Cirl bunting - a rare bird
Male Cirl Bunting on my bird table January 2013
We are very fortunate at Hemsford to be one of the very few places that the cirl bunting live. This picture shows a male cirl bunting feeding with sparrows on my bird table. There are apparently only about 600 pairs in the whole of the south west and its a real pleasure to see them as daily visitors for the past few years to our garden and fields.
Canada Geese and goslings
Canada goose with goslings at Hemsford
Every year at Hemsford there is an annual visit from Canada Geese. They arrive around February, nest along the banks of the river Hems or on the island of our lake. They normal have up to 6 goslings, who remain in the fields and surroundings grazing and growing away until August by which time they have fully fledged and they fly away until the following year, occasionally dropping in but never staying longer than a few days between the months of August and February. I have noticed that around August many hundreds of Canada Geese congregate at the bridge across the river Dart at Staverton but where they go from there I have no idea. They fly over Hemsford on a regular basis and you can hear them honking away as they fly. They usually fly in the classic V formation and although many farmers consider them a pest I like their presence as it dictates the seasons. A fully grown Canada Goose can eat up to 1 Kg of grass a day as they are grazers and rely on grass and foliage for their staple diet. This is why many farmers shoot them quite lawfully as they are considered a pest. They also make a lot of mess when a family of 6 goslings arrive as their droppings are rather large as they are a large bird once fully grown.
Sparrowhawk on our bird table!
Female Sparrowhawk October 2012
A frequent visitor to our garden is this female sparrowhawk. She has got very tame and allowed me to take this picure from inside our conservatory which is only a few metres from this bird table. She often sits here, whilst all the rest of the little birds make a chattering warning call from the other side of the garden. She is a superb hunter and often swoops right in front of our very eyes to take her prey.
Yellow hammer at Hemsford January 2011
Yellow hammer
At Hemsford we are fortunate to be able to see plenty of yellow hammers all year long. They are a brightly coloured bird and we have many living here and feeding at our feed stations during both summer and winter. They are more easily identified when they are in full colourful bloom with their bright yellow heads. This picture was taken in January 2011 when there was snow on the ground and very harsh wintery conditions for a couple of weeks, with very low temperatures and icy conditions everywhere.