Sunday's trip was poor; the wind had swung to the south overnight and was stronger than forecast. Nets now in the wrong places, haha! Five new birds and three re-traps for five hours hard graft with four nets (one didn't catch). And the Green Sandpiper decided to fly "the wrong way".
Kingfisher (1)
Chiffchaff 3
Blackcap (1)
Wren 1
Dipper (1) juv in tail moult
Dunnock 1
Have now ringed 221 new birds of 20 species, with 24 re-traps, since I started here, on the water meadows, 5 weeks ago.
Weather forecast not good for the coming week. B****r.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Friday, July 29, 2011
Busy doing nothing
Wednesday evening, we went to look for Nightjars on Exmoor. At a site where they are usually seen, we put two nets up. We switched the lure on and off and on and off until it was pitch black. Nothing. It was late in the season and the weather has been poor of late so we suspect that the birds left early, after rearing just the one brood during that glorious month of June 2011.
On Thursday, in the garden, it was "the return of the re-traps"; by this I mean that the locally breeding birds and their offspring are beginning to be more conspicuous and can't help falling in the nets just to tease me. I haven't got a full set-up yet, as I need the poles elsewhere. That problem will be solved (with a few blisters and some sticky fingers) shortly. The eventual outcome will be new 24, 2 section poles, enough for 6 nets here and 6 down at the water meadows.
Blue Tit (1)
Great Tit (2)
Long-tailed Tit (1)
Chiffchaff 1
Wren 1 (1)
Robin 1 (2)
Dunnock (1)
House Sparrow 1
Blackbird 2
Goldfinch 3 (2)
Total 9 (10)
The aluminium tube for the new poles arrived yesterday - I went to buy a pipe-cutter.
Today, Friday, was a dull day. Overnight the temperature slumped to 16C and hardly picked up from there. None of the water meadow nets did much early on, probably because it was still "dark", but they did "try harder" later.
The stream was the busiest place this morning. Every time I crossed it, I spooked a silent Dipper. Kingfishers were noisy today but not as noisy as a Green sandpiper that dropped in for a quick poke amongst the pebbles. At one point a group of passing Swallows dropped in for a drink and a very quick "wash-and-brush-up". The orchard net (which is positioned on the meadow across the stream) managed to trap a second juvenile Dipper, probably the same one that I kept disturbing.
Juvenile Dipper undergoing PJ moult - head (top), belly, undertail, wing/mantle (bottom).
I kept going until I knew that the young girls from the riding stables would be coming; they do this alot during school holidays. To avoid any problems, I put the dog safely in the car whilst I took down. Sure enough, they rolled up just as I had shut Net 1 and was processing the last birds. Not the best of mornings but all "grist to the mill", nonetheless.
Blue Tit (1)
Great tit 3
Long-tailed Tit (1)
Chiffchaff 4
Willow Warbler 1
Blackcap 4 (2)
Whitethroat 1
Wren 1
Dipper 1
Blackbird 2
Dunnock 1
Chaffinch 1
Total 19 (4) and all juveniles. A couple of the Blackcaps were well advanced with their PJ moult but had not put on any fat ready for migration.
Juvenile female (3P) Willow Warbler.
On Thursday, in the garden, it was "the return of the re-traps"; by this I mean that the locally breeding birds and their offspring are beginning to be more conspicuous and can't help falling in the nets just to tease me. I haven't got a full set-up yet, as I need the poles elsewhere. That problem will be solved (with a few blisters and some sticky fingers) shortly. The eventual outcome will be new 24, 2 section poles, enough for 6 nets here and 6 down at the water meadows.
Blue Tit (1)
Great Tit (2)
Long-tailed Tit (1)
Chiffchaff 1
Wren 1 (1)
Robin 1 (2)
Dunnock (1)
House Sparrow 1
Blackbird 2
Goldfinch 3 (2)
Total 9 (10)
The aluminium tube for the new poles arrived yesterday - I went to buy a pipe-cutter.
Today, Friday, was a dull day. Overnight the temperature slumped to 16C and hardly picked up from there. None of the water meadow nets did much early on, probably because it was still "dark", but they did "try harder" later.
