My original pair are progressing with their nest. The hen is even looking "pregnant" - hopefully we may yet see eggs. She is in the foreground of this picture.

In a week she has constructed so, so carefully this warm and comforting looking nest.

In 2011, when  I bought this pair, they had several clutches with fertile eggs and even had one live chick which died at 8 days. I hadn't realised that the room was too hot for them and the hen had problems laying as a consequence of the room temperature being too high. Last year neither of them came into breeding condition so I am hopeful that I am getting a second chance to breed this pair. Regular viewers of these pages will know that the cock bird won Best Novice Flighted at the Scots Fancy Specialist Club show last November so if none of the other birds breed this year but this pair, I will still be delighted!  

I was delighted to notice last night that my original pair are starting to nest build. They did not come into condition last year and I would love this pair to breed successfully as the male is such a good example of the variety.

Some new pictures. I have placed the hens in breeding cages and their proposed mates in the adjoining cages. There is then a gap in the slider between the cages so they can get to know one another. The hens are not yet ready to breed. The winter has been too dark and the light won't get to optimum for breeding here this far north until about May.

In the top cage, the white hen laid four eggs in March - all infertile. She laid today but I am not sure that she and her mate are yet a couple!

In other sets up we have Elizabeth - I hope she may breed with the white cockbird.

And Number 9 I hope may breed with Elizabeth's sister

And finally Scott (No1) and little hen Number 2

Fingers crossed for success in May for them all.

The light is extending and the cock birds are singing pretty much all day. The cocks are housed separately as they will fight if they are in the same cages. The hens live more peaceably with one another.

The singing is a joy to hear.

Elizabeth has moulted - not intentional that - and her tail is now adult length. She looks good as does her brother but she needs a few weeks to rebuild her strength.

Another of the hens - all happy together!

The singing stops as soon as I enter the room so I tried to take this round the door!

This is the new white ticked hen. You can see some yellow feathering too. She's a lovely shape.

The new white cock bird is harder to photograph - he doesn't like the camera!

The new yellow ticked cock is a stunner - he is very nervous and not keen on the camera. I have him in a cage with Elizabeth's brother and No 9 and I can't actually tell the two yellows apart easily.

And a short movie of my birdroom this evening. There is a lot of singing going on but I made a real rookie error in reducing the light which has put a lot of my birds into a moult. I am now leaving the light timer alone!

The new cock bird from John Morris arrived this evening. He's a long bonnie bird.

He's had a long journey and is a bit flighty this evening so I am letting him settle in. He's found the food and water so he'll be fine when he can have a sleep shortly when the lights go off for the evening.

The white hen is looking good this evening - more relaxed.

Happy New Year, 2013!

I have bought in some outcrosses - birds from an entirely different gene pool which will, hopefully, maintain the vigour of my birds and help me to establish my own stud. I have admired the white (known as blue) birds for some time and today acquired a pair from Sandy Innes, a champion breeder and exhibitor. They are really lovely birds. Tomorrow they will be joined by a bird from John Morris, another champion. I want to bring in some longer birds which will improve mine which tend to be smaller and shorter - like me! So more pictures tomorrow.

This is the hen - I like her grizzled cap.

And this, the cock bird. They are dominant whites which means that they must be bred to another colour or you will breed at least 25% dead in shell. It's a probem of the white mutation.