2011 season
| 2011-06-19: | Box 3 camera is back online for the moment! There are two eggs, and I've seen one adult visiting so far. |
| 2011-05-22: | Five out of the seven chicks have fledged! The last two finally left after a lot of flapping. |
| 2011-05-21: | No fledging today! They came close a few times. |
| 2011-05-20: | All seven chicks appear to be healthy despite the missing parent. They are likely to fledge tomorrow or Sunday! |
| 2011-05-18: | It appears the female from Box 1 disappeared sometime yesterday. So far only the male has been seen feeding the chicks. With just a few more days before fledging, hopefully he can keep them well fed. |
| 2011-05-15: | I've been noticing for a while now that there only seemed to be seven chicks in the box. Eight definitely hatched, so one of them likely died early on and was removed. I will check the logs to see if I can find out anything. |
| 2011-05-13: | The chicks in Box 1 are starting to look like little Great Tits now. Expected fledging is on or near the 21st of May, next weekend. I've no idea what's going on in the swift boxes. This time last year there was already an egg. Need to get these cameras working soon! |
| 2011-05-10: | Some of the chicks in Box 1 are starting to open their eyes. They've got quite well developed wings now too and a pretty good covering of feathers. |
| 2011-05-09: | A week in and the chicks are doing well. They've become a noisy lot now, and can be heard outside the box. Swifts have returned to at least one of the boxes - but I can't tell which yet, I'm still have issues with the cameras! Quite a violent thunderstorm passed over the town today, with one flash hitting not all that far away. The Box 1 camera recorded the bang. [Play Video] |
| 2011-05-03: | All eight chicks are healthy and the parents are finding plenty of food. If you listen carefully you can hear then 'peep'ing already. |
| 2011-05-02: | They've begun hatching! |
| 2011-05-01: | The eggs in Box 1 could hatch at any moment now! The spider (and its egg sac) have been removed from Box 2, and was quite a bit bigger than I expected. Both swift boxes have now been cleaned but either through age or something the spider did the camera in Box 2 has been damaged - I may not be able to get a replacement installed before the swifts return to the box. |
| 2011-04-23: | Half-way through incubation in Box 1 now. Swifts seen and heard flying over Cookstown, so I'll try to get those cameras online this weekend. A large spider has moved into Box 2... |
| 2011-04-20: | No more eggs today, and incubation is well underway. Incubation normally takes two weeks so the eggs may begin hatcing on or near the 1st of May. |
| 2011-04-19: | The eigth egg has been laid. Will there be another? |
| 2011-04-18: | Seven eggs confirmed in Box 1, and the female may be starting to incubate. There may be one more egg tomorrow morning. |
| 2011-04-13: | She has finally revealed the eggs, and there are two! [Image] |
| 2011-04-11: | There might be an egg in Box 1. The female has been coming in all day and checking the nest, covering it up. If there is it's been well hidden! |
| 2011-04-10: | For the first time this season, the female Great Tit is roosting in the box tonight. |
| 2011-04-09: | A large bee tried to make itself at home in Box 1. Not the best move. [Video] |
| 2011-04-08: | The nest is now complete! Yesterday saw a layer of soft moss being added over the grass and today some fur donated by Molly finished the nest off. As expected the number of visits has dropped quite a bit. The female should begin roosting shortly with the first egg not long after that. |
| 2011-04-04: | Just a few days in and the nest is already starting to take shape. |
| 2011-04-01: | Nest building has begun in Box 1! [Play Video] |
| 2011-03-30: | A blue tit pair made an unexpected visit into the box today. Both visited twice before being chased by the resident great tits. The is the first time a blue tit has been in this box for over two years. |
| 2011-03-27: | The first nest wiggle of the season in Box 1. Hopefully nest building will start soon. [Play Video] |
| 2011-03-23: | The internal camera in Box 1 is now online! The Great Tit pair appear to have claimed the box, defending it from any bird that ventures near. Only natural light inside the box for the moment so the quality may vary throughout the day. |
| 2010-12-14: | Box 1 has been cleaned and potential tenants are already checking it out. There have been Coal Tits and Blue Tits investigating, but it's the Great Tits showing the most interest again this year. [Play Video] |
2010 season
| 2010-08-13: | Both swift boxes are empty tonight. They're all gone! |
| 2010-07-23: | The last chick has fledged, all three boxes are now empty! That's more or less it for the 2010 season, the parents should continue to visit the boxes for a short while before they begin their migration to Africa. I'll put up a video of all the swift chicks fledging shortly. |