The stream was the busiest place this morning. Every time I crossed it, I spooked a silent Dipper. Kingfishers were noisy today but not as noisy as a Green sandpiper that dropped in for a quick poke amongst the pebbles. At one point a group of passing Swallows dropped in for a drink and a very quick "wash-and-brush-up". The orchard net (which is positioned on the meadow across the stream) managed to trap a second juvenile Dipper, probably the same one that I kept disturbing.
Juvenile Dipper undergoing PJ moult - head (top), belly, undertail, wing/mantle (bottom).
I kept going until I knew that the young girls from the riding stables would be coming; they do this alot during school holidays. To avoid any problems, I put the dog safely in the car whilst I took down. Sure enough, they rolled up just as I had shut Net 1 and was processing the last birds. Not the best of mornings but all "grist to the mill", nonetheless.
Blue Tit (1)
Great tit 3
Long-tailed Tit (1)
Chiffchaff 4
Willow Warbler 1
Blackcap 4 (2)
Whitethroat 1
Wren 1
Dipper 1
Blackbird 2
Dunnock 1
Chaffinch 1
Total 19 (4) and all juveniles. A couple of the Blackcaps were well advanced with their PJ moult but had not put on any fat ready for migration.
Juvenile female (3P) Willow Warbler.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
More of a seaside tan
The weather looked promising. However! It was a cool night with broken cloud and wind from the north. When the nets were up at 5am (BST), there were precious few birds about, just a mewing Buzzard, a noisy Song Thrush, the local Rooks making their way to the tip and the Herring Gulls squawking on the factory roofs. A Chiff hurtled into net 1 ... and hurtled back out again. That was it. The sun was up an hour later and shone brightly, too brightly for my liking. And that cold north wind also picked up, streaming across this flat, open site. Cooked one side, chilled the other.
The beginning of a lovely day - but not for ringing.
Generally, there were far less birds about in the vegetation. Either the majority had moved on in the last night or two, or they had cleared out of the way of that 'evil bastard' that had given them 'a right going over' the other day.
By 10am, the nets were highly visible and starting to blow. It was time to pack up and go home. I did manage to catch 12 new birds and 5 retraps from earlier in the week.
Kingfisher (1)
Long-tailed Tit 2
Blackcap 2 (3)
Whitethroat 3 (1)
Chiffchaff 2
Willow Warbler 1
Goldfinch 2
Weights of the retraps were down a smidgin on last time. A couple of the post juvenile stage Blackcaps were starting to put on some weight but there was no signs of fat deposition as yet.
"Fan-tailed" Willow Warbler - wind assisted.
I intend to look at another piece of 'dead ground' during the week, that will mean going in another way and then being restricted from reaching the rest of the site. It has certain possibilities, especially when the horses are turned out to graze after the hay cut.
The beginning of a lovely day - but not for ringing.
Generally, there were far less birds about in the vegetation. Either the majority had moved on in the last night or two, or they had cleared out of the way of that 'evil bastard' that had given them 'a right going over' the other day.
By 10am, the nets were highly visible and starting to blow. It was time to pack up and go home. I did manage to catch 12 new birds and 5 retraps from earlier in the week.
Kingfisher (1)
Long-tailed Tit 2
Blackcap 2 (3)
Whitethroat 3 (1)
Chiffchaff 2
Willow Warbler 1
Goldfinch 2
Weights of the retraps were down a smidgin on last time. A couple of the post juvenile stage Blackcaps were starting to put on some weight but there was no signs of fat deposition as yet.
"Fan-tailed" Willow Warbler - wind assisted.
I intend to look at another piece of 'dead ground' during the week, that will mean going in another way and then being restricted from reaching the rest of the site. It has certain possibilities, especially when the horses are turned out to graze after the hay cut.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Well Chiffed!
Starting at 5 o'clock, the weather was admirable for ringing, sort of grey at 6 oktas. Not that many birds were awake and moving around searching for breakfast - a Song Thrush was first off the mark, a male just starting its full moult. A Dipper 'purred' overhead and dropped into the stream. Soon there was a smattering of young birds on the wing and falling prey to my three nets, Blackcap, Wren, Dunnock, Chiffchaff and, best of all, another young Kingfisher in Net 1.
Juvenile (female) Kingfisher
Net 2 started well with a family party of Whitethroats but faded after a couple of Chiffs and a Willow Warbler once the sun got up and exposed the netting.
