Hamble Point - 27 Mar 2011

A pleasant day on the south coast at Hamble Point with Pete Potts et al endeavouring to get a catch of waders, with Knot, Redshank, Turnstone, Oystercatcher, Dunlin and a few Grey Plover in the area. At one stage we had an odd twenty or so Turnstone in front of the net but with birds in the safety area, we lost them and ended up later with a small group of mainly Oyestercatchers in front of the net when the catch was taken, resulting in eight new birds, two Redshank and six Oystercatchers, along with a potential Oystercatcher control.

 Redhank - adult going through colour ringing

 

Oystercatcher - 5

  

  Oystercatcher - adult control after colour ringing

Oystercatcher - adult  through colour ringing

 

Stanwell Moor - 26 Mar 2011

A visit primarily to clear willow from the reed/carr area with the hope of trying to induce a little more reed growth and reduce shoot overs, plus increase the Swallow/Sand Martin roosts. Nets were put up more for the heck of it rather than any real serious expectations. Sighting included two Little Ringed Plovers, a Sand Martin and two Swallows.
Ringed: Chiffchaff and a single Long-tailed Tit, plus a retrap Lotti.

Good job our expectations were not high!

Garden - 21 to 25 Mar 2011

We continued with the pre-work sessions but as the temperature drifted into the 60s the Siskin flock disappeared towards the end of the week, no early morning chattering come from the nearby NR - may be we have done the last this spring ? winter end? Depends on whether you are coming or going?

21 - Single Siskin and Goldfinch
22 - Siskin (7), Lesser Redpoll (2), single Blue and Great Tit
23 - Siskin (3) and a re-trap
24 - Single Lesser Redpoll
25 - Single Blackbird, Lesser Redpoll and Blue Tit, plus a Blue Tit re-trap from 2008

Garden - 20 Mar 2011

Another quiter session in the garden produced:

Siskin - 9
Lesser Redpoll - 1
Goldfinch - 1
Great Spotted Woodpecker -1

 Great Spotted Woodpecker - 6 female

Garden set up

Pitsea tip - 19 Mar

I spent the day with the North Thames Gull group at Pitsea. We managed one catch which we did not take early and due to the day getting warmer this turned out to be the only catch of the day, followed by the AGM at Rye Meads.

The catch consisted of the following:

Black-headed Gull	287	2 re-traps and 1 control
Common Gull	8
Lesser Black-backed Gull	26
Yellow-legged Gull	1
Herring Gull	41

 

Common Gull - 5

 

Black-headed Gull - 5

Garden - 19 Mar 2011

Whilst I was away enjoying myself at Pitsea tip, Denise was taking a more pleasant and leisurely time in the garden catching Siskin with a much prized Norwegian control - a 6 male 7H55534 from Stavanger. He days total came to:

Siskin - 44, plus 2 re-traps and the Norwegian control
Lesser Redpoll - 2
Goldfinch - 1
Starling -1
Great Spotted Woodpecker - 1

Siskin - Norwegian control 

(above and two below)

Redpoll - 5 male

Garden - 14 to 18 Mar 2011

Early mornings continue to allow some pre-work catches, which had a odd mix of a couple of good Siskin days and a couple where early on in the day at least they were absent, though these two days produced a couple of oddities, on one are-trap of one of the first Blue Tits we ever did, T884385 on 15th which was first rung on 25/3/2006 and on the 16th a possible control Blue Tit, V954771, though we do have a group member that lives a few miles away that resided in Holland for a period that might be using up some old rings as the bird was a 5.

Totals were:
14/3 - Siskin (19) and one re-trap from this year
15/3 - Siskin (1) and two Blue Tit re-traps
16/3 - One Blue Tit re-trap and the potential Blue Tit control.
17/3 - Siskin (2)
18/3 - Siskin (15), Goldcrest (1), Dunnock (1) and one re-trap Siskin from 2009.

V954771, 5 Blue Tit - control

 Goldcrest - 5 male