Birders' Nest

[owlice]

She has style, she has grace
Holy moley, what a face!

[owlice]

Chestnuts resting on a kitchen rack


Others ready for the pot


You might wonder how many I've got
And I can tell you, "It's a lot."


The harvest's not the largest ever had
But it's pretty good so far
Three hundred eight -- really not too bad
And soon some will be put in ....

Well, not jars, but a food processor for puréeing and then in ice cube trays.

Thread tax: What is this chonky boi called?

[Elgarian Redux]

There's the dog. His name is Rover.
And sheep are sheep the whole world over.
Sheep, turn round and come to me,
And feel the love at GMG.

Why do I write this nonsense? It just bubbles out, and I don't seem to be able to stop it.

[Elgarian Redux]

She has style, she has grace
Holy moley, what a face!

Crikey! What is she thinking?!

[Elgarian Redux]

Chestnuts resting on a kitchen rack
Others ready for the pot

You might wonder how many I've got
And I can tell you, "It's a lot."

The harvest's not the largest ever had
But it's pretty good so far
Three hundred eight -- really not too bad
And soon some will be put in ....

Well, not jars, but a food processor for puréeing and then in ice cube trays.

When I read the first two lines, the tune of 'Merry Christmas' came to mind, so I found I was reading them to the tune of 'Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose ....'
But then I had to abandon the tune. Good effort though! And the unexpected last line, full of food processors and ice cube trays is pure genius. 

Thread tax: What is this chonky boi called?

I betcha he's a Chestnut Sparrow! (Which presumably is what you get when you hatch a chestnut.)

[owlice]

I betcha he's a Chestnut Sparrow! (Which presumably is what you get when you hatch a chestnut.)

hahahahahaha!! I hope that's not what comes out of a chestnut!
omg, have I been eating chonkyboi eggs?!?!

I think he's called Horace. He's a Common Chaffinch; posted for his exceptional borbness. (Or fluffiness if you prefer.)

A Chestnut Sparrow would have made much more sense, though!
What was I thinking?! How silly of me!! Off to rummage through the photos drawer...

[Elgarian Redux]

hahahahahaha!! I hope that's not what comes out of a chestnut!
omg, have I been eating chonkyboi eggs?!?!

I'm afraid so. They make a fine chestnut-flavoured omelette, I believe.

I think he's called Horace. He's a Common Chaffinch; posted for his exceptional borbness. (Or fluffiness if you prefer.)

I readily believe the Horace part, but His Chaffinchness is a title I'd never have guessed. And yet, now you tell me, I can see it's right. His borbificaceous state is an excellent disguise, isn't it?

A Chestnut Sparrow would have made much more sense, though!
What was I thinking?! How silly of me!! Off to rummage through the photos drawer...

We wait with bated breath for the next issue of Bird and Chestnut News....

[owlice]

I readily believe the Horace part, but His Chaffinchness is a title I'd never have guessed. And yet, now you tell me, I can see it's right. His borbificaceous state is an excellent disguise, isn't it?

borbificaceous!! Oh, that's great!!

We wait with bated breath for the next issue of Bird and Chestnut News....

The news there is not so good, in that I don't have good shots of a Chestnut Sparrow (which is an African, not North American, sparrow). They are very chestnut, though, a lovely color! But here is a pic of Chestnut Sparrows anyway; it includes a couple of Cut-throat Finches, so I've added a pic of just a couple of Cut-throat Finches (in what is likely an abandoned weaver nest, as they are thrifty little creatures and tend to use already existing quarters rather than building their own). You'll have to embiggen the images (right-clicking should do it) to see the birds well.

[Elgarian Redux]

The news there is not so good, in that I don't have good shots of a Chestnut Sparrow (which is an African, not North American, sparrow). They are very chestnut, though, a lovely color! But here is a pic of Chestnut Sparrows anyway; it includes a couple of Cut-throat Finches, so I've added a pic of just a couple of Cut-throat Finches (in what is likely an abandoned weaver nest, as they are thrifty little creatures and tend to use already existing quarters rather than building their own). You'll have to embiggen the images (right-clicking should do it) to see the birds well.

Not sure why these aren't good shots of chestnut sparrows. They seem marvellous to me. The colour, as you say, is intensely rich. (As you suggested, I 'embiggened' them). [I did not know this was a real word till I looked it up!] And one doesn't need to ask how cut-throat finches acquired their name, does one?

Your photos are like an armchair birdwatcher's ideal trip around the world, Owl. Thank you.

[owlice]

Not sure why these aren't good shots of chestnut sparrows. They seem marvellous to me. The colour, as you say, is intensely rich.  And one doesn't need to ask how cut-throat finches acquired their name, does one?

You are very generous. The birds are so far away in both pics. The memory of both of these sights stays with me. For the first shot, that bit of water was way down the road, so far that I wasn't certain what I was seeing. What, is that movement? Is there something down there? So hard to tell... is it moving dirt? Oh! Splashing? We couldn't get very close for fear of spooking what proved to be birds, and the Sparrows, with their intensely rich color, as you so well put it, almost matched the color of the wet clay.

Seeing Cut-throat Finches in the wild reminded me that I had seen them for sale in a pet store in the U.S. decades ago, and I was instantly sorry not only for those long-ago finches, but also for the Zebra Finches I'd bought that day.

