Category Archives: birds

Jimmy Wren

27 Tuesday Jan 2026

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I know Wrens are mostly referred to with the female vernacular name, Jenny Wren, but, from the way this handsome chap was belting out his melody, he was definitely a male advertising his territory and his attractiveness to any passing females. Hence, my title of Jimmy, not Jenny Wren.

I heard his song from the other side of the field, before I could even see him, which is quite common with these birds; small bird, big voice!

Female Scaup

24 Saturday Jan 2026

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It was 10.34 yesterday morning and I was walking across the Barrage, being blasted by the ferocious winds that have plagued us for three days now and looking to see if those winds had blown any interesting birds in to Cardiff Bay, when my phone emitted the double ping that meant a new WhatsApp message had been posted on the local birding group.

A Scaup had been sighted with a flock of Tufted ducks close to the water’s edge by the Norwegian Church. It was perfect timing as I had literally just taken a couple of steps towards home, having spotted nothing new. Instead, I immediately turned around and started striding in the direction of the church, as I knew there was a possibility the birds might be disturbed and I didn’t want to miss this opportunity.

Luckily for me, this stunning female Scaup was still there, and, for the next 15 minutes or so, I enjoyed wonderfully close views. Most of the time she had her head tucked under her wing snoozing but twice, when a group of noisy people walked along the pavement behind me and when one of the water buses left Mermaid Quay to sail up the River Taff to central Cardiff, the Scaup lifted her head to scan her surroundings. Unfortunately, the revving engines, passenger screams, and wave action caused by a Cardiff Jetboat hurtling around nearby then caused almost the entire flock of birds to panic and fly to the other side of the Bay, exactly what I had feared might happen. (And don’t even get me started on the damage and disturbance that jetboat causes in the Bay!)

I had actually seen this same Scaup twice before yesterday, as she had been at Cosmeston Lakes for a couple of weeks before relocating to the Bay with her Tufty friends on Thursday. However, when I had managed to pick her out at Cosmeston, she had always been distant, on the far side of the west lake, so I was really thrilled to see her up close in the Bay.

Robin vs rat

23 Friday Jan 2026

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Overlooking the west lake at Cosmeston Lakes Country Park is a small viewpoint that is home to a little Robin. Whenever I stop there to check for any new waterfowl on the lake, the Robin always pops out and gives me that stare that Robins do so well – the ‘Feed me’ stare. If I have any food with me, I always give in!

Now, Robins may look cute and appealing but they also have a nasty streak and can be quite vicious when defending their territory or, in this case, tasty berry-flavoured suet pellets. The Robin managed to chase away a Dunnock, a Blue tit and a Great tit but then it met its match.

Not one, but two Brown rats must’ve heard the commotion and surmised correctly that food was on offer, and they easily bullied the little birds out of the way, even the feisty little Robin. I never knew rats liked suet pellets but then I guess rats will eat pretty much anything.

Hungry House sparrow

21 Wednesday Jan 2026

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I was actually watching an over-wintering Chiffchaff, dotting about in an area of scrub and tall reeds and occasionally giving its characteristic short call, when the ever-cheerful ‘cheep, cheep, cheep’ of the local gang of House sparrows distracted me.

And, as the Chiffchaff wouldn’t come out to play, I focused instead on the sparrows, as they’re always so entertaining to watch and much more cooperative photographic subjects. This handsome male was enjoying his luncheon, munching contentedly on the flower buds of a nearby Gorse bush.

The Cardiff Bay Ravens

19 Monday Jan 2026

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Cardiff Bay is home to a pair of Ravens, those stunning large black members of the crow family that have been much persecuted over the years by farmers and gamekeepers but, fortunately, are slowly recovering their numbers here in Wales.

Whenever I walk around Cardiff Bay, I look out or listen for them – their ‘kronk kronk’ call is unmistakeable. During one such walk, just before Christmas, I was walking across the Barrage when both Ravens flew in and landed quite close to me. I wondered if they would take food so I said ‘Hello, Ravens’ to get their attention, put down some of the berry-flavoured suet pellets I give ‘my’ crows, and backed off a little to watch. They hopped right over and, after checking out the pellets, wolfed them down. I was delighted.

