When I spotted this Great crested grebe hauling a long piece of reed towards a potential nesting place, near where yesterday’s grebes had been mating (though not necessarily the same pair as there are several in that area), it occurred to me to wonder which usually comes first with birds, the nest-building or the mating? Maybe it’s a combination of both?

There’s certainly a lot of nest-building going on at the moment – as well as that grebe, recent sightings have included a Moorhen, Sand martins checking out nest holes in one of Cardiff Bay’s old docks, and a Mute swan already sitting but still busily adding to and tidying her nest.