The weather forcast for the next couple of days is for rain and it is possible that I won't get the chance to check on the nest tomorrow, I hope to be able to because it is the start of an important week for the Dippers. I decided to have a quick check of the nest site and the breeding pair late this evening. The male was in front of the nest when I got there, it's always good to see him at the nest, confirming that there isn't a problem. Nothing special to add from this evening except that the male stood in front of the nest for quite a while, he was making that sibillant churring sound here and there, and had he got a response from the female in the form of a churring answer, I'm sure he would have flown up to her but he didn't. Considering that it's now 16 days since the first egg was laid and they are due to hatch within the next day or so, it's a surprise that she didn't invite hime to feed her. It will probably be easy to know when the eggs have started hatching because I am expecting the male to deliver food to the nest, that will be a change in recent behaviour. Just before dusk, the male was still in front of the nest and still making his churring noise. I felt a bit sorry for him, because he hasn't taken part in the incubation. He is detached from what is going on and has kept quite a lonely vigil for the last 16 days. Incubation is said to last 16 or 17 days and also to start on the day of the laying of the final egg of the clutch. This is to ensure that all eggs hatch simultaneously, not all birds use this syncronised incubation. Some species will incubate after the second egg meaning that chicks hatch on different days. The benefit of this is that the older chicks are inclined to get the "lions" share of the food brought to the nest. Only when their is a plentiful supply do all the chicks survive. In Dippers, all the chicks will have an equal chance of survival.