News archive
October 2009
Saturday, 31 October 2009
Lucky escape for Woody
This morning I was minding my own business having a quiet coffee in the kitchen between stints of gardening when there was a loud squawking and a crash against the glass of the kitchen door. I looked up quickly and was just in time to see a magnificent male sparrowhawk do a touch-and-go on top of the bird table before flying off. Investigating the cause of the crash, I was amazed to find this male great spotted woodpecker apparently trying to get through the closed back door (no doubt thinking the sparrowhawk was still after him!). As I gently opened the door it slipped down and lay on the top step, apparently stunned. Naturally I grabbed my camera to record the event before gently picking it up. It was very placid, with eyes half closed and beak open but I could see no sign of any injury that might have been inflicted by the sparrowhawk. Over the next few minutes Woody slowly recovered so I loosened my grip and, to my delight, he suddenly took flight and flew strongly to a nearby tree, apparently not seriously the worse for wear. It was a real treat to be able to hold such a super bird.
I have a decrepit trellis by the back door and noticed afterwards that there were fresh marks on the rotten wood, so I suspect that Woody was helping me to demolish it when the sparrowhawk happened by. Whether it attacked the woodpecker or just scared it is unclear but I suspect the latter. It is just as well that woodpeckers are used to hammering on solid objects with their beaks....... Pity the sparrowhawk didn't hang around to be photographed as well.
Thinking about it, I am glad that the back door was closed as I am not sure how I would have coped with a panicking great spot flying round the kitchen!
Peter Hambrook
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Indoor Meeting - Birds in Art by Glenn Duggan
To present a history of bird art - for that is what our speaker set out to do - in an evening lecture is a tall order, encapsulating as it does ornithological artistry from the cave paintings of 30,000BC to the work of present day painters. Nevertheless, Glenn took us on a metaphorical journey from the etching of a Scops owl found in the Chauvet caves, France to contemporary artists such as Elizabeth Butterworth and William T Cooper (the recognition of the Scops owl,incidentally, providing historians with a species hitherto unknown to exist at this time). On the way we learnt of the religious significance of the bird art of ancient Egypt; we saw how birds in medieval art were displayed for their aesthetic charm (especially the goldcrest whose red head marking was thought to represent the blood of the crucified Christ); and we noted the educational use of bird pictures used to illustrate scientific manuscripts of the 17th and 18th centuries. We also saw photographic examples of the work of famous 19th century bird painters such as John Gould, John James Audubon, Edward Lear and Joseph Wolf. The lovely wood engravings of Thomas Bewick were included as were bird paintings by Turner and Rembrandt. It was interesting also to follow the technical change from the flat pictures of ancient Egypt which lacked depth and perspective to later styles (often copied from stuffed specimens) showing birds in the round. Other well known bird artists such as Tunnicliffe, Thorburn and Alexander Wilson were all mentioned, as was Charles Darwin (though not as an artist but for his association with John Gould who identified some of the finches brought back from the Galapagos islands). Finally, for anyone who thinks it a dying art in this age of the digital camera, Glenn emphasised that a look at any respectable bird guide book will show that the means of identification can only be properly illustrated by employing wildlife artists.
Brian Shreeve
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Forthcoming Indoor Meeting 28th October.
BIRDS IN ART by GLENN DUGGAN -
This lecture takes us on an artistic journey spanning 30,000 years: cave paintings; the spiritual/religious bird art of ancient Greece and Rome; the use of bird illustrations in medieval times; the involvement of birds in scientific treatises of the 17th and 18th centuries; and, finally, the importance of ornithological artistry in this age of digital photography. The speaker is a keen bird artist and a Fellow of the Zoological Society of London.
Saturday, 24 October 2009
Feed the Birds Day
Four of us went to our usual haunt at Long Acres Garden Centre for Feed the Birds Day promotion on 24th October. A very damp autumnal day may have been the reason why it was quieter than it had been for the past three years but even so we still managed two memberships, took £80.50 on the tombola, £15 on Pin Badges and £7.74 in donations. The RSPB provided information on feeding birds over the winter months and how to attract wildlife to gardens and we gave this information out to people we chatted to throughout the day.
Many thanks to Simon, Hannah, Dave and Mary for helping out at this event.