I had set a 60' in a new site among the group of mature apple trees the other side of the stream where it would intercept, hopefully, some birds as they worked their way along the banks of "Policeman's Helmet" [Impatiens glandulifera - a noxious weed much loved by bees and insects] that line the stream. Finally, at about 7 o'clock, it took a good hit with a mix of species. This included a juvenile retrap Great Tit and an adult Blue Tit in heavy moult that was originally ringed in the garden back in mid-March. This net continued to pull in the Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs until I decided to abandon the session as the wind had picked up considerebly.
Back at Net 1, yet another Kingfisher to finish the morning.
After lunch, the wind had ameliorated and I went back to the "Apple net" to see what passed through as often birds move again about an hour or two after sidereal noon. It gave me a chance to sit and watch how the moving birds behaved, with the possibility of positioning a net to intercept them some other day. It turned out to be a good 90 minutes with some new Chiffs for ringing.
The sole juvenile male Chiffchaff of the day
Today's numbers covering 12 species were:
Kingfisher 2
Blue Tit 1 (1)
Great Tit 2 (1)
Chiffchaff 9 (1) - a preponderance of females today
Willow Warbler 1
Blackcap 7
Whitethroat 6 (1)
Wren 2
Blackbird (1)
Song Thrush 1
Dunnock 2
Goldfinch 1 - my first juvenile of 2011
Total 34 (5)
Juvenile (female) Kingfisher
Net 2 started well with a family party of Whitethroats but faded after a couple of Chiffs and a Willow Warbler once the sun got up and exposed the netting.
I had set a 60' in a new site among the group of mature apple trees the other side of the stream where it would intercept, hopefully, some birds as they worked their way along the banks of "Policeman's Helmet" [Impatiens glandulifera - a noxious weed much loved by bees and insects] that line the stream. Finally, at about 7 o'clock, it took a good hit with a mix of species. This included a juvenile retrap Great Tit and an adult Blue Tit in heavy moult that was originally ringed in the garden back in mid-March. This net continued to pull in the Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs until I decided to abandon the session as the wind had picked up considerebly.
Back at Net 1, yet another Kingfisher to finish the morning.
After lunch, the wind had ameliorated and I went back to the "Apple net" to see what passed through as often birds move again about an hour or two after sidereal noon. It gave me a chance to sit and watch how the moving birds behaved, with the possibility of positioning a net to intercept them some other day. It turned out to be a good 90 minutes with some new Chiffs for ringing.
The sole juvenile male Chiffchaff of the day
Today's numbers covering 12 species were:
Kingfisher 2
Blue Tit 1 (1)
Great Tit 2 (1)
Chiffchaff 9 (1) - a preponderance of females today
Willow Warbler 1
Blackcap 7
Whitethroat 6 (1)
Wren 2
Blackbird (1)
Song Thrush 1
Dunnock 2
Goldfinch 1 - my first juvenile of 2011
Total 34 (5)
Monday, July 18, 2011
Makes it all worthwhile
These bats must also hunt through our study wood which is "very adjacent".
See here
"Large population of rare Bechstein’s bats found on proposed HS2 train route"
E
See here
"Large population of rare Bechstein’s bats found on proposed HS2 train route"
E
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Thank you, Bob.
After Sunday morning's session, I entered up the records into IPMR and ran a grand total for "ROU" (here). I noticed that there were 978 new records in the database since I started ringing at my new home, back in mid January of this year. I also noticed that the following day (Monday) would be the end of a 6 month period. Aha - thinking cap on. Could I make the magic 1,000 before the shutters came down on 'my first six months'?
With 24 hours to go, I opened the three garden nets that were already up (100' or 30m). By 2.30pm I had bagged 9 new birds, plus one of the first birds I ever ringed here, a female Coal Tit. That was nice. I started thinking that I needed to get a hurry on, so I decided to take me off, later, down the road to the water meadows. Both sites are in the same 1km grid square.
Just before 5pm, I set up 2x 40' (9m) nets, one at Net site 2, where there was a bit of shade, and the other in the corner of the first field, where the Elm hedge does a dog-leg and it would catch the evening sun. All I had to do was catch 13 new birds. It could be easier said than done. Fingers crossed.
A quick start with 2 Blackcaps and a Chiff in Net 2. Dead over by the hedge. Then something wriggling; a very juvenile Greenfinch which needed careful handling. Half an hour gone. One hour gone. Ninety minutes gone. Sandwich and a coffee. Ah!
