November 6th 2009 was a wet one! It was a day to stay at home and prepare my slides for a talk I am giving on the 20th of this month. Entitled by the organisers, “Wild in the Wear” ………. after the name of the Exeter suburb, Countess Wear where I am presenting……. the theme is how to encourage wildlife in to your garden and how to observe it. I will also talk about visits locally and what can be seen, with slides and photographs as well as video to accompany it all. It will be a fun evening! Last night on the BBC TV programme, Autumn Watch Unsprung, one of my images of a Jays eye was used in the competition which was nice. I had been contacted by a researcher who had seen the picture on the Internet and said that it was ideal for the competition. A fee was negotiated and last night, as I said it appeared. The presenter made a comment about what a great image it was which was nice. Here it is if you want to have a look.

.
.

Sat at home and working quietly, things were happening in the garden! For the last week or so I have been putting little bits of meat onto the bird table. I wanted to see if I could get the local Magpie closer and get some photographs of him. I quite like Magpies, they are extremely beautiful to my eyes but hated by people for their intelligent behaviour. They will eat a wide range of food, that is, they are “omnivorous”. Carrion, birds eggs and chicks in the nest are definitely on the menu and this is why they are despised by people. Since a more liberal attitude and perhaps control of Gamekeepers, who used to, and still do to a lesser degree, shoot and trap them, they have become much, much more common. They are blamed for the decline in the garden song bird population. The RSPB however does not agree with this, and neither do I. Hey, I agree with the RSPB on something…….. weird!!!!! 

Anyway, back to the story. I popped in to the kitchen and a glance outside surprised me when I saw who was responsible for the meat eating. This magnificent, (yes I really do think this), Carrion Crow. I went up to the upstairs window and got some shots to record the event. We have Crows on the roof regularly, but I have never in 24 years seen one feeding on the lawn. They are extremely intelligent and this one had worked out that I was providing regular meals for him. I put a broken hens egg out later and he came back and ate that as well, this is when I managed ahalf decent photo.
The Magpies are also becoming accustomed and at one time there was 3 all at once and here is one of them.

.

Sitting in the hide in attempt to get really close, the first garden Robin photo of the season was possible.

.