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Unusual behaviour

Seen something strange in the garden? Wondering what that bird is doing - and why it's doing it? From 'putty pecking' to sunbathing birds, our experts unravel the mysteries of some fascinating bird behaviour.

Why are sparrows attacking blue tits and preventing them from entering their nestbox?

Why are sparrows attacking blue tits and preventing them from entering their nestbox? More...

How much sleep does a bird need, and do they ever roost during the daytime in Summer with daylight hours being so long?

How much sleep does a bird need, and do they ever roost during the daytime in Summer with daylight hours being so long? More...

Do blackbirds really create flocks?

During winter, if there is a plentiful food supply, blackbirds will gather in small groups and are actively tolerant of each other More...

What is the loud pecking noise coming from the trees near our garden?

There are a few birds which peck loudly when feeding. A likely suspect is the nuthatch, a species with a bill that is effective at removing bark to reveal hidden invertebrates underneath. More...

I have slow worms in my compost heap. Today, it looked like one was trying to kill another. It had its neck in its mouth and did not seem too keen on letting go. Is this normal?

Slow worms are harmless to humans, but during courtship, male slow worms can exhibit some extremely aggressive behaviour, not only towards other male slow worms, but to females as well, and I suspect this is what you have witnessed here. More...

Do buzzards eat frogspawn?

I think you are right. Strange as it may seem, it was most likely the buzzard 'what done it'! It probably wished it hadn't bothered by the sounds of it, as it either found the frogspawn unpalatable, or impossible to swallow. More...

Could eating too many sunflower seeds have led to flocks of birds falling out of the sky?

In relation to the recent deaths of flocks of birds falling out of the sky in several locations around the world, I read a report that overfeeding on sunflower seeds may have been a contributory factor in causing liver and kidney damage. Is this likely? I am a little alarmed by this as sunflower hearts are the mainstay of my winter feeding station and many birds, particularly tits and finches feed copiously on them. More...

A nuthatch has been collecting whole nuts and burying them in a large planter. Is this normal?

A nuthatch has been collecting whole nuts from a hole the squirrels have made in a feeder and burying them in soil in a large planter I have in the garden. Is this normal behaviour? I have never observed this before. More...

Do house martins eat bees?

Do house martins eat bees? More...

How many acorns will a jay collect and bury over a season?

Roughly how many acorns will a jay collect and bury over a season? More...

Why did I see two swans swimming in synchronised circles?

I recently watched two adult swans, side by side on a local lake, swimming in synchronised circles. They would occasional change direction at the same time as each other and their movement would become progressively faster. Why do they do this? More...

How do gulls find out about new food sources so quickly?

When fields are ploughed, seagulls appear in huge numbers within 20 minutes or less. How do they communicate to inform others that food is available so quickly? More...

We have six young robins, but a female blackbird has taken to sitting with them. Is this normal?

We have robins nesting in a wall mounted flower pot - six eggs all hatched and growing well. However a female blackbird has taken to sitting with the young robins - Is this normal? I have pictures. The robin parents sit nearby with food for the young but cannot approach the nest with the blackbird sitting there. More...

I have seen crows taking fur from my garden and flying away with it. I'm puzzled by this.

I have filled several fat ball feeders with my dogs moulted fur (two Japanese akitas white fur & lots of it). Lately, I have seen two crows attacking the feeder and stripping the top layer of fur to get to the middle. They then fly off to a neighbours chimney and I presume are nest building, or do they think its a dead mammal? Is this normal for crows? This is the first time I've seen this and as I actually put this out every year for the wild garden birds who love it, it's comical to watch a small bird with a beak full of dog fur, but crows? I'm puzzled by this. More...

We found a pheasant laying an egg in a duck's nest. Is this common?

We have an established ducks nest in our garden with eight eggs. Today we found a female pheasant sitting on the nest. When she left the nest, we discovered she had laid an egg in the nest. Is this common? What will happen next?! More...

How do large swarms of birds fly in looping and dipping patterns and stay in complete harmony?

How do large swarms of birds fly in looping and dipping patterns and stay in complete harmony? They seem to have ESP or some other way to communicate that allows them to flock in such large groups. How do they do this in such unification? More...

Flocks of birds, about the size of seagulls or crows, have been flying past my work building heading west towards the sunset. What could they be and where are they going?

Flocks of birds, about the size of seagulls or crows, have been flying past my work building heading west towards the sunset. I am inland. What birds could they be and where are they going? Is it an autumn/winter thing or just local? More...

A woodcock has flown into the window where I work in the middle of Edinburgh. Is this a common occurence?

