The cuckoos are just packing their bags for the trip back to the UK - it's simply unbelievable the mileage they cover each year and how fast they can move when they get the urge to migrate.
I sponsor one of the birds (it was a lovely Christmas present actually) and get quite emotional every time he phones home :+)
Did you get some 'meet and greet' with the bird before he/she flew off to Africa Dave?
I can't get excited about birds - I like my mammals. Wolves, dogs and all cats will do me nicely. This was my first love http://i60.tinypic.com/2n8rjw2.jpg he died in 1988 (aged 8) and thinking about him still makes me smile. He chased mopeds and motorbikes and once brought down a jogger.
I've not heard cuckoo around here for about five years and it's probably twenty or more since last actually saw one, yet when Iwas a kid they sèemed to be all over the place.