" Don't just look, 'see' things, don't just listen, 'hear' things "

I go out every morning with an open mind as well as eyes and ears, and this morning I saw and heard something new and most extraordinary!

Seeing a Cetti's warbler and a Reed bunting in the same Willow tree is unusual enough but what came next was, I believe, unheard of.

Mr. Cetti was up and calling at 7am when Mr. Bunting arrived in the same tree, in Railway Land Lewes, and started his own call for a mate. Cetti was most annoyed. He flared up his feathers, attacked Bunty and saw him off. Then, to my utter amazement, Cetti performed the most perfect imitation of Bunty's call. The Reed bunting returned to see off his perceived rival only to once again be battered by Cetti, who, through his ingenuity and mimicking skills, had taught the Bunting a lesson and secured the willow as a stage and presumably the reed bed below as a nest site. I'll go see and hear some more over the coming weeks and maybe find out more about this little known character. Watch this space.