For the second time this year a woodcock has flown into the window where I work which is Edinburgh College of Art right in the centre of town. Is this a common occurence? Unfortunately, both birds died. It happened on each occasion during the day. Neither were ringed. More...

Is it normal for a sparrowhawk to hunt for mice?

Is it normal for a sparrowhawk to hunt for mice? I have a male sparrowhawk which frequently hunts in my garden. As there are fewer small birds about, he has been hunting mice, as I have a few mice living at the bottom of my garden. More...

I get lots of goldfinches in my garden every day and was wondering where they go to at night as they fly off and I don't see them till the next day?

I get lots of goldfinches in my garden every day and was wondering where they go to at night as they fly off and I don't see them till the next day? More...

Overnight a bird has been buried in a large flowerpot. What would do this?

Overnight a bird has been buried in a large flowerpot. Much of it has been eaten. I have photos but would like to know what sort of bird would do this. I can't believe that it was an animal on the ground. Can you help? More...

There is a perfect round hole pecked out of our apple tree with fresh sawdust on the ground and a smaller hole just above. Can you tell us what may have done this?

We have noticed a perfect round hole pecked out of our apple tree. There is fresh sawdust on the group and a smaller hole just above. The hole is quite large - similar to one we had before when a woodpecker nested in our willow tree. This seems a strange time of year, can you tell us what may have done this? We are hoping it is a bird and not squirrels. The hole looks too perfect for a squirrel I think. More...

Why do wagtails wag their tails?

Why do wagtails wag their tails? More...

Is street lighting bad for birds?

Is street lighting bad for birds? A popular nesting hedge alongside canal moorings is about to be lit up by security lights and I am concerned that this may have a detrimental effect on the birds. More...

We watched a blackbird catch and kill a shrew and then fly away with it. Is this unusual?

We watched a blackbird catch and kill a shrew and then fly away with it. We have never known a blackbird to kill in this way is it unusual? Incidentally we leave lots of food out for the birds and so they are well fed! More...

My daughter saw a crow catching moles. Has anyone else observed this behaviour?

My daughter was watching a crow on the school playing field which was was standing by a mole hill. Suddenly the crow attacked the hill and emerged with a live mole. It then flew off with it in its beak into the next field. A few minutes later it returned and caught another! It was clearly a learned hunting skill but has anyone else observed this behaviour? More...

I was watching a gathering of red kites and wondered what kept them circling at such high altitude and what suddenly caused them to fly off in all directions?

I was watching a gathering of red kites and wondered what kept them circling at such high altitude and what suddenly caused them to fly off in all directions? More...

A coal tit in my garden was placing food from my birdtable into spiders' webs. What was it doing?

I had a coal tit in my garden and it was pulling spiders' webs from inside an evergreen bush, placing food I had provided on the birdtable onto the web then pushing the web back into the bush. It looked like it was 'storing' the food. Almost like a natural pantry! Is this what the coal tit was doing? I have watched birds for many years, yet never seen this! More...

Could we have seen a flock of 15 herons flying together?

Could we have seen a flock of 15 herons flying together? These birds passed silently overhead, about 2 months ago, on the North Notts/Derbys border. They were not in a V formation, and were definitely not rooks, Canada geese, or anything else we can think of, but were too high to identify positively. More...

The number of pied wagtails near me has increased and I have discovered them roosting in a climber on my wall. Is this usual?

The number of pied wagtails near me has increased and I have discovered them roosting in a climber on my wall. Is this usual? More...

I saw a magpie pecking a sheep's ear. What's going on?

We were watching the sheep in the next field, sheltering from the rain, and a magpie came down, landed on one of the sheep and started to peck in its ear. The magpie then went to all the sheep and did the same thing. What's going on?! More...

What birds would accompany a cross-Channel ferry?

What birds would accompany a cross-Channel ferry from France to England (or vice versa), always flying within range of boat's lights? More...

Are there birds in Britain that bury their eggs?

Are there birds in britain that bury their eggs? My mum found one buried in one of her plant pots. A week later it was gone! More...

I have noticed a large number of wrens entering my loft space. Is this normal?

I have noticed a large number of wrens entering the loft space in my house over the last few weeks. One night, I counted over 20 birds. Is this behaviour normal at this time of year, pre nesting? More...

Why is a blue tit tapping on our window?

We have a visiting blue tit. It sits in a bush by the window and constantly tries to fly into our house beyond. It sits on the window sill and taps on the window. Is it looking for last year's nest site? If not, why is it trying to get to the same place every day? What should we do to help? More...

I saw a male blackbird on top of a female with their beaks locked. What were they doing?

