The best time of the year!

Post date: Sep 4, 2015 4:59:02 PM

I am back to Portugal after finishing all the work of the constant effort ringing in Krankesjön, southern Sweden, and even though I'm quite busy with grant applications and a new manuscript, I could not miss the opportunity to do some more ringing and continue to work on the Aquatic Warblers. I asked LPS to carry out ringing sessions at Salreu marshlands during my absence, and he managed to trap eight acrolas, including one with a Polish ring, in what appears to be a very good year for this species!

So, yesterday and today, I carried out some ringing (during the morning) just with a few nets (2X15m + 4 doubles) that included a new line on the rice fields for the acrolas, resulting in the following captures (retraps between parenthesis):

ACROLA 2

Acrocephalus schoenobaenus 13 (1)

Acrocephalus scirpaceus 18

Alcedo atthis 1 (1)

Anthus trivialis 15

Cettia cetti 1

Cisticola juncidis 4

Emberiza schoeniclus 1

Euplectes afer 6 (4)

Hippolais polyglotta 1

Locustella luscinioides 2

Locustella naevia 2

Luscinia svecica 1

Parus caeruleus (1)

Passer montanus 2

Phylloscopus trochilus 3

Sylvia borin 2

Sylvia communis 4

One of the adult female Aquatic Warblers (Acrocephalus paludicola)

There were other migrant passerines around that were not caught, notably Pied and Spotted Flycatchers, and I did not yet see the Black Storks, Spotted Cuckoos and Rolers that were here during the past week. However, there are indeed quite a lot of birds of many species and one feels that anything can turn up at any time!

Amazingly, LPS, who was also ringing yesterday evening and this morning not too far from me, caught five new acrolas, so the total of the year is now 15. I guess we will beat the record for one year (22), and possibly the record for a single morning (7), as many of these birds are still adults (females) and most juveniles are yet to arrive.

I will keep the totals updated in the ringing (sub)webpage, and will report here anything I find worthwhile. Also need to find the time to go sea watching, as we are entering the best period of the year for that as well!

Until then

JMN