BREEDING SEASON IS WELL UNDERWAY

The local population of birds are seemingly all paired up now, with many having started selecting a nest site and commenced building work.

There is a pair of goldfinches spending quite a lot of time around the garden, which is unusual because they tend to spend spring and summer down the lanes.

It may mean that this pair has found a suitable nest site in one of the nearby tress, although it may take a while to find out which one.

The triple nest box has had some interest from the local house sparrow population, although whether any nest building has started is not certain.

What is certain is the blue tits in the original nest box with a camera are quite fair one with preparation for the breeding season.

And it appears that egg laying may be soon to begin. One of the birds is now spending the night on the nest, which is a new development in the last couple of days.

The signal isn’t the best on the camera due to interference from the wifi, but sometimes it gives pretty clear images – if you’re patient!

The blackbirds and robins are not visiting the garden as much, which makes me think one of the birds is on eggs somewhere nearby.

Finally, the first order of mealworms has been made, so we’ll soon see which birds have young!

THE RETURN OF THE SWALLOWS

Previous dates of the first swallow sighted:

2016 – 10/04

2015 – 21/04

2014 – 19/04

This year it was two days earlier than last year, the 08^th April, and they couldn’t have picked a better weekend to return – blue skies and temperatures of 20c.

With the continuous sounds of chiffchaffs, blue tits, great tits, robins and blackbirds reverberating around the countryside near the garden, one quick burst of a swallow song suddenly emerged.

And there on a telegraph wire, well where else…, was the single swallow announcing his/her arrival.

With cooler temperatures expected for the next week (and typically Easter Bank Holiday) the first swallows to arrive back for the breeding season are unlikely to be in a sudden rush to build a nest.

Talking of nests, the blue tit one is looking almost complete, with both male and female birds taking turns to go in the nest box and create what is hoped to be a place to lay the eggs to hatch the next generation.

There appears to be feathers and hair discarded by the local horses now being brought in to line the nest; being carefully woven in to the dried grass and moss that is already there.

Moss is also being used for some of the other nest boxes, just not the other camera nest box.

It appears at least one of the triple next box is being used, but the next box with the other camera in is still being ignored.

The warm weather over the weekend has meant the wildlife in and around the garden is emerging from every nook and cranny that it’s been hiding away for the winter in.

Spring is most definitely here and the wildlife knows it.

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NESTING ACTION IS FINALLY STARTING

Just a week after expressing worries about the nesting season, and one of the nest box cameras revealed the start of a nest!

Unsurprisingly it’s the nest box that has seen a nest every year since it was introduced in 2008.

As yet the identity of the birds building the nest is unknown, but judging by previous nests the suspicion is it is a pair of blue tits.

The nest camera will be getting plenty of views over the coming days to try and put a name to the nest builders.

The other nest box camera, which is part of a three section nest box set up, has not seen any nesting action, and it’s likely that once again the other two sections of the nest box will be used for nesting.

It does seem as if spring has literally sprung into life in the last few days, and the wildlife around the garden has responded accordingly.

Bees are buzzing around the garden, taking drinks of nectar from the growing number of flowers in bloom, while the dawn chorus is in full flow – some days it acts as an alarm clock.

Spiders are busy constructing webs, hoping to trap the increasing number of flying insects, while the insect eating birds are hoping to capture some of them to feed up before the nests are completed and eggs laid.

It’ll hopefully be then that the caterpillar bonanza will occur and the newly hatched chicks will benefit.