Dumper, Dumpee or Both?

Our busy bird full garden is currently like a ghost town Rufus , how fickle our feathered friends are and what short memories they have :-)

Do you have any friendly kookaburras, Rufus - or are you in the wrong geographical area? I have a family member in the Dandenongs and she has a whole group who feed on her windowsill. It looks magical!

Phew! Birds? I was wondering about these two ladies you've been looking after all winter.
Forget birds. Any wombats? My favourite!

Don’t slate me ..... could it be the time of the ...... year? My bird table is very affected by the seasons. The truly faithful come back - unless they have fallen victim to something larger and stronger. Keep hoping and perhaps you will have to move on in your affections once you have come to terms with the loss.

Rufus - are maggies magpies? They're quite scarey birds. They used to steal our chickens' eggs.
When we were in France 2 of our french farmer neighbours had pet crows. I think they had them since fledglings, and they had a cage they slept in at night. During the day they came out and ate titbits from an outside table. Or from human hands.
One of them became very protective of its owner and when I walked up to visit with our dog would fly across and bombard us.
I think they must have released them to the wild eventually as they got older, as I never saw them after about 6 months.

Perhaps they've gone off to breed somewhere Rufus and will be back with their offspring - let's hope so.

Fennel Australian magpies are quite different to the British version - the only thing they seem to have in common is their colouring (hence why early migrants called them magpies).

They make a pleasant warbling sound and sometimes sing, unlike the loud screeches that ours in the UK make and I think they are much more pleasant to have around!

We thought all the sparrows had deserted us - but they must have been breeding elsewhere and have come back in force, stripping our runner beans of the flowers, little varmints.

Don't mention kookaburras Squiffy - they start cackling before dawn!

Don’t slate me ..... could it be the time of the ...... year
Feelingmyage55: "slate"!? What's that?
Thanks for your encouragement and I'm feeling a bit happier now. I'm still a "dumpee", but today I noticed a parliament of maggies (about a dozen) gathered in the street, possibly comparing notes as to where the soft touches for a free meal are.
As you say, they might have got other things on their minds, like building a home and starting a family. It's that certain time of year here of course.
I do hope they find the time eventually to bring their chicks round for a sing-song, and I'll lay in some premium mince as a treat. They'd probably appreciate a lift in their diet and welcome a change from bread crusts and insects. Not sure of what else to get them but there's time for that later.
OoRoo

Australian magpies are quite different to the British version
Yes Jalima, they are also described as being "brash and cocky" which is why they've been adopted as mascots by so many sports clubs.!
Case in point in Melbourne; Collingwood footy club, otherwise known as "The Pies"! Hated by some! (many ?)
But Maggies are also known to be very clever and friendly, just like me which is probably why they took a shine to a kindred spirit; "birds of a feather"and all that!
OoRoo

Rufus2 Your little friends may have gone off to build new nesting for the coming autumn (do you have autumn) ?
We have lost our pair of Doves and I am really missing them,they where here every morning waiting for their food but I have not seen them for over a week.
We have now a family of Seagulls calling in as they make their way towards the Mersey I think they stop over for a top up of nuts and coconut shavings before they arrive on the beach front which is not far from my house.

top up of nuts and coconut shavings
Glammanana; Sorry about your missing doves. Has the hot weather driven them to cooler climes? Unusual weather patterns could bring about unexpected changes in us all, especially here when the temp. hits 40C for more than one day.
Everyone flees to the beach, so perhaps they've gone for a skinny-dip?
Nuts and coconuts sounds an interesting change to the maggies menu. I recall they liked my left-over fish and chips, so hopefully their memories are not as fickle as they might appear.
Ta-Ra; A Merseyside farewell?
Btw; Yes, we do get Autumn, but right now we are trying to get rid of a miserable Winter; hopefully Spring will see an improvement and of course that's when a young maggie's mind turns to thoughts of "you know what!" It's now past the witching hour, yet again.!

I will send our two mating pigeons to you as a consolation prize Rufus - the further they migrate the better imo.

They are constantly fighting, flapping in and out of the hedge and creating a racket. I think we may expect a little family to appear before too long, unless she does manage to keep chasing him away.

Be careful what you feed them.I was putting out leftover catfood for our Magpies until my 8 year old GD told me not to.."they'll grow fur ,granny,she said and they'll be confused ,they wont know whether to fly or catch flying things "

This year we had two sets of backbirds nest and fledge a couple of weeks apart. After several weeks of a garden full of fledglings they have all disappeared - I assume in search of their own territories. I feel quite bereft!

I have raucous seagulls that wake me up every day at about 3.30am, you can have those if you like. Its the same every year. When I lived in a high rise block I had one I called steven seagull that used to knock on my window until I opened it and hand fed him some bits. they are lovely looking birds but they are pests, they rip open rubbish bags, empty the rubbish bins in the parks and steal peoples food while they are eating.

Birds are moulting at present and will be back when their feathers have re-grown.

Fennel I once took my dog for a walk through Gunnersbury Park and there were hundreds of baby ducklings on the grass. I came back about an hour later and there were masses of crows and not one duckling. There probably would have been more ducks than the lake could have coped with but it was still horrible.

DH laughs at me because I always say Good Morning to Magpie's, his old friend Albert used to do the same and it amuses him no end, that said, I hope you're little friends realise which side their bread is buttered on soon Rufus2 and come back to you, no doubt you'll accept them back with open arm's

A couple of doors up has a huge tree in which crows nest. They make a terrible racket most mornings. They also eat the food i put out for the smaller birds. I will give them your address. I'm sure they will be happy to replace your magpies if you are happy to feed them. ?

We do get attached to our birds. I once allowed swallows to nest in my porch, big mistake, I got too attached and shed tears when the babies were able to leave the nest.

If that's all you have to worry about, count your blessings

. I'm sure they will be happy to replace your magpies if you are happy to feed them
anitamp; You must be psychic, even though we're half a world apart!
Sad to say I'm still a dumpee, but now a couple of crows/ravens have appeared; pinched the bread I'd left out on the offchance my maggies would come home. We also get a maggie look-alike known as a currawong, similar colour , but doesn't warble and keeps its distance.
Having studied birds (these feathered ones) for quite some time now, it's interesting to see their different habits.
The crows/ravens dunk their bread in the bird bath even though it's sometimes the extra soft variety. Leaves a bit of a mess, but other birds still bathe and drink the bath water! Can't complain; what with that and removal of their calling cards it keeps me active in exchange for their company.
And I'm counting my blessings all the time.
Ta-Ra

The dickeybirds stop singing past the mating season and that's why it has gone quiet.

My garden was full of all sorts of birds: starlings, pigeons, finches, blackbirds, thrushes and robins. But now they have stripped my mulberry tree bare they have departed.

I'm not sure if this is fact or whether I've remembered it properly . Birds have something called a post nuptial moult and because they look particularly scraggy, they skulk in the undergrowth and become very anti social until they look presentable again! My Gran probably told me this! She loved her birds.