Not quite an Osprey

I will show my ignorance - what is it? Very lovely in any case.

On the news there was a story about a cat bird, blown to Cornwall from the US. It sounds like a cat (if you have a bit of imagination)!
 
Fantastic photo. When OH saw Snowy Owl reported from your neck of the woods on Birdguides Hen -Gen she wondered if you would get to see it.
We saw one a good few years ago at Felixstowe docks, where it had a wonderful time catching rodents. That particular one was one of 4 that got caught in a storm whilst migrating southwards in Canada and they sheltered on a ship which was heading to UK via Belgium, 3 jumped ship in Belgium and one stayed on board.
They are truly special birds especially when adult like that one
 
Marigold said:
Have they ever been known to nest on the islands?
Click to expand...
Indeed they have Marigold and only here in the whole of the UK. They bred here in the late 60s until the early 70s. Unfortunately the dominant male drove all his sons away and when he died of old age he left three or four females laying clutches of infertile eggs.
And that was the end of the UKs only breeding snowy owls.
 
Not quite in the same league, but OH always counts migrating Wood Pigeons at this time of the year, she usually goes to an area near the Thames where a lot head south using the two huge pylons by the Dartford crossing as a beacon to head southwards.
Today at 7 she had a lot going over the garden and stood out there counting them amongst other things moving over and had 3 Hawfinch head over and 4 Goosander which she excitedly added to her garden list.
She also had a suicidal carp jump out of the lake and land with a large thump by her, which she put back in.
 
Ah no. Don’t diss the commonplace. I was brought up in a road called Chestnut Drive (that was in the days when no one cared about sticky buds on their cars or roots undermining their foundations). Full forest sized trees so abundant wildlife. One day a gale blew through and I found two unfledged wood pigeons. Miraculously they throve on a diet of crumbled digestive biscuits mixed with raw egg and fresh peas all forced down their throats. After fledging they revisited for about six months before going for ever. So I’ve always had a soft spot for this species. (Though it wouldn’t, now I’m grown up, stop me eating them).
Never seen a goosander but have seen mergansers.
 
Mergansers are lovely. We get them on estuaries around here in the winter. Goosanders used to go on lakes in the winter around here but are rare now. OH gets very excited about Wood Pigeons migrating at this time of year Hen-Gen, first cold sunny frosty morning and she is there counting. It lasts about two weeks and they start moving through about 7 20-9am and on a good year she can get 20-40 thousand go through in those few hours, I must admit seeing these huge flocks going through in vasts groups of thousand or more is impressive.
She has excelled herself today on Rainham Marshes by seeing a Hen Harrier fly across the reserve then straight after it a Rough legged Buzzard hove into view and start hunting, which is the first time a Rough Legged Buzzard has ever been seen in the London area, so she been quite popular.
Talking of commonplace one of her favourite birds are Jackdaws
 
i like jackdaws, too. They used to be common round here, until gradually everyone got bird excluders on their chimney pots. On holiday in Lynmouth, having a cup of tea in an outdoor cafe, we spotted notices asking people not to feed the birds as it 'only encouraged the nasty jackdaws.' They are such neat birds, - if they were people they would always be dressed in a posh black suit, walking around in a self-possessed way, like members of parliament.
I didn't know that woodpigeons migrated. most of them seem quite happy to stay around in our garden and drive the dog wild!
 
I had a pet jackdaw as a kid. It was called, somewhat unimaginatively, Jack. It was friendly enough and free ranged in the garden. But like it’s cousin, the magpie, was obsessed with stealing anything glittery. So if in years to come anyone unearths a cache of milk bottle tops in the Harrow Weald area then you’ll know who to blame.
No hen harriers here because voles never made it this far north but Orkney is alive with them (and Short Eared Owls). Most years we have one pair of Long Eared Owls nesting in a dense plantation of sycamores at the Manse and merlins are fairly common but that’s about it in the owl/hawk/falcon stakes. Just the occasional visitor!
 
Once again I am impressed with all of your bird knowledge!

On a walk last week we came across a guard crow or raven (not a jackdaw, no grey). It was sat on a car at a small garage, watching the mechanics at work. Then it flew over us as we walked past. Then when we lingered too long it flew at us and settled about on a fence a few feet away as if daring us to stay!

I also had no idea wood pigeons migrated. I am familiar with them en masse at my Mum's and at our old house, eating everybody's veg plots, particularly the brassicas.
 
We are lucky in having a roost of Jackdaws in the woods behind us, about 700 arrive and leave every night/morning along with C600 Rooks.
Most of the Pigeons involved are probably European birds on the move, and a lot are presumed to spread out along the southern counties as the huge numbers moving aren't replicated going over the channel. OH has also seen groups of Great spotted Woodpeckers going over, another bird you don't think of migrating.
Lucky you with Merlins Hen-Gen, tricky to catch up with down here, even when you know where they are overwintering
 
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