House Martins building and defending their work...

Oh Karen, that's a lovely sight, lucky you! ... The only time I've seen this was in Alvor, in Portugal ...

Really Shirley? Don't you get them around where you live? They seem to love this estate, almost every house has at least one nest and my next door neighbour has two!

Incredible! ... I have definitely never seen a House Martin nest down this way ... :o(

This means summer is definitely here! Wonderful sight.

Gosh, I am surprised Shirley! Yes GG....that's true. It's lovely to see them all in the evening swooping all around the houses.

I will have to check if they are still nesting just a quarter of a mile away, they usually do.

very nice shot Karen :-)

They used to nest in our old barn...it was a bit like a scene from 'The Birds' at times...somehow they always took me by surprise!

Your part of the world has lots of lovely birds, Karen...I remember we had to make ceramic nest tunnels for the sand-pipers at a country park (who's name escapes me now) somewhere near you.

brill!

Ooooh Karen...was that Murton at Forfar? They have loads of Sand Martin nests there...I went there with Kath (Scotkat) and saw them! Thanks Paul, Slad and Pimps. I do love the bird variety here. When we moved in, there were Oyster Catchers nesting on the pile of topsoil behind the house fence and I still love to hear their calls. We have all the garden birds AND all the coastal birds...brilliant!

Nooo...it wasn't Murton...but it was Sand Martins, and not pipers!!
- I think it was where they built a golf-course...

Yes sorry I meant Martins. :)) Got sea birds on the brain! Golf coure....Drumoig in Fife perhaps? Trying to think of new(ish) golf courses.....Kingsbarns perhaps, also in Fife? Not Kingennie Fisheries, just down the road from here I wouldn't think...but perhaps?

How lovely to watch Karen, we dont get House Martins here!

That's so strange...I wonder why. We used to get them in Lincs. I wonder if they actually prefer housing estates...I remember them on the houses I lived in when I was very small and they were new council houses. I don't remember seeing them on later houses I lived in...and there were a few!

No - it was me who said 'pipers', Karen! :/
...I'm still thinking...it was definitely in Angus...

lol..confusion all around then! :))

6.30 am...awake thinking about it...
Piper Dam! The clue was in the confusion! lol! :))

Oh yes!!! Of course, never thought of Piper Dam!! I haven't been up there in a while, but next time I go I shall be looking out for your creative sand martin solutions!!

We just made things which looked a bit like big hospital bed pee bottles...I don't know what they did with them... :)

I'm guessing from what I saw at Murton, that they will have been inserted in to a bank of sandy soil like ready made houses for the birds, so you can probably only see holes in the bank.

Well, I really hope it worked!!!!! :)))