Tilly and the Blue Tit

After yesterday's relentless rain today was brighter - golden in the early morning, as is often the case here, then drizzly around lunchtime and dry but greyish later.

Ty and I went down the coombe in the afternoon, and in passing we collected his friend Tilly, who at 9 months old is already bigger than he is and not yet particularly obedient, being fast, excitable and headstrong as all collies are at that age. We went down the coombe then back up and crossed over to the other side, back down to the creek and back up again, which certainly tires me out even if it doesn't affect the dogs.

When we were almost back I called Tilly and got no response at all; I could see bushes shaking above the cow parsley, but I couldn't actually see the dog so I went back to investigate. In among the long grass, protesting VERY loudly, was a just fledged blue tit. Tilly didn't know what to make of it at all, but it was making noises like a squeaky toy so she was nosing at it gently and it was rolling/tumbling down the slope. I grabbed the dog with one hand and scooped up the fledgling with the other. Held on my palm well above dog height it immediately calmed down and shut up. I could see that it was unharmed, if a tiny bit bedraggled. While I was still debating whether to try and find the nest, just put it back on the nearest branch or take it home to keep an eye on (no! very naughty!) it made my mind up for me by taking off in a flapping flurry. Not very efficiently, it managed about six feet before it ended up back on the ground, but that is normal for a first or second flight so I took the dogs well away and left it to its own devices.

This was the first blue tit fledgling I've seen this year. I don't know whether Tilly knocked it out of its nest or found it on the ground or a low branch, but I didn't want to investigate while she was still around. I'll go back tomorrow to see what's what.