What have you seen

We were watching the usual Fieldfare visitors eating the apples left on our trees when we spotted this. Have never seen a "pied" Jackdaw before but this one certainly stood out. Hope the photos show the colouring. We sometimes see blackbirds like this but not Jackdaws. He was alongside a Magpie and looked like a strange cross. 

I've never had the good fortune of seeing one Brue. Lucky you. 

Right clicking on the first photo gives a bigger view of it.

Grand sighting, brue. Never seen one either.

Wow Brue that is a new one on me. Seen many Blackbirds but a Pied Jackdaw!. do you think he got dressed for a Xmas party. 

What will be interesting is catching sight of him/her again.  

Looking south just now, a clear sky in the SW there is a good view of the crescent moon with Venus sinking to the horizon on the right of the moon and Jupiter high on the left. (Saturn is lurking somewhere too.) 

This is a good plant for insects in winter. I took a photo today of our "Castor Oil" plant, it's about 6 foot high. A tough plant, the flowers are similar to the ones on Ivy. 

Interesting plant brue.  On the way back from a short shopping trip at Villefrance saw about 15 herons and 1 little egret then further on another field about 30 plus cattle egrets and then a few great white egrets as we have had a lot of rain and fields are flooded there must be a lot of food about hence so many of the heron family about.

Just been locking and outside building up and heard some birds calling and looked up to see 40 Common Cranes flying over and going Northwest usually they go south in late October wonder if the weather over the Pyrenees has confused them but a great sight to see and now have got clearer skies.

Wow RedKite , I envy you that must have been a wonderful site. Never a chance of seeing a sight like that here in Herefordshire.