Don't be sad 'Cause two out of three ain't bad

Yesterday while I was talking to Steve Ray he showed me some of the photos he'd taken in the morning. I must be about the only birder with a camera who hadn't been to Bossenden Wood and had a go at taking pictures of Nuthatch and Marsh Tit on "the baited log". Steve also had some shots of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers in the Wood.

Today I joined the list of snappers at this site. With a bag of bird food I arrived at around 8 a.m.and apart form the occasional dog walker I had the place to myself for a while. Very quickly Nuthatches arrived for their breakfast.

They were in and out quite quickly and I wasn't sure how many there were, but I think it was at least four individuals.

Second on the scene were at least two hyperactive Coal Tits. They were even faster at dashing in and out than the Nuthatches. As time went on both became rather less frenetic, as I guess they became more confident of the clicking that accompanied their every visit.

Out here in the woods, the bold Great Tit of the garden seemed to assume a much shyer personality and although one or two were constantly around the area it did take a while for them to come in and join the Breakfast Club.

No such worries for the Nuthatches, that were now prepared to forage on the ground in front of the sacred log.

Most of the birds coming in to the area where various tit species, though so far no Marsh Tit and a few Chaffinches, already in full song, so when this Blackbird hopped right by me and then up to the feeding area I was a bit surprised to see him.

The calls of Blue tits were ringing through the trees all round the wood, the only surprise was that they were far less frequent visitors than the Coal Tits and Nuthatches. 

My garden has been well stocked with Chaffinches, and a few are showing signs of getting to their summer plumage, but as far as I know none are nearly as bright as this chap who came in to see me. I did wonder if the garden flock are visitors that will leave our shores and head north and are therefore a bit behind the resident birds in Bossenden Wood?

During the morning I was joined by first Gary and then Mike, but not by any Marsh Tits. I decided to go and have a look round the wood in the hope of bumping into a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker or a Marsh Tit. I was unsuccessful in the former case, but did come across a group of Marsh Tits. I hadn't seen them until their "pichoo" call gave them away. I watched them for a while but they soon moved out of sight and earshot.

When I got back to the feeding area they'd got there before me and I got another short while with them before the again moved out of sight. Another walk round was again Lesser Spotless but as Meatloaf said, Two out of three ain't bad.