Definitely a heatwave!
Admittedly, at 22C degrees indoors and just 18C outdoors, the heatwave seems to be more applicable to southern England than to northern Wales! But here too, it is glorious summer weather at the moment. I've got a day off today, (which I've devoted to writing but more of that later) after working over the weekend at RSPB Ynys Hir near Machynlleth. It's been heavenly on the reserve during this lovely season, when birds are singing and nesting, bees are buzzing and butterflies fluttering, and a carpet of wildflowers is covering the woodlands. As per every spring, a pair of Oystercatchers are nesting on a wall outside one of the estuary hides. They've bred there for the last five years and, despite their choice of site being completely exposed, have raised their young successfully nearly every time. Currently, they are sitting on three eggs, the male and the female both taking turns to do the sitting. Osytercatcher eggs are large so the incubation period is long, a...