with all the topics on ILX that turn into US/UK comparison threads, I'd still never have guessed "robins" was one of them
― nabisco, Monday, 11 May 2009 16:43 (fifteen years ago) link
the poster responsible...less of a surprise
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 16:54 (fifteen years ago) link
I retract "silly", although I maintain that calling it a robin is a big fat misnomer
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 16:55 (fifteen years ago) link
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/condor/images/condor119.jpg
― the Member for Paisley (gabbneb), Monday, 11 May 2009 17:05 (fifteen years ago) link
we see your fancy britishes robin and raise you a california condor
― the Member for Paisley (gabbneb), Monday, 11 May 2009 17:13 (fifteen years ago) link
my backyard in SF is populated by Anna's hummingbirds:http://www.comoxvalleynaturalist.bc.ca/assets/images/birds/annas_hummingbird_m.jpg
and Stellar's Jays:http://www.governmentcaucus.bc.ca/media/Stellar%27s-Jay_225.jpg
― the table is the table, Monday, 11 May 2009 17:17 (fifteen years ago) link
and occasionally the fearsome Common Raven, western:http://tompawlesh.smugmug.com/photos/225724675_Zc65L-M.jpg
these guys actually scare me. they're big as fucking gulls, and i'm used to crows.
― the table is the table, Monday, 11 May 2009 17:19 (fifteen years ago) link
I retract "silly", although I maintain that calling it a robin is a big fat misnomer― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 11:55 (24 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 11:55 (24 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
I spent most of this winter complaining about these texas-sized robin imposters. Turdus Migratorius indeed.
― Prince of Persia (Ed), Monday, 11 May 2009 17:22 (fifteen years ago) link
Genus Erithacus or nothing, mate. Red breasted bastard thrush.
― Prince of Persia (Ed), Monday, 11 May 2009 17:24 (fifteen years ago) link
My dad had a big, barrel-shaped barbeque grill used for smoking meats. It had a little chimney with a latch that could open or close access to it. My dad had left it open and some robins built a nest in it. My dad wanted to remove the nest so he could cook on it, but naturally his three daughters greeted this with protests and tears. This debate happened every few days until the birds left the nest.
― fillibustar superstar! (Abbott), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:15 (fifteen years ago) link
british robins are very territorial and will fight to the death to protect their territory.
― djh, Monday, 11 May 2009 18:16 (fifteen years ago) link
The national aviary here in pittsburgh one of these
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/45/128223385_cb9f040e60.jpg?v=0
a pygmy falcon, which would probably loose in a fight with an territorially aggrieved robin.
― Prince of Persia (Ed), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:22 (fifteen years ago) link
omg such conflicting and confused thoughts about that bird
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:24 (fifteen years ago) link
They have one of these too
http://whyfiles.org/shorties/180chickadee/images/pygmy_owl.jpg
For a so-called national aviary it is very small, I think someone built the national aviary of Liechtenstein here. They have a sloth as well which is rather delightful but not strictly a bird.
― Prince of Persia (Ed), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:28 (fifteen years ago) link
Is that a pygmy owl? I know such a breed exists.
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:30 (fifteen years ago) link
Ah, so it is. URLs are so helpful.
There are several breeds, I really want to got to the dessert to see the cactus dwelling ones
http://media.collegepublisher.com/media/paper997/stills/hdyogypb.jpghttp://www.swca.com/projects/project_images/6647_1.jpghttp://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/images/POCactus.jpg
― Prince of Persia (Ed), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:33 (fifteen years ago) link
That Condor is more goth than Bimble.
― Ned Trifle II, Monday, 11 May 2009 18:37 (fifteen years ago) link
Bimble needs to up his game and start wearing some identification tags around his arms imo
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:45 (fifteen years ago) link
I know I put this somewhere else but I'm very pleased with it.http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3559/3303372099_ec2f10dc34.jpgA Partridge On My Patio.
― Ned Trifle II, Monday, 11 May 2009 18:48 (fifteen years ago) link
http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/graphics/seagull.gif
― high (latebloomer), Monday, 11 May 2009 18:59 (fifteen years ago) link
but not their good names, apparently
― nabisco, Monday, 11 May 2009 19:14 (fifteen years ago) link
i like how their brazen hardness is perceived as cuteness.
― djh, Monday, 11 May 2009 19:32 (fifteen years ago) link
i like to get on with birds<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/carljgodwin/2707309584/" title="Hello there! by carljgodwin, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3210/2707309584_ca294bb2ca.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Hello there!" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/carljgodwin/2707319866/" title="At one with nature... by carljgodwin, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3058/2707319866_973405e1c8.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="At one with nature..." /></a>what are these btw?
― not_goodwin, Monday, 11 May 2009 21:17 (fifteen years ago) link
nooooo!i like to get on with birdshttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3210/2707309584_ca294bb2ca.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3058/2707319866_973405e1c8.jpgwhat are these btw?
