Christmas update

We've been offline over the festive break and what a lot happened.
Snow for starters, over two feet and still falling. It started on Thursday 17 December and it has snowed every day.
It's brought a wide range of birds into the garden, all the usuals: chaffinch, goldfinch, greenfinch, blue tit, great tit, a few coal tits, black bird, starling, wood pigeon, collared dove, house sparrow, dunnock etc. Siskins have been noticeable by their absence, we have a regular visitation of three robins but have had up to five at any one time, all carefully watching each other evenly spaced and taking their turn on the feeders. One female black bird has become very tame and quite demanding, as soon as she sees anyone in the kitchen she flies to the window table feeder and looks in. When you open the window she hops across to the washing line and then as soon as the food is down, even before the window is closed she's back and she guards it quite zealously chasing off other black birds but she seems to tolerate the robin.
The tree sparrows have been back occasionally and once or twice the nuthatch. However, we have had daily visits from first one redwing and eventually four individuals all feasting on the cotoneaster berries. There has also been a yellowhammer once or twice and one day a snipe flew across but didn't land, the first time I've seen once actually in the village never mind almost in the garden. The snow has been very deep but I've not seen many mammal tracks, a few small rodents (mice &/or voles probably) in the back garden, no rats thank goodness.
The blue tits have been keeping warm by nesting together in one of the artificial house martin nests under the eaves, I counted over a dozen heading in late one afternoon, I'm sure there were some already in.