glad that you enjoyed this, and I'm glad that I finally put my "Haven" birds together, at last. :-))

Many Thanks, Scotsgran :-))X

I did in the past David but my sons have grown up and moved away now [sadly for me] so i dont always see them on their birthdays. :-(

I did mean the Forth Rail Bridge David. Another senior moment but the third bridge is much in the news at the moment and it too will be a road bridge. We would have preferred a tunnel but anything that improves the crossing is a bonus. I can remember the days of the ferry. The queues were often long and it cost all of 2/6 (12.5p) to cross with a car.

Forgot that I was a "late starter", Sticki, when it comes to settling down. Sorry. :-(

Do not mention "senior moments", Sg, as getting some, now. But can remember the FRB being built. Not surprised that a grand old Victorian engineering structure will long outlive an early 1960s edifice. I have read that, underground, there is evidence of earlier tunnel attempts, but have not had time to explore this further.

That is interesting. I know the coal mine tunnels ran well out into the Forth and the miners reckoned that it would be easy to make a road tunnel there but I think it came down to cost in the end.

your children will keep you young david!!