Hi Richard

Pleased to hear you are having a great spring -- I guess its all a question of perspectives, location and age but up here in the far north of the county there is universal acceptance that this has spring has been the worst in living memory and that accounts for 45 years + for some of us; there has been no passage of terns, waders are non-existent, so many spring visitors are missing and after several 100 hours in the field the most serious six observers have yet to find any scarce migrants let alone a rare bird. Today I was out at 04:30 listening around the pits for any unusual songsters, scouring the local hedges then doing several miles on the Wolds in the hope of a shrike but another 12 hours later and it all seems a waste of time. Two Spotted Flys back on territories and singing and a less than annual Garden Warbler plus a single Sanderling were all I had to show for another long day.
It is also rather depressing to note that there have been just two brief sightings of Turtle Dove here this spring and no singing birds the first such occurrence for over 60 years, just one Cuckoo has returned but it is elusive and quiet and the story is repeated across North Lincs where many people record a lack of Cuckoos. After a long period there have been no records this year of Hawfinch and following years of decline it looks as if they have now gone while no-one has seen a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in any of their regular woods, another species rapidly being lost. At Barton Bearded Tits have also disappeared with none breeding this year and even species like Shoveler are rare than usual.
On the positive side there are 9 singing male Cetti's in the far north but losses certainly seem to be outweighing gains.
Maybe June will be better -- but I may be taking up macramé by then