| 2010-07-22: | One of the chicks has fledged from Box 3! It was more of a fall than a fledge, but it seems to have gotten away. [Play Video] Another chick fledges tonight. Just the one left. |
| 2010-07-19: | The last chick in Box 3 has fledged! The parents will keep visiting for a short while before finally leaving on their migration to Africa. Three chicks remain in Box 3, they will likely fledge before the end of the week. |
| 2010-07-18: | No more fledgings so far, but they're really curious about the outside world. [Play Video] |
| 2010-07-17: | A bit later than I expected but two chicks have fledged from Box 2 this morning! |
| 2010-07-14: | They're all still there! I had expected the Box 2 chicks to have started fledging over the weekend, but they don't seem too bothered yet. |
| 2010-07-11: | All six Swift chicks are still doing very well, and are quite difficult to tell apart from the adults. They're spending time looking out of the entrance and it won't be long before they fledge, the chicks in Box 2 could fledge at any time with Box 3's chicks about a week later. They probably won't all fledge at once like the Great Tits do, it seems to be in individual thing for Swifts. Unfortunately the camera in Box 2 has become very misty, there seems to be dirt on the lens and it's making it difficult to see what's going on! |
| 2010-06-28: | Pepper appears to have abandoned the remaining two eggs in Box 1. There is no chance now of them hatching. Will she continue to roost in the box? |
| 2010-06-27: | The swifts chicks are beginning to look like their parents now, with their forked tail and long pointy wings. Feeding time is madness! Another egg was removed from Box 1 today, leaving only two. Hatching was predicted to happen yesterday so there is a high chance the remaining two eggs are also infertile. |
| 2010-06-22: | Two more eggs have been removed from Box 1. Only three left. At this rate I'm not sure any will hatch. |
| 2010-06-21: | At least one of the chicks in Box 2 has its eyes open! They're very fluffy now and have even been doing some wing flapping. The eggs in Box 1 should hopefully hatch this weekend. |
| 2010-06-20: | One of the eggs in Box 1 went missing, so I went back though the video log to find out what happened. It's a bit of a surprise! [Play Video] |
| 2010-06-15: | An unexpected sixth egg laid in Box 1 this morning! That has to be the last one? |
| 2010-06-14: | The fifth and likely final egg has been laid in Box 1. Three less than the first brood. |
| 2010-06-13: | The eggs in Box 3 should all have hatched by now, but it's not easy to tell from the camera. Pepper has begun incubating four eggs in Box 1. There may be one more tomorrow. |
| 2010-06-12: | All three eggs in Box 2 have now hatched, and the eggs in Box 3 are beginning to hatch now! |
| 2010-06-10: | The first egg of the second brood has been laid in Box 1! |
| 2010-06-09: | Two of the eggs in Box 2 have hatched. The eggs in Box 3 should begin hatching shortly. [Play Video] |
| 2010-06-08: | Right on schedule, the first Swift chick has hatched in Box 2! Pepper is not roosting in Box 1 tonight. |
| 2010-06-07: | New nest material is being brough into Box 1, and the female Pepper is roosting again. |
| 2010-06-06: | At least two of the chicks from Box 1 returned to the garden today. There have also been many visits inside Box 1 by the parents. Great Tits can have second broods if the conditions are right, I wonder if that is what's happening here? [Play Video] Thanks to anne-miek for letting me know that there are actually three eggs in Box 3! They've been keeping the third egg very well hidden. |
| 2010-06-04: | The Great Tits are back! Briefly anyway, and take an interest in the Swift boxes. [Play Video] |
| 2010-06-01: | The first Swift chick should hatch in Box 2 in about a weeks time. |
| 2010-05-30: | A video of the fledging is now up! [Play Video] Alternatively the video is also on Youtube. [Play Video] |
| 2010-05-27: | All eight chicks have fledged Box 1! I've uploaded some pictures here. Still working on the video. |
| 2010-05-26: | None left today, although a few got close. |
| 2010-05-25: | A lot of wing flapping tonight, and even a few quick peeks outside. Will they leave tomorrow? |
| 2010-05-24: | Much cooler today and the chicks in Box 1 are very busy preening themselves and stretching their wings. They could leave at any time now. Incubation seems to have begun in both Swift boxes. |
| 2010-05-23: | The Swifts in Box 3 have their second egg, and there appears to be three eggs in Box 2! Our eight Great Tit chicks are all healthy despite the heat. I thought they might leave the nest on about Thursday but it looks like they might leave sooner. |
