Warblers and more...

 Hello

Yesterday (Monday) and a succession of birders to Harrington Airfield provided records of two Whinchats (not seen later in the day), two Common Redstarts and a Clouded Yellow butterfly. Birds at nearby Hanging Houghton included a Raven and ten Yellow Wagtails. 

Pitsford Reservoir continues to be interesting and the water level has dropped quite considerably during the last week. Yesterday's birds included an Osprey, three Great White Egrets, four Red-crested Pochard, a Goldeneye and two Green Sandpipers to the north of the causeway and the dam area provided three Black Terns which stayed briefly in the evening plus two Yellow-legged Gulls, three Common Sandpipers, a Ringed Plover and a Dunlin (the latter which was still present today).

Today (Tuesday) and last minute ringing sessions at Stortons Pits and Brixworth Water Treatment Works provided a nice selection of warblers. Ringers were anxious to process the warblers before they disappear and the weather forecast for the coming week does not look good for mist netting so it had to be today! Stortons provided over thirty birds which included a Cetti's Warbler, a Lesser Whitethroat, seven Common Whitethroats, six Blackcaps and three Sedge Warblers.

Just over forty birds landed in the mist nets at Brixworth made up of a Kingfisher, a Grey Wagtail, three Lesser Whitethroats, four Common Whitethroats, six Blackcaps, two Sedge Warblers, a Reed Warbler, a Willow Warbler and four Chiffchaffs. Birds seen on-site or overhead included two Tree Pipits, two Ravens, eight Snipe, a Hobby, at least four Grey Wagtails and another Kingfisher.

Birds seen in the county today included four Cattle Egrets and a Green Sandpiper at Stanwick Pits, a Green Sandpiper, two Ruff and four Wheatears at Clifford Hill Pits, a possible Osprey at Fawsley Park, a Spotted Flycatcher at Upton Country Park and a Black Tern at Hollowell Reservoir. A Tree Pipit was caught and ringed today in the Rockingham Forest (Shire Hill Wood complex).                           .

Insects today included two Clouded Yellows in the nectar crop strip in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton and a Painted Lady in the Fishing Lodge car park at Pitsford Reservoir (scarce this year).

Regards

Neil M

Blackcap.

Lesser Whitethroat.

Sedge Warblers.

Head shots of three
Kingfishers caught and
ringed at Greens Norton
recently...

All images courtesy of
Chris Payne.