The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Coffee Lounge => Topic started by: Ghdp on April 14, 2017, 10:45:51 am
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Very pleased to see friends returning. Dont you miss them.
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I love the peace and unpoopedon washing while they're away, but I love it when they come back. Our first and so far only swallow appeared three days ago. It's definitely that time of year :sunshine:
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Non at home yet but there are loads at the place down the road that have been there for two weeks now. We think they may still be in transit further north as the place does compost and has lots of insects about.
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Our first one arrived yesterday.
The first curlews and lapwings arrived a couple of weeks ago :thumbsup:.
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First one here yesterday .... and if it has any sense will have flown back today ... bitter wind here in S Wales!
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Our first yesterday too - in Yorkshire. Gives you hope that summer's on its way.
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Our first one arrived yesterday.
The first curlews and lapwings arrived a couple of weeks ago :thumbsup:.
Our curlews have hatched off their first broods already, the sound of summer arrived in February.
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No sign with us yet.
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will now be spending time gazing skywards
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Friends in the Blagdon Hills have seen one or two but swallows have passed us by in this part of Somerset :(
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Well, I didn't have long to wait. We saw the first one this evening - sitting on a telephone wire. :) Shame about the frost that is due on Tuesday. Hope it finds a nice warm barn somewhere.
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Not seen swallows yet but heeps of sand martins at a nature park last week. Not the same but similar flight, felt like summer to see them all swooping about.
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I think I saw one here a couple of days ago. No absolutely confirmed sighting yet though and I'm always hoping I'm looking at kites but in fact they're buzzards or crows.
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First swift, I think, sighted here today - I was driving and couldn't really give my attention after it flashed by in front of me. A tad early maybe, but pretty certain.
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No swallows here yet but a pair of cranes have arrived
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I thought i heard them chattering yesterday, but have definitely seen them swooping about here in South Devon. So good to have them back.
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Just home from a holiday in the Scottish Highlands and our swallows have arrived while we were away.
Welcome back :wave:
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Where are you ITH? :)
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Had our first 2 here today ;D
1800ft up so must be warming up. :excited:
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In MId Wales, Possum. Swallows were here waiting for us when we returned but we spotted them just north of Glasgow too.
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Hadn't seen them outside, but certainly in the barn sorting their nests out this morning. Great :-).
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Saw some sand martins today while walking the dog along the coast/harbour area...
.....well i think they were sand martins. Brown colour with white under belly and stumper tail than a swallow.......
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my day has been made , who cares my legs dont work, the US can bomb N Korea, and the election can be won by the hob goblins, the swallows have arrived and early too.
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Just seen the first of ours back today, checking out their nest in Baloo's stable. Poor things must wish they hadn't bothered in this weather!
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Saw three swifts swooping over Somerset cricket ground this afternoon. Can't think why. There was no sun and it was really cold. Mind you, we were making a lot of runs. :) Perhaps it had stirred up a few insects.
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A sad day , late morning and they are nearly all gone, having counted up to 70 birds on the steading roof in the last week we now have 5 fledglings and one adult left , one of the fledglings is from another brood ( :'( yes I did shed a tear ).
I do so miss them when they're gone the end of another summer , the haylage is in ,the wood is cut for the winter and beyond , enough propane for a couple of years, spare fuel for the generator and freezers full of the gardens bounty, with yet still more to come.
And then this evening the first of the geese arrive , as My old friend Derwent May said, its all part of a natural calendar that has no dates.
All I need to do now is get the legs working , but even that's beyond my DIY skills , so I'm told....
Roll on next April , I'll be waiting
Sorry its a bit of a ramble, just tired and emotional :-\
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Yes our are gone too....
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:'( :'( :'(
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We thought our swallows had gone yesterday but then a red kite (not seen one here before) was circling above us, being escorted from the scene by a buzzard and a huge flock of screaming swallows.
We have a nest of 4 still to fledge, and the parents are certainly feeding them. The nest is in a shed which MrF is dismantling, very slowly. Initially there were a couple of sparrow nests with young in, then the swallow, so the rest of the shed can't be taken down until the babies have fledged and also left for Africa, so they have somewhere to roost at night. Last year a late brood didn't leave until mid-October, although the parents left as soon as the young had fledged.
Of the fairly large numbers hatched here each year, very few come back in the spring - it's such a perilous journey.
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Suddenly realised on Wednesday the sky had gone quiet ...... They have all left :(
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The eternal return. Crackling fires to look forward to
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We have three quite fluffy fledglings left, I think the rest have all set off on their long journey south. Considering how dark and wet it is here, I think I might join them!
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One nest of housemartins left here. They are getting attention from a sparrowhawk every evening so I do not fancy their chances once they leave home.
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It's quite early for swallows to leave isn't it? Ours usually go around the middle of the month. They must be taking advantage of the Northerlies we've been having.
Ours have gone now too, except the newly fledged 4, and possibly their parents, which have all been zapping around madly in the stormy weather today.
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Well I am still enjoying my little family. Third brood now look ready to fledge - and then I shall sadly shut the barn door for another winter. Is it right the adults fly off first? How do these tiny little birds do what they do! It is rather humbling isnt it.The wrens seem to cram into the emptied nests in the cold of the winter ( did not know they did that) but there are gaps above the door where they can get in an out. .i will miss the swallows but have written this years arrival date in the diary since as a newcomet to this dont know yet whether their arrival is early or late.
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Ours are still here, I wondered after seeing the leaving posts, but all in barn last night.
In some respects it will be nice to have the barn to myself again, if I put the big light on they start flying about, so have to cope with a string of LED lights over the feed area, and a smaller strip light over the goats so we don't light the top of roof space.
But will be sad to see them go.
Only 2 broods here, but happy with that. 2nd brood a bit earlier than last year, so not just as worried about THAT journey.
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A most amazing thing this afternoon upon my return from work, I walked out to the pigs to feed them , going through the trees and into the clearing , I walked into a whirlwind of swallows ,its a sheltered spot and always rich with insects popular with our visitors , but there were certainly many times more birds than we normally have, strange thing there was not a peep out of them , got brushed against a few times, just an amazing and thrilling sight , I presume these are just passing through, the remaining fledglings are feeding in the yard, cheered me up a bit too.
Had a look around later on , only the 6 remainders sitting in the steading , no idea where the rest are
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First flight today. Saw the little family leave the barn this morning. Now all flying around full of life. Large gathering now forming here. Beautiful - but such a lump in my throat.
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One day earlier than last year, I wobbled into the steading to be met by a couple of swallows sitting on the cctv cable, after a moment of staring at me they took off for a flight round the yard singing as they went, it's made my day and made me a lot happier, summer is on its way
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Hi RTB. I saw our first returner on Friday but yesterday evening there were two on the wires outside the house. Both were twittering and flying in and out the barn tonight. Such a good sight.
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I thought ours were here about a week ago, but if it was them (just heard them in the barn when feeding up) , they've gone very quiet or moved on.
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Just heard our first one singing in the rain, but couldn't see it. Phew - I was beginning to think they were lost.
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Saw a returning pair briefly yesterday afternoon but as it is now drizzling I suspect they have retreated a little
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Our first (the advance guard) arrived last Thursday and now we have quite a few in the goat house, fighting for the best best nesting sites... but it does lift your spirits when they arrive!