Off Topic Vote for a National Bird (feathered variety)

Full respect Colin as I have only just started watching after seeing Griffin Vultures in France I didn't realise birds were that big
We see a lot of Eagles as well
Barn owls I grew up with on the farm in Sussex love them
But to me I watch a lot of kingfishers while I am on the river not they have a brilliant work ethic

Great thread SB

 

Red Kite for me. It's great the way they are thriving now, when not too long ago they nearly died out in the UK.

Strangely, King James II of Scotland passed a law making it mandatory to kill one if you saw it. Thankfully nobody took much notice.

 

I saw a Kingfisher this morning. Beautiful, very shy birds. I've only ever seen one dive down and catch a fish once. They can be very hard to spot sometimes, despite their bright colours.
Griffon Vultures are massive, with a wing span over 8' I believe. I don't know an awful lot about them but I do know they were re-introduced into France a few years back.

 

The Red Kite was hunted to the brink of extinction in Britain, with only a stronghold remaining in Wales up until the late 80s when they were re-introduced in the Chilterns in Oxfordshire. Since then they have also been introduced to other areas, including Scotland. They went from being incredibly wide spread to being almost wiped out and all because people thought they were a threat to livestock and game birds because of their size. The ridiculous thing is that they have very weak talons and so they could never take a game bird or even a rabbit. Even now there are stupid claims that Red Kites have taken peoples' pet dogs and cats, which is just plain daft.

 

Voted for Kingfisher

 

My oldest was an apprentice at St Tiggywinkles and looked after injured kites, one particular one had a broken upper beak and so could not feed itself...it could not tear. They are magnificent birds close up...and look ferocious, but really are not.

We live near the Chilterns and always have Kites above us all the time.....we keep rabbits and chickens. Occasionally a kite will come and look at the garden for obviously dead pets, but never ever come near our live animals, but they come to eat the dog food from the garden next door during the winter.
My husband can whistle them down too...they have a distinctive whistlely call, which he can imitate...and they respond by swooping down to see if he is a suitable mate....However, they have never swooped down and taken him either (mind you he is nearly 17 stone, so they would need to be really strong!!!)
Beautiful beautiful birds..so effortless in flight

 

Even now, some gamekeepers still believe that a Red Kite will be a threat to their game birds. They know all about the weak talons, but they still, for some reason, suspect that these Kites will take their birds. A Kite could obviously kill a game bird, but it would have to engage it on the ground and it simply wouldn't take that risk.
They forage on the ground for worms and eat a lot of dead meat. Unfortunately a lot of Red Kites are injured or killed by vehicles as they try to feed on road kill.
However, if they get an easy opportunity like young rooks in the nest or ducklings on a pond, they will definitely take them, as well as small birds and rodents if they can surprise them.
It is thought, and being a scientist, you may know a bit about this, that they may well evolve in the future to have stronger talons, as there will be so many of them that they'll need to hunt more to survive.
I trust you're not feeding them?

 

I kicked this thread off as a bit of a joke, but it's turned out very interesting. I'm learning loads.

How do I get rid of the pigeons who have taken up residence in the bay tree and wisteria in our tiny garden? I don't mean pest control, but is there something I can introduce to the environment which will keep them away? I'd like to see some of the small birds sometimes. Was thinking of a Eurasian Black Vulture, but I doubt there would be any fauna for several miles with one of those beasts around.

 

Leopard or Jaguar should suit your needs.

 

I can see Stan the dog may have an issue with that.

 

I think a lot of kestrels are lost on the roads too, Col, aren't they? They used to be plentiful in the 1960's and 70's but much fewer around now.

 

Unfortunately there are far too many pigeons and they are reasonably safe in your small garden (unless you have a gun!!?).
Sparrow Hawks take pigeons and will attack in domestic gardens, but all too infrequently for my liking.
Your Vulture would only be interested in them after you'd shot them!

I'm afraid you're stuck with them like the rest of us!

 

Sorry, can't resist this

Better get a gun then. Cheers Col.

 

Increases in traffic are thought to be one cause in their decline. The increase in Sparrow Hawks, Peregrines and Buzzards could also be a factor, as they will all take a Kestrel. The main prey for a Kestrel is the Vole and their numbers are effected hugely by rodent poisons and poor weather. Barn Owls are doing quite well and they also take Voles.
It could be a mixture of all these things, especially with a lot more birds of prey looking for food.

 

A hotel near me used to be plagued by great flocks of pigeons roosting in the high trees surrounding the car park, and cars were being splattered by droppings as you can imagine, which wasn't great for business.
Sounds crazy, but they suspended plastic replicas of peregrines from the branches and the problem disappeared overnight, which is when they headed for your garden....

 

This has mixed results, although no one really knows why sometimes it works and other times, as in the case you describe, it works a treat.
Another way is to get a Falconer in to put a Hawk or Falcon up each morning for an hour or so.

 

Went for the Robin. Thought about the puffin but always think of them as Welsh.

 

This is developing into a weird QPR/Springwatch cross over...I like it...

Do you feed the birds in your garden SB? Hanging feeders rather than a bird table or scattered food on the ground will stop the pigeons dominating the food, though they'll still hoover up any spillage on the ground. Sunflower hearts seem to be the best thing for getting a good mix of small birds in - my folks have a garden full of sparrows, finches and thrushes and use a mix of sunflower hearts and normal seed.

If you really want rid of the pigeons though I'd recommend a Fossa or a small spotted genet - might be less destructive than a leopard...

 

Not that I'd want to awaken any jealousy but I quite often get to see them out of my office window...(Kingfishers not Griffon Vultures)...but then my work window looks out on a nature reserve so I also get to see Common Cranes, Cuckoos and Bewick's Swans at the right time of year!

 

Brilliant! Living near the Thames, I see them often enough, I just don't seem to ever see them diving for a fish, other than that one time.
Do you ever get to see an Osprey on its summer migration? (You wouldn't miss one. as they're a very big bird of prey with a 5' wing span).