ID please + a sad good/badluck story

[Stomperone]

I'll try to keep the story short ..
I spotted this guy totally exhausted on the ground in my garden being eyed up by a cat.

I thought it was bleeding already then saw that it was not blood. I went out and picked it up and put it into a large breeding tank I have for a conservation project I am working on. I added water + several varieties of seed and some meal worm. Took a quick photo and left it alone for a couple of hours. When I returned it had perked up a great deal and was still eating. Instead of keeping it overnight and stressing it more, I decided it looked well enough to release.
I carefully took it into my garden again and released it.. It flew off quite happily, I watched it out of my window for a while as it returned and was feeding at the base of my feeder. It then Flew off only to be taken mid air by a sparrowhawk. As I live in a city I think I was as suprised as the little bird by this.
Luckily??? it flew into an oak tree at the bottom of my garden and started to eat it there .. My Camcorder as always was next to me so I grabbed it and got this video .... And I thought it was only me who had those sorts of days..


Sparrow hawk in our garden | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

[Adam Cheeseman]

male Linnet

[RKB]

The appearance of the bird looks like it might have trichomonosis (fluffed up, food stuck aorund the bill, lethargic, weak). Birds don't generally get 'exhausted' like that.

I think you might need to take some precautions, as this disease has killed half a million greenfinches and a few hundred thousand other birds in gardens in recent years. It is being spread by contaminated birdfeeders and feeding areas, caused by a protozoan.

You need to take down your feeders/bird bath for a few weeks and disinfect them thoroughly. When you put them back up, try and do it in a different place, over a different patch of ground. keep a very close eye out for fluffed up, weak-lloking birds, and if you see them, take the feeders down again. If you have a lot of sick birds in your area, you might have to basically stop feeding for months.

This sounds drastic, but it's a very serious disease that it hammering finches and sparrows, and they are much better off not being concentrated around feeders in diseased areas. See here: The RSPB: Advice: Trichomonosis in finches and other garden birds

[accipter]

I would be interested to know the mag of your cam please.

[Gatekeeper]

Originally Posted by RKB

The appearance of the bird looks like it might have trichomonosis (fluffed up, food stuck aorund the bill, lethargic, weak). Birds don't generally get 'exhausted' like that.

I think you might need to take some precautions, as this disease has killed half a million greenfinches and a few hundred thousand other birds in gardens in recent years. It is being spread by contaminated birdfeeders and feeding areas, caused by a protozoan.

You need to take down your feeders/bird bath for a few weeks and disinfect them thoroughly. When you put them back up, try and do it in a different place, over a different patch of ground. keep a very close eye out for fluffed up, weak-lloking birds, and if you see them, take the feeders down again. If you have a lot of sick birds in your area, you might have to basically stop feeding for months.

This sounds drastic, but it's a very serious disease that it hammering finches and sparrows, and they are much better off not being concentrated around feeders in diseased areas. See here: The RSPB: Advice: Trichomonosis in finches and other garden birds

Hi RKB, I've posted similar advice and the same link on 2 or 3 threads recently; as Trichomonosis seems to be an ever growing problem, we ought to have a 'sticky-thread' on the British Birds forum. The text of your post on this thread would be suitable. What do you think?

[Stomperone]

Originally Posted by accipter

I would be interested to know the mag of your cam please.

It's a Sony DCR-SR37 with 60x Optical Zoom + loads more digital zoom which I dont use as it it rubbish.. It's pretty good but here are two things I really do not like about it. one is the chromatic abberation the other is the viewing screen is usless in bright daylight I much prefer the eyepiece type with my sony DCR-TRV355E

[RKB]

Originally Posted by Gatekeeper

Hi RKB, I've posted similar advice and the same link on 2 or 3 threads recently; as Trichomonosis seems to be an ever growing problem, we ought to have a 'sticky-thread' on the British Birds forum. The text of your post on this thread would be suitable. What do you think?

Fine by me, but I doubt posters would suss it before being told. They wouldn't know to look at the sticky until directed, so we'll just keep having to point it out whenever it comes up.

[Gatekeeper]

Originally Posted by RKB

Fine by me, but I doubt posters would suss it before being told. They wouldn't know to look at the sticky until directed, so we'll just keep having to point it out whenever it comes up.

Yes, good point

[Stomperone]

Could somebody please tell me if I am correct about this being a sparrowhawk in the video- if anyone gets past the private conversation lol

[RKB]

Yes it is. They can catch trichomonosis too, so see my post above.