oday it was time to clean the filter in my tank and belatedly refresh things. I found some dead shells, I think it might be related to parasites/germs rather than temperature (the temperature of the water isn’t low, it’s about 20 degrees) and the fish seem happy.

3 days ago it was 5 months since I set up a tank near me, splitting off or separating the shells from Rianne’s tank, which is for the tropical species.

Rianne’s tank has since then (again) begun to become a ‘breeding ground’ for more shells.

MOAR SHELLS, OMG!

That’s fine, as I can pass them all over to mine when winter is over.

Last week I brought the tank closer to my keyboard and installed better lighting/bulb for it (the ultraviolet one had died after years of persistent use).

I’m taking it “easy” this month as we transition into “proper” autumn and weather has worsened. I still managed to sunbathe almost 10 times so far this month. Sunlight in moderation is healthy.

Colder, darker days ahead until 2 months from now (December 20/21).

he “tropical mode” in the fish tank is now activated. Overnight, there was a lingering concern about the safety of the heater, so we turned it off and decided to wait a while. Just to be on the safe side.

Basically, it seemed like something may have been cracked and the thermostat, moreover, kicked in to deactivate the heater a lot sooner than anticipated.

After 3 test runs it’s finally off to a warm start. It seems visible or visibly obvious that the fish all seem happy (all species), they are accustomed to warm water and given the weather changes this is no longer possible without some electricity.

Last night, at 10PM, moving all the tropical fish to the same tank was feasible and could be done with minimal stress to the fish, maybe a maximum of 5-7 seconds inside the net.

Fingers crossed.

If all goes well, we’ll just look forward to springtime, then remove the heater and store it away, safely.

he other week I wrote about an awkward bird that had green eyes. It didn’t seem healthy. Indeed, it’s a sign of a health problem. The good news is, this bird came back and is coming every day (going to the kitchen to ask for seeds) and the eyes are now mostly brown, as the bird in general has gotten more healthy. The same goes for “The Sick Bird”. We’d like to think that ill birds treat us like some sort of hospital, or a place to go to when their health severely deteriorates.

This past Sunday I hauled another sack of seeds for them. They should be “covered” until the end of the year, maybe even longer.

Birds are good companions. If they trust you, they will become like pet parrots. Durian, who is very young, already lets me carry him on my palm while I feed him. Of course I wash with soap and sanitise (a need for alcohol) afterwards.

This morning Rianne managed to feed about 120 birds all at the same time. It’s an incredible number and probably a new record for her (except in Piccadilly Gardens). She even doubled the jarful because there were so many (after soaking rain).

At this very moment the Bot Couple are cleaning one another. They are in excellent shape (perfect fur coverage) and ready for winter.

oday it’s time to heat up the fish tanks, as it has been getting cold lately, especially overnight, and it’ll be getting colder in weeks to come. Some fish cannot tolerate room temperature in October. Since we’re one heater short we’ll need to separate tropical ones from cold water ones.

The task isn’t hard, as no water change is needed, but catching the fish (to transfer) can traumatise them somewhat. We have no other choice.

Other than that, I’ve managed to finish Daily Links by 9AM. I think that’s the first time ever. This will free up time for other tasks.

HE soaking rain is causing the birds to lose their dryness, even in spite of their body emitting some protective oil. Some of them park here, some begs for seeds (birds that don’t typically nest here), and I find myself feeding some birds I don’t know.

This coming Sunday when ManCity goes to Liverpool for a match (away game, kickoff at 4:30) we plan to revisit the park (went there yesterday afternoon), but it’ll be cold (no more t-shirt).

Winter feels like it came early. Some European countries are already in subzero temperatures.

still remember the first time the neighbours complained about bird-feeding. They kept boasting they had made a complaint. No other neighbour (as far as we know) had an issue with that.

Nowadays we feed particular birds at the back, sometimes at the front, sometimes in the nearby streets, always in Mayfield (both ways) and in a nearby park. We feed birds more than ever before and we feed more birds than we ever did.

To us, this was like a form of “activism”. At the end we got our way. The main opponent to the bird-feeding passed away a month ago.

HE local weather (for today) is a sign that today will be a fun day, as well as a long day, to write and publish. I’ve made the habit of sipping a hot brew, feeding the birds, and writing stories that help inform the public. My more personal stories are ‘offloaded’ to this blog.

Yesterday Durian finally ate from the jars (at last!) and this morning Rianne fed him too. He is growing very fast and we are becoming attached to him.

Birding is something (extracurricular activity for lack of a better term) we hope to inspire others to explore and adopt. The world needs more biodiversity. It breeds happiness for all, not only humans.

think we adopted Durian around 1.5 weeks ago and wrote about that days later. We’ve adopted several frail or very young birds lately. Durian is very distinguishable (Rianne spots him from a distant room) and he’s growing fast.

Today, for the first time, Durian not only found the courage to go on the door knob but also stay there when I open the door/s. I fed him with several different bottles. Sometimes he struggles a little with balance or tries to jump on the bottles. Sometimes Sweepy attacks him out of jealousy. But we’re getting there.

Durian is probably here to stay (long time). He’s only months old and can probably live for 15 years. Since we adopted him as a child/baby, we’re very attached to him already.

wo remarkable things happened today, maybe more. In recent hours baby Durian (the young bird [1, 2]) learned to sit on the doorknob, repeatedly, pleading for more seeds. Birds grow fast, so after a week of feeding Durian (and his friend Peanut) Durian is almost mature/adult size. He’s nowhere as small as he was a week ago. His eyes still show the young age, but the body grew a lot. He also sounds different.

Astonishingly, another bird, mature but not looking entirely healthy, showed up at the door, hanging basket, above the door … and stayed there without any fear of me. I don’t know this bird. I never saw it before. It has unique green eyes.

If it comes back, maybe we’ll adopt it and name it. I reckon it has had good experiences with humans and therefore has no fear of them.

The Sick Bird seems to be recuperating. It looks and behaves better each day. It didn’t sleep here overnight last night (we checked several times).

Today I sunbathed for over an hour because it still feel like another (late) lucky chance to absorb hear and bright light before winter sets in.

When it’s cold and wintry ill birds don’t have good survival odds.

he movie “Animal Graveyard” or something similar (not “Animal Hospital”) gave me the creeps as a young kid; I’m not sure if I even watched it, I at least heard of it. “Elephants’ graveyard” also; anything to do with death…

Recently we’ve attracted some ill or weak birds, who use our yard like a sanctuary and even stay overnight. It’s a bit painful to see them in poor health; but we need to do our best to help them because they ask for it.