Very young bluetit gobbling the suet pellet

I added another iron hanger to the trellis outside our back door a few days ago and have now moved the bird feeding tray (the squirrels would like to disagree with that description) so it now hangs right outside the sliding patio doors.

We have been inundated with birds since the young have fledged and it has been wonderful to have them visiting us at such close distances. I have tried opening the doors so that I could avoid photographing them through the double-glazed glass. I then realised that the very young ones were not afraid of me, so I started moving closer and closer. I then changed the lens to my 100mm macro lens and closed in as far as I could.

The bluetits were the most obliging, seldom flying off until they had fed themselves well. Their parents would have flitted in, picked up a seed and have flow away, as long as I wasn't there. In then end I manages to get just a couple of feet from this tit and a couple of other ones. I love to see the detail of the re feathers and the delicate colours. The feathers will change as they grow up and take on their mature plumage, so it is good to have this record.

Two very male blackbirds have also been quite fearless and allowed me to watch then closely, but not as close as the tits.  Two robins are getting used to me. I just hope that I can also get the goldfinches, bullfinches, blackcaps and nuthatches when their young fledge. Their parents would usually come to these feeders so hopefully they will lead their young there too.

I'm just sorry that the uploaded blip image doesn't do justice to the detail in the original image.