Up & down

With the weekend set to be a bit wet even the male Swallows waiting for their broods to emerge looked a bit downcast. On the up side the weather meant there were plenty of flies about for them to feed on. I headed out as the sun replaced rain around 8.30. first sighting was a Greenshank in the horse paddocks edging the pc year list nearer to the ton helped by last weekends immature Marsh Harrier passing through.

Also in the horse paddocks the first hoards of young Starlings were gathered waiting not so patiently to be fed. As I write the Starling whose brood left their nest at the back of my house this week is giving an intense vocal display and no doubt a second brood will shortly be on their way. Blue Tits and Jackdaws also feeding in earnest whilst the first few broods of House Sparrows have also fledged their terrace home. Looks like quite a good year.

At Banks Pond the Canada Geese have hatched seven (honest, look carefully there's another yellow head emerging from behind the breast of the left hand adult) and here plus up up the bridle track Blackcaps are singing in earnest. Six species of Butterfly today including my first Small Copper of the year.