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Tag Archives: Mistle thrush

336/365 Birds and berries

02 Monday Dec 2019

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature, plants, winter

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

autumn berries, birding, birds eating berries, birdwatching, blackbird, British birds, Fieldfare, Mistle thrush, Redwing, Song thrush, winter thrushes, Woodpigeon

It’s only been a few weeks since I saw my first winter thrushes of the season but now they’re everywhere, feasting on autumn’s bounty of lush, delicious berries. Song and Mistle thrushes, Blackbirds, Redwings and Fieldfares and, not a thrush, the Woodpigeons are also indulging in the berry-fest. The Redwings are particularly skittish but I’ve managed to sneak up on a few to grab photos, though, more often than not, the whole tree I’m trying to approach will suddenly erupt with birds flying off in all directions. And then I feel a little guilty about interrupting their repast.

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Gone birding: Mistle thrush

05 Saturday May 2018

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature

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Tags

birding, birdwatching, British birds, Mistle thrush, Turdus viscivorus

I was alerted to the presence of two Mistle thrushes in Cosmeston’s Cogan Wood by the unmistakable screech of their football-rattle alarm call. It seems they had been enjoying a spot of seed foraging at an old tree the locals call the Dragon tree when they were interrupted by Magpies with the same idea in mind. Luckily for me, once the Magpies had departed, one of the Mistles sat quietly preening on a low branch.

180505 Mistle thrush

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’Tis the time of the thrushes

09 Thursday Nov 2017

Posted by sconzani in autumn, birds, nature

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

berries and birds, berry eating birds, birding, birdwatching, Mistle thrush, Redwing, Song thrush, thrush, Turdus iliacus, Turdus philomelos, Turdus viscivorus

Officially, in Britain, the resident true thrushes are the Ring ouzel, Fieldfare, Blackbird, Song thrush, Mistle thrush and Redwing, while other thrush species are occasional, sometimes rare visitors.

171109 Redwing (2)

The thrushes I’ve been noticing most in recent weeks have been the Song thrush, Mistle thrush and Redwing, partly due to their seasonal migration southwards to our ever so slightly milder south Wales climate and partly due to this being prime berry-eating time.

171109 Song thrush (1)
171109 Song thrush (2)

Song thrushes (Turdus philomelos) are resident here all year round, though there is some movement through Britain from Scandinavian birds heading south for the winter.

171109 Mistle thrush (2)
171109 Mistle thrush (3)

171109 Mistle thrush (1)

171109 Mistle thrush (4)
171109 Mistle thrush (5)

It can sometimes be difficult to distinguish Song from Mistle thrushes (Turdus viscivorus), though the Mistles have a tendency to perch high in the tree tops (or, I discovered, on TV aerials, in urban areas!) and to stand with heads held high when foraging on the ground, and their football-rattle song is unmistakeable. I saw my first Mistle thrushes of the season on 9 October and there are now quite large numbers in local parks and reserves.

171109 Redwing (1)

Redwings (Turdus iliacus) were reported locally in early October but it was the 30th before I caught up with a small flock at Cathays Cemetery in Cardiff, and I’ve since spent several hours following them around the berry trees at Cosmeston, trying to get close enough for photos. They’re easily spooked though so my shots so far have not been that great – I’ll keep trying, and I’ll need to try to find Ring ouzels and Fieldfare as well.

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‘Dedicated Naturalist’: The Stormcock

14 Tuesday Jun 2016

Posted by sconzani in 'Dedicated Naturalist' Project, birds, nature

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

birding, birdwatching, British birds, Dr Mary Gillham, Mistle thrush

A snippet from my volunteer work on the ‘Dedicated Naturalist’ Project, helping to decipher and digitise, record and publicise the life’s work of naturalist extraordinaire, Dr Mary Gillham.

Written in her fifth form year at Ealing Grammar School for Girls, Mary’s poignant poem about a mistle thrush was subsequently published in the school’s annual yearbook.

The Stormcock
The thunder roared from the clouds on high;
The lightning flashed across the darkened sky;
The woods were lone and drear and drenched with rain,
And not a soul passed by along the lane.

The raindrops glistened on the leaves like gems,
The flowers drooped low upon their slender stems,
And all the birds save one had gone to rest
While this one lingered on beside his nest.

It was a missel-thrush that perched aloft,
With speckled breast, bright eyes, and plumage soft;
His song rose through the branches clear and sweet,
Above the noise of wind and rain and sleet.

160602 mistle thrush (3)

The hen bird on the nest beside her mate
Had heard him singing frequently of late,
But still she listened with attentive air
While he sang gaily on without a care.

His song defied the tumult of the storm:
The eggs within the nest were safe and warm,
And that was what he cared for most of all,
And so his praise came forth in joyous call.

Despite the elements that tried to quell
The joyous sounds that from his being swell,
The bird sang on through wind and sleet and rain
Until the storm at last began to wane.

160602 mistle thrush (1)
160602 mistle thrush (2)

You can follow our progress with this project on Facebook and on Twitter. A website will follow soon.

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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