Rainfall: 153.2mm

Temp High: 18.4^oC on 22nd

Temp Low: -5.9^oC on 5th

Temp Average: 5.7^oC 

We had our first red-backed shrike of the year in the garden today. This is a good week earlier than we've ever seen them.

We found a black morel mushroom in the garden today. We've seen these in the woods before, but this is a first for the garden. Unfortunately, the top had been knocked off but hopefully it can spread there.

We had a hare just outside our garden today. We had a few plants eaten off recently and this is probably the culprit.

A blackbird with a bent tail has been hopping around our garden for the last few days.

We had the wryneck calling again this morning - but this time he got a reply from a second wryneck. I got a terrible photo of their interaction on our tree stump - the camera focused on the nearer stump. You can just about make out the two of them.

I got some sound recordings of the calls, so I may post them here if I can remember how I did it last time.

While eating breakfast, we heard a strange bird call outside our window. I opened the door and it flew off before I could see what it was. It sounded like a bird of prey so I assumed it was the kestrel I saw yesterday. About an hour later, I heard it again and this time saw this wryneck in our willow.

Later in the day, I caught one of the pair of long-tailed tits that have been around for a couple of weeks with some nesting material. They flew off up the hill, so they must be nesting up there.

Earlier in the week I took a couple of days off work to watch the migratory birds. It was so cold, there was nothing at all to see. Today was a lot warmer and I recorded 28 bird species in the garden including this lesser whitethroat and a common redstart. It's not been a good migration though.

A pair of coal tits seemed interested in one of our bird boxes today. That would make a change from blue tits and great tits.

There were quite a few black redstarts about too - but it's been so cold there are no insects about so we've mainly seen them eating peanut dust below our feeders.

After many technical challenges, I've now managed to get our bird box camera working - just as a blue tit has moved in and has started to sleep in the box overnight. She usually arrives at dusk and leaves at dawn and is working hard during the day depositing large amounts of nesting material in the box. So far we've only seen one bird in the box at any one time. Here's the link to the YouTube stream: Click Here.

Today, I was amusing myself watching this AWACS plane (NATO02) circling the area. It was around for several hours and I'm glad it was because it made me look at the distant sky a bit more than I would normally do. It allowed me to spot this white stork - also circling the area albeit on a much smaller scale. It was really high up and was probably quite close to a Typhoon jet that shot over the valley around the same time.

First thing this morning, I went for a run over the Finkenberg. I was looking out for tadpoles in the puddles beside the path and I came across this seething mass. There were two bundles with a patch of mud between them containing these red worms waving around in the water. I suspect the worms were trying to catch the tadpoles.

After a long gardening session, I spent a couple of hours watching the birds. Firstly, a kestrel was around and sat at the top of a tree for a short time. Then a female blackcap sat in the hawthorn for a surprising amount of time.

After I switched windows to overlook the pond, this white wagtail came and had a drink and a bath.

A short break for a photo of one of our impressive wild tulips and then it was back to the birds and this dunnock which was hopping around with a companion (although they weren't getting along). A pair a marsh tits came to the feeders and were getting along.

Finally, a solitary fieldfare was perched at the top of a (very) distant tree.

There were lots of bird about today, including this very dishevelled black redstart (hereafter called Mr Manky). He looked quite happy despite his appearance. He was hopping about and eating peanut dust from below the feeders.

A very small mouse was darting around Mr Manky.

Concluding with some more photos of a goldcrest and a long-tailed tit.

This grey wagtail was hopping around our pond this morning.

Later on, when the sun was shining into the pond, we could see some toad spawn curling around our pond plants.

We've had a few mistle thrushes in the garden recently. Today, they were joined by our first blackcap of the year who was drinking out of our pond.

It was extremely cold overnight and this ice spike formed in our bird bath. This is almost identical to the one we had back in February 2017 but pointing East instead of West.

Lots of birds today. We started with a very wet heron in his breeding finery.

A goldcrest and a firecrest were hopping around our spruce and were close enough for me to get some of the best photos I've ever managed with these species. They don't stay still long, so they are a challenge to photograph.

I got a few photos of a chiffchaff in our willow and one of the female black redstarts hunting from our garden fence.