Well one yellowhammer! Driving between Ley Hill and Latimer yesterday I spotted a single yellowhammer perched on the roadside hedge. As my passenger had never seen one we kept a special lookout on the way back and, of course there wasn't one to be seen. I used to reckon on seeing several when driving this way in the spring. We did see a muntjac that ambled our of the hedgerow in front of the car without any concern for its own safety. The day was good for bluebells. They were probably at their best a few days ago but the display in the woods was still magnificent. When we managed to get downwind of a drift the smell was wonderful. In the garden we are starting to see juveniles being fed. Today a blue tit was taking fat from a peanut butter feeder for a young one perched conveniently, for me, on the fence just by the window. We seem to have a pair of goldfinches around but we aren't seeing anything remotely unusual. I a
Once upon a time you could find me birding on the Thames marshes almost every weekend through the winter. For various reasons I am now seldom able to travel to good birding sites. I am lucky, however, to live in the beautiful Chiltern Hills and this blog is to document the birds that I see on my own patch.