mile zip line

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2297010/Zoom-view-Welcome-northern-hemispheres-longest-zip-wire-whizz-MILE-LONG-route-Welsh-mountains-100mph.html

Butterfly farm

 Photo from a day at the horse ploughing exhibition

 photo's from the butterfly farm,

The Magic of Life Butterfly House, Aberystwyth, Wales

www.magicoflife.org/

Snowing

Sharing on the feeder 

The only bird who does not share is the Robin.

peek-a-boo on the feeder with the green finch and the chaffinch.

Goldfinch

A highly coloured finch with a bright red face and yellow wing patch. Sociable, often breeding in loose colonies, they have a delightful liquid twittering song and call. Their long fine beaks allow them to extract otherwise inaccessible seeds from thistles and teasels. Increasingly they are visiting birdtables and feeders. In winter many UK goldfinches migrate as far south as Spain.

Overview

Latin name

Carduelis carduelis

Family

Finches (Fringillidae)

Where to see them

Anywhere there are scattered bushes and trees, rough ground with thistles and other seeding plants. Likes orchards, parks, gardens, heathland and commons. Less common in upland areas and most numerous in southern England.

What they eat

When to see them

All year round.and sometimes in my garden restaurant today was the first `i saw them this this year  lucky me maybe the female will visit tomorrow.

Seeds and insects in summer.

Population

Europe	UK breeding*	UK wintering*	UK passage*
-	313,000 territories	100,000 birds	-

* UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.

Mating Collared doves

Collared doves are a pale, pinky-brown grey colour, with a distinctive black neck collar (as the name suggests). They have deep red eyes and reddish feet. Their monotonous cooing will be a familiar sound to many of you. Although you'll often see them on their own or in pairs, flocks may form where there is a lot of food available.

Overview

Latin name

Streptopelia decaocto

Family

Pigeons and doves (Columbidae)

Where to see them

Just about anywhere, but often around towns and villages. They're common visitors to gardens. But collared doves only came to the UK in the 1950s, after a rapid spread across Europe from the Middle East.

When to see them

Any time of year.

What they eat

Seeds and grain.

Population

Europe	UK breeding*	UK wintering*	UK passage*
-	298,000 territories	-	-

* UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.

Dolfor hills to the front of our house  all clear of snow

Snow on the hills

 no snow in Newtown but the hills are covered

 We have had a great variety of birds on the feeder. Siskins,Collared doves woodpigeon eons,Chaffinches,Tits  3 species Magpy

 male blackbirds

 we are also having the main road being re surfaced

 greenfinch

 different species of finches, the wren and robin. are quite hard to take a shot of.

not bad seeing I am stuck indoors

short life

 Sparkle knew where to keep warm on frosty mornings,

 My granddaughter shows off her boyfriend and his broken leg Bell is Sparkles sister by one ear we buried sparkle this morning, bell has been moping around the house she misses her sister,bell has no fear of this spaniel even though it only comes  to visit occasionally

 This female robin is one of Sparkles servivors

Yesterday morning the sisters  sharing the fire I made  it was freezing cold  in the afternoon of 12/3/2013 we had to put her down with swollen kidneys  rest in peace beautiful Sparkle.