WINTER, A FIELDFARE AND APPLES
Winter 2013. The pink blossom was in bloom looking like coconut-ice once the snow had fallen on the young branches of this tree.
The tree is featured in the video Once In The Life Of The Moon. http://mazzyruth.blogspot.co.uk
As the snow was quite deep, I hung some apples cut in half in the tree, and not long after I had gone indoors, I saw from the window that a Blackcap had found the apples. This was a new visitor to our garden
and was obviously appreciative of the fruit it could cling to like the Bluetits.
A few days later, when the supply of apples was extended to ground level once my footprints had flattened the snow, a wonderful Fieldfare arrived. It fed on the apples, and also bread and wild bird-seed which was spread on the picnic table.
Fred, as I called him, stayed in the garden, taking cover in the shrub near the blossom tree but coming out to eat the food each day and give us a good view of his lovely bluey-grey plumage.
Fred was resident with us, and the other smaller birds, until the end of February. One morning, he spent longer in the bird-bath, having a thorough wash, ruffling his feathers so much before shaking the water off him. I somehow guessed this was going to be a sad day for us and was right. Fred suddenly flew onto the garden fence and stayed for a while. He returned, as though saying a final farewell from the ground in front of
the shrub, and then took off and I watched him fly off never to be seen again.
Scandinavia is a long flight and hopefully he had a good supply of food through those Wintry days to give him the nourishment he needed to sustain him.
I hoped he may come back this year but there has been no sign of him. So much pleasure was derived from having Fred as a resident bird in the garden and I couldn't have guessed he was on his way, that year, as I hung the apples in the tree.
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SPRING AND MEMORIES OF SOME SPECIAL DAFFODILS
