Brambling invasion

Hello

A visit to Harrington Airfield this morning was pretty special. Cooler temperatures and a gentle breeze with periods of cloud and sunshine was the setting and Woodpigeons and Stock Doves were on the move coming south and a couple of hundred feet above, at least until a female Peregrine climbed up to meet them and caused some flocks to divert.

Passerines were initially few in number but as I walked towards the bunker bushes the calls of Bramblings, lots of them, permeated through the cool air. About thirty flew up from the ringing ride next to Bunker One and perhaps another thirty were in bushes between there and Bunker Two with eighty moving around the bushes between Bunkers Two and Three. An unseen raptor spooked these birds which hurtled towards the concrete track and a large flock of finches erupted from the bushes behind me made up predominately of Bramblings, Greenfinches and Chaffinches. Together with a good number of Redwings and Fieldfares, the finches circulated around the complex with flocks settling and permitting some more accurate counting. On the walk back approximately a hundred Bramblings were feeding in the Bunker One ringing ride again. I estimated in total about three hundred Bramblings and about a hundred each of Greenfinch and Chaffinch plus fifty Linnets and ten Siskins.

Eleanor visited afterwards and saw similar numbers but also saw a 'ringtail' Hen Harrier flying from the shooting wall down towards the Brampton Valley.

A Barn Owl was hunting the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this afternoon with small numbers of mobile Siskins and Bramblings.

At Pitsford Reservoir today the birds in the Scaldwell Bay included the Wood Sandpiper still plus a Green Sandpiper, sixteen Red-crested Pochard, thirteen Pintail, sixteen Great White Egrets and an adult Yellow-legged Gull.

The pair of Smew were still in situ at Ringstead Pits today but with an absence of Cattle Egrets and at Earls Barton Pits there were two Green Sandpipers and a Common Snipe at the New Workings plus a Stonechat.

Six Redpolls were caught and ringed at Braunston this morning and other finches present included one hundred and sixty Linnets and several Bramblings.

Regards

Neil M

Shovelers.

Teal.

Drake Red-crested Pochard.

All images from Pitsford Reservoir
last week courtesy of Robin Gossage.