| 2010-05-22: | It's a very hot day today in Cookstown and the heat seems to be affecting the chicks in Box 1. The chicks are spending their first night alone, Pepper is roosting elsewhere tonight. |
| 2010-05-21: | The Swifts in Box 3 have their first egg! |
| 2010-05-20: | All eight chicks in Box 1 are doing well. They have most of their feathers and look like little Great Tits now. Only one week left before they leave the box! The Swifts now have two eggs in Box 2. |
| 2010-05-18: | The Swifts in Box 2 have laid another egg. The rejected egg is still in the box. |
| 2010-05-16: | Many of the chicks now have their eyes opened! Wings and tail feathers are developing really well. The parents choice of food is not always ideal though. [Play Video] |
| 2010-05-13: | A pair of Swifts are roosting in Box 3 tonight. |
| 2010-05-12: | The chicks in Box 1 appear to be doing really well. They're starting to develop their feathers already, and are getting quite noisy when mum or dad are in the box. |
| 2010-05-11: | The egg in Box 2 appears to have been rejected. They keep removing it from the nest cup. |
| 2010-05-10: | All eight eggs have now hatched! A third Swift entered Box 2 tonight, and after quite a bit of flighting settled down at the far end of the box. Then suddenly at 11pm BST was kicked out by one of the others. |
| 2010-05-09: | Seven eggs have now hatched, just one more to go. The Swifts in Box 2 have their first egg already! |
| 2010-05-08: | Peppers eggs in Box 1 begin to hatch! Right on schedule. Six of the eight eggs have hatched. Both parents are bring in plenty of food. [Play Video] |
| 2010-05-07: | There is a pair of Swifts in Box 3 today. The eggs in Box 1 should begin hatching very soon now. |
| 2010-05-04: | About half way through incubation now. |
| 2010-04-30: | A pair of Swifts spent time in Box 2 today. |
| 2010-04-29: | The Swifts return to Boxes 2 + 3! One bird is roosting in each box. |
| 2010-04-26: | The eighth and probably final egg was laid this morning. |
| 2010-04-25: | There are now seven eggs in Box 1 and Pepper has started incubating them. There may be one more egg tomorrow. If all goes well the eggs should begin hatching on about the 8th of May. |
| 2010-04-24: | Swifts have returned to Cookstown. Box 2 + 3 will be online shortly. |
| 2010-04-19: | The first egg laid this morning! [Play Video] |
| 2010-04-18: | No eggs today. Pepper is roosting again tonight, with Rake standing guard. [Play Video] |
| 2010-04-16: | The female Pepper is roosting tonight in Box 1. It shouldn't be long now before the first egg... |
| 2010-04-14: | The nest appears to be finished already. |
| 2010-04-12: | A surge of activity today, the nest is now taking shape. |
| 2010-04-06: | Nest building has unexpectedly begun in Box 1! [Play Video] |
| 2010-02-22: | Visits inside Box 1 are still rare and brief, but there's a lot more pecking going on outside! [Play Video] |
| 2010-01-18: | The early start was a bit too early for our Great Tit pair. One month later and they make only their second visit into Box 1. [Play Video] |
| 2009-12-18: | The 2010 season starts early with a Great Tit pair visiting Box 1. They entered without much hesitation so I believe this is the same pair from last season. [Play Video] |
2009 season
| 2009-08-10: | None of the remaining three swifts returned tonight. They're all gone! |
| 2009-08-09: | Only one roosting swift in Box 3 tonight. Its partner has likely begun the long migration to Africa. The others should follow it in the next few days. |
| 2009-07-24: | Three days after its sibling, the second and final chick fledges. [Play Video]. That's pretty much it for this season! The swifts should continue roosting in Box 3 until they begin their migration to Africa in a few weeks time. There might even be the odd visitor to Box 2. I will leave both cameras on until then. Thanks for watching! |
| 2009-07-21: | One of the chicks has fledged! [Play Video] |
| 2009-07-19: | A parent returns, but one of the chicks is in the wrong place at the wrong time. [Play Video] |
| 2009-07-16: | One of the chicks takes its first long look outside the box. They could potentially leave any day now! There are lots of new swifts inspecting the boxes each morning now, despite them both being claimed. [Play Video] |
| 2009-07-08: | The two chicks in Box 2 are now three and a half weeks old. They've lost most of their down feathers and look a lot like their parents now. They'll be leaving the nest soon! |
| 2009-06-28: | The first bits of nest material have been brought into Box 3. |
| 2009-06-26: | The feathers on both chicks in Box 2 have developed dramatically in the past few days, particurlarly their backs, wings and tail feathers. They're starting to look like swifts now! The new pair in Box 3 are getting on well now and are spending a lot of time in the box together. It's a bit late this season for them to be nesting, but maybe next year? |
