Plantsbrook Nature Reserve.

I'd actually planned the canal excursion from the Boat Inn today but when I found out the Mute Swan had brought some Cygnets into the world at Plantsbrook I just had to go and have a look. It's always one of the highlight's of the year when the Mute Swan has her Cygnets at Plantsbrook and as you can see there are five little one's this year. Birds spotted today were, Reed Bunting, Chiffchaff, Wren, Great Tit, Wren, Jay, Swift, Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Grey Heron, Mute Swan, Great Crested Grebe, Moorhen, Coot, Mallard and the following chicks/juveniles Cygnet (5), Coot (8), Long Tailed Tit (1), Wren (1) and the following waterfowl on nests, Great Crested Grebe (1) and Coot (15). There was also plenty of our friend the Grey Squirrel out and about. In the garden, the Dunnock chicks are daily visitors at the moment, maybe that's because I leave sunflower hearts in the bushes I see them go in. Also on a couple of occasions I've also seen a pair of Dunnock courting below the bench in the back garden which involves the following if you don't already know - 'Females are often polyandrous, breeding with two males at once, and thus giving rise to sperm competition. Males compete for mating access to the female, but DNA fingerprinting has shown that chicks within broods often have different fathers, depending on their success at monopolising access to the fertile female. Males try to ensure their paternity during courtship by pecking at the cloaca of the female to stimulate her to eject the sperm of other males with whom the female has recently mated.' The House Sparrow and Starling juveniles have also made an appearance at last as have the Swifts flying above the house, I'm now waiting to hopefully see some Blackbird chicks from the Blackbird nest built in some Laurel in my neighbours garden.