Singing Blackcap

The sound of summer came early when this morning I heard a blackcap singing from high in a tree. It was a beautiful spring morning and down by the stream that fringes the wood. The song I heard was quite different form the usual thrushes, robins and wrens that are currently plentiful and vociferous. It was a fairly tatty looking bird and the song was far from being the relatively melodious song of later in the year, but unmistakable. I suspect this bird to be an overwintered specimen likely to be heading north to its breeding grounds within the next week or so. But, it could be an early arrival.