[SA Chris]

Yup, quite grim. Fairly common to find barbed wire fences in South Africa with lizard skulls on each of the barbs all the way along the fence.

[Brolly]

Saw my first Osprey today.  It was over near Wheldrake, York.  It flew over lots of times but the light was very dull, wish it had been intermittent sunshine that was forecast.  It never really fished as the local crows/gulls kept on harassing it.  Great to see.


Osprey (my first!!) by Brolly99, on Flickr

Love the shrike shot.  Brilliant contrast between cute bird and not so cute impaled small mammal.

Will most of the snake shots have been at Skipwith Common but some are from Allerthorpe Common and the Malvern hills too.

Cheers Ol

[Paul B]

are you using a 400mm lense for these or have you got an extension tube?

Love some of the shots by the way. See you've asked about post, have you done much to it already? I've been mightily impressed by some Lightroom plugins for noise reduction, sharpening etc. recently (Nik software, Dfine etc.)

[DaveC]

Aussie magpies aren't known as 'butcher' birds for nothing. 

Actually, the Butcher Bird is a very different species to the Magpie here.
This is the Maggie, it's about the size of a small crow.

While this is the Grey Butcher Bird, one of several species in Australia - it's not a nickname btw, it's the proper English nomenclature for them. They are much smaller than the Magpie.


Here's what Granticus was on about:

[john horscroft]

When I was in the Blueys a few years back, I was woken up by Magpies. They sounded like the clangers on speed, ie, this fella

[slackline]

(Don't bother with the "Embed" code, just copy the URL from the address bar straight into your post)

[john horscroft]

Thanks Slackers, just worked that out from an old post of yours once I'd been clever enough to 

Love that Magpie.  Makes me chuckle every time..... 

[DaveC]

This is basically what we get out the back of our place every morning at this time of year - in fact even as I type...

According to a naturalist I heard recently on the radio over here they are thought to be the world's largest genuine songbird.

[john horscroft]

Damn it Dave, you're making me downright nostalgic for the Blueys now! 

[k2ted]

saw a few hundred Fieldfares today, not a rarity but a pretty cool looking bird. like thee idea of how they nest in colonies and shit on intruding predators if near the nest.

Also managed to see some non native Signal Crayfish up near Settle... horrid little things!

[john horscroft]

Right birdie folk, explain this bizarre bit of behaviour.  Me and the missus have just watched a Coal Tit taking sunflower seeds from the feeders in our garden and then, apparently, planting them in a pot on the patio.    Our theories so far?  He's saving them for later and, my fav, he's just trying to say thank you for the food!

[tlr]

Some tits do store food for later so thats the most likely explanation.

Either that or he's working off a debt he owes to a squirrel.

[john horscroft]

Either that or he's working off a debt he owes to a squirrel.

Nice to see he's got a responsible attitude to paying his debts.  Friend of george osborn d'you reckon? 

[sidewinder]

Have seen a bird (grey wagtail?) a couple of times at the parking for Stoney, not that rare, but this one seems pretty bold and seems to have an 'endearing' habit of sitting on wing mirrors while shitting over them and pecking at the window/mirror.

The last couple of times I have been to WCJ I have encountered a very bold mouse at the bottom of Miller's Tale, who seemed unphased by me repeatly falling off nearby.

I also saw my first lizard in the Peak this year, at the top of Stanage and also my first adder at Froggatt, caught crossing the path at the top.

[SpanishJuan]

They are known for hiding food when it's plentiful. They are also well known for forgetting where they hide their stashes. so I guess you'll get a few sunflowers next year (on the proviso, there hasn't been a deal struck with a local squirrel)

[john horscroft]

They are known for hiding food when it's plentiful. They are also well known for forgetting where they hide their stashes. so I guess you'll get a few sunflowers next year (on the proviso, there hasn't been a deal struck with a local squirrel)

....are symbiotic relationships between tits and squirrels common then   

[SpanishJuan]

not symbiotic and not even sympatric (being of different species). However, where Beer, crack and peanuts are present they tend to operate on mutualism.   

[john horscroft]

not symbiotic and not even sympatric (being of different species). However, where Beer, crack and peanuts are present they tend to operate on mutualism.   

Bloody lefties! 

[slackline]

not symbiotic and not even sympatric (being of different species). However, where Beer, crack and peanuts are present they tend to operate on mutualism.   

Symbiotic is perfectly permissible term for a mutually beneficial relationship between different species (e.g. tube worms and trophosomic bacteria that feed off of sulphur from hydothermal vents).

Sympatric refers to organisms whose geographical boundaries overlap.  Its often used when describing the process of speciation and species diverging whilst still overlaping in geographical boundaries often involves differences in behaviour (the opposite of sympatric speciation being allopatric speciation when a species is split geographically, by perhaps the occurence of a new mountain range, continental drift or a new river and the species diverge under differing selection pressures).

[SA Chris]

Anyone fancy a pint?

[DaveC]

Picked up a young Galah on the walk to work today. Poor little chap has oil in his feathers and was getting quite weak - obviously he's tried to take a bath in an oily rainwater pool somewhere around here.

While waiting for the local wildlife rescuer to come and take him away for a bath he's picking his way through some organic muesli on the floor of my warehouse here.

[SpanishJuan]

Symbiotic is perfectly permissible term for a mutually beneficial relationship between different species (e.g. tube worms and trophosomic bacteria that feed off of sulphur from hydothermal vents).

Sympatric refers to organisms whose geographical boundaries overlap.  Its often used when describing the process of speciation and species diverging whilst still overlaping in geographical boundaries often involves differences in behaviour (the opposite of sympatric speciation being allopatric speciation when a species is split geographically, by perhaps the occurence of a new mountain range, continental drift or a new river and the species diverge under differing selection pressures).
[sic]

yes, I tried to edit the structure of that after posting but it wouldn't let me! the point I was trying to make was that mutualism and symbiosis are sometimes used as if they are synonymous, but it's incorrect: symbiotic is a broad category, defined to include relationships which are mutualistic, parasitic or commensal. I know John said "are symbiotic relationships between tits and squirrels common" and mutualism is a form of symbiosis [sorry john  ].

and you are right about Sympatric relationships, with regards to allopatric speciation does  Bergmann's rule apply?

a Tolerator is a species able to tolerate stressful conditions   

[john horscroft]

Never mind all that malarkey.  Mutualism?  Are you saying they're lefties? 

[Stubbs]

from http://spitalfieldslife.com/2010/10/27/a-fox-in-hoxton/

[slackline]

  Must have been after some curry paste to knock up some rabbit curry.