I didn’t see the Ravens again until the new year (they’re early nesters so are probably busy refreshing their nest already), when I walked another circuit of the Bay on 9 January. Their behaviour that day led me to conclude that Ravens have inbuilt facial recognition software. Despite the fact that I’d only fed them once before, they appeared to recognise me and came hopping over, expecting food. And while ‘she’ ate the suet, ‘he’ chatted; Raven: ‘Kronk, kronk’, me: ‘Boop’, Raven: ‘Kronk, kronk’, me: ‘Boop’. This exchange went on for several minutes, with me looking around frequently to make sure no one was listening! I have no idea what we were saying but it was a definite, totally unexpected, and most wonderful conversation.

If you’re wondering why ‘Boop’, the sound is one used by Amy, on the YouTube channel @wingsandwildlands, when she communicates with her incredible captive-bred Raven, Fable.

Spring is in the air

17 Saturday Jan 2026

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It may be the middle of winter but today was a magnificent blue-sky day with real warmth in the sunshine and a high temperature hovering very close to double figures.

This gave me, and many other people I’m sure, the idea that Spring was in the air. And, when I walked across Cardiff Bay Barrage this morning, I noticed that the weather was making this pair of Mute swans feel rather frisky.

When I first spotted them, they were indulging in a lot of synchronised grooming, constantly ducking their heads under the water before cleaning and preening their feathers, rubbing their heads and necks together. Having watched this behaviour in many species of birds over the years, I was fairly sure this was going to lead to something more intimate, and I was right.

And, though mating amongst water fowl always looks like the female is going to drown under the weight of her mate and with her head forced under the water, these beautiful birds are always very tender with each other before and after the actual event. It may be a bit voyeuristic but their mating is a lovely thing to watch.

Target acquired

14 Wednesday Jan 2026

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I do love it when a plan comes together. I’ve now found most of the common bird species that inhabit my local area so I’m being more focused when planning my daily walks, trying to look specifically for particular species. This is when it helps that, after 10 years in the area and many hundreds (thousands?) of miles of walking its trails, I know my patch very well.

Though I try to avoid going to Cosmeston Lakes Country Park at the weekend (too many people and dogs), last Saturday was a glorious sunny day, the forecast for the following week looked quite grim, and I knew that the outer fields were usually relatively empty of visitors.

That was also where I figured I had the best chance of finding my target species, the Stonechat, as the habitat of the tree plantation that was planted about five years ago is perfect for chat species; they can perch up on the shrubs, tall grasses and smaller saplings while looking for insect prey to flit down and snap up. As soon as I went through the kissing gate into the plantation up she popped, this gorgeous female Stonechat; it was the perfect birding moment. And my pleasure continued as she moved around the field, with me following discretely behind, admiring her hunting skills and looking for photo opportunities. I particularly like my second photo, with the blurred pink hips of a Field rose as her backdrop. .

City Hall Peregrine

12 Monday Jan 2026

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Firstly, let me show the clock tower of Cardiff’s City Hall, as it’s really rather splendid.

The exquisite architecture of this tower is the perfect home base for two equally exquisite birds, a pair of Peregrines (Falco peregrinus).

The height of the tower provides these falcons with an excellent vantage point from which to search out unwitting prey, particularly from among the city’s Feral pigeon population, and is a safe, secure location upon which they can build a nest and raise their young.

I’ve seen Peregrines on this tower since I first moved to Cardiff ten years ago and, as these birds have an average lifespan of 10 to 15 years, it’s possible these are the same birds I first saw in 2015 though, of course, I can’t be sure of that. I can, however, be sure that it is always a joy to spend time watching them.

Red in beak and claw

09 Friday Jan 2026

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The images in this post are a bit gory so look away now if you’re squeamish.

If you’ve ever wondered why the correct name for the crow is Carrion crow, this is why.

I found these three birds living up to that name, taking turns to devour what looked like a dead rat, or some other small mammal, most likely road kill from the adjacent road.

I was surprised the birds weren’t arguing over their bloody prize, so I assume they were probably related, perhaps siblings.

I was on the other side of a fence from these Carrion crows but, even so, I was able to get very close to them as they were so focused on their tasty lunch.

Who’s watching who?

08 Thursday Jan 2026

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Am I watching the Sparrowhawk or is the Sparrowhawk watching me?

I was checking the rather boggy area near these trees and shrubs for any lurking Snipe (none seen) when I was distracted by a rustling in the branches. A bird flew out and away up the field, and I quickly realised it was a Sparrowhawk from its flight pattern (flap, flap, glide). Then, I got the feeling I was being watched and turned to find this second Sparrowhawk still sitting in the trees.