Three birds in the net nearest, a Chiff, a Blackbird and a 'pregnant' Wren. Six needed for the magic "one thousand". [ Don't know why I'm getting worked up - I'm not a lister, by nature]. Two more over by the hedge, both Chiffs - and one's already ringed. Damn, five to go!
Another pull on the coffee flask. 7pm. A flurry of interest over in the corner. A mixed flock of Phylloscs and Lottis; now's my chance! It turned out that most went round the back of the far pole (it's a very wide hedge, fenced both sides, with a ditch in the middle). However, the haul did turn up two Chiffs, a Dunnock, a Blackcap with a spastic left leg and one of yesterday's juvenile Lottis. That still left one more new bird needed. Can't be left on 999 now! Busy myself with trimming back a large Willow that is slowly falling over and beginning to block the gateway into the second meadow.
7.30pm. Nothing. All quiet. Feed dog and eat other sandwich.
Is that something wriggling, tight to the far pole on the 'sunny' net? Yes! Looks like a Robin! Yes, it was and a 3P, at that, i.e. a this year's youngster coming to the end of its post-juvenile moult and looking resplendant in its 'red jacket'. Thank you, "Bob", - or L890642 as you will be known from here on in!
Needn't have worried unduly as three more Chiffs also went into the same net while I was chatting to the land owner on one of his quick visits, not to see me but to inspect the Willow. I think it's for the chop.
Chop-chop. Back later with more at the weekend.
Top 10 species (of 34) ringed 12-01-11 to 11-07-11:
1 Goldfinch 234
2= Greenfinch, Blue Tit 85
4 Blackbird 77
5 Long-tailed tit 73
6 Blackcap 65
7 Brambling 52
8 Chiffchaff 47
9 Siskin 42
10 Great Tit 40
... and NO Starlings!
With 24 hours to go, I opened the three garden nets that were already up (100' or 30m). By 2.30pm I had bagged 9 new birds, plus one of the first birds I ever ringed here, a female Coal Tit. That was nice. I started thinking that I needed to get a hurry on, so I decided to take me off, later, down the road to the water meadows. Both sites are in the same 1km grid square.
Just before 5pm, I set up 2x 40' (9m) nets, one at Net site 2, where there was a bit of shade, and the other in the corner of the first field, where the Elm hedge does a dog-leg and it would catch the evening sun. All I had to do was catch 13 new birds. It could be easier said than done. Fingers crossed.
A quick start with 2 Blackcaps and a Chiff in Net 2. Dead over by the hedge. Then something wriggling; a very juvenile Greenfinch which needed careful handling. Half an hour gone. One hour gone. Ninety minutes gone. Sandwich and a coffee. Ah!
Three birds in the net nearest, a Chiff, a Blackbird and a 'pregnant' Wren. Six needed for the magic "one thousand". [ Don't know why I'm getting worked up - I'm not a lister, by nature]. Two more over by the hedge, both Chiffs - and one's already ringed. Damn, five to go!
Another pull on the coffee flask. 7pm. A flurry of interest over in the corner. A mixed flock of Phylloscs and Lottis; now's my chance! It turned out that most went round the back of the far pole (it's a very wide hedge, fenced both sides, with a ditch in the middle). However, the haul did turn up two Chiffs, a Dunnock, a Blackcap with a spastic left leg and one of yesterday's juvenile Lottis. That still left one more new bird needed. Can't be left on 999 now! Busy myself with trimming back a large Willow that is slowly falling over and beginning to block the gateway into the second meadow.
7.30pm. Nothing. All quiet. Feed dog and eat other sandwich.
Is that something wriggling, tight to the far pole on the 'sunny' net? Yes! Looks like a Robin! Yes, it was and a 3P, at that, i.e. a this year's youngster coming to the end of its post-juvenile moult and looking resplendant in its 'red jacket'. Thank you, "Bob", - or L890642 as you will be known from here on in!
Needn't have worried unduly as three more Chiffs also went into the same net while I was chatting to the land owner on one of his quick visits, not to see me but to inspect the Willow. I think it's for the chop.
Chop-chop. Back later with more at the weekend.
