Magpies and the positives of negatives.

[Vinny]

It amazes me how birds do that with a stack of twigs.

You should see what turtle-doves throw together and survive at least a very strong wind.

Very far from a native to the UK - take a look at fairy tern nests.

I shall always remember the nearest maggie nest to me as a kid - at the very top of a very large willow - God alone knows how much that moved in a breeze, leave alone a wind. They seemed to do OK.

 

[Tarzan]

Could do without Magpies in the garden ( although l am a mad animal lover ) they are noisy, bullies and predate other bird's chicks, eggs etc, that said you have to admire their intelligence.

 

[Sue Pertwee-Tyr]

You should see what turtle-doves throw together and survive at least a very strong wind.

Very far from a native to the UK - take a look at fairy tern nests.

I shall always remember the nearest maggie nest to me as a kid - at the very top of a very large willow - God alone knows how much that moved in a breeze, leave alone a wind. They seemed to do OK.

Magpies built a nest in a mature Acer at the bottom of our garden, a few years ago. We had very few songbirds in the garden that year, so over the winter and before the Magpies returned, I took a long pole and removed the nest. I remember being surprised at how much effort it took to shift it. It was pretty solidly built.

 

[Space is the Place]

I had to abandon my bird seed feeder due to magpies. If a sparrow or blue tit was feeding a magpie would launch itself at the feeder from the roof in attack mode, then veer off at the last moment to chase the bird. Then they found that by landing on the feeder and shaking it they could get it upside down and then eat the falling seeds. I gave up. I hate magpies, squirrels and especially deer who eat all my flowers.

Why didn't you put a sign up Magpies Squirrels and especially Deer not Welcome that would have solved your wildlife infestestation in on fell swoop.

 

[gintonic]

https://foodaq.com/html/General/174000.html

 

[Vinny]

https://foodaq.com/html/General/174000.html

Sounds like Rex (my co-worker) was right.
My father, born 1909, certainly trapped sparrows and starlings in their garden, to eat. Not at all sure how they were cooked - I didn't ask. He used mousetraps.
In many parts of the world, small wildlife is commonly eaten, and commonly how young kids learn and provide their own protein source.

Various songbirds used to be very commonly eaten in various parts around the Meditteranean. Anyone know if this still happens on any scale, if at all? One of the most "spectacular" was fledgling Eleanora's(?) falcons which were collected from sea cliff nests - presumably now long since confined to history?

 

[gintonic]

https://www-nytimes-com.cdn.ampproj...04/20/world/europe/italy-lunch-songbirds.html

 

[Vinny]

I remember being surprised at how much effort it took to shift it. It was pretty solidly built.

Colchester is surrounded by army training grounds around a large section to the east, where I grew up (not the training grounds, although arguably I did as we spent so much time there as kids). Large sections are or were rough grazing dotted with scrubby hawthorn trees, many of them with maggie nests in. You could extract the whole nest if so inclined and they are neither delicate not light-weight.

Tales of jackdaw nests, traditionally associated with being in chimneys, as are many along the main street here, tell of "wagon-loads" of sticks being used. The birds pick a chimney and drop sticks until they jam somewhere and the pile comes within a couple of feet of the top of the pot.
I can only assume that very few chineys are in use in the village here.

 

[tqineil]

They’re ok in small numbers but in the 20 years I’ve lived in my current house, they’ve been out of control in terms of numbers on a couple of occasions. Gutter clearing aside, they regularly devastate the blackbird chicks - yes I know blackbirds build their nests in the stupidest of locations and now just terrify/tease my two small dogs - natures way I suppose but 20+ in the garden are a challenge

 

[paulfromcamden]

Sadly, the farmers don’t around this way (Staffordshire) as they are often caught in traps and then killed.

Bizarrely when there was a FOI request a few years ago requesting details of how many animals had been culled in the Royal Parks in London it included Crows, Magpies and Jays.