― not_goodwin, Monday, 11 May 2009 21:18 (fifteen years ago) link
thats better
choughs
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 21:20 (fifteen years ago) link
coastal members of the crow famly, tend to nest on cliffs, i think they might be the official bird of cornwall or wales or some shit
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 21:21 (fifteen years ago) link
there's a little robin redbreast that is in my garden everyday. He perches on top of the same seat and shits on it.
― languid samuel l. jackson (jim), Monday, 11 May 2009 21:23 (fifteen years ago) link
i was in Austria at the time.
― not_goodwin, Monday, 11 May 2009 21:23 (fifteen years ago) link
oh shit they might be Alpine Choughs then! Actually, given the colour of their beaks, I'd say that's exactly what they are. My bad.
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 21:26 (fifteen years ago) link
Argh I can't believe I made such an elemental error
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 21:28 (fifteen years ago) link
Don't be angry with yourself, at least you know what they are.
― not_goodwin, Monday, 11 May 2009 21:44 (fifteen years ago) link
Different beaks. But damn it you were close enough!
― Ned Trifle II, Monday, 11 May 2009 21:45 (fifteen years ago) link
xp
now all you gotta do is pronouce em correctly
― sorry for british (country matters), Monday, 11 May 2009 23:30 (fifteen years ago) link
crows are bastards
― chip dumstorf, Monday, 11 May 2009 23:38 (fifteen years ago) link
Featherstonehaugh-Cholmondeley
― Ned Trifle II, Tuesday, 12 May 2009 08:23 (fifteen years ago) link
crows and gulls are the kings of birds imo, theyre just harder, cleverer, more resourceful and more straight-up aware of their surroundings than the sweet innocents of the avian world
and crows, on top of this, are passeridae, the more advanced and sophisticated half of the phylum...it's everything in one package: brilliant flying skills, advanced social interaction, improvised eating routines, fearless predation
― sorry for british (country matters), Tuesday, 12 May 2009 13:17 (fifteen years ago) link
Dunno if you've seen them in the wild LJ, but choughs in particular are amazingly agile flyers and so at home too in the windiest and wildest of places. Awesome critters.
― Enemy Insects (NickB), Tuesday, 12 May 2009 13:29 (fifteen years ago) link
you dare doubt the lengths this not-quite-recovered ornithologist would go to to see a chough? pfah!
anyway, yeah, when we went to Wales and scouted out Skomer Island that one time, choughs aplenty cavorted by the cliffs. this was approximately 2 weeks before the sea empress disaster fwiw
― sorry for british (country matters), Tuesday, 12 May 2009 13:32 (fifteen years ago) link
Ooooh, never been to Skomer. Gonna wait till the kids are a bit older and then take them birding up there to see da puffinks. This year's plan is to show them OWLS. Failed miserably to manage this last year though.
― Enemy Insects (NickB), Tuesday, 12 May 2009 13:39 (fifteen years ago) link
was a grey wagtail in the park this morning - i see him about twice a year
― koogs, Tuesday, 12 May 2009 13:47 (fifteen years ago) link
I think grey wagtails ought to lobby parliament for a name change. They've definitely been short-changed there.
― Enemy Insects (NickB), Tuesday, 12 May 2009 13:49 (fifteen years ago) link
probably the yellow and pied wagtails got named 1st, then someone saw the grey one and was all bollocks gotta keep up this colour + wagtail thing we got going on.
― Jarlrmai, Tuesday, 12 May 2009 14:00 (fifteen years ago) link
wagtails are more or less my favourite birds
the misnomer of "grey wagtail" and the manner in which its colourful hues reveal themselves at closer inspection (along with th fact that it incorporates the colours of the other two, gaudier wagtails) forms an intrinsic part of a section of a long poem i wrote
― sorry for british (country matters), Tuesday, 12 May 2009 14:34 (fifteen years ago) link
songs for ornithologists:
CD-R80: Songs for ornithologists
― djh, Wednesday, 13 May 2009 19:32 (fifteen years ago) link
the grey wagtail landed on the path in front of me today and i got within 10ft of him as he was hopping along and doing the sinusoidal flight thing they do. great tail feathers.
in other bird-related news, the swifts are back which is always a joy. why they fly back from south africa to W12 every year is beyond me but i'm glad they do. we get flocks of 20 or 30 of them at times, dogfighting amongst themselves. and the overcast weather means they were flying quite low this morning when i was out. they fly past level with my 3rd storey windows on occasion, screaming as they go. nature's stukkas.
― koogs, Friday, 15 May 2009 20:08 (fifteen years ago) link
omg you totally read me, we had the first swifts of summer last weekend, they rock the skyline like nothing else
― sorry for british (country matters), Friday, 15 May 2009 22:25 (fifteen years ago) link
http://markthog.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/turkey-vulture1.jpg
These guys are everywhere in the Appalachians. In the summertime I love watching them ride the thermals, so beautiful and graceful. Of all the birds, Vultures and condors are the most metal.
― leavethecapital, Saturday, 16 May 2009 00:24 (fifteen years ago) link