What's flying near you?

A pair of gold finches (put up Niger feeder a couple of years ago specifically to attract them, it took about 10-12 weeks before a sighting but they're regular now when the seed is about).

That's good to know. I haven't seen any goldfinches on my niger feeder yet, but there are plenty in the neighbourhood so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

There was also likely something bigger around this weekend as I found a pile of wood pigeon feathers in a quiet corner of the garden.

Were the feather shafts intact or broken? I've seen piles of wood pigeon feathers that were clearly the work of a stealthy fox, since they bite the feathers off. Birds of prey pluck them out, and they can take on birds nearly as big as themselves. I was once walking home from Tesco and surprised a kestrel on the ground - it had pinned down a blackbird but seemed a little unsure what to do next!