Sedges and others

Post date: Jul 17, 2016 2:57:04 PM

Today's Constant-Effort ringing session produced 43 birds of 11 species, of which the commonest was the Sedge Warbler with 10 individuals caught. Most were young, but among the few adults there was a female with a score 3 incubation patch, which means that she still has eggs or very young nestlings needing a lot of brooding. In contrast, among the seven Reed Warblers, only three were juvs, as they migrate and breed a bit later than "Sedges". The second-most abundant species, however, was the Chiffchaff (9 birds, all juveniles); whereas there was a strong decline in Reed Buntings relative to the last session (only four today). There were also juvenile Robins (2) and Dunnock (1), but the most notorious for their previous absence were the very first captures this year at the CES of Song Thrush (1) and Whitethroat (2).

Juvenile Robin (Erithacus rubecula)

Only three Willow Warblers were caught, but they still have active nests, one of which was just next to my ringing spot, but the adults were not bothered by my presence, continuing to feed the nestlings just 6-7 m away from me!

The weather was pretty nice for a change, and with not so many birds, I managed to collect quite a few samples for the malaria study. It felt really silent though, despite there are indeed quite a lot of birds around. Few are still singing, and in fact this was the first session when I did not hear any Cuckoos (all the adults are probably gone now, on their southward migration). But there was no lack of excitement, not least because of the scaringly-large flock of Starlings that flew just over the nets when leaving their reedbed roost! Also saw (finally) my first Brown Hawker of the year (though they may have been around for about a month now).

Detail of a Brown Hawker (Aeshna grandis)

Till next time...

JMN