Just lately

Just lately we have been getting the usual and not unexpected high winds and rain. The average rainfall for both December and January hereabouts is over 5 inches (13 cm), with it dropping off month by month until a low point in July, when day-time and night-time temperatures are at their highest, too.

This has put a stop to all ringing for a while, but, ever one for a quick jaunt, I was able to get in a morning's netting in the garden on Monday before the return to inclement weather again. First up was a female Blackcap that has taken up residence locally for the winter. I actually caught her twice and it seems that she is putting on circa 0.2g of mass net every hour - and losing approx. 2.0g on average every night. A male, possibly un-ringed, gives the Camellia a daily "once over" for breakfast. I do put out soaked sultanas on the bird tables for the Blackcaps, Robins and Blackbirds, which they eagerly visit in the early mornings. There are also other (male) Blackcaps visiting, but they are not as regular in the garden or just passing through.


The short list of 6 species was as follows:
Blue Tit 2
Great Tit 1
Blackcap (1)
Wren 1
Goldfinch 2
Bullfinch 2


The Great Tit was an adult male as shown by his shiny bib and lack of contrast in the wing, more especially the primary coverts. They are not as common as Blue Tits, which outnumber them by more than 2.5:1


A winter speciality is the Bullfinch which comes visiting during December and January to have a good peck at the buds on the apple trees; from late March, when the trees blossom, they come back and attack the flowers just at bud-burst and later as the "applings" form. The rest of the year they tend to stay away.

We did go and look at a wetland site in multi-ownership in the Brue Valley one afternoon last week when it wasn't raining [that didn't stop it blowing a gale, though]. I suspect that it will be a spring site when the ground [peat] will have dried out a little. Later on in the year, the site is grazed by cattle, horses and goats, so autumn ringing will be out, me thinks. I couldn't help noticing some very large holes and deep ditches criss-crossing the area, making access tricky. There wasn't much cover either so net sites will be limited - that's if the owners let us on! It definitely has potential for a small range of species, i.e. acros and sylvias, but in good numbers. While we were there, we clocked 1,000+ Wigeon and the best part of 50 Pintail.

Garden bird-watching amuses us for much of the day (what it is to be retired, eh!) and this week we noticed 6 Dunnocks, just half the number that we know lives with us. Goldfinch numbers have not built up, nor have the Siskins, but they are still out in the fields in good numbers along the alder lined watercourses. The Herring Gulls are prospecting, or, more correctly, standing guard over last year's nest. We have Black-headed Gulls just for a couple of months; departure will be the beginning of March. The single Dipper that flies across in the very early mornings is now accompanied by a second bird. That means we need to get the new nest boxes deployed asap.

While we wait for the next break in the weather, I will amuse myself with the antics of others by surfing here and browsing the related blogs. It's also pleasing to see the younger generation of UK ringers enjoying our hobby and continuing some of the work we began many moons ago and starting up other, new projects in addition. Hooray for youth! [Long lost in my case. Ha ha.]