| 2009-06-23: | A second swift entered Box 3, but shortly after entering there was a brief fight. [Play Video] Both birds are roosting in Box 3 tonight -- peacefully, so far! |
| 2009-06-23: | Box 3 has had its first Swift visitor. Just the one so far, no sign of a partner. |
| 2009-06-20: | The chicks are left briefly for the first time, but it's not long before one of the parents returns with a late supper! [Play Video] |
| 2009-06-19: | Both chicks are doing well. The nearly continuous incubation by the parents means they're rarely visible on the camera, but you can usually hear them squeaking. As they get bigger the parents will start leaving them alone while they gather food. |
| 2009-06-16: | There are now two swift chicks in Box 2! |
| 2009-06-15: | One of the swifts eggs has hatched! [Play Video] |
| 2009-06-14: | Some very nice thunderstorms have passed over Cookstown this weekend. [Play Video] |
| 2009-06-07: | This great tit is showing up an all sorts of unexpected places! [Play Video] |
| 2009-06-02: | One of our Great Tit pair visits Box 3. [Play Video]. |
| 2009-06-01: | The Swifts appear to have stopped at two eggs and are incubating almost full time. The eggs should hatch in just under two weeks from now. Both birds take turns at incubating, unlike blue tits and great tits where it is the job of the female only. Box 3 is still empty but has started getting some attention from potential tenants. |
| 2009-05-29: | All five of the remaining chicks have successfully fledged! |
| 2009-05-28: | The weather did improve, and two did leave! There's a good chance the rest will leave too, if not today then definitely tomorrow. [Play Video] The Swifts have another egg. |
| 2009-05-27: | The seven chicks are nearing the end of their stay in Box 1. They've been spending a lot of time preparing their wings and a few brave ones have even taken a peek out through the entrance. There's a reasonable chance that some may leave tomorrow. Hopefully the weather improves for them! |
| 2009-05-25: | The Swifts have their first egg! |
| 2009-05-21: | All seven chicks seem to be doing well, and a few are looking like little Great Tits now. There are less than 10 days left before they leave. |
| 2009-05-19: | The chicks are getting big, and are almost spilling out of the nest cup. Sometimes with interesting consequences. [Play Video] |
| 2009-05-17: | The older chicks have started opening their eyes, and have well developed wing feathers. They're starting to look a bit like birds now. There are about two weeks left before they leave the box, into the big wide world. |
| 2009-05-11: | The swift in Box 2 was joined by its partner this morning. I have nicknamed them Kiki and Tombo. All seven eggs in Box 1 have now hatched, and all appear to be healthy and active. So far so good! |
| 2009-05-10: | A single Swift has entered Box 2 and looks set to spend the night there. Is it one of the pair that occupied the box last year? [Play Video] |
| 2009-05-10: | Four more eggs have hatched. Only one left. |
| 2009-05-09: | The eggs have begun hatching! I have uploaded a video of the second chick hatching. [Play Video] |
| 2009-05-09: | Today was when I predicted the eggs might start hatching, but so far none have. It now looks like it may be tomorrow. The parents instinct to feed the chicks has started though! [Play Video] |
| 2009-05-03: | I've updated the video codec the site uses to the latest version (details here for the curious). It has improved the video quality quite a bit, but as alpha software there may be bugs. Please let me know if you are unable to view the cameras now but could before. |
| 2009-04-28: | Just to prove me wrong, she has laid a seventh egg. One of the males most important jobs is bringing the bulk of the food when the chicks are still small, but even before they hatch he brings food for Pepper. [Play Video] |
| 2009-04-27: | The sixth and probably final egg has been laid today. They should begin hatching on or near the 9th of May. |
| 2009-04-26: | Pepper has started incubating the eggs. She may lay one more tomorrow, and if all goes well they will begin hatching in about two weeks. |
| 2009-04-25: | The first Swifts have been spotted over Cookstown. |
| 2009-04-24: | Rake checks up on his partner each morning by calling loudly at the box, and sometimes gets a reply. [Play Video] Not long after this Pepper layed her third egg! [Play Video] |
| 2009-04-22: | Only a week after her first visit to the box, Pepper has laid her first egg! She will lay one each morning for the next week or so. |
| 2009-04-20: | Pepper is spending her first night roosting in the box. |
| 2009-04-18: | The nest is now almost complete, and in record time. Things may get a little quieter now until she hopefully starts laying eggs. |
