In our last diary entry we reported that we had not seen or recorded a visit to any of our three boxes since 16th March.

On Sunday we left the cameras running all day in the hope we might be just wrong about not having a nest this year. I was doing my bird boxes survey in our local nature reserve and I observed at least seven boxes seeing nesting material being brought in by Blue Tits. Sadly not one visit was recorded to any of our three boxes so is it too late or just normal and too early yet? I am certainly not giving up hope until at least the 2nd week of April.

I am beginning to think that something must have happened to the female that kept visiting box 3 as I have never known a Blue Tit to stay away this long, however I have not seen the male visit either so maybe she is nesting elsewhere. Whilst reading on another bird box website I noticed they too have seen no visits to their box for over a week and had not even seen a Blue Tit in their garden for a while. I then thought snap I have not seen one in our garden either for a while.

With no visits at all, during the really sunny and Spring like weather, I decided to turn off the cameras and not record from them for a while. Now the next bit of my diary entry is going to sound strange and you may think I have lost the plot :)

Box 1 saw one brief visit on 16th March. The box floors is currently covered in droppings left from our rooster (which we lost). Each day I take a "snap shot" of what each box is like, so I can see if any changes etc have happened like nesting material etc.

I decided to turn on the cameras tonight just in case something had happened. Boxes 2 & 3 looked the same but something looked different to me in box 1. It looks like "something" has visited this box today. I took a print off of the photo from Sunday and one from tonight. Some of the droppings had been moved in parts of the box. It had been very windy on Monday so possibly the wind moved it but even bits at the back seemed to have been moved.

I am now puzzled as to wheather it was the wind or that possible box 1 been visited by a Blue Tit. It could also be that a Bumble Bee has been in the box. Sadly I did not record so do not know what to think.

I have decided that as the weather for Tuesday morning is sunny I am going to record from outside and inside box 1 to see if I can capture/record the visitor and also setup my old VCR (whats on of those) to record inside box 3.

Am I going mad or is there the slimist chance that we have a Blue Tit checking again?

More when I work out what is happening :)

Maybe just maybe I keep telling myself.