Male blackcap

A bit of an emergency blip today; I had planned on taking the camera out in the sunshine this afternoon when we went for a walk, but an unscheduled visit by our middle son and youngest granddaughter meant that I spent a very pleasant couple of hours making fairy cakes instead! Little H enjoyed helping me stir the mixture, then spreading icing on top of the cooked fairy cakes and, finally, putting a Smartie on each one. 

So this pretty poor photo of a male blackcap that I took this morning through the kitchen window will have to suffice. He was having a fine time pecking away at fat balls inside the squirrel baffle of the fat ball feeder, and then flew off to this branch of a cherry tree nearby. I often see a female blackcap, but the male is a rare visitor to our garden. 

Yesterday I took a log from the log store which still had a nail sticking out of it, and I draped some sheep’s wool over the nail. I carefully placed the log on the ground not far from the feeders, in front of a shrub and close to one of the piles of twigs that I’ve left around in the hope of attracting wrens. I was thrilled to bits when I saw a couple of robins hopping near the wool this morning, and then one of them tugged at a small piece and flew off. I can’t see any signs of nest building yet, but I think it’s great news that they’ve clocked the sheep’s wool!