Date: 7th
April 2019
Nets: 130m
Sound: Goldcrest,
Chiffchaff & Blackcap
Weather: 8C rising to
19C
Ringers: CS and EB
One of the joys of
bird ringing is putting up the nets in pre-dawn’s half-light accompanied by a
clamorous dawn chorus. During the last
week, or so, this avian symphony has been increasing in intensity though it is
still shy of certain members from the warbler section. This pleasant start to
the day is accentuated on warm mornings, such as today, when the sun’s warmth
rapidly disperses the ephemeral mist and the first bright light rays create a
hatched shadow pattern across the woodland floor.
Another component of
bird ringing is expectation. After
several years ringing at a site anticipation is an integral part of the
experience that shifts with the seasons. Today we anticipated catching Goldcrests
and Firecrests (the crests); Blackcaps and Pied Flycatchers. Each spring we monitor a small passage of the
diminutive Crests through the woods, several of which remain to breed. And, typically in previous years’ equivalent
session we have captured the first Blackcaps and Pied Flycatchers. Given that during the week we had heard the
strident “whisperings” of Crests and the incomplete song of Blackcaps our music
choice for the day was easily determined.
Our catch was:
|
Species
|
Ringed
|
Re-trapped
|
Total
|
|
Blackbird
|
|
2
|
2
|
|
Blackcap
|
3
|
|
3
|
|
Blue
Tit
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
|
Chaffinch
|
5
|
1
|
6
|
|
Firecrest
|
5
|
|
5
|
|
G
S Woodpecker
|
|
3
|
3
|
|
Goldcrest
|
1
|
|
1
|
|
Great
Tit
|
3
|
4
|
7
|
|
Greenfinch
|
3
|
2
|
5
|
|
Hawfinch
|
1
|
|
1
|
|
Marsh
Tit
|
|
1
|
1
|
|
Nuthatch
|
|
2
|
2
|
|
Robin
|
3
|
2
|
5
|
|
Wren
|
3
|
2
|
5
|
|
Total
|
28
|
21
|
49
|
The first round did
not disappoint with Goldcrest, Firecrest and a Blackcap among the birds we
processed. Our session ultimately
produced five new Firecrests, two of which we found quite challenging. Normally ageing and sexing Firecrests is
straight-forward, unambiguous affair.
Today we had two Firecrest left unsexed; their crown feathers were a
dark yellow with some orange feathers too, but insufficient to convince us of
their masculinity. Unfortunately their wing lengths were smack in the middle of
the overlap zone.
Sexuality and
particularly breeding status became one of the morning’s themes. Both re-trap Blackbirds were females with
brood patches starting to develop.
Meanwhile half the Chaffinches had high fat and muscle scores and thus
are unlikely to be our guests for the summer.
The remaining Chaffinchs (two females and a male) weighed substantially
less and had zero fat scores. The two
females had brood patches scores of one and the male had a “stonker” of a
cloacal protuberance; EB’s adoption of colloquial English is quite delightful. Spring was definitely in the air with Great
Tit and Blue Tit flying around in pairs – this is possibly the males escorting
the females in an effort to stop extra-pair copulations. And the male Hawfinch was testosterone
charged: as when he was being held in the photographers grip he gave CS a few
unpleasant nips.
The five Wrens showed
similar breeding preparations. Already
CS has found three Wrens nests on-site but he did the same last year and they
all failed; indeed last year we ringed no juvenile Wrens. One of the re-trap Wrens was a female
originally ringed as an adult in 2016.
She was not caught at all in 2018 and today she had a brood patch score
of one.
So a fine session of
forty-nine birds, twenty – eight new and twenty-one re-traps, average figures
for early April. But no expected Pied
Flycatchers! Were we disappointed? Not really, not yet anyway. The previous week’s strong north-easterly
winds have probably not assisted migration; or have they?
Ironically, after
taking the nets down, as we sat in the warm sun drinking coffee and eating a
very fine apple, walnut and cinnamon cake (yes several slices) a male Pied
Flycatcher appeared at the old fountain.
Yes it had got the expected date right but not the nets; yet!
