Birds of Doddington Wood
Blackbird
Male is totally black, has a yellow beak and yellow rings around eyes. Females and young are brown with spotted throats. Often lifts tail while landing. Loud flute-like song. Pink, pink, pink calls when alarmed. Length 25 cm. Blackbirds are ground feeders. They like apples, cheese, sultanas and meal worms. Blackbirds like to turn over leaves looking for insects.
Blue Tit
Likes trees, shrubs and bird tables. Small and acrobatic. Bright blue cap on head and wings. White face, and a yellow front. Length 11.5cm. Likes to feed from hanging bird feeders with unsalted nuts and suet blocks. They also search for insects in trees and shrubs.
Carrion Crow
Large bird. Totally black. Has a thick beak and strong legs. Walks slowly on open ground and perches in trees. Loud cawing call. Length 50cm. Carrion Crows are ground feeders.
Jackdaw
Small crow. Is slate grey with a black cap on top of head. Pale grey neck and pale grey eyes. Often stay together in small flocks. Likes to nest in old chimneys. Length 32cm. Tends to be a ground feeder.
Nuthatch
Small bird with a pointy beak, blue grey back and orange front. Short, square tail. Acrobatic on tree branches. Likes to hang from bird feeders. Length 12cms.
Robin
Familiar, cheeky, bold. Pain brown body with orange-red face and chest, edged with grey. Young robins are fluffy and brown all over with speckles. Robins are very territorial. They sing loudly from perches, especially in treetops to keep rivals away. Song is fluent, musical. Length 14cm. Robins love mealworms from bird tables or feeders.
Wren
Tiny, rusty brown bird. Pale cream line over eyes. Song is loud and fast. Very quick moving along the lower parts of bushes and undergrowth searching for insects to eat. Likes to line nest boxes with moss. Length 9.5cms.
Wood Pigeon
Large bird with white on neck and wing tips. Pink on chest. Young birds don’t have white necks. When Wood Pigeons take off there is a large clatter/flapping of wings. Length 41cm. Wood Pigeons are ground feeders but will use open bird tables.
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Black and white plumage with a patch of red feathers under their tails. Males also have red patch on the back of the head, and young birds have a red crown. Commonly heard drumming their beaks on tree trunks in the early Spring. They nest in the hollows of trees, often made by their powerful beaks.
Sparrowhawk
A relatively small bird of prey with bluish/grey plumage. Females have a mostly white front with orange bars, while males have a mostly orange front. They primarily hunt in dense woodlands, and prey on small birds. Females, being the larger, will often hunt and eat Wood Pigeons.
