Hello
Very pleasant weather today and Eleanor's early morning foray in the Brampton Valley and the area around Blueberry Farm provided multiple raptor sightings and a migrant Redstart in a field hedge.
At one stage today one of our garden buddleias attracted migrants in the form of a Willow Warbler, a Painted Lady butterfly and a Hummingbird Hawk-Moth all at the same time!
Four days ago I caught an adult male Goldfinch in the garden and initially didn't recognise the number inscribed on the ring it was wearing. It turns out that this bird was first ringed in our garden in May 2010 (an adult bird then) and re-trapped here in 2016. This means that this little finch is at least nine years old, very old in Goldfinch years. He seemed in fine fettle and hopefully has a couple more years left in him yet! The oldest known Goldfinch is recorded as 10 years, two days old!
Two days ago Eleanor picked up a weary racing pigeon in the Brampton Valley which is now recuperating here at home. Enquiries indicate that it was released in Marseilles on the south coast of France on Saturday and normally resides in Windsor, London! Obviously he has overshot home and time will tell how or when he finally arrives!
This evening a visit to Hollowell Reservoir provided a view of an Osprey which then went off towards Naseby/Welford Reservoirs. The water level is dropping here and the foreshore attracted three Black-tailed Godwits, a couple of Common Sandpipers, a Snipe and a Little Ringed Plover despite the mud being covered in the invasive plant crassula. Other birds included two Black Swans and four Little Egrets. The gull roost at Pitsford Reservoir contained at least four Yellow-legged Gulls and a juvenile Mediterranean Gull, all the gulls picking off a big hatch of insects on a still, sultry and very warm evening.
Kenny Cramer has recently returned from a sea-bird ringing expedition on the low lying rocks off the north of Scotland known as Sule Skerry. His report and accompanying images can be found by clicking on the 'Ringing' Tab on this blog and scrolling down...
Regards
Neil M
Very pleasant weather today and Eleanor's early morning foray in the Brampton Valley and the area around Blueberry Farm provided multiple raptor sightings and a migrant Redstart in a field hedge.
At one stage today one of our garden buddleias attracted migrants in the form of a Willow Warbler, a Painted Lady butterfly and a Hummingbird Hawk-Moth all at the same time!
Four days ago I caught an adult male Goldfinch in the garden and initially didn't recognise the number inscribed on the ring it was wearing. It turns out that this bird was first ringed in our garden in May 2010 (an adult bird then) and re-trapped here in 2016. This means that this little finch is at least nine years old, very old in Goldfinch years. He seemed in fine fettle and hopefully has a couple more years left in him yet! The oldest known Goldfinch is recorded as 10 years, two days old!
Two days ago Eleanor picked up a weary racing pigeon in the Brampton Valley which is now recuperating here at home. Enquiries indicate that it was released in Marseilles on the south coast of France on Saturday and normally resides in Windsor, London! Obviously he has overshot home and time will tell how or when he finally arrives!
This evening a visit to Hollowell Reservoir provided a view of an Osprey which then went off towards Naseby/Welford Reservoirs. The water level is dropping here and the foreshore attracted three Black-tailed Godwits, a couple of Common Sandpipers, a Snipe and a Little Ringed Plover despite the mud being covered in the invasive plant crassula. Other birds included two Black Swans and four Little Egrets. The gull roost at Pitsford Reservoir contained at least four Yellow-legged Gulls and a juvenile Mediterranean Gull, all the gulls picking off a big hatch of insects on a still, sultry and very warm evening.
Kenny Cramer has recently returned from a sea-bird ringing expedition on the low lying rocks off the north of Scotland known as Sule Skerry. His report and accompanying images can be found by clicking on the 'Ringing' Tab on this blog and scrolling down...
Regards
Neil M
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| Osprey and Black- tailed Godwit at Hollowell Reservoir this evening... |
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