Nightingales...

Last night was relatively warm and after dropping my son off at the local scout group, I decided to spend my hour looking for nightingales at a nearby traditional breeding site. I tried a couple of weeks ago but hadn't been successful, possibly because it just wasn't warm enough for them to sing but tonight it was much more comfortable to be out 'n about, so hopefully the birds would think that too. After 20 minutes I nearly gave up again, apart from blackbirds, chiffchaffs and chaffinches, it seemed very quiet. Luckily I decided to give Andy a call and check exactly where he'd last heard them singing and sure enough, just 40 metres further and facing in the opposite direction (I can't believe I couldn't hear them from my previous position!), there it was. The unmistakable sound of a nightingale. Possibly one of the finest songbirds we have in this country. Not only that, he was sat in the open too about 30 metres away...sorry for the shaky video. Didn't expect to SEE one so didn't have a tripod with me...

And just before I left I'm sure I heard a second bird sing briefly in response to one near me. No wonder songs have been written about them - once heard, never forgotten.