A Year in the Valley

I have heard the chiffchaff a few times with its unmistakable ‘chiff-chaff’ call, and I finally managed to track it down in near the top of this tree a little way up the valley.  The last time I actually saw one it was on the electric cables that slant across the bottom of the watermeadow.  They definitely seem to prefer being up high.  They feed on insects.  It is interesting that although they build their nests in bushes and undergrowth near the ground, they prefer to nest in habitats where there are taller trees.