More ringing recoveries

Hello

A few more ringing recoveries have come through as follows:-

1. A first year Black-headed Gull with a blue colour ring was seen and photographed at Pitsford Reservoir on 22nd August 2020. This bird was ringed as a nestling at Truskaw, GM Izabelin, Mazowieckie, Poland on 6th June 2020, the bird travelling 1463km to reach Pitsford within 77 days;

2. Three more Mallard ringed at Pitsford Reservoir were all shot near Lamport (4km from the reservoir) on or about 2nd November 2020. One was an adult female ringed on 25th September 2019 and the other two were ducklings raised at Pitsford Reservoir and ringed on 24th and 27th June 2020 respectively;

3. A juvenile Reed Warbler was ringed at Stanwick Pits on 11th July 2020 and certainly didn't hang around for long as it was caught again at Etang de Marcenay, Larrey, Cote-d'Or, Eastern France on 7th August 2020. This young bird moved 611km in a south easterly direction within 27 days.

Birds noted at Hollowell Reservoir today included a Caspian Gull, a Yellow-legged Gull, two Great White Egrets and twelve Crossbills. A huge count of fourteen Jack Snipe at Daventry Country Park is probably the highest count I can ever recall locally and a first year Caspian Gull was seen there too. A Cattle Egret and a Great White Egret were reported from Stanwick Pits. Five Little Egrets off Mill Lane, Greens Norton could be the beginning of the regular wintering flock in this South Northants locality which has reached double figures in previous years.

I spent the afternoon into dusk in the Scaldwell Bay at Pitsford Reservoir, watching birds coming into roost. Three Great White Egrets roosted between the Bird Club and James Fisher Hides (the traditional roost site is usually in the Walgrave Bay). A Green Sandpiper and at least eight Snipe emerged onto the water's edge, and most of the diving ducks gathered in the small bay between the Maytrees and Bird Club hides. Goldeneye have certainly increased over the last couple of days with thirty on view this afternoon. Other birds included three Red-crested Pochard and a pair of Stonechat.

The Starling roost appears to be on the up with six hundred birds dropping in near to the Fishing Lodge and the regular huge roost of corvids included about a thousand very noisy Jackdaws!

Regards

Neil M

Green Sandpiper.

Marsh Tit.

Meadow Pipit.

Above images all taken at
Broadholme Treatment Works,
Nene Valley courtesy of
Nathan Jones.

Chris wasn't sure which
size ring to put on this
owl (called Mike)!

A second video clip of the 

Starling murmuration at

Stortons Pits on 12th Oct 2020

courtesy of Chris Payne. The

Sparrowhawk seems to be 

particularly adept at singling

out a Starling...