On the lines

Leaving the house this morning the Swallows and House Martins were on the lines next to March Terrace. 57 in this shot and probably another 25 in the air as it was taken. I was obviously the first down the bumpy road as the spiders webs soon gathered around my wrists and face. Wiped them away only for more to gather as I walked. I even felt one tighten on my face and snap. I never have understood what the spiders are trying to do with a single line across 20 feet of road. 

You can just see the reflection of one line of web above the left hand white dot. Manual focus rules! Five Swifts and a Sand Martin fed high over Mayfair Coattge and in the horse paddocks even more hirundines gathered on the fences.

It seems that despite a late start it has been a good breeding season locally my neighbour Ken reporting the Swallows nesting in his garage had been triple brooded. As for waders........

The conditions are ideal but nothing more than a calling Greenshank last night and a Curlew this morning. I notice the Robins have returned to both my garden and the patch in the last week having been silent for the last few months. Still good numbers of Willow Warblers feeding up but few other warblers all seem to have gone with only a couple of Sedgies and one Whitethroat found. Loads of Pied Wagtails, 4 Willow Tit, 4 Siskin, pairs of Bullfinch and Tree Sparrow plus a flock of 37 Greylag Geese over west but nothing very exotic although a count of 42 species is good for late summer.

Walking back most birds had gone silent and the rustle of leaves in the wind backed with the usual hum of air and road traffic. Looking up I noticed a Common Darter on its perch of Hawthorn beries waiting for its next meal. The first morning in ages I've actually enjoyed