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Juveniles, yellowhammers and bluebells

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.


Bluebell wood 

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 am starting to wonder if we will see any juvenile starlings this year. I haven't seen any adults so far and it is just coming up to the time of year when the young ones are expected to strip the fat feeder. If they don't turn up I am going to have a box of fat bars slowly going rancid.

I have ad a couple of tries with the camera trap recently buy the badgers are failing to pose in shot. The last one had several seconds of a stripy shout clearing out uneaten raisins from the ground feeder. What I have confirmed is that it isn't rats finishing off uneaten birdfood. I know they must be around but the camera has never picked one up. Plenty of field mice but never, so far, a rat.

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