6 small nests

[Lemars]

Morning All

Yesterday, I came across this group of 6 small nests, 8' off the ground and in brambles.

Based on that bare information, could anyone tell who might be the culprit, please.

C

[Muggsy]

I will hazard a guess ............ the clusters are in old mans beard, the fluffy seed heads have collected in lumps, possibly by mice.

[Lemars]

Hi Mugsy

I thought they were rather close together and suspected someone would say something like that.

I guess I was just hoping for a colony of goldfinches or something. I couldn't get closer and those shots are zoomed as much as they could be.

I didn't know mice would do that?

C

[Dogghound]

Quite hard to make them out, could be long tailed tits, but dont quite look right. Mice would'nt make nests like this.

[Naturenutz]

I agree with muggsy i have seen these clusters in Traveller's joy/old mans beard many times before and have also wondered on accasions if they were nests.I am not actually sure what causes the clusters , maybe old nests or debris act as a gathering platform for the dead old mans beard flowers/foilage.

[Lemars]

I couldn't get any closer, but I'm sure they were nests of some sort - they were too uniform to be anything else.


Hhhhmmmmm - long-tailed tits. Now that's another idea.
Maybe I'll switch from my goldfinch thoughts (memo to me - must seek out which birds nest in colonies like this - had thought goldfinches, but if long-tailed tits do ??)

Thanks everyone - all further ideas happily accepted

[solus]

I've just noticed your location is in France - is that where the photos were taken? Might make a difference...

[rossy]

Originally Posted by Lemars

I couldn't get any closer, but I'm sure they were nests of some sort - they were too uniform to be anything else.


Hhhhmmmmm - long-tailed tits. Now that's another idea.
Maybe I'll switch from my goldfinch thoughts (memo to me - must seek out which birds nest in colonies like this - had thought goldfinches, but if long-tailed tits do ??)

Thanks everyone - all further ideas happily accepted

goldfinches dont nest in colonies, or should i put, not to my knowledge, and their nests are very small, normally at the edge of tree branches, like sycamore,and they are tightly made, same goes for long tailed tits, thet dont nest in colonies, they are domed shape with a hole near the top on the side, but they would use brambles as a nesting site, its hard to make out from the photo, rossy.

[Lemars]

The photo was taken in France, but there are few birds here which don't appear in the UK. On the whole, I see much of the same.

I've often seem clusters and clumps of what's clearly debris caught up in brambles. Often several clumps in proximity to each other. I'm almost positive they couldn't have been accidental.

The singular thing about these was (apart from the number of them in such a close area) their size, compactness and uniformity of their construction.
My first thought would have been debris, but they simply weren't like anything I've seen before.

I know this is a British wildlife site, but just about everything on this site applies here too. Sorry if anyone minds too much.

C

[rossy]

dont be daft lemars , this forum is open to everyone who is intrested in birds and wildlife, and your input is welcome, on the nests front , if possible go back every few weeks and you just might catch sight of the culprit, culprits as they could return, keep posting as there is always knowledgable people on here more than willing to help, im off to bulgaria in june and i will be taking my camera , as the birdlife out there is plentiful, rossy.