Friends

11 July 2013

A Treat for the Birds... and me!


All was quiet in the garden. Neither pigeons nor squirrels to hamper my walk to the bird feeders. A perfect time to replenish the birds food supply. Yet the minute I walked out I was greeted by Robin somewhere out of sight. He, I refer to him as male since I cannot distinguish between male and female, sang like a happy fellow, calling to me as I walked across the lawn.  And then, determined not to be outdone, the Blackbird joined in, serenading me with his melodious song. I stopped to listen, hearing the distant coo of the collard dove, and marvelled at the diverse number of creatures God blessed us with. There is peace in my world when the birds sing


I don’t see enough birds to keep me happy, although I believe I just hit on a plan. Bribery. Okay, you’re probably asking how I would bribe a bird ... with food, of course.

I was going to throw the Belvita biscuits away because (a) they give me indigestion, (b) they’re near their sell-by date and (c) I couldn’t find anyone who wanted them. Then I remembered how crazy the woodpigeon went when he found a small piece of biscuit, dropped accidentally of course, and it suddenly seemed like a great idea to lure the birds nearer to the house ... with Belvita. I know the new camera has a zoom lens but for your information we also have a very long garden. Joe says I’m not to be surprised if one day I see the birds queuing outside the doctors suffering with indigestion.

The time came to provide the first biscuit gift. Armed with seed and nuts and crushed Belvita I reached the bird table where I intended to put the first course. Of course, Robin was there waiting. Silently he hopped from low branch to low branch, then dived to the ground, and back up to the branch. My mind was in turmoil because I hadn’t got the camera with me, before remembering I could use the one in the phone. Trying not to make sudden moves I slid the phone out of its pouch whilst juggling with jug and seed container. Fingering the phone, trying to locate the camera without moving, I clicked the button. 


The picture would never end up in a photographic art gallery but it was good evidence that Robin and I were breathing the same air.


You can see above who got the first taste of Belvita!

And then it was bath time for the blue tit, coal tit and blackbird. 




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18 comments:

  1. There is nothing as peaceful as listening and watching the birds in the garden - my favourite pastime. I might buy some Belvita biscuits. ;)

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  2. Awwwww.....I could spend hours in that garden--with or without the biscuits!

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  3. Lovely post, we have been out of food for a while, so when we finally got it out there it took a while for the birds to come back. But once the word was out we were popular. Birds are one of the best parts of moving back to MO. The wrens, robins and cardinals are the best.

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  4. smiles...i think your bird friends are happy...a little extra treat...we take out our scrap for th animals and birds....and they usually clean it up pretty good....

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  5. I love the birdsongs in our yard too! It's great to see you're photographing the birds that come to your yard, and then sharing them with us. I love to see what other folks are seeing in their yards. Nice photos, Val!

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  6. Oh Valerie, what a sweet story you share today!

    "...and marvelled at the diverse number of creatures God blessed us with."

    I agree! And this is why I so enjoy spending time in the park, because when you live in a city you don't see that as much. Thankfully, Philadelphia has some wonderful parks where I can spend time within nature; feeding the birds and squirrels.

    Loved all your photos, especially the ones of the birds taking baths - how cute!

    And I have to say, these photos you took with your phone are awesome. It blows me away how some of the phones (such as iPhones) take photographs that look as though they were taken with a high-powered camera.

    Have a lovely day!

    X

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  7. LOL Pearl.

    Mel, I spend a lot of time surveying the garden as well as the birds *smile*

    Oooh BC, I wish we had cardinals. I love the colour of those birds.

    Brian, I hope the birds aren't disappointed when I run out of Belvita.... grins.

    Thanks, Pearl. Watching the brids is my main hobby these days.

    Hi Ron, I should get out to the park more, at least to a park where the birds don't fly off as soon as people arrive.

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  8. Lovely pictures of the birds having a rinse. I agree with you about the beautiful songs of the blackbird and the robin. When we are in our UK garden is so relaxing to sit with the morning mug of coffee listening to the chorus of birdsong and watching them eat up the thrown away toast crumbs. We only tend to hear the blackbird in Spain and don't throw out crumbs as it may attract cockroaches close to the house.

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  9. Beautiful Valerie. The pictures are priceless. Don't you just adore watching the birds having their bath? I could watch them for hours...

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  10. Hi Elliot. I am surprised to learn there aren't too many birds in Spain. Whenever I've been abroad the binoculars and I are never parted. I suppose I'm a bit of fanatic about birdwatching.

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  11. Star, I'm lucky that the birdbath faces the lounge window. I sit with feet up, with binoculars and camera to hand.

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  12. Think I posted a comment from Twitter... but that is iffy ...

    love your bird collection.. so varied in comparison to the boring finches that have taken over my feeders....

    Great captures Val....

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  13. You have a lovely group of feathered friends! And a great sense of humor!

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  14. I'd sing and let you take my picture for some biscuits. ;)
    We have a lot of robins. Sometimes a few other nice birds come to our little neighborhood and serenade us. My son got a picture of a beautiful cardinal on the fence the other day. That was quite nice.

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  15. Hey, bribery works for both children and animals. Any price is worth a yard full of birds! And you sure do have some unique ones visiting you. Wish we had wildlife like you do around our home :-(

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  16. I love birds, Val. They're interesting to watch, pretty to look at, and very melodic.

    Black oil sunflower seeds attract cardinals, orange and yellow finches, and of course squirrels.

    Your pictures are sensational.

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  17. Love the pics and story Val. I think birds are quite fond of you. I would enjoy listening to the birds serenade me but unfortunately the squirrels take over if we leave out any food. Have a good weekend.

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  18. Thanks Pam. I really wish we had cardinals here.

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