Top 10 species (of 34) ringed 12-01-11 to 11-07-11:
1 Goldfinch 234
2= Greenfinch, Blue Tit 85
4 Blackbird 77
5 Long-tailed tit 73
6 Blackcap 65
7 Brambling 52
8 Chiffchaff 47
9 Siskin 42
10 Great Tit 40
... and NO Starlings!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
One more day ...
Out at early doors, having set three nets beside the D.Stream last night with the help of the "memsahib" and two dogs. Turned out a funny old day.
Net 1 (nearest the entrance) didn't do a thing until 9.am when it presented me with the first juvenile Willow Warbler of the year.
Juvenile Willow Warbler starting PJ moult (female)
Net 2, near base camp and at the junction of the two meadows, got off to the usual good start and then dried up, only to get going with a late flurry around the 10.am mark.
Lesser Whitethroat undergoing PJ moult
Net 3 is across the long grass and, unlike the other two nets, parallel to the stream in front of a bank of low Alders. It warmed up slowly but ended in a great crescendo of warblers and tits - with another Kingfisher thrown in.
Today's 'top dollar' was Net 1 that only collected five birds all morning; a 30 year quest for a Dipper came to an end with a juvenile male, that eventually flew away (after ringing, natch) whirring like a clockwork toy!
The young Dipper, C.c.gularis
Today's scoreboard:
62 for 18 spp (+ 3 r/t)
Kingfisher 1 - a 3rd juv
Dipper 1 - male juv; a first
Wren 1 - juv
Dunnock 3 - PJ juvs
Robin 2 - PJ juvs
Blackbird 3 - juvs
Song Thrush 2 - 5M & juv
Reed Warbler 1 - juv; another first
Les. Whitethroat 1 - PJ juv
Whitethroat 2 (1) - 2x 5M & r/t 5F
Blackcap 9 (1) - 2x 5F, 5 juvs, 2 PJ juvs, r/t 5F
Chiffchaff 13 - 1 ad male old, 8 juvs, 4 PJ juvs [7x=M,5x=F]
Willow Warbler 3 - juvs, all 'ladies'
Lotti 5 (1) - all juvs
Blue Tit 6 - juvs
Great Tit 2 - juvs
Greenfinch 6 - juvs, even sexes
Goldfinch 1 - almost a 1J
Ye olde speckled hen?
Tomorrow is a special day - more about that another time.
[see "Thank you, Bob"; Tuesday July 12]
Net 1 (nearest the entrance) didn't do a thing until 9.am when it presented me with the first juvenile Willow Warbler of the year.
Juvenile Willow Warbler starting PJ moult (female)
Net 2, near base camp and at the junction of the two meadows, got off to the usual good start and then dried up, only to get going with a late flurry around the 10.am mark.
Lesser Whitethroat undergoing PJ moult
Net 3 is across the long grass and, unlike the other two nets, parallel to the stream in front of a bank of low Alders. It warmed up slowly but ended in a great crescendo of warblers and tits - with another Kingfisher thrown in.
Today's 'top dollar' was Net 1 that only collected five birds all morning; a 30 year quest for a Dipper came to an end with a juvenile male, that eventually flew away (after ringing, natch) whirring like a clockwork toy!
The young Dipper, C.c.gularis
Today's scoreboard:
62 for 18 spp (+ 3 r/t)
Kingfisher 1 - a 3rd juv
Dipper 1 - male juv; a first
Wren 1 - juv
Dunnock 3 - PJ juvs
Robin 2 - PJ juvs
Blackbird 3 - juvs
Song Thrush 2 - 5M & juv
Reed Warbler 1 - juv; another first
Les. Whitethroat 1 - PJ juv
Whitethroat 2 (1) - 2x 5M & r/t 5F
Blackcap 9 (1) - 2x 5F, 5 juvs, 2 PJ juvs, r/t 5F
Chiffchaff 13 - 1 ad male old, 8 juvs, 4 PJ juvs [7x=M,5x=F]
Willow Warbler 3 - juvs, all 'ladies'
Lotti 5 (1) - all juvs
Blue Tit 6 - juvs
Great Tit 2 - juvs
Greenfinch 6 - juvs, even sexes
Goldfinch 1 - almost a 1J
Ye olde speckled hen?
Tomorrow is a special day - more about that another time.