| 2009-04-17: | Nest building continues at a furious rate. Only a day in and about a quarter of the floor is covered. [Play Video] |
| 2009-04-16: | Nest building has begun! |
| 2009-04-15: | Today marks the first busy day in Box 1 - the Great Tits have really taken to the box now. Nest building hasn't started yet, but it's on their mind. [Play Video] Another visit by a female House Sparrow, but this time there's a surprise. [Play Video] |
| 2009-04-14: | Pepper takes her first step into the box. It's getting quite late in the season, will they still nest? [Play Video] |
| 2009-04-07: | The female Great Tit (Pepper) was back at the box, this time being feed by her partner (Rake). Still didn't go in though... [Play Video] |
| 2009-04-01: | The 1st of April, and the weather seems to be improving. The Great Tits continue to visit but not enter, and a female House Sparrow takes a look too! [Play Video] |
| 2009-03-27: | After a brief burst of activity from the Great Tits, things have fallen quiet again in Box 1. The weather might be to blame as it's turned bitterly cold this week, with even a few falls of snow. There are only a few weeks before the Swifts return, so I've started work on Box 2. It should be online soon. |
| 2009-03-24: | The Great Tit pair continue to visit, but today a Blue Tit decided to have a quick peek at the box too. [Play Video] |
| 2009-03-20: | At last, the first visit of the year! The Great Tit male finally enters the box. [Play Video] |
| 2009-03-09: | The Great Tits had a good look at the newly enlarged entrance, but it hasn't tempted them in yet. [Play Video] |
| 2009-03-08: | It's starting to look unlikely that a Blue Tit pair will take up residence this season, so I've increased the size of the entrance for the Great Tits. Will they move in? |
| 2009-03-04: | Still very quiet in the garden. So far the only serious interest in the box has been from a pair of Great Tits, who are too large for the Blue Tit size entrance. [Play Video] |
| 2009-02-19: | The electronics have been installed and the internal camera is now online. Things are quiet so far compared to previous seasons. |
| 2009-01-01: | Welcome to 2009, and the start of a brand new nesting season! Box 1 has been cleaned and the partitions re-installed, but the electronics are still waiting on a few bits arriving so no internal camera for now. Box 2 is getting a new camera too, but there is no rush for that - the Swifts won't be back for a while. I've also been tweaking video playback, so hopefully it should work better for everyone this year. If you can't watch any of the videos please let me know. |
2008 season
| 11-08-2008: | Both birds have stopped roosting, and are probably on their way to Africa. With luck they'll return next year and nest here! |
| 02-08-2008: | In an unexpected twist, the first bits of nest material have been brough into Box 2! |
| 28-07-2008: | The pair of swifts have started roosting again. |
| 26-07-2008: | A single swift entered the box tonight but didn't stay. |
| 25-07-2008: | A pair of swifts are roosting in Box 2 tonight! |
| 24-07-2008: | A swift was seen leaving Box 2 for the first time today. It's too late for a nest now, but it may return to use the box next season. |
| 29-05-2008: | All seven chicks have fledged! |
| 27-05-2008: | All seven chicks remain healthy. The male is doing a fantastic job feeding them. |
| 26-05-2008: | Unfortunatally the female of the pair has gone missing today. The male is continuing to feed the chicks alone, and hopefully he'll manage until they leave the nest in a few days. |
| 24-05-2008: | All seven chicks are healthy, the oldest are now 15 days old. They typically leave the nest on or near the 21st day which is this Friday, 30th of May. |
| 20-05-2008: | The oldest chicks are now 11 days old. All seven are doing really well. |
| 11-05-2008: | One more egg hatched. The older chicks are already noticeably larger and stronger. [ Video, 1.1Mb XviD ] |
| 10-05-2008: | Three more eggs have hatched. Two eggs remain. |
| 09-05-2008: | Three of the eight eggs have hatched! |
| 27-04-2008: | The eigth and probably final egg was laid this morning. Hatching should be on or near the 8th of May. |
| 26-04-2008: | Full time incubation has begun. There are seven eggs now, possibly one more to go. Incubation lasts for about 12 days. The first Swifts have been spotted over Cookstown. Box 2 will go back online if any take up residence. |
| 20-04-2008: | The first egg was laid this morning! [ Video, 7.1Mb XviD ] |
| 10-04-2008: | Nest building has resumed now that the unusual cold weather has passed. Nearly finished now. |
| 05-03-2008: | First bit of nest material taken into Box 1. [ Video, 1.1Mb XviD ] |
| 22-02-2008: | A blue tit has started roosting in Box 1. |
2007 season
2006 season
Copyright © 2006-2012 Philip Heron
