Bluetit Diary    Feb 2021 (2)

I'm not quite sure what is going on here.

Ella has stopped flapping her wings, but clearly she can't fly anywhere from here.  If she had wanted to leave the box, then just a jump or a flick of her wings would have got her to the exit.

What's this? Yesterday a GT pair visited Box1.  Could this be the same GT pair having a look at Box2?  If so, they are clearly eager to find a home!

Again, he has a struggle to get in.  This is not surprising as both boxes have a metal plate with a 28mm hole.

He takes a breather when his partner arrives.  You can see her on the top of the nest box.

He has another go - and his partner seems to be cheering him on!

Success!

"What's it like in there?"

"Looks good to me!"

The male is having a good look around the box.

The female flies to the entrance.  "Shall I come in too?"

Clearly, she didn't get a positive answer!

Soon after the male left the box too.  The female is waiting for him on the roof of the box.  There were no more visits to Box2 today.

And what's this? Is Ella bringing in nesting material into Box1 for the first time this year?

Yes, she is! It appears to be mainly bits of a straw-like material.

She just hurls it to the floor ...

... and then inspects her handiwork.  "Nest building takes great skill you know!"

It looks as though that was a one-off.  At the end of the day there is not noticeably any more nesting material in the box.

This is the last shot of the day and only shows that nothing much has changed.