After the passage of Willow Warblers in August, the first couple of weeks of September sees Chiffchaffs becoming the main species passing through locally. Some days there seem to be birds in any given bit of cover, their distinctive and constant contact calls being a fixture of the season.
There had been loads around at my local patch of Colwick Park, and most days they had been heard in the garden so I headed up to Gedling CP for a couple of ringing sessions to see if many were passing through the site.
My first session on the 5th was a short morning session, not starting til around 8am. In the couple of hours I had my two nets up I caught 22 birds which was manageable, and due to the absence of big tit flocks hitting the nets. Of these, 16 were Chiffchaff and it was good to try and identify old greater coverts on the young birds, which was sometimes easy, sometimes a challenge. A few tits and singles of Goldcrest and Blackcap rounded off an enjoyable session.
I headed back for a slightly earlier session on the 9th, catching 30 birds. The first round was fairly busy, with the site's first Garden Warbler caught, but the catch quickly dropped off with the wind and sun getting up a bit. Another juvenile Green Woodpecker was good to catch, and tit numbers remained low so the catch was restricted to more of the target species. 17 were Chiffchaff, including a retrap, and another Goldcrest and 3 Blackcap were best of the rest.
Totals for the two sessions were:
Chiffchaff 32, Blue Tit 5, Great Tit 4, Blackcap 3, Goldcrest 2, Green Woodpecker 1, Garden Warbler 1, Goldfinch 1 and 3 retraps, a Blue Tit, a Chiffchaff and a Long-tailed Tit.
Tom
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| juvenile Green Woodpecker, Gedling CP 9-9-25 (TS) |
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| Garden Warbler, Gedling CP 9-9-25 (TS) |