I came across two blackbirds in my garden, but what was strange is the female was on her back on the floor with the male on top and their beaks were locked together. First of all I thought she was dead and he was trying to pick her up. But when I went out there to help (as in to pick the dead bird up) they both flew away! Can you try and explain what they were doing? More...

I have seen in the region of 60 carrion crows on rooftops in my street. Is this behaviour usual for carrion crows?

Since the start of the year I noticed a tree which had a large number of carrion crows in. They now sit on the roof tops in our street. Some of the pairs must have bred because there is now in the region of 60 or so birds. I thought carrion crows were more solitary birds and it was rooks that were to be seen in flocks. Is this behaviour usual for carrion crows? They also seem less afraid of us humans these days! More...

I saw a robin attacking a dead robin. Is this a territorial thing?

While delivering papers this morning I found a dead robin in the gutter just under a parked car. As I moved away, another robin hopped out from under the car and proceeded to attack the dead one, quite ferociously, jumping on it and pecking violently, is this a territorial thing and could the live robin have killed the other one? More...

Would a male robin feed its mate, or could it be a youngster from an early brood?

I saw a robin feeding another robin, but it was too well advanced to be a baby at this time of year. Would the male feed it's mate, or could it be a bird from a very early brood? I do have a nest in the garden, but can't see in it. More...

Pigeons flock in large numbers on a local recreation ground after light rainfall. What are they looking for?

Pigeons flock in large numbers on a local recreation ground after light rainfall. What are they looking for? More...

Are there many birds that bury food?

Today, I saw a coal tit taking sun flowers seeds from the feeder and burying them in various pots and tubs in the garden. I've not seen this before. Are there many birds that bury food? More...

Could our house sparrows be bullying house martins?

We have 32 plus house martin nests under the eaves of our house. This year, some of them have been taken over by house sparrows. The house martins are now back and using some of the nests, but today we've seen three very immature babies dead on the ground and a couple of the nests look messy. Could the sprarrows be bullying the house martins? More...

How can I stop sparrows picking the grit off my shed's felt roof?

We have a garden shed with a gritted felt roof. House sparrows have discovered this and are stripping the grit from the roof. This morning there were around 30 of them. Can I provide an different source of grit so they will leave my shed alone? More...

I have a robin crashing itself into my door. Is this territorial behaviour?

I have a robin crashing itself into my side door now for a week. He repeatedly dives into the window as if he is attacking. I have tried putting things over the window, but s(he) is determined! Is this territorial behaviour or do I have a bird with mental illness in my yard? More...

A male blackbird sits on my flower bed, spreading its wings and fanning its tail in the sun. Is it sick?

A male blackbird sits on the earth of my flower bed like a nesting chicken. Occasionally, it spreads its wings and fans its tail, sitting on the ground in the sun. It also sits with its beak open. It will allow me to go withinin four feet of it and then gets up and hops away, but never flies away. A few minutes later it is back doing the same things. Is it sick? More...

Why is a blue tit that is feeding young in one of our nestboxes attacking a blue tit on eggs in another box?

We have two tit boxes about 22m apart. Both boxes are being used. One bird is feeding young and the other is sitting on eggs. Why is the one with the young going in and attacking the other blue tit? Can we do anything? More...

Why would a crow attack a buzzard in flight - I would've thought the buzzard to be the more powerful of the two birds?

Close to where I live I have buzzards nesting. But while out in the garden this morning I saw a crow attacking one of the buzzards in flight. Why would this be? I would've thought the buzzard to be the more powerful of the two birds. More...

Why are woodpeckers pecking our wood divisions on the outside of our house?

Why are woodpeckers pecking our vertical wood divisions on the external face of our house? More...

Why are blue tits pecking at my nestbox in autumn?

I have noticed the last couple of days that blue tits have been going into my nestbox and pecking around the hole. Why is this? I thought they only did this when nesting. More...

Why do crows stand at smoking chimneys and almost sit in it and preen thmselves?

Why do crows stand at smoking chimneys and almost sit in it and preen thmselves? More...

What's been pulling up our lawn... and why?

We have just come back from a two week holiday to find a part of our lawn covered with pulled out tufts of grass. We encourage birds with the garden and feeders, but have never seen this before. It is localised around implanted sleepers and covers about 10 sq mtrs. Very strange. More...

Do sparrowhawks chase bats?

I was watching at dusk what appeared to be a sparrowhawk attempting to catch bats. Has this been observed before? More...

Why is that robin behaving so strangely?

A chirruping robin has spent all day in our back garden in very inclement weather, hopping backwards and forwards from the fence to the garden table, and frequently flying into the patio door or sitting right up to it looking in. What could be the cause of this amusing behaviour? More...