First he perched on the roof and had a look around.
Today we recorded a bird inside Box2.
Then he flew down to the entrance . . .
. . . and finally he went inside.
So far I have been assuming this bird is male. This is because normally the male finds the nesting place and attracts the female to it. This bird looks to be an old one - it does not have the pristine plumage that a young bird would have at this stage in the nesting season.
So far so good.
Here you can see the bird from close quarters. It is definitely an old hand - a bit like the female we had here in 2013 who we called Scruff! We'll see what sex this bird is later if it finds a partner.
Talking of 2013, this was the first of three years that we had two females sharing the same nest and the same partner. In 2015 we called the female Suzie and in 2016, Spikey.
At least it is going to be easy to identify!
Yes - a very scruffy old bird. If it is the female, I will definitely call her Scruff!
It also reminds me a bit of a bird we had in 2003 and again in 2004 which we called Fluffy because of her very fluffy plumage. I'm sure it can't be her because bluetits don't live that long, but it might be one of her offspring!
Another close-up view.
Away it goes! Let's hope that this means we shall have a nest in this box again this year.
Watch this space!
In Box1, the dispute about box ownership continues. These two birds are not a couple!
This is what the bird in the box is doing - putting up a fierce defense of what it considers to be its territory!