 

[Vinny]

https://foodaq.com/html/General/174000.html

The details are highly inaccurate, but interesting stuff - sounds like it is uncommon (eating songbirds), although it also sounds like some species are still legally eaten
I remember maybe 10 years ago, films of Italian market stalls "covered" in small birds ready for cooking. Does the Italian illegal trade have any over all effect? Very unlikely I suspect (hawfinches and brambling are very far from rare BTW, except in parts of Italy perhaps).

 

[Ali T]

If wood pigeons came from some tropical region of the world, we would marvel at their beauty. I still do, fabulous creatures.
That aside, as I always say - very nice with thick gravy, although we had woodies baked in a bed of cabbage a few weeks back - VERY nice despite what you (and me) might think.



Squirrels are introduced and officially vermin, as are muntjac. Also nice with thick gravy. (Squirrels more so fricasseed as per various US recipes, where eating squirrel is common. Sort of half way between chicken and pork for me).
If deer really are a pest, invest in a cheap electric fence.

I used to work with a guy who ate (at least once) anything that was edible, particularly roadkill or what had come to grief on power-lines (loads of those where we worked). He had eaten crow - and didn't recommend it; I suspect that maggies would be similar.

I grew up in the Cairngorms National Park area, only native red squirrels up there, no greys at all. There are some pockets, not many though.

 

[herb]

Why didn't you put a sign up Magpies Squirrels and especially Deer not Welcome that would have solved your wildlife infestestation in on fell swoop.

I'll try a no trespassing sign with an addition - magpies, squirrels and especially deer will be prosecuted. That should do it.

 

[Vinny]

I grew up in the Cairngorms National Park area, only native red squirrels up there, no greys at all. There are some pockets, not many though.

Every once in a while there is talk about eradicating greys, if memory serves the most recent method proposed was some kind of chemical castration. There have been huge efforts along the northern limit of the greys' range to stop them moving futher north in very recent times, if not still on-going.

 

[Ali T]

Yes, I see such proposals fairly often, along with all the wrangling over deer culls. Certainly less of them around now, gone are the days of seeing a large herd making its way along the main road some nights.

 

[Vinny]

gone are the days of seeing a large herd making its way along the main road some nights.

And gone are the days when hundreds and thousands starved each winter, on the hill. That made for a major rethink back in the 80's(?). The problem stemmed, mostly, from there being no actual cull, just stag-shooting for trophies, so the numbers of hinds went through the roof.

Interestingly - if you scan enough websites, Scottish deer numbers are currently near to all-times highs, the highest numbers of all occuring about 15 years ago.

 

[Ali T]

Yes I don't disagree. Lots of viewpoints around now surrounding rewilding issues. There's an interesting short film on YouTube on the subject.

 

[Sue Pertwee-Tyr]

Every once in a while there is talk about eradicating greys, if memory serves the most recent method proposed was some kind of chemical castration. There have been huge efforts along the northern limit of the greys' range to stop them moving futher north in very recent times, if not still on-going.

I read something not long ago that suggested one good way was to reintroduce pine martens, which predate on the greys but, for some reason, don’t seem to affect red numbers.

 

[Vinny]

Lots of viewpoints around now surrounding rewilding issues.

The main "glitch" I see is that very few people outside of farming and forestry, in the very broadest of senses, have even the remotest comprehension of what it would involve.
At the very simplest of levels, essentially all of the UK's land is managed and it produces all of the great lanscapes that people like - in the wilder parts, very often due to grazing, especially by sheep. Take away farming, or farming at a level that makes economic sense, and the land will need managing, and that will not be cheap because it will be done by civil servants, and lambing at 2-3-4 in the morning, or ploughing for a 10-12-14 hour day Saturday and Sunday because it is finally dry enough, and suchlike, will come at premium rates, just for instance.

 

[Vinny]

I read something not long ago that suggested one good way was to reintroduce pine martens, which predate on the greys but, for some reason, don’t seem to affect red numbers.

Pine martens are on a massive up-swing in the UK at the moment. Not predating reds? Maybe something to do with lack of sympatric ranges currently. I can't see any obvious logic to it.

A friend lives into the wilds just outside of Aberdeen - she has both visiting her garden/feeding station - now THAT would be something to sit in an armchair and watch!