Bee decline has a sting in the tale?

IN the past couple of weeks, two pairs of lesser redpolls have added to the birds visiting my feeders.

They have visited in the past, but only in winter. This year, the first ones arrived in the last week of April — but it’s been a strange year.

The winter redpolls are nondescript, but at this time of year the males are in full breeding plumage and look magnificent: bright-red caps on their heads and a pink flush down their breasts. They’re one of our smallest finches, but assertive when competing with larger birds for a place at the feeders.