With the wife I visited Hughenden Manor today and saw 4 painted Ladies in the walled garden. 2 of them appeared very faded and worn whereas the other 2 were pristine. We then visited my friends place at Rockwell End where we were treated to a constant flow of Painted Ladies across his garden well over a hundred in just over an hour. (There were comments about the invasion on Springwatch this evening, the bit after the main show).
Also sat watching a Spotted Flycatcher (which breed on his property); he also has a Barn owl visiting his outbuildings and though he has only seen one at a time it has been visiting a nest box on the adjacent property.He also has breeding swallows, though not as many pairs as last year (possibly due to the spot chosen by the Barn Owl to roost during the day).
Sitting on his patio with a nice beer it was possible to watch the comings and goings of a dozen species all breeding on or adjacent to his property with Red Kites overhead and Yellowhammer just down the lane. Encouraging to see Blue Tits able to provide a constant flow of food with visits to the nest box timed regularily under a minute. (Dave Cleal)