1st April
A day of showers but a brief ringing session at Billinge during a dry interlude produced my first Willow Warbler of the year, a new Blackbird and a retrap Great Tit. At least 2 other Willow Warblers were recorded at the site along with a singing Blackcap (per CAD). On returning home I was greeted by another Willow Warbler that was singing in the gardens behind the house.
![Willow Warbler 01/04/2017, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzKRWt3A0TF28MjxOvP16NgzLes7OXkX1gC-4huDpRyAiCJHQ3RqAi8p3aIT6AvgLcseWV0qmpXZ1KvcdiOHfYI7hlx7JBq6Eh82tHsyzDDF_OaoJn2YO4rIZL6iO3AThJhp0kTSyIFA/s640/DSC_0361ed.JPG) |
Willow Warbler 01/04/2017 |
2nd April
Totals for a longer ringing session at Billinge (using just 2 nets) were: 1 Common (Mealy) Redpoll, 3 Lesser Redpolls, a retrap Chiffchaff (originally ringed as a juvenile 24/07/16) and a retrap Willow Warbler (originally ringed as a first-year 23/07/16). There was very little in the way of visible migration but 3 Crossbills and a Sand Martin went north. A Wheatear was also seen leaving the site and heading off north.
![Common (Mealy) Redpoll 02/04/17, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2VV03Cn4d_bJ14WAhsyWdSxtEWAg6zk0vqkX3UxVaPKaw2cQlAGPlJYtSumENX4bYxy-AIPFI6Ae3LoRWJ7AEBs_YdQiGTjI6Z4JFYaVVs3TSixIoS14Sw6k6gUX9n11zmuch02uMMA0/s640/DSC_0374ed.JPG) |
Not the frostiest Mealy Redpoll but a Mealy nevertheless. |
![Common & Lesser Redpoll 02/04/17, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizZBJwDS-GHaTWX14sMBXWm2sYnJodwCyJQlZvOV5Rs17w8zsI6mIg9JXLdAr5TuMdwpk_6qh87ZyQE31P761iQ54ABd5MvTRxSsfZXvUWifoiPDtd-hFNfc1RsSGwPIdZgc2hsb45sfg/s640/02.04.17+Redpolls.jpg) |
Mealy Redpoll (left) and Lesser Redpoll (right). |
Back home a Red-green Carpet, 2 Caloptilia stigmatella and a Caloptilia elongella were the pick of the moth catch.
![Red-green Carpet, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLyXtsHq_9xTBda7Lh4usD1Ir33PV8xgN-pJKUyMswv6VmlDWFlJ62Rr6Pje3HTCyFcV68vG3tkF0OHISzxWFMTE5FYlcwiR4jX2sAYFmCIsO2_g6jQJaPkuqD_87Sti3qRHPWbcaFxX0/s640/DSC_0497ed.JPG) |
Red-green Carpet |
![Caloptilia stigmatella, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyABG-D0X6LAulCo-g4TgxRMkNXLNtTAHe44Itm5lQMCINYdg-RSBj-BYyWdsZJ0EUiOpDrCwPGFlDiCi4ok8120-ZePl3JVTRKzbVAK6l3yEPkSUdAIz5exjo0yCydxHAfgk98tLjCPg/s640/DSC_0465ed.JPG) |
Caloptilia stigmatella. Micros are not my forte but some are fairly easy to identify. |
![Caloptilia elongella, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsZIBVm2jiREPXWS1fCzlCXGBv7bR5lKnBpnMcwf-rKI2Uwwtjah72SmqX1UMxnNITqQ0rjw4AciEGuEXNVb22XdWl9GsMrA-Fv3QwIIPqJIQKt92JuUw9t104wRPadhV8qzbe3pood2o/s640/DSC_0399ed.JPG) |
Caloptilia elongella. This species can be difficult to separate from Caloptilia betulicola but I am fairly confident this one is elongella. |
3rd April
Ringing totals (retraps in brackets) for another session at Billinge were: Willow Warbler 1; Chiffchaff 1 (1); Blackcap 1; Lesser Redpoll 2. The retrap Chiffchaff was originally ringed as a first-year on 20/09/16. There was virtually no movement overhead despite the seemingly perfect conditions and just 1 Siskin and 2 Meadow Pipits were recorded going north during 4 hours of observation.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjopXKHVz-G9NgQ76Sssu1aJJY9IIdGkyw9sVkNm6DBVxuVIOsQxEKZSjS9AbE5fO3wnck2JvCHICNXL3GvrcKfWYdJVUUtsX92OV0jsEpghXNNVuSx1NTPnxhEDM7Y2uGMTbLmwP3IyJ4/s640/DSC_0007ed.JPG) |
Female Blackcap. The feathers around the base of the bill were matted with pollen residue, a sure sign of a recently arrived migrant. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTCgpSOuBbY5oxgA_MjyqszOJQKIxR4u1xWdaubSm4HWW6Swa1AjxvvtcLqSJjkxoROSJXYaVTjt6ulUGxhqg7gUYH7tRs4TbaLxOEJRVHY29pqQjnKrKW18kNLzBZ9pJMRDP5LluM3e8/s640/DSC_0014ed.JPG) |
Chiffchaff |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrOB9bx2tMfHun80bArbuTU9baUlvr15shUko1hNWm-u51CKEuGEanTfzoloG-5kvhMc430l4Oq8ChqwuN5fXdb-POjs7xEOWf8OXeVoO56qP7b5fUee4Vzz1sa3kHJciMOKLNrHek7_I/s640/DSC_0022ed.JPG) |
The new Chiffchaff had relatively pale legs rather than the text book dark brown or blackish legs. |
Back home the moth trap held a surprise in the form of a Water Carpet; a new species for the garden. Having run a moth trap in the garden for many years the catching of a new species has become an increasingly rare and sometimes less than annual event.
![Water Carpet 03/04/17, © P J Alker](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX0lyvNwDxiiETEni-PVzDFFsyMlqciWm8D6RE3BWEmGIKBWusKhwaIUFEx7taWibgVlHkLUvinN2T54yK_w2so-eXp3aTV6BpG3yJ-5Y43yqwZ7YH3gc67y6uru_klXcLySrflXS1Atg/s640/DSC_0049+rs.jpg) |
Water Carpet: a first for the garden!!! |
All in all an interesting few days and a good start to the month.
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