Back to normal?

After such a long time with night-time frosts and glorious, sunny days that were very warm for the time of year, we are now back to more normal weather. The temperatures are down to seasonal norms and there are clouds - or a blanket of cloud - in the sky. This should bode better for our hobby of bird-catching and bird-ringing. However, there are not many early migrants coming through as most have 'zipped' past at high altitude while the weather was in their favour.

Soon, the bulk of the warblers will be coming to us, most probably around or a little after Easter. Hopefully, the herb layer will be growing 'like mad' and the trees will be in full leave, enabling us to get some camouflage for the nets. We need some rain to liven things up.

Back to the recent past. My hand is healing (stitches out), if a little sore, and weeping slightly. Have, therefore, been confined to the garden - but it's all "regulars", as the totals will show. Many of the "locals" are also well aware of where I put the nets, even when I shift them about to try and improve the situation.

Since the one and only Willow Warbler that turned out to be a Norfolk bred bird (just like 'her indoors'), there has been little in the way of "new arrivals", just 9, in fact. This compares with 14 re-traps, which helped to bulk up the species total for the last few days to 13. This represents half of the weekly species that we are able to submit to the BTO's Garden Bird Watch.

(Unseasonal) male Blackbird (per Dave B)

Goldcrest (1) - the female of the pair
Blue Tit (1)
Great Tit 1 (1) - the garden pair, she with a good BP
Blackcap 2 (1) - all males
Wren 1
Blackbird (1)
Song Thrush (1)
Robin (1) - an eggy female
Dunnock (4) - that's 2 of the 3+ pairs!
House Sparrow (1) - a 2cY female without BP
Chaffinch (1) - 2CY female in egg
Greenfinch 1
Goldfinch 4 (1) - all pretty lean

Decided, unwisely as it happens, to see if there were any migrants grounded by the overnight, cloudy, conditions. Turned out to be a big NO. [Portland BO hogged them all - they ringed over 600 birds today. ] We did see 3 Swallows and 3 Smarties flying towards the Bristol Channel at full pelt around 8.30 and 3 Siskins passed through around 11.00. No Dippers, Kingfishers, Little Egberts, a Chiff singing in the tree-top above us, one Moorhen and two drake Mallard were our lot.

We caught a mere 7 birds for our pains:
Wren 1 (1)
Blackbird 1 (1)
Chaffinch 1
Bullfinch (2) - the pair originally caught in the garden.

Just to rub it in, I had a flat battery; fortunately it recovered with a quick trickle charge.

Now the good news

After 3 disasters in as many days, now some better news. I put a 6m net up ready for the morning and caught my first Willow Warbler of the year this evening.


It was a male on size with a very broad tail, indicating that it could probably be in its 3rd calendar year or even more. However, it was already bearing a ring - BXL944. Any takers out there?

Ouch!

Taken up self-harming in a big way. [Even the professionals do it!] No ringing for a while - out of action due to 5 stitches in my left hand. Early morning trip to Minehead Hospital, driven by trainee (they do have their uses. LoL) Took the nets down later. Whose a stupid bugger? Roll on next weekend.

Down on the meadows - at last!

Today we managed a session with 4 nets down at the meadows, staying within the home 1km square. We will move into the next 1km square (north) after we have had a session on the other side of the stream in the orchard and by the ruined mill. As yet, it is too early to catch much since the trees are only just beginning to flush green, the nettles are a mere 8-10cm high and the "policemans helmet" has also just germinated, showing its first pair of leaves.

The 9m net over the stream produced a new, 3CY or older, male Kingfisher at first light.

Full adult male Kingfisher

The 18m net further downstream (but not over water) caught a pair of 2CY birds later, the male of which was first caught last August, but was trapped alongside a different 2CY female just 10 days ago - a bit of a flirt or rejected in favour of another?

Another new 2CY female Kingfisher - note the amount of red on the lower mandible.
Compare the browny-green tinge to the head feathers with the bright blue of a full adult.

It wasn't a day for numbers as the season is only just beginning. One bird that did fall prey to our nets was an male Chiffchaff that had been ringed last July as an adult. It was one of 13 Chiffies that day and was caught 2 hours before the 3JF (juvenile female) that was controlled at Icklesham (E. Sussex) in mid September.

The returning adult male Chiffchaff - with 'pollen horn'

Including a short, unproductive "go" in the garden yesterday, we added the following to the year's total:
Kingfisher 2 (1)
Long-tailed Tit 1 (1)
Chiffchaff (1)
Wren 1 (3)
Dunnock 1 (1)

At the moment, we are catching more Wrens and Long-tailed Tits that we have done for a while now, just as they are getting down to choosing potential nest sites.

One of 3 2CY Wrens caught this week. Note abraded tail and contrasting flight feathers

The only other things of note were 3 Redpoll spp. in the Alders that moved off north and the finding of quite fresh Otter spraint in one of the more secluded net rides.

Supplementary: I went back and took a picture of the Otter poo the following day; it had dried out quite a bit in 24 hours. Here it is.

. . . but not gone yet!

A ringed male and a ringed female Blackcap are still feeding at the bird table; presumed to be the same two birds that have wintered with us since they are approaching and leaving to a familiar pattern (both different).

Little Egret - surveying one of its favourite fishing spots
[This is the closest I've got to it - some 30metres - before it lifts off]

Things are still very slow, mainly due to the inclement weather we're having - nothing but heavy showers, especially in the mornings when the birds are about foraging, thereby putting the kybosh on ringing just a tad.

Walking down to and around the meadows has not produced much either. Territorial Blue and Great Tits, an absence of female Blackbirds suggesting nesting has stated [this will be in the thick 'Devon' hedges], singing Greenfinches and Chaffinches, a singing Chiff, a nosy Magpie, a pair of Crows and a Pied Wagtail. The Little Egret (above) mooches back and forth along the stream from the bridge to the sea all day long. The only other occupants of this stretch of water seem to be a pair of Mallard and a couple of prospecting Moorhen.

It's not all doom and gloom as I have managed to ring 11 new birds and re-trap 7 others since the last blog, using just the 60' (18m) garden net.
Goldcrest 1 (1) - a local pair
Blue Tit 1 (1)
Chiffchaff 1 - another male on the move
Wren (2) - a pair?
Blackbird (1)
Dunnock (2)
Greenfinch 2 - both females
Goldfinch 3 - all males; on migration?
Siskin 2 - a pair?
Lesser Redpoll 1 - another one!

Lesser Redpoll - adult male (March)

I suspect it will be Wednesday before it's any good trying to ring down at the stream sites; the forecast is for wind and sunshine - funny combination?