Friday 29 March 2019

Late March sunshine

Hello

A walk at Harrington Airfield this morning was useful to avoid the fog and mist of the valleys but only provided a sighting of a male Wheatear and little else. The Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton was initially fog-bound this morning but later the Great Grey Shrike came out to play showing well near to the manure heap and nearby hedges. Other birds nearby included a Corn Bunting, three Bramblings, a male Wheatear and a male Peregrine which seems to have taken up residence during the last week.

Ravens were noted at Kelmarsh and Hanging Houghton today and the Cattle Egret again appeared in bushes under the Cormorant colony at Ditchford Pits on the Delta Pit. Two Little Ringed Plovers were on Gull island on the Summer Leys Reserve at Earls Barton and yesterday an excellent photograph was taken of a Hooded Crow in flight along the valley just north of the reserve.

Eric and Ken Spriggs checked Titchmarsh Reserve and Thrapston Pits this morning notching up the usuals in the beautiful spring weather! Their haul included two Great White Egrets, the first year Whooper Swan, the three Pink-footed Geese, two Snipe, two Oystercatchers, a Kingfisher on Harpers Brook and warblers included Cetti's, Blackcap and Chiffchaff.

Two more ringing recoveries relate to a locally ringed Moorhen and Blue Tit:-

A young Moorhen was ringed at Pitsford Reservoir on 16th December 2016 and it's leg (and only the leg) with the ring affixed was found in Shenley, Church End, Milton Keynes on 20th March 2019! It is assumed that this bird moved south to the Milton Keynes area of it's own volition and was subsequently predated or otherwise came unstuck 36km from the original ringing site and 824 days later.

A first year Blue Tit was ringed in Market Harborough on 14th February 2018 by Rich Goswell of the Rockingham Forest Ringing Group. This bird was re-caught at Hanging Houghton on 27th November 2018, for some reason this little blue waif decided to travel south for 14km down the A508, 286 days elapsing between the two captures.

Regards

Neil M



Moorhen.

Blue Tit.

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