Going cheep

Passer domesticus

Since last year we have welcomed House Sparrows into the garden, having not seen them for many years. The decline of this bird is not well understood but my bird book does single out Edinburgh as having seen a particularly large reduction. Interesting that my Tony Soper book from 1983 talks about how to discourage House Sparrows from the bird food meant for birds which more need our help such as tits and finches!

A pair of these birds were looking at our nest box which is sadly not suitable for them. The male inspected the box while the female rather anxiously waited on the roof. I hope they found somewhere. I enjoy the noisy visits of the flock although our lot do seem rather genteel. A bird that I assume is the alpha female (above) feeds first, followed by the rest of the females, then the alpha male, then the lesser males. There is no fighting unless the Robin gets involved - and wins.