[see "Thank you, Bob"; Tuesday July 12]
Friday, July 8, 2011
Lines of showers
A poor week from a ringing perspective with lines of showers running off Exmoor towards us and on up this side of the Severn Estuary. Most of these have been in the afternoons, with at least 5mm each day (or one inch all told, old money).
This has meant opening one or two 9m (30') nets when I get up around half-five for a couple of hours until breakfast time or waiting for the afternoon's heavy showers to pass, thereby getting a late bird, usually around nine (half an hour before sunset)
On one of these "wet" afternoons I was taking the dog for a walk up to the farmhouse(s) at Egrove when I bumped into the retired NT manager. It turns out we have a common background at Felbrigg through a one-time forester called Kremer. I digress. There is a wonderful couple of stands of Viper's Bugloss along here and that day we were lucky enough to see a Hummingbird Hawk Moth zipping round several of the flower heads before zooming off at very high speed in a northerly (seaward) direction.
Viper's Bugloss Echium vulgare
Well, the week's 5-day, miserable total of 15 new and 10 re-traps was as follows:
Blue Tit 1 (1)
Great Tit 3 (1)
Coal Tit 1 - a moulting juv
Long-tailed Tit 2 (6)
Blackbird 1 (1)
Blackcap 2 (1)
Robin 1
Dunnock 1
Pied Wagtail 1
Chaffinch 1
Greenfinch 1
Coal Tit - juvenile starting post juvenile moult
Thankfully the coming weekend looks alot calmer and brighter, with just the odd (lighter) shower. And the village fete on Saturday. Umm.
Down the lane, by one of the old mill sites, is this, the biggest Wayfaring Tree I have ever seen. It has a spread of almost 30 feet (9m).
[Excuse the quality - I blame the weather!]
This has meant opening one or two 9m (30') nets when I get up around half-five for a couple of hours until breakfast time or waiting for the afternoon's heavy showers to pass, thereby getting a late bird, usually around nine (half an hour before sunset)
On one of these "wet" afternoons I was taking the dog for a walk up to the farmhouse(s) at Egrove when I bumped into the retired NT manager. It turns out we have a common background at Felbrigg through a one-time forester called Kremer. I digress. There is a wonderful couple of stands of Viper's Bugloss along here and that day we were lucky enough to see a Hummingbird Hawk Moth zipping round several of the flower heads before zooming off at very high speed in a northerly (seaward) direction.
Viper's Bugloss Echium vulgare
Well, the week's 5-day, miserable total of 15 new and 10 re-traps was as follows:
Blue Tit 1 (1)
Great Tit 3 (1)
Coal Tit 1 - a moulting juv
Long-tailed Tit 2 (6)
Blackbird 1 (1)
Blackcap 2 (1)
Robin 1
Dunnock 1
Pied Wagtail 1
Chaffinch 1
Greenfinch 1
Coal Tit - juvenile starting post juvenile moult
Thankfully the coming weekend looks alot calmer and brighter, with just the odd (lighter) shower. And the village fete on Saturday. Umm.
Down the lane, by one of the old mill sites, is this, the biggest Wayfaring Tree I have ever seen. It has a spread of almost 30 feet (9m).
[Excuse the quality - I blame the weather!]
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Not one, but two side-by-side
Managed to inveigle the "part-time assistant" into venturing down to the water meadows for a spot of pole holding last evening before it got dark. Set and furled 3x 40 foot nets ready for this morning's dawn "raid".
I was operational by 5am when the sun was beginning to brighten the place up. A family party of Ravens came up the valley (the coastal cliffs are barely a mile away) heading for the Quantocks. At 5.30, the sun peeped over the hill and a muffled clanking came from the railway sidings as the fire was raked out from a visiting loco for the start of another day. The grass was wet with a heavy dew. A Tufted Duck flew upstream. The Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs were stirring, too.
The next round ( the three nets are widely spaced apart) found a net bent in two with the weight of an "obese" male Woodpigeon; my scales shot to the bottom with a wallop and so a 'dash' was entered in the weight column of my note book. Dark smoke started to issue from the Pacific locomotive.
