The month so far

Well I am very tired. It is only the 9th of September (or was when I started this post) and I have been out ringing on 16 occasions this month. I haven't taken a day off work for any of them and have been burning the candle at both ends with ringing sessions morning and evening most days. The generally fine weather has helped but has been far from perfect on every occasion. The Swallow roost at Scotman's Flash has been the main focus and produced the most birds.

Although we have ringed a lot of birds this is largely due to effort; all our catches are still pointing to a very poor breeding season as a result of the poor summer weather. In general there are far fewer juveniles of all species being caught or observed. The findings at the Swallow roost have been no exception with adults forming a much larger proportion of the catch than is usual. Another effect of the weather seems to be that some species have had a more protracted breeding season, presumably due to earlier failures. A Goldcrest in full juvenile plumage (8th) being an example as well as being the first I have caught in juvenile plumage. Similarly the good number of Reed Warblers ringed (62 juveniles) at Scotman's Flash seems to indicate that later broods have fared better in this species.



Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) in juvenile plumage.

The highlight of a morning ringing session at Scotman's on Sunday (9th) was an unexpected Cetti's Warbler. The second ringed there this year and continuing the recent trend in sightings. In the evening a Hobby continued to target the Swallow roost there and could even be the bird that was ringed on 19th August. Same bird or not it continues what has been a good run of Hobby sightings for this site.

Cetti's Warbler (Cettia cetti)

September ringing totals to 9th stand at 864 birds of 22 species with the top 4 being:
Swallow 692, Reed Warbler 62, Goldcrest 26 and Chiffcaff 21.

Thusrsday 3rd May: Feels like spring but only just.

Unfortunately the Swift that I rescued didn't make it. I thought it was making some progress and took it to work with me yesterday so I could give it some regular feeds but it wasn't to be.

I went out for a meal last night and over indulged, particularly on the food front but had a few beers too. Not in work now until next Tuesday so hoping to get some birding in and ring a few birds in the next few days.

The moth trap still isn't producing much but a Red-green Carpet found resting on the garage window this morning was the first Geometrid recorded in a long time and the first sign of a slight improvement.


Red-green Carpet (Chloroclysta siterata)

Checked the nest box near the chicken run in the garden as the young Great Tits are getting noisy. There only appears to be 4 or 5 chicks at most and they are still too small too ring. Their eyes haven't opened yet. The young Chaffinches in the nest opposite the back door are only slightly bigger and still a bit too small to ring too.

Young Great Tits (Parus major)

This afternoon I went for a mooch at the Wigan Flashes and the area between Scotmans Flash and Bryn Marsh in particular. Mainly went to check out net rides and see what was about but put up a net here and there on my way round. A few Orange Tips were on the wing along with the odd Peacock and it was good to see plenty of St Mark's Flies, Alderflies and other insects which will provide a welcome food source for recently arrived migrants.

Many of the Alders were infested with Alder Leaf Beetles. These beetles have been quite prolific in the past few years and the way they were behaving you can see why.

Alder Leaf Beetles having fun (Agelastica alni)

Alder Leaf Beetles having fun (Agelastica alni)

Swamp dog

I was greeted by a singing Cetti's Warbler at Scotmans Flash but Sedge Warblers and Whitethroats are still thin on the ground. A few Reed Warblers are in but many more have yet to arrive. This spring has the potential for some big arrivals yet to come or migrants may continue to arrive in dribs and drabs depending on what the weather will allow.

Retrapped a Reed Warblers ringed as an adult in 2004. This bird is now in its ninth year at least. Not our oldest but still a good age for a small passerine.



R444191 Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus scirpaceus)

Bird of the day for me was a Cuckoo, my first of the year. They are increasingly scarce and I have been following the fortunes of the satellite tagged birds on the BTO website. Seeing one makes you think of the amazing journey the tagged birds have revealed !!!!

Ringing totals for the day were:
Blackcap 5
Chiffchaff 3
Willow Warbler 2
Reed Warbler 1 (+1 retrap)
Total 12