Summer's arrived ...

[sunnybob]

I think Cyprus may be the last hold out. Something like 1 in 8 males have shotguns and half of them have hunting licences. I live on the edge of a village (in a game reserve) and my house has been shot twice that I know of by over enthusiastic "hunters". The last time, I chased the "Hunter" across the fields and told him not to shoot here. Can you guess what his reply was? :roll: :roll:
Even after explaining to him that when his father shot here there were no houses, I still got the filthy look.
I have a shotgun but havent shot at wildlife since living here.
Because its an island there is not much nation to nation travel so youngsters rely heavily on their parents and grandparents for cultural behavior.

But getting back to the swifts, they nest inside an empty house next door to me, and drink from my pool daily, even if I'm in it. I wish I had a fast action movie camera. =D> =D> 8)

 

[SammyQ]

Look up "Borne on the wind"...famous photographer got there first!

 

[Steve Maskery]

This morning:

 

[SammyQ]

Hope you are not due any Cypriot visitors Steve! :-"

Sam

 

[thick_mike]

Malta also has a problem with hunting and trapping songbirds on migration. I hardly saw or heard a single small bird when I visited The Amalfi Coast a few years ago. Very sad.

 

[Steve Maskery]

There's good news and there's bad news.

The Good News is that the nest is now empty.

The Bad News is that I found a fledgling face down in a bucket of rainwater not far from the nest. He, or she, had a short life

I'm ridiculously more upset by this than I really ought to be.

 

[sunnybob]

Living with fields on 3 sides, we get an inordinate amount of birds around our house, its always sad to find a fledgling that didnt even get that far in life.
Although, to be honest, we could do with a few less sparrows pooping all over the place. Their one saving grace is that they eat the cicada's. I watched a sparrow yesterday catch one that was over half its own size. =D> =D>

Our swifts are still here, dozens of them. They are fearless. They often fly withn a couple feet of us as they chase around.

 

[Trainee neophyte]

The locals shoot thrushes here - very hard to hit, which is the whole point. They do eat them, but mostly because once you have shot the thing, why not?
If you are interested about the flavour - not worth the mouthful of bones and birdshot. I really don't get it.

 

[sunnybob]

Before I retired, I worked with a Cypriot "hunter" who told me that when younger, he and his friend always went out and shot 30 thrushes in a day, and then cooked and ate them while out in the fields.
Then he went on to moan about there not being many thrushes nowadays.
When I explained that there were not many thrushes because he had shot all the grandparents to be, he totally refused to believe he (and his friends) were the cause.
:roll: :roll: :roll: (hammer) (hammer)

 

[sunnybob]

Just been treated to an amazing sight;
Must have been AT LEAST 40 swifts, doing acrobatics at maximum speed all in an area about 200 yards square.
Obviouxly they had found a huge swarm of insects and were feasting like crazy.
It went on for many minutes and not one bird crashed! :roll: =D> =D>
In all the years we've been here we have never seen so many at the same time.

 

[SammyQ]

Enjoy Bob; somehow I have acquired a 'pet' pheasant. Though I suspect it's more to do with fighting his reflection in the greenhouse glass whilst ignoring me and the mower as irrelevant, than it is pure friendship...He brought his two mates last week and they made a right noisy palaver out of checking out my freshly weeded flower beds.
Neighbour's cat is going schitzo because, as a Persian/Siamese cross, his colouration/hair bulk means he can be seen coming a mile off and none of the nice feathered meals wait around when he oozes his way round the flower pots, over the lawn kerb, and prepares for the 25 foot sprint to Phessy and Phriends...

Mind you, if your tradition-bound Cypriot acquaintainces like pigeon, I have only 12 I would be glad to see in a pie...and that's just my house, we have a winged rat population explosion here in the North East. P'raps their on their holyers from Trafalgar Square?

Sam, running between the pigeon squits...

 

[sunnybob]

Fraid not. House pigeons the world over are exempt from pies, mainly because they eat dirt and thats what they taste of. I have several dozen here that are rapidly working their way up my "things to shoot just because I can" list

Wood pigeon on the other hand.... theyre corn fed =D> =D> =D>
But sadly we aint got no woods cos theyve burnt them all for firewood. :roll:

 

[SammyQ]

Nah, these is country fed proper wood pigeons. I'll issue visas and shooting permits to any budding Hawkeye! :twisted:

Sam

 

[sunnybob]

Check for your nearest clay pigeon shooting club or even pest controller.
If its possible to shoot them without being arrested, someone will be happy to do it as long as they can take them away.
In somerset I used to live next door to a real hunter. He shot deer, rabbit, woodpigeon (as many as a 100 a day), anything that was a pest to farmers. His garage was an abbatoir all year round. Used to niff a bit on hot summers mind.

 

[SammyQ]

Good shout! Thanks!!

Sam

 

[AES]

A bit better news from Switzerland too. Going through the village the other day I saw several Swallows/Swifts/House Martins zooming around the buildings where the local village Council placed the nesting boxes. So I guess the fewer that made it "up" here this year have been busy not only hunting but breeding too! Anyway there are noticeably more little fellas zooming around now than there were a few weeks back.

Good on 'em.

 

[sunnybob]

I heard a lot of noise from the side of the house, rounded the corner, and this what I saw on my upstairs window.

Just before I took the picture, that tile edging was so full that another bird would not have fitted on it.
That wire is our ariel cable, left loose by the lazy bstd installer

 

[Ttrees]

They're sitting there waiting till you get outta dat pool Bob.
I mean, the attitude of some folks... with this "exclusive human entitlement" behaviour...
Next year, I want to see a premium dinghy for them too, along with a nice bevvy holster to boot!

You can't have all the fun, just think of all the hard work they've done for you, over the years.
Tut, tut. :?

 

[sunnybob]

I've just been informed that all my swifts are swallows :shock:
You cant tell from all the poop that is under that window. (hammer)
They have been nesting in the empty houses around me or a few years now, but this year the numbers have multplied out of all proportion to previous years.
My pool water is obviously an aphrodisiac, so I'm prepared to sell it in half litre plastic bottles for a few thousand quid a time.
Please form an orderly queue to the left of the door. =D> =D> =D>

 

[Ttrees]

And another thing, that lazy bstd cable installer...
Did you ever think he might have felt sorry for those poor swallows, up dere in that blistering Cyprus heat
I'll bet he planned that, and catered to their need for a wee splashabout.
And now your going bottling mother natures produce to make a quick buck.
That's just not on, Bob.