Christine's walking & birds blog

Taplow

Even mundane tasks can bring their rewards: standing at the kitchen sink this morning doing some hand-washing, I noticed a flurry of activity in the garden - and a blue tit flew across chasing a firecrest.

A bit later we were both in Greger's office when a firecrest appeared in the holly tree, just outside the window. It was clearly interested in foraging under the gutter, but again, one of the nesting blue tits put paid to that. 

It's a waiting game for us now, as far as moving is concerned. Our buyer's buyer's solicitor is holding things up, so we don't know if we're going on Friday or not.  I went out for a walk round the village, and visited the Old Priory Garden, along the footpath near the Oak and Saw.

I always thought this tangle of woodland was private, but it turns out it's not, and the usual people in the village are clearing it and making it a bit more formal again. Hmmm. Well, they're also putting bird boxes up and there's still quite a bit of undergrowth; but from outside later, I saw someone wandering through it with a dog. Blooming dog owners - they can't leave anywhere alone. However, dogs are probably less of a nuisance than cats; we chased one we've never seen before out of the garden yesterday, where it was crouching on the shed roof and staring intently into the ivy where blackbirds are possibly nesting. 

Still, I have to say there was plenty of activity in the Old Priory Garden this morning. My first willow warbler of the year was singing and foraging in the blossom, and a blackcap's song was heard. Wren, chaffinch, dunnock, and blackbird were around; and I saw a buff-tailed and a tree bumblebee, and one each of peacock, brimstone, and orange tip butterfly.

A pair of buzzards was displaying above; from their head movements, it seems the birds keep their eyes on each other as they circle around.