A tunnel fit for a king.

As spring gathers pace there is a tangible sense of anticipation as to what may be around each corner - both actual and metaphorical. Birds are arriving daily from their wintering grounds, adding distinctive voices to the ever building choir of the dawn chorus, while eager stems and flowers are painting a fresh spectrum across the reserves.

We were optimistic that something was afoot with the pair of kingfishers that had been around Radipole over the past few weeks. They had been very vocal and were seen interacting on a few occasions - whizzing around in a procession of dazzling neon and amber. Pete Coe, while patiently awaiting otter on Saturday, heard what he considered to be mating kingfishers. On Tuesday the pair spent the day excavating a chamber into the soil bank beside the sand martin wall in front of North Hide. Understandably this generated a fair degree of elation as breeding has never been proven on the site and - needless-to-say - they are fantastic, iconic birds.

The lovebirds examining their prospective new dwelling, not impressing this pair of shelduck. Photo Allan Neilson.

It appeared that they were removing soil in their bills which would be followed by a 'splash down' to keep their finery pristine. On a few occasions fish were exchanged to strengthen their bond which is quite a sight to behold. By then end of a days tunnelling they were able to completely disappear from view... We await further developments with baited breath.