The humble cuckoo,”In April come he will,In may he sings all day”.

I heard my first cuckoo of the year on Sunday. I was also pleased to see and hear the skylarks.

The past couple of days the goldfinches have reappeared here. They tend not to come down into the garden much, sit on the tv ariels twittering away. Gorgeous little birds. We were walking in a wooded area of our local park last week and the trees were alive with nuthatches. No cuckoos yet though!

No cuckoo here but the bats are back! Or rather, the bats have woken up and are flying around in the evenings.

Still waiting!!!
The house martins have arrived though and quickly settling back into their former nests and happily going haywire,
nose diving and teasing us as they fly around here in our courtyard.
Mind you it means we shall need to "be on the ball" as they certainly leave their mark underneath their nests!!!

Oops sorry rascal have duplicated that song....

The cuckoo comes in April
He sings his song in May.
In the middle of June
He changes his tune
And in July he flies away.

Sung in primary school, never heard it since.

I heard the Cuckoo here in Loch Lomond National Park on Saturday. We always listen for it every year. We learned at school many years ago this verse:
The Cuckoo comes in April.
It sings its song in May.
It changes its tune in the middle of June and then it flies away.

Not heard one at all so far this year and I only heard it once last year too.

Panache, we heard our first one for this year last Tuesday (17th). We live alongside a nature reserve (South Coast) and I think we're one of the first stopping off points when they come across.
OH and I had a bet on for the first one to hear it this year, so I had to buy him a beer at the weekend as he heard it first! Have heard it almost daily since, sometimes very close to home - not seen one yet though, look forward to trying to do that through the summer.
We've also seen four swallows in the past week too. That and the sunshine last week convinced me to dust off my sandals, but I had to put my boots back on for work today ... four swallows and one cuckoo do not a summer make, apparently .
Hope you get a local cuckoo soon. x

Ilovecheese I also grew up in Manchester and listened to the cuckoo in my nana's clock.
I remember my sense of wonder when I first moved to the countryside and heard a real cuckoo.

Growing up in the middle of Manchester I don't think I've ever heard a cuckoo either. (or only from a clock!)

A very uplifting piece of music,thank you Fennel whilst as a lover of poetry, I enjoyed your thoughts on the Cuckoo and its habits JackyB.
I am now smiling picturing the cuckoo and his missus enjoying a cruise!!

I just found a poem I wrote recently, when pondering on the use of the cuckoo and why they leave their kids to be brought up by others. What else do they have to do from July onwards?

What does the cuckoo do all day?
He just sings ad nauseaum through April and May
By the end of June his work is done -
He's not interested whether it's a daughter or son.
He's free for the summer with nothing to lose
Do he and the missus go off on a cruise?

Thank you Fennel That was beautiful.
Time now for some Spring from Vivaldi.

Some music to go with the topic:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xHIhcstxUM

ps Panache - take no notice of any negative comments.

When in France we seemed to be on one of the migration routes:
www.bto.org/science/migration/tracking-studies/cuckoo-tracking
Amusing that they were given names . I think ours was Samson.
Usually we heard one or two in March, but they became more rare.

I smiled when I saw the comment from phoenix and took it as tongue in cheek

Sadly I haven't heard a cuckoo for years and was jealous when last year my friend said she was fed up with being woken up by cuckoos every morning. Yes it was wood pigeons!

Keep smiling Panache and live up to your username!

Jalima and all,I am going nowhere as I am more than happy where I am folks, but in future if I seemingly "step out of line" or say something I should`nt, please feel free to approach me ........but using the proper,and kinder method............a private message.

Being new here perhaps I am extra sensitive, because believe me, no one has a greater sense of humour than I have...... and quite frankly I live in a world of "Live and let live!!"

Today`s another new day,the sun is shining .... so let us enjoy it!!

I hope you will stay with GN Panache and thanks for the interesting subject matter.

However, please don't get offended - should I say 'Joke Alert'?
Personally, even if I didn't know phoenix's sense of humour, I would have found that remark very funny.

Untwist your knickers phoenix

Panache, Phoenix has the best sense of humour ever, so her thread was definitely tongue-in-cheek!
Personally I rarely notice the topic heading, just read the thread titles on the active list.

OH dragged me up to the woods yesterday evening (not by my hair-he's no caveman!) He was excited about being the first to hear this years cuckoo.
As I half suspected, we stood listening to the dulcet tones of a woodpigeon

Actually Panache it's a bit like seeing a woman with her skirt tucked into her knickers; 'to tell or not to tell?' and I thought it better to mention it sooner rather than later, most especially because you are taking such an active interest. I joined right at the beginning and this is my only forum so I could easily have made similar mistakes when I first started. I'm sure that no-one has taken umbrage, offense or such like and the lovely Phoenix really is lovely and will henceforth sit more comfortably. (Waves hello to Phoenix and suggests she looks at the posts on Sat 14-Apr-18 00:11:28)

FGS, Panache We're joking. You're not stepping on toes OR upsetting people.