One morning in mid-March, in a grove of trees overlooking the shimmering Mediterranean, a chiffchaff woke up, stretched its wings, and decided it was time to hit the sky-road and head north to sunny Leeds.
The chiffchaff is one of the earliest migrants to arrive back in Britain in the spring. I heard my first of the season on my walk to work the other day. It was flitting about in a silver birch across the canal announcing its arrival with its distinctive chiffchaff call. Just a few days ago, that little insect-eating warbler was sunning itself in Italy or Spain, or maybe even north Africa. It made my day to hear it, and certainly put a spring in my step!
Chiffchaff RSPB images/John Bridges
I'm expecting sand martins to arrive back in the city centre within the next week or so. My notebook tells me that last year four arrived on 23rd March, so they could be here any day now. I'd better warn my colleagues that if I'm late into the office they will probably find me dallying by the river admiring their swooping flybys. These birds spend the winter south of the Sahara, and will probably raise two broods here between May and September before the return 3,700 mile journey.
Sand martin
St Aidan's has its very own sand martin wall on Bowers lake. Volunteers gave it a spring clean recently so it is ready for the birds when they arrive there.
Volunteers at St Aidan's preparing the sand martin wall
We can expect to welcome back melodious blackcaps to our gardens, swallows to our skies, and willow warblers to our woodlands as we move into April.
Birds on a wire – swallows
On the water, St Aidan's may play host to an influx of newcomers. This will be my first spring as a regular visitor to the reserve and I'm looking forward to seeing what turns up. There may be terns, garganey, maybe even an osprey.
This is one of my Mallorca holiday photos – not a St Aidan's osprey. But you never know - this very osprey might pay us a visit!
Meanwhile, our winter visitors are getting ready to leave. The redwings and fieldfares that appeared in gardens when the snow was on the ground will soon be on their way to Scandinavia and beyond.
Redwing in the snow
The whooper swans that have been seen at St Aidan's will be returning to Iceland. They are the national bird of Finland. They will now be gathering in flocks for their flight.
Whoopers in flight – Mick Noble/Swillington Ings Bird Group
On my walk to work, the family of mute swans has broken up. I've watched dad chasing last year's cygnet away, although the youngster hasn't gone far. It is watching its parents from a distance as they begin to choose a nest site. I hope they have more success this year – last year they raised just one of the four cygnets that hatched. The youngster won't find a mate of its own until it is two years old, but then will pair for life.
Happy times, the mute swan family in winter
Our resident bird species are starting to gather nesting materials. A couple of weeks ago I noticed one of my neighbours has a big fluffy dog – so I went and introduced myself and asked for some dog fluff. Hanging up in a feeder in my garden, it's perfect for my local tits and sparrows to line their nests.
That'll be cosy
It's all happening out there. St Aidan's has Easter activities right through the school holiday, so hop along to explore the Easter Egg Trail, or get down and dirty on bug hunting Wild Wednesday.