Holme Pierrepont - Sunday 2 August

Still conditions today, but bright sunshine. Four sound lures playing mixed warbler calls were deployed and resulted in another surprisingly good catch of 88. Again, Chiffchaffs were the most abundant species with 39 being caught. Other warblers were Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Cetti's Warbler, Sedge Warbler and Willow Warbler. Two of the 5 recaptures were nice, a Reed Warbler from 2023 and a control Blackcap. It was good to have Duncan out with us again after such a long time.

Kev

Sedge Warbler (KJH)

 

Holme Pierrepont - Sunday 26 July

Less than ideal conditions for this visit as it was quite breezy, but the overcast sky was welcome. No sound lures yet and no trainees out today, just Gary and me. We had to go back for more bags as we walked back from setting the last nets because of the number of birds already in the other nets. Catching was steady throughout, but we took down a little early as the breeze got to be a little too much. So, for a site we would have given up on had we been able to find a replacement, we ended on 79 birds, much better than any catch made there last year. The catch was predominantly Chiffchaff, 32 being caught, along with a few Blackcap, Reed Warbler and a couple of Willow and Garden Warblers. There were also 22 tits of the usual 3 species and a Woodpigeon. The 7 retraps were all recent birds. 

Kev

Ramsdale Park Golf Centre - Sunday 19 July

The first morning session of the year for this site and on arrival it all sounded very quiet. All the usual nets were set quickly, but where were the birds? It was brighter and breezier than forecast but that was obviously not the reason for the mostly empty nets. We finished with a catch of just 18 birds, but it did include a Great-spotted Woodpecker, Green Woodpecker & Woodpigeon. Only 2 retraps, both ringed as adults and not previously retrapped, a Robin from 2023 and a Blackcap from 2022.

Kev

Great Spotted Woodpecker (KJH)

Green Woodpecker (KJH)

Continuing Barn Owl success

Despite the heat and drought, many broods seem to be pulling through and finding enough food. This is a video from a security camera in a barn in the Vale of Belvoir yesterday, showing 5 out of a brood of 6 learning the ropes. Number six is still in the box complaining loudly....

 

 

Ramsdale Park Golf Centre

We had not managed to make a normal visit here, so on 3 July, Mick P and I made an afternoon visit in very hot conditions and not looking forward to the job of clearing the rides. However, we were delighted to find that the ride for the main line of nets up the hill had been mowed for us by the ground staff which was very much appreciated. We quickly erected nets here and then cleared the rides for the other nets. As expected in the full sun and breezy conditions we only had a small catch totalling 15, mostly warblers. At least the site is now ready for future visits this year.

Kev

Holme Pierrepont

On 28 June we made the first summer visit, only to find the net rides very overgrown from our last spring visit. So it was hard work for just the 3 of us, and not helped by finding 2 poles and 4 guys had been stolen. Two hours later we had the nets up and ended with a decent catch of 44 birds, the majority being 19 Chiffchaff. 

Bird of the day was an 8-year-old retrap Garden Warbler that amazingly had avoided our nets every other year since being ringed. Not a longevity record yet but still nice to see. (see photo)

We returned on 5 July and had an easier time putting up the nets with a similar catch to the previous visit of 43 birds. Chiffchaff again dominated with 13 caught. 

Then 11 July saw us back again with Mark Gash joining us from Derbyshire. A quieter day with 36 birds. This time Blackcaps dominated with 8 being caught. Surprisingly we caught 3 juvenile Sedge Warblers, an unusual bird in our nets now at this site. However, the big surprise of the day was not a single retrap! 

Kev

Terns & Gulls

On 22 June we visited the tern platform and adjacent island at Skylarks NR. Unfortunately, the Black-headed Gulls had taken over the tern platform and had laid about a month earlier than last year and most had fledged. We did get 6 late chicks which we ringed and colour ringed.

Friday 26 June saw us back at Attenborough to ring the tern chicks. 37 were ringed, all on the two platforms alongside the Visitor Centre. The platform on Church Pond was also checked but the Black-headed Gulls nesting there were also early this year and had fledged.

Kev 

Attenborough Sand Martins

On 15 June we had a mist-netting session at the Sand Martin colony. There were fairly low expectations as most of the first broods had fledged. Jenny was on hand again to take blood samples, so the totally unexpected catch of 48 birds was most welcome, and included 32 unringed birds (4 adult males, 14 adult females and 12 juveniles). All the juveniles were birds that were born elsewhere and were undergoing post-juvenile dispersal. Of the 16 already ringed birds, 7 were males, 5 were females and 4 were recently fledged juveniles. Of note, 1 of the males was ringed as a nestling in 2021. Another male was ringed as a nestling in 2023. Considering the activity levels around the colony at the time, the 30 adults were probably about 50% of the adult population at the colony.

Kev 

Attenborough CES

Visit 5 was made on 14 June and produced 42 birds, much improved catch and timed perfectly for the visit of Jenny from Manchester University to take blood samples from some