New wood, new birds.

This week has been our first chance of going to a woodland site that was planted c.15 years ago. The site is near Springhill young offenders prison in Buckinghamshire on one of the headwater streams of the River Ray.

The wood is 29.5 acres / 12 hectares in extent; it lies NE/SW and is some 600 metres long by 200 metres (180-220m) wide. It is a deciduous planting, a mix of oak, ash and aspen with a good understorey of berry bearing shrubs. There are access rides and glades and several ponds, including a large "in-line" one on the Ray stream.

The owner has asked us to look at the birdlife there and to report on the seasonal changes. This will be a base-line for monitoring the change that will inevitably take place as the wood matures. The avifauna will change with some species being lost and others coming in. It was designed to be typical of the wet woods in the area and the planting selection will mitigate the huge changes normally seen as the wood develops its own character and the canopy closes.

We managed to get some nets up the night before - after the rain stopped! [It rained all day here]. At dawn, we arrived at the farm entrance, let ourselves in the electric gates, and crossed the sheep fields (3 gates!) to the site.

Dave S took some photos of some of the birds we caught as we went along. Altogether, we put up 440' (134m) of net. Only one net did not catch at all. This was a learning experience as we had no previous idea where birds utilised the woodland cover.

In all, we caught and ringed 36 new birds as follows:
Green Woodpecker - a juvenile
Blue Tit 4 - adult male and 3 juvs
Great Tit 5 - 3 adult males and 2 juvs
Marsh Tit 2 - adult and juv
Long-tailed Bushtit 2 - both juvs in full moult
Chiffchaff 4 - all juvs, 3 of them female (males leave first)
Willow Warbler 5 - all juvs, 4 females
Blackcap 1 - juv male
Garden Warbler 1 - juv, "on the move"
Lesser Whitethroat 1 - juv
C. Whitethroat 2 -juvs
Dunnock 4 - juvs
Bullfinch 3 - all adult males, none starting wing moult

13 species, 80% juveniles.

Willow Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Juv Green Woodpecker, Marsh Tit.
 
Other birds that were present but not caught included - Buzzard, Stock Dove, Tawny Owl, Gt. Spotted Woodpecker, Wren, Blackbird, Song Thrush & Greenfinch. Notable "absentees" were Treecreeper, Robin & Chaffinch. Perhaps further visits this year will bring forth more species.

As for me, I ringed more Willow Warblers here in one day than I have done all year to date!