Great White Stork eating a snake in my garden (actually a Slow Worm)

The biodiversity of the Slovak Carpathians is incredible. The Great White Stork (Ciconia ciconia) is an annual visitor, and many villages even provide large nesting poles for them in order to prevent them nesting on chimneys. Because they are a protected species, these massive birds have no fear of humans and can often be quiteContinue reading “Great White Stork eating a snake in my garden (actually a Slow Worm)”

Dawn Chorus With Rain – Bird Song Ambient Study And Work Meditation Music

Early morning in Spring and the birds are all calling out for mates and to declare territory as they prepare their nests. Carpathian Adventure gives you an audio insight into cottage life in a rural village in the Carpathian Mountains and the enormous variety of birds and wildlife that call the garden home.This video isContinue reading “Dawn Chorus With Rain – Bird Song Ambient Study And Work Meditation Music”

Spring Bird Song – Natural Ambient Meditation Music

Early morning in a cottage garden in the Carpathian Mountains of East Slovakia. The birds are extremely lively after the long, hard winter and perform both the dawn chorus and their mating rituals. Due to the sheer number of species we get, many different bird calls can be heard – including: Blue TitGreat TitRobinBlackbirdYellowhammerJayGreen WoodpeckerGreatContinue reading “Spring Bird Song – Natural Ambient Meditation Music”

Slow Motion Garden Bird Battle – Great Tit versus Blue Tit (in snow)

All-round favourite Great Tit goes up against the tiny contender Blue Tit in this shocking battle for dominance over cake crumbs in snow in the dead of Winter. Who will come out on top? Never before seen footage of two of the most popular garden birds duking it out for their very survival, and fatContinue reading “Slow Motion Garden Bird Battle – Great Tit versus Blue Tit (in snow)”

Snow Thaw Self Reliance – life in a rural cottage in Winter

When Winter comes and goes, bringing with it first the snow and the ice and then the desolation of the thaw as the long road to Spring begins, the devastation that blizzards and freezing temperatures and tonnes of snow have created becomes exposed. It is at this time that one really begins to understand theContinue reading “Snow Thaw Self Reliance – life in a rural cottage in Winter”

Great Spotted Woodpecker

We get many species of woodpecker visiting the garden. This one is the Great Spotted (Dendrocopos major). Aside from the black, green and grey woodpeckers, the vast majority in our area look very similar and it’s often difficult to identify them. The Great Spotted is best identified by its long white shoulder patches.  

Kestrel in tree

I really hate taking photos when the sky is like this but you have to seize the moment. This is a Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) with unusual plumage. Unless it’s something else…

White-backed Woodpecker?

Whenever I’m alone in the bush, there are several species of birds and animals which always keep me company – the Raven and Lesser Spotted Eagle fly above the trees making their calls (sometimes the eagle flies through the forest and its wing beats send whooshing sounds through the leaves), woodpeckers knock on trees, JaysContinue reading “White-backed Woodpecker?”