Your photos are like an armchair birdwatcher's ideal trip around the world, Owl. Thank you.

Thank you, but not quite around the world... yet, anyway. 

(As you suggested, I 'embiggened' them). [I did not know this was a real word till I looked it up!]

I didn't know it was a real word! I think I picked it up from Phil Plait (an astronomer who does a lot of popular writing about astro), who uses it a lot, though I'm pretty sure there are others in astro who use it, too. I thought Phil had made it up!


The pitter-patter of little feet and some thumping coming from the roof. Gee, I wonder what that could be... ?

[owlice]

Adding: Remember the Firefinch, that it is in the estrildid finch family? Cut-throat Finches are, too (as are Zebra Finches). It's a large and very colorful family! Waxbills, Munia, Mannikins... all kinds of little beauties are in this family (most of which I've not seen, of course!).

[Elgarian Redux]

You are very generous. The birds are so far away in both pics. The memory of both of these sights stays with me. For the first shot, that bit of water was way down the road, so far that I wasn't certain what I was seeing. What, is that movement? Is there something down there? So hard to tell... is it moving dirt? Oh! Splashing? We couldn't get very close for fear of spooking what proved to be birds, and the Sparrows, with their intensely rich color, as you so well put it, almost matched the color of the wet clay.

I would hope to be generous if it were necessary, but it isn't. I get a very good impression of chestnut sparrows from this photo. I don't just see one, I see several, all in different attitudes. And I see them, not as a single portrait, but in context - in a habitat, together. That gives me a 'feel' for them as a group.

And you'd say the same to me about distant shots; indeed, you have said the same to me: you can identify the bird from this picture and more besides.

A lot of my non-garden photos fall into the category of squintingly asking: 'is that a bird over there?'; then discovering the answer only later when I get it onto a large screen.

Thank you, but not quite around the world... yet, anyway. 

It's good enough for me. I'm not a completist. Bear in mind that these days I don't see many species, so it's great to see this great variety of wildlife, so beautifully photographed.

I didn't know it was a real word! I think I picked it up from Phil Plait (an astronomer who does a lot of popular writing about astro), who uses it a lot, though I'm pretty sure there are others in astro who use it, too. I thought Phil had made it up!

It's a great word. From now on my use of it will be embiggened.

The pitter-patter of little feet and some thumping coming from the roof. Gee, I wonder what that could be... ?

A mix of small and large children falling out of chestnut trees?

[Elgarian Redux]

Adding: Remember the Firefinch, that it is in the estrildid finch family? Cut-throat Finches are, too (as are Zebra Finches). It's a large and very colorful family! Waxbills, Munia, Mannikins... all kinds of little beauties are in this family (most of which I've not seen, of course!).

Could we ever forget the firefinch? I'm always happy to boggle at these creatures.

[owlice]

A mix of small and large children falling out of chestnut trees?

hahahahahahahahaha!!! Oh, that is very nearly true! The kidlet chestnut fan club gets bigger every day, and there is now scarce a time I walk outside to look for nuts that doesn't have a child or four or seven or more appearing to help (or "help", depending on age/inclination). Sometimes it's just one small pre-school boy who doesn't yet speak English bringing me one chestnut he found when I was inside; he's so happy to give it to me! (So sweet!)

More later; must get stuff for turning a couple hundred of these things into purée.

[owlice]

This Collared Aracari has a question for you...

[Elgarian Redux]

The kidlet chestnut fan club gets bigger every day, and there is now scarce a time I walk outside to look for nuts that doesn't have a child or four or seven or more appearing to help (or "help", depending on age/inclination). Sometimes it's just one small pre-school boy who doesn't yet speak English bringing me one chestnut he found when I was inside; he's so happy to give it to me! (So sweet!)

Fabulous. One piece of knowledge that's been reinforced during the last few years is how delightful the company of young children can be.

[Elgarian Redux]

This Collared Aracari has a question for you...

Possible answers to the question he/she is asking:

The Bird Doctor: "You don't need to worry. A bill like that is perfectly normal."
The Milliner: "Ahem. Madam, the hat should be worn on top of your head."
Me: "I understand why you stare. People often think I look odd."

[owlice]

Toastin' toastin' toastin'
Got them chestnuts roastin'
Have no time for coastin'

[Elgarian Redux]

Toastin' toastin' toastin'
Got them chestnuts roastin'
Have no time for coastin'

Chestnuuuuts!

Let 'em drop, pick 'em up,
Peel 'em off, chop 'em up,
Mash 'em up, freeze 'em out,
Chestnuuuuts!

Where's Clint Eastwood when you want him?

[Elgarian Redux]

The weather here is terrible. Very windy, with rain that varies between heavy to buckets being thrown at you. No chance of a walk anywhere, but in a brief interval of dryness, we experienced a cascade of goldfinches such as to warm the cockles of the heart. The bird feeders were covered with goldfinches, and although there's a risk of my becoming a goldfinch bore, I'm going to post some photos. First, a setting of the scene. Goldfinches wherever you look.

The little juvenile on his own is, I am almost certain, the same little chap as flew into the window and knocked himself out a few days ago (he's a bit smaller than the other juvs). All very heartening.

[More to follow...]