With spring now upon us, the action in your garden has stepped up another gear.

All types of birds are nesting and their babies are always hungry. With a nest box video camera installed in your garden, you can watch all of this from the convenience of home via images beamed direct to your Television.

Nest box cameras are on offer in a number of forms, wireless or wired, colour or black and white and with or without infrared night vision and sound.

Having a wireless camera, you are going to still need cables to provide electrical power to the video camera unless it is battery operated. The down side to battery operated cameras is that the digital camera is heavy on the electricity usage, especially if operating with infra red night time vision. The cables for the camera need to be compatible for this country's power supply, ie 12V and of a suitable length to reach the nest box.

So as to obtain optimal pictures, the siting of your nest box is also critical. Not only will it determine whether birds will choose to nest in it but furthermore what sort of birds will choose it. Typically select a sheltered location, ideally facing between north and east or out of the prevailing wind direction.

Blue tits and most little birds need to have the box located a minimum of 2m above ground height either attached to a wall, fence or tree. Robins and wrens prefer to nest below 2m in hedgerow.

The sizing of the hole of the box will also influence the type of bird that chooses to nest there. The tit family generally likes 25mm diameter holes and robins favor open fronted boxes.

The view angle of the digicam may also determine the scope of the image received. Generally look for a view angle of at least 60 degrees to see from the base of the nest box to over the nest or if positioned above the nest then this will offer a view of the entire nest.

As well as watching birds hatching, a wildlife digital camera is also suitable for discovering the life habits of hedgehogs, rabbits, badgers and more - all from the comfort of your own living room.

A video camera can be set up inside a stable or barn to observe horses, cows or sheep. Another alternative is to set up one in a rabbit or guinea pig hutch or maybe as a CCTV for home security.

To set up most nest box cameras, position the digicam in a sheltered spot, such as a bird box, rabbit hutch etc, and connect to a mains supply. Then simply connect the receiver to your Tv set, video or DVR and sit back and observe. No tuning is required. If the camera is a wireless version, then the range is normally up to 100 meters.

Record your footage and make your very own documentaries. Children and adults will watch enthralled. A must have for all nature lovers!

Having watched the baby birds hatch, the following phase is feeding them up.

To ensure a healthy family, offer mealworms, mealworms and more mealworms! Live food is very important for the growth of the small birds. Sunflower seeds or hearts, summer bird food mix, insectivorous mix, mealworms, mild grated cheese etc. should all be fine to help a developing family. Remember - Whole peanuts may cause the death of young birds, so peanuts ought to always be put in a metal mesh feeder. Peanuts, fatty foods and bread are not appropriate foods during the breeding season, but they are fine for the winter months.

Some specialized pet retailers offer mealworms as live food for lizards and possibly fishing supply shops. It's possible to rear your own, but it's a very long process.

Set up a bird box camera and sit back and watch nature develop.