August 2025 Ramsbury Bird Notes by Paul Swan

As I write, the swifts are screaming overhead in the clear blue sky. They seem to have done well this year, with over twenty now in the flock. A friend has them nesting in their roof space, just above the bathroom. They have had the special pleasure of seeing the youngsters inside the window! Gentle rescue required. We have rescued a fledgling sparrow from inside our dining room and an equally young dunnock that had fallen into a garden barrel. They were both welcomed by anxious and noisy parents not far away. The swallows and house martins also seem to have had a good year. There are large flocks of both species to be seen at Littlecote. The swifts will be the first to leave later this month, followed by the house martins and swallows. The cuckoos were here later than usual but are now well on their way south.

The Seven Bridges area continues to be a rich source of great sightings with a couple of families of reed warblers, as well as grasshopper, garden, and sedge warblers. There is a resident great whitethroat, as well as blackcaps, tree creepers and nuthatches. Nearby there are fledgling grey wagtails, a family of swans and kingfishers that must have nested in the area.