Young Great Spotted Woodpecker is pulling on the mother’s feathers

In spring, the forest comes alive and with it a multitude of young birds are born. One of the most fascinating sights is that of a young Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) hungry and impatiently pulling on its mother’s feathers to encourage her to feed. This behavior offers us a unique insight into the life… Continue reading Young Great Spotted Woodpecker is pulling on the mother’s feathers

Great Spotted Woodpecker´s nestbox project

The sound is bright and harsh, almost metallic. It’s clear something hollow is being hammered, and not by accident. A quick glance confirms the suspicion: a Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) is chiseling away at a wooden bird nest box. Not on a tree trunk, as expected, but right around the entrance hole of a… Continue reading Great Spotted Woodpecker´s nestbox project

Bird photography in your own garden: use of a camouflage tent

At the beginning of last winter, I watched with interest the hustle and bustle around the bird table in our garden during breakfast. It was a beautiful morning with sunshine. A Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) kept coming to the bird feeder because he thought he would find sunflower seeds there. A little later, a… Continue reading Bird photography in your own garden: use of a camouflage tent

Pygmy Owl in CHKO Kokorin in Czech Republic

It is foggy and windless in the Kokorin Valley. The area is named after Kokorin Castle, which towers over the valley of the same name. Already at the southern end of the long valley there are impressive sandstone formations that are so typical of this area. The numerous pine trees give the wildly romantic landscape… Continue reading Pygmy Owl in CHKO Kokorin in Czech Republic

Eurasian Pygmy-Owl in Saxon Switzerland National Park south of Dresden

As the sun sinks behind the horizon and casts long shadows across the forest floor, the kingdom of owls in the “Saxon Switzerland” National Park should be visited. In the mysterious hours between dusk and dawn they come to life. With every step the forest shines into the observer to envelop a symphony of rustling… Continue reading Eurasian Pygmy-Owl in Saxon Switzerland National Park south of Dresden

Curious Young Great Spotted Woodpecker

After hatching, young Great Spotted Woodpeckers (Dendrocopos major) are completely helpless but soon they take on a life of their own. Spring is a wonderful time for nature watchers. The forests are full of life and activity, and one of the most beautiful sights is that of a young Great Spotted Woodpecker curiously looking out… Continue reading Curious Young Great Spotted Woodpecker

Pygmy Owl in the upper Harz Mountains

A hike in the highlands around the Brocken, the highest mountain far and wide. It’s foggy and windless. It also snowed for a few days. Then suddenly a rhythmic song, a scale, can be heard. It is a Eurasian Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium passerinum), which sits a little later on a dead, thickly icy spruce tree… Continue reading Pygmy Owl in the upper Harz Mountains

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker: an often overlooked winter visitor

What is this miniature version of a woodpecker in the garden in winter? He’s hanging on a fat ball. It’s lucky that we get a visit from a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos minor). Although the smallest native woodpecker is actually an insect eater, it doesn’t miss out on such a nutritious calorie bomb in the… Continue reading Lesser Spotted Woodpecker: an often overlooked winter visitor

Bird photography in your backyard: What to consider

20 small birds are constantly on the move between a garden bush and the nearby birdhouse. Right away I can identify Great Tits (Parus major), Blue Tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), Nuthatches (Sitta europaea), Greenfinches (Chloris chloris), Goldfinches (Carduelis carduelis) and House Sparrows (Passer domesticus). While Great Tits and Blue Tits prefer to fly to the feeder,… Continue reading Bird photography in your backyard: What to consider

Cuckoo on fight on robin’s nest

A sunny day in the forest and at the lake near Strzalowo in Masuria. Arriving at the parking lot at 3pm we see a Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) being chased through the canopy of a large Linden tree at high speed by a songbird. We want to take the signposted circular hiking trail in the… Continue reading Cuckoo on fight on robin’s nest

Wryneck in Brandenburg/ Germany

A game protection fence separates the meadow from a growth area for the Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris). High rhythmic, choppy sounds and a bird flying into a Guelder-rose (Viburnum opulus), rests a few seconds suggest a nest. The enthusiasm is great when the view through the binoculars shows a brown-grey bird with a striking black… Continue reading Wryneck in Brandenburg/ Germany

Junge Kleinspechte sind aus dem Nest

Noch vorgestern wurden die Jungen an der Brutröhre gefüttert. Immer wieder steckten junge Kleinspechte (Dendrocopos minor) ihren Kopf aus dem Loch einer abgestorbenen, gar nicht so dicken Erle (Alnus sp.). Gestern war die Fütterungsaktivität an der Bruthöhle eingestellt. Das Brutloch schien aufgemeißelt, Rinde abgehebelt zu sein. Schnell kam die Befürchtung hoch, daß sich hier ein… Continue reading Junge Kleinspechte sind aus dem Nest