Treecreeper

 I found a Treecreeper nest building a few days ago so I've been following its progress.

My apologies for the shaky video but hand holding a 600mm lens for a while, waiting for the bird to enter and exit the nest, was a challenge. I'll take a tripod in future.

I haven't seen 2 birds together yet so maybe only a single bird is building. Do Treecreepers (BTO code TC so I'll use this shorthand) build a nest before they find a mate?

Anyway, it has been bringing in all sorts of material:

Downy feather

Sheep wool?

Small twig

Large piece of bark

I've also seen it carry in a few pieces of ivy stalk but no pics of that. This is the 5th day I've been checking on it so it must be nearly finished surely?!?

BBC Wildlife Magazine say: 

"The treecreeper starts with a base of twigs and then add grass, moss, lichen and wood chips. It takes about a week to build the whole nest.

The female then lines the nest with hair, wool and feathers.

Given that a clutch size is about 5-6, the nest can get quite crowded towards the end."

 I've seen a bird going to the nest with feathers and wool already even though twigs etc. are still being added. More research needed 🙄

The Art Of Noise - birdsong style

 What a truly wonderful morning, filled with bird song and a warming sun.

It started just a few hundred yards from home as I was walking through Freeport and I heard a Chiffchaff singing. It's not the first of the year - that was a couple of days ago - but it set the tone for the whole morning.

Opening act - one of 5 Chiffchaff heard on my walk

9 Yellowhammer near Weatherhill Farm, flitting from the trees onto the stubble field and back. Shouting for a side order of bread (hold the cheese).

Also at Weatherhill the Rook colony were in full voice, caw-ling to each other.

The Rookery at Weatherhill

About 60 Redwing were feeding on the wood floor in the leaf litter and flew up as I was about 200 yards away. How did they know?!? This was the most impressive sound of the morning as they really filled the air with their calls.

Wrens, Robins, Blue Tits and Great Tits were a constant throughout the morning, filling any gaps in other, dare I say, more interesting songs. Lots of Great Tits - enough to fill several classrooms.

One of many Great Tits seen and heard today

A Common Buzzard was mewing above the wood, but as I was in the wood itself I couldn't get a clear shot with the camera.

3 Great Spotted Woodpeckers drumming. I still look for for Lesser 'peckers as Wassand wood has good habitat for them, but more in hope than expectation.

Just 3 Cetti's Warblers today and a single Song Thrush. Blackbird numbers have dropped off from their winter high.

A few Goldcrests were joining in the songfest too, descant don't you know 😂

Goldcrest stayed still for a long time singing away

Goldcrest with its high pitched song

5 Lapwings were noisily busy over the fields along the south side.

Lapwing belting out its lovely song

The king of the singers, Skylark, out performing everything else.

Skylark - still number one

Even Linnets got in on the act towards the end of the walk.

Linnet near second field

Spring Is Here

 This is only my opinion, but I reckon Spring is here already. Other opinions are available, please contact your usual supplier of weather and seasonal opinions for alternate information.

Leaves coming out on hawthorn bushes, blackthorn bushes in flower, ground ivy flowering and green alkanet flowering - all these tell me that Spring is here!

Ground Ivy

Green Alkanet

Hawthorn leaves opening

Blackthorn flowers

The Black-necked Grebe is still present on the Mere but won't come near enough for me to get good shots, I'll have to go to press with these distant shots instead.

Black-necked Grebe

Black-necked Grebe

Black-necked Grebe with f Goldeneye

Black-necked Grebe with f Goldeneye

More roe deer photos follow I'm afraid, but at least these aren't obscurred by foliage 😀😀

 On my way towards Wassand the other morning I was confronted by 5 roe deer, including 3 roebucks with antlers at different stages of growth. I think they are from left to right - a young one, a fully mature buck with clean antlers and one that is a few years old with velvet still on its antlers.

3 Roebucks - young, mature and middling?

Young doe, mature doe and mature roebuck

The older two roebucks decided to run past me rather than going the other way as the others did.

It was great to see them so close for a change.

A couple of Common Buzzards have been hanging around the west end of the Mere over the past few days. Hopefully they will breed close by as they did last year.

Common Buzzard