Stock Dove in the sun!

Hello

A stunning day's weather locally today - warm, lots of sunshine, a gentle breeze and massive blue skies. Wow!

No birds in particular to mention other than the fact that the Ruddy Shelduck was still with the geese at Pitsford Reservoir this evening, again in the grounds of the Sailing Club.

Another of John Woollett's Siskins has been reported. This time it was S122528 that was ringed at Astcote on 8th March 2016, and subsequently caught again by a ringer, this time on 18th May at a place called Cnoc in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. This first year male bird travelled 508km in a NNW direction, 71 days between the initial ringing and recovery date. It would be fair to assume that this bird is intending to breed in Scotland.

Regards

Neil M

Stock Dove.

A much-overlooked bird, the Stock
Dove is common in rural Northants
and enjoys a large range which takes
in temperate Europe and some of Asia.
A fast and active flier, it provides a bit of
a challenge to photograph in flight!
Close up they are a beautiful bird with
a mixture of vibrant blue-greys and a vivid
 neck patch which shines green much of the time
and often a lilac and other colours. They are smaller and
chunkier than the feral pigeon or Rock Dove
and considerably smaller than the Woodpigeon.
They can be seen in the UK all year round, but
migrants are most noticeable in the autumn with
 coastal observatories in some years recording
 surprisingly large numbers on the move.
This bird is not exhibiting the usual two black
bands to the upper secondaries, although this
is very variable. Fledglings become independent
quickly and tend to be darker and lacking the gloss of
the adults. 'Singing' Stock Doves can be heard
almost all year-round these days and they have a
very long breeding season but currently are not
yet breeding in every month like the Woodpigeon!
The nest is usually in a hollow or a hole in a tree or barn
and they readily take to large nest-boxes. Two eggs and
two young is the norm, but like the Woodpigeon, the
predation rate is very high.