I was woken at six by the cat leaping on me from a great height and lucky it was too, I got to hear the blackcap and a garden warbler singing in the garden at the same time. The key difference was in the length of the song: the blackcap had a beginning and an end and the length of the middle didn't vary by much, the garden warbler started but didn't seem sure how to finish and the song seemed to peter out as the bird eventually ran out of breath. The garden warbler also had two distinct starting points: a blackcap-like warble which seemed to be its preferred option and a whitethroat-like rattle which it used every third or fourth go. Both starts ran almost seamlessly into an identical bubble and scratch warble which ran on and eventually faded out. Nice to hear a garden warbler in April and be able to confidently identify it immediately.
There are times when I curse the sycamores on the railway embankment but they do provide a rich crop of aphids for the spadgers, busily collecting food for hungry mouths. The first of the youngsters will be arriving at the feeders soon. They're nearly always accompanied by one of the senior males until they're old enough to go about in gangs.
- Blackbird 1
- Blackcap 1
- Collared Dove 1
- Dunnock 1
- Garden Warbler 1
- Great Tit 1
- House Sparrow 12
- Jackdaw 1
- Robin 1
- Woodpigeon 3
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