Country diary: A sunlit view of two hungry bullfinches | Jim Perrin

Llandrindod Wells, Powys: They're such captivating birds to watch, and this pair is indulging their preference for flower buds on my cherry tree"Hardly hedgerows, little lines of sportive wood run wild". I was sitting at my dining table, relishing the growing warmth of early spring sunlight, idling over coffee and musing on how apt a description of the towering unkempt hedges around my garden Wordsworth's lines from Tintern Abbey are, when the pair of bullfinches that inhabit there captivated my attention.They are so conjugal - the dowdier hen always in close and discreet attendance on her more brightly coloured spouse. To my mind, few small British birds can match the exquisite colour balance of the male bullfinch - the bright pink glow of his breast, his sleek black cap, the beautiful grey of his wings. I love them, and can watch their activities for hours, especially in early spring when they are notably active, with branches bare of foliage and little else stirring. Continue reading...