redstart

I've been seeing a bird out of the corner of my eye darting in and out of a hole in the house wall (there are lots, we never seem to quite get around to it). My hindbrain was telling me I don't recognise this new neighbour but I never quite saw him. So today I sat for a while and watched to get a better look at him (them, actually), and sure enough, I'd never seen one before. Looked him up on the RSPB site and we have a pair of redstarts 
It says they are summer visitors to Exmoor, so close enough not to be too unlikely but apparently rare for them to come into a garden (mind you, I do go in for the 'wild' look, so they probably didn't realise it's a garden, to be fair).
I'm hoping for babies because there is a pair and they are very busy bringing lots of food in. We already have at least 2 nests of swallows, one fledged one not quite yet, a mother duck and four babies in the 'pond' (yes, ok, its a big ditch that filled up with all the recent rain. Picky picky), a blackbird nest long since fledged (one baby), bluetits in the wall on the other side of the house, one pied wagtail nest by the back door (3 babies fledged and gone) and at least two nests of wrens in the sheds. No house sparrows this year though. And the martins started a nest but seem to have moved on.
All in all its been a good year for bird babies around here

It says they are summer visitors to Exmoor, so close enough not to be too unlikely but apparently rare for them to come into a garden (mind you, I do go in for the 'wild' look, so they probably didn't realise it's a garden, to be fair).
I'm hoping for babies because there is a pair and they are very busy bringing lots of food in. We already have at least 2 nests of swallows, one fledged one not quite yet, a mother duck and four babies in the 'pond' (yes, ok, its a big ditch that filled up with all the recent rain. Picky picky), a blackbird nest long since fledged (one baby), bluetits in the wall on the other side of the house, one pied wagtail nest by the back door (3 babies fledged and gone) and at least two nests of wrens in the sheds. No house sparrows this year though. And the martins started a nest but seem to have moved on.
All in all its been a good year for bird babies around here

“This isn't life in the fast lane, it's life in the oncoming traffic.”
― Terry Pratchett
― Terry Pratchett
3
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You are lucky having a pair nesting. Very nice.
― Terry Pratchett
I've seen swifts returning to nest in what used to be an old farm building, but - as is often the case round here- it had been turned into houses, so no nests left.
They've found a corner below the eaves at one of the houses, and have been very industrious constructing a new home. Lovely to see them. My sister told me they had some returning after years of being absent too.
Mr
Bit closer
Mrs
And this is where they are nesting, I think
― Terry Pratchett
I think I've heard them around here (Cheltenham) but never seen one, but I saw a pair in west wales once, gorgeous things