Woodpigeon

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 A very common and widespread bird but worth a look.


We very often see wood pigeon. They are large birds that waddle in an ungainly manner on the ground. They perch in the trees in our orchard and explode in a clatter of wing beats when they are disturbed crashing through the branches. Wood pigeons can be distinguished from other members of the dove family by the white collar and the white stripes under their wings in flight. Note that juvenile birds lack the white collar but are seldom seen out of the company of the adult birds when they are at this stage. The birds are gregarious and are often seen feeding in flocks. The nest is a rather untidy pile of twigs and the females lay only two white round eggs.
There is a good video from BTO to distinguish pigeon  like birds.

BTO Video

Diary Notes
The female sparrowhawk is still hanging about and we saw her several times yesterday. I ordered a bat roosting box made from recycled plastic which I erected. We have about 4 species of bats and I want to encourage more. Here is a photo of the installed box.

It rained all night last night and was only about 2degrees C which probably accounts for the least productive camera trap night for ages - not even rabbits!




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