Blackbirds nesting in the Pergola strut,
shaded in a Wisteria bower,
the first year it decided to flower,
untended, ragged spirals left uncut.

Father jet black darting past the window,
sudden flashes of his yellow rimmed eye.
Dowdy brown mother has no need to fly,
snuggled down as her love swoops to and fro.

Plaintive high-pitched cries announce their hatching
Three fledgling wide mouths hungry to be fed
A fortnight growth before learning to fly
one falls to earth is ready for snatching
Screeching alarums in fear and in dread
The jaws of a cat are no place to die