Spring Around the Corner

I found this poem here on the internet in the section on Spring:

WHEN

In February there are days,
Blue, and nearly warm,
When horses switch their tails and ducks
Go quacking through the farm.
When everything turns round to full
The sun upon its back -
When winter lifts a little bit
And spring peeks through the crack.

Dorothy Aldis

Bird signs of Spring approaching:

Throughout the Winter I only ever saw one Blue Tit at a time at the feeders. This past few days there are always two together (a pair?). Also where I used to get one Dunnock at a time I now see a couple.

Yesterday there was a Rook sat on a telephone cable. It was bobbing its head right down, making a cawing sound and spreading its tail feathers out in a display. This morning as thirty or more Rooks gathered on a nearby rooftop many were making the same gestures. I can't say I had ever noticed this behaviour before but it is only recently I have observed the local wildlife more closely.

This afternoon as I was walking home after taking Bobby for his romp on the field I saw a group of Goldfinches at a feeder in a front garden. When they noticed me they flew off. A short while later I saw several which were sat on branches. Some were twisting the whole body from side to side and at the same time making a very quiet sound while others just watched.

It would appear to me that with the slight rise in temperature and the longer daylight hours many species are starting their courtship rituals. Today's weather forecast for the week ahead looked much better as far as temperatures go and we might even reach double figures.

Cheese
This afternoon I had just about come to end of a block of cheese so I chopped the remains into tiny pieces and scattered it on the bird table. A short while later the Chaffinches and Greenfinches, which normally spend most of their time picking up seed from the lawn, were feeding closely together on the bird table. They were so closely packed that the normally bossy Starlings couldn't get a look in. The Robin wasn't interested. He carefully chose his favourite seed from between the bits of cheese.