House Martins Diary

They first arrived on May 26th.

They ignored the artificial nest we had put up 2 years ago, after the old nest was invaded by house sparrows and then fell down. Sensible, as the artificial nest was not sparrow proof, and had been put up in a way that made it too accessible to the sparrows (as they made clear). So the martins built their own nest in the cramped space above the artificial nest.

Then the weather took a turn for the worse. Rain. Gales. Unseasonably cool. And the martins seemed to vanish.

They then reappeared at the end of July, and by mid August were making regular appearances. Almost nesting behaviour.

Then on August 22nd I found an eggshell. Game on it seemed.

And suddenly there are lots of droppings below the nest (these are really messy birds), and they are feeding young.

The approach to the nest is fast and the feeding visit fleeting. In fact, so fast and fleeting that it looks as if they are failing to feed the young. However ......

Before breakfast this morning I put my tripod up and had a go at taking some pictures. Fast speed (1/4000 second). And despite my fairly cheap telephoto lens, lo and behold the images reveal at least two chicks with gaping yellow mouths (better seen in the extra) They look a bit scrawny, and have a way to go before they fledge, get good flying practice, and then leave for the long journey to central Africa. The adult here has a beak full of insects, and needs to be busy.

Fingers crossed for the next few weeks.