Monday 17 July 2017

Monday's ringing efforts

Hello

This morning's ringing session at Harrington Airfield coincided with some warm temperatures and resulted in the capture of 96 birds of 18 species. Surprisingly there were only 12 re-traps from previous operations on-site, it seems that the birds that spend lengthy periods at the old airfield also know how to avoid the mist nets!

Warblers dominated with an excellent 28 Whitethroats (nearly all juveniles suggesting a good breeding year), single juveniles of Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Sedge Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat, 16 Willow Warblers and 3 Chiffchaffs. Other birds included a Linnet, 4 Goldfinches, 6 Chaffinches, 4 Robins, 8 Dunnocks, 2 Wrens, 2 Blue Tits, 5 Great Tits, 8 Yellowhammers, 4 Blackbirds and a juvenile Song Thrush.

Other birds seen included a fly-over Yellow-legged Gull, at least one Turtle Dove and a Willow Tit.

Birds in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton included the two singing Grasshopper Warblers still and a new migrant in the shape of a male Whinchat.

At Pitsford Reservoir this morning Dave Francis was busy conducting another CES ringing session in the Scaldwell Bay resulting in 76 captures of 18 species, 55 new birds and 21 re-traps. Apparently in Victorian times they used a collective audible term of a 'Heard of Wrens', but for Dave today he commented it felt more like a 'Plague of Wrens' with 16 of them hitting his nets! Other birds were made up of 9 Blackcaps, 8 Bullfinches, 7 Chiffchaffs, 6 Robins, 6 Great Tits, 5 Song Thrushes, 4 Dunnocks, 3 Reed Warblers (including an apparent 'control' bird), 3 Blackbirds, 2 Kingfishers and singles of Willow Warbler, Treecreeper, Long-tailed Tit, Reed Bunting, Garden Warbler, a Marsh Tit and a Whitethroat.

Birds at Pitsford Reservoir this evening included two Red-crested Pochard (Jacob Spinks) and later birds included a fly-through Whimbrel, a Curlew Sandpiper briefly, a Little Ringed Plover, a Common Sandpiper, three Oystercatchers, a Yellow-legged Gull, five Little Egrets, a female Tufted Duck with 7 ducklings and a female Gadwall with 6 ducklings.

Regards

Neil M



The little and large show! A cracking
image of this month's Caspian Tern that turned
up in the Nene Valley alongside an adult
Common Tern...

Juvenile Common Tern
at Sywell Country Park.

Images courtesy of Clive Bowley.

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