70000 'Britannia' - due to run as a light engine until it's inspection is completed
A Grey Heron called 'frark' as it lifted from the trees, possible annoyed by the incessant piping of the young, fledgling Greenfinches. After processing a bunch of warblers, it was time to return to the "woodpigeon net". Well,well, TWO Kingfishers, side by side, about 4 inches (10 cm) apart in the middle shelf. These birds were both 'birds of the year' (juveniles, age 3 or HY)
Kingfisher 1, bill starting to show 'red' = female
Kingfisher 2, bill all black & smaller bird = unsexed
On the way back to the ringing table (i.e. boot of the car), 2 Grey Wagtails showed excitedly along the stream, and the first Swallow of the day swooped over the wet grass which was beginning to 'buzz' with Meadow Browns and grasshoppers. The next net also held a 'twosome', namely an adult and a juvenile Song Thrush.
By 8.30, I had reached 30 birds, the hiss of steam started to come from the loco and the local Buzzard was on the wing.
No sign of the Little Egret this morning (seen Friday), just a Cormorant sat atop the electricity pylon. Come 9.30, the engineer had enough steam up to blow the engine's whistle and this also signalled the end of the session for me. Generally a quieter pattern had set in, except for the excited 'chatter of the Linnets, Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Greenfinches and Yellowhammers. At least two of these (the first and last) ought to make the totals list before too long.
As it was, 37 new birds and (1) retrap:
Woodpigeon 1 ad male
Kingfisher 2 juvs
Blue Tit 1 juv
Great Tit 1 juv
Long-tailed Tit 2 juvs
Chiffchaff 6 - all juvs., 4 males, 2 fem.
Blackcap 11 (1) - 9 juvs, 2 males + 1 r/t fem
Whitethroat 4 - 3 juvs + 1 fem.
Wren 1 adult
Blackbird 2 adults
Song Thrush 2 - 1 ad. + 1 juv
Robin 1 juv
Dunnock 3 adults
I was operational by 5am when the sun was beginning to brighten the place up. A family party of Ravens came up the valley (the coastal cliffs are barely a mile away) heading for the Quantocks. At 5.30, the sun peeped over the hill and a muffled clanking came from the railway sidings as the fire was raked out from a visiting loco for the start of another day. The grass was wet with a heavy dew. A Tufted Duck flew upstream. The Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs were stirring, too.
The next round ( the three nets are widely spaced apart) found a net bent in two with the weight of an "obese" male Woodpigeon; my scales shot to the bottom with a wallop and so a 'dash' was entered in the weight column of my note book. Dark smoke started to issue from the Pacific locomotive.
70000 'Britannia' - due to run as a light engine until it's inspection is completedA Grey Heron called 'frark' as it lifted from the trees, possible annoyed by the incessant piping of the young, fledgling Greenfinches. After processing a bunch of warblers, it was time to return to the "woodpigeon net". Well,well, TWO Kingfishers, side by side, about 4 inches (10 cm) apart in the middle shelf. These birds were both 'birds of the year' (juveniles, age 3 or HY)
Kingfisher 1, bill starting to show 'red' = female
Kingfisher 2, bill all black & smaller bird = unsexedOn the way back to the ringing table (i.e. boot of the car), 2 Grey Wagtails showed excitedly along the stream, and the first Swallow of the day swooped over the wet grass which was beginning to 'buzz' with Meadow Browns and grasshoppers. The next net also held a 'twosome', namely an adult and a juvenile Song Thrush.
By 8.30, I had reached 30 birds, the hiss of steam started to come from the loco and the local Buzzard was on the wing.
No sign of the Little Egret this morning (seen Friday), just a Cormorant sat atop the electricity pylon. Come 9.30, the engineer had enough steam up to blow the engine's whistle and this also signalled the end of the session for me. Generally a quieter pattern had set in, except for the excited 'chatter of the Linnets, Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Greenfinches and Yellowhammers. At least two of these (the first and last) ought to make the totals list before too long.
As it was, 37 new birds and (1) retrap:
Woodpigeon 1 ad male
Kingfisher 2 juvs
Blue Tit 1 juv
Great Tit 1 juv
Long-tailed Tit 2 juvs
Chiffchaff 6 - all juvs., 4 males, 2 fem.
Blackcap 11 (1) - 9 juvs, 2 males + 1 r/t fem
Whitethroat 4 - 3 juvs + 1 fem.
Wren 1 adult
Blackbird 2 adults
Song Thrush 2 - 1 ad. + 1 juv
Robin 1 juv
Dunnock 3 adults
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