Attenborough 20/06/18 – A visit to the tern platforms on Main Pond and Coneries along with the Cormorant colony by Pete S, Mick T, Mick P and me. It was quite a blustery day but we successfully ringed a few gulls and found plenty of terns nesting on the new platform. There were some Cormorant chicks at the right age to ring but they were flanked by nests containing very large chicks so we decided not to land and attempt to ring them.
Attenborough 28/06/18 – A mist netting session at the Sand Martin colony by Pete S, Phil and I resulted in another good catch in good conditions, the oldest retrap was a bird from 2016.
Attenborough CES Visit 6, 01/07/18 – A very hot day saw Tom, Gary and me complete the CES ringing for the year. Another poor catch in what has turned out to be a poor CES season altogether. The oldest retrap was a Dunnock from 2015.
Holme Pierrepont Grange 04/07/18 – Another hot day and Mick T and I set a few nets after clearing the rides, the vegetation had quickly filled some of them since our last visit. A busy morning with plenty of Blackcaps, the oldest retrap was a Reed Warbler from 2016.
Ramsdale Park Golf Centre 11/07/2018 – The hot weather continues and Mick T and I set the usual line of nets and the early morning cloud cover helps us to a reasonable catch but when the sun came out the catching dried up. Nice to get a few Linnets but generally low numbers of warblers for this site. The oldest retrap was a Blackcap from 2017.
Attenborough 12/07/18 – Another mist netting session at the Sand Martin colony by Pete S, Phil, Mick T and I was followed by a trip out in the boat to the tern platforms. A good catch of Sand Martins again with plenty of unringed juveniles that have obviously been hatched at another colony. The oldest retrap was a returning pullus from 2016. Unfortunately the terns on Church Pond and Coneries appeared to have been predated, possibly by Mink. The platforms on Main Pond were OK though and more gulls were ringed along with the first terns of the year. There were plenty of tern eggs still to hatch so another visit will be made in the coming weeks.
Holme Pierrepont Blotts 15/07/18 – The first session of the year at this end of Holme Pierrepont was made by Alex, Mick T, Gary and me. A bit of ride clearance was required along with some net re-siting meant we only got 8 nets up but we had a brisk start before the sun got too hot and we took down a bit earlier. Plenty of warblers as usual for this site and nice to get a Grasshopper Warbler. The oldest retrap was a Wren from 2016.
Holme Pierrepont Grange 19/07/18 – Duncan, Mick T and I set all the usual nets on a perfect morning for ringing. Warblers were there in good numbers and made up nearly 75% of the catch. Great to get 5 Cetti's and 40 Reed Warblers. The oldest retrap was a Reed Warbler from 2016.
Holme Pierrepont Blotts 22/07/18 – Another good morning for ringing and Sue, Alex, Mick T, Gary and I managed to get a couple more nets up than last time but were immediately inundated with birds including plenty of warblers. Nice catch of Garden Warblers and great to get a 1J Grasshopper Warbler proving they did breed on the site this year. The oldest retraps were a Willow Warbler, Whitethroat and Great Spotted Woodpecker all from the 23/07/16. Interestingly the warblers were both ringed and retrapped as moulting adults with moult scores only 1 and 2 points different this year to 2016 - on the same weekend. So no effect of the late spring showing there!
Holme Pierrepont Grange 25/07/18 – Hot, hot, hot, but Duncan, Mick T and I had another session with the full compliment of nets, the heat forcing another slightly early finish. Good job there were plenty of warblers again otherwise we would have had a quiet day with resident birds making up less than 20% of the catch. The oldest retrap was a Reed Warbler from 2016.
Holme Pierrepont Blotts 30/07/18 – After we cancelled the weekend ringing because of the wind and rain, Mick T and I risked it this morning. The forecast the night before was for a good breeze quickly increasing with 50% chance of rain early on – well they got the rain right but not the breeze, it was flat calm. We set just two lines of nets with an eye on the forecast rain and set the MP3s playing. The rain started as we set out to do the first round and was steady enough to make us furl the nets, they stayed furled for over 1-1/2 hours until it stopped. Nice catch of Garden Warblers again and still plenty of Reed Warblers. The oldest retrap was a Dunnock from 2016. Nice view of a Hobby trying to catch a Swift over the nets, but the Swift managed to evade capture.
Totals are in the table below.
Kev
