15th May

This morning Chris Knight texted to say he had heard a Reed Warbler near the river at Morton. I joined him by the small, but dense, area of scrub  where the bird was singing. The bird was in full voice but steadfastly refused to show itself (even when a Sparrowhawk shot through).

This is the third Reed Warbler record in as many years (after a sixty year absence). I assume this reflects the upsurge in local numbers as reed beds have been developed at the local nature reserves. It’s surely only a matter of time before they breed in the reeds in the magic garden?

Talking of which there was a fine Spotted Flycatcher in there this evening

Along with my first Green-veined White of the year …

…And three Buzzards in a tumbling aerial display. A villager reported another seven Buzzards in the air together over the Christmas tree plantation.

But on the whole it was a very unbirdy weekend as we played host to the wonderful Jeni & Billy from Nashville who performed a concert in the church.

A fantastic evening and videos of some of the performance from last night can be found HERE