What a great theme to this week's SMAP contest: birds through my window!
Everyone living near a forest or rural area will surely have an advantage in observing wildlife, but urban birdwatching is often very rewarding too. It's amazing the amount of species we have surrounding us, even if we only have small patches of green around us. Most people think about sparrows and pigeons, but there are sooo much more.
I was "dogsitting" the family dog this past week while my parents were away, but give this week's challenge I walked home to get my camera and tried to capture what appeared near my parents home. I live near, and between our houses there is a small strip of green, where common buzzards are almost always present.
It actually pains me to seem them there: a few months back, there were a lot more trees and bushes here, that were chopped down, probably in preparation for more concrete jungle. Can't help but think their nest was destroyed in the process.
But I digress: off to the actual theme, window birdwatching!
As I arrived at my parents home, I looked through the window and the first model was searching for food:
Apart from pigeons and sparrows, this is probably the passerine that most people recognize; a common visitor to our urban gardens. He didin't seemed that please to pose, thow!
What an angry look! 😁
Not far away from the blackbird, the usual suspects were also foraging on the lawn.
Of course pigeons had to appear! Didn't saw no courtship displays this time, guess it was feeding time!
And then... a HUGE surprise! A wagtail flew to the lawn, but not an ordinary one!
White wagtails that exist in continental Europe have a different colour pattern, with grey upperback instead of this black: this is the british subspecies! It is described in my country, but not common at all and this is actually the first time I've seen it!! So big thanks 
Feel bad for not being able to capture a decent photo, but now that I know she is there, I'll probably try and find her again.
After the rarity, another species appeared; one that has been increasingly common in these past years in urban areas, at least where I live:
Redstarts seem to be all over the place now! Males are black while females are greish, but they share the red tail.
All these species were observed in about ten minutes... I wonder how many more would I see with more time? I've seen blackcaps and sparrows, that flew before I got the chance for a decent photo. Given how much I liked this challenge, I'll probably go for another urban birdwatching soon!
Have a great weekend!
Still haven't joined Splinterlands? In what planet do you live in? Click the banner below and join the fun! (It has my referral link; you can go directly to the website if you don't want to use it; either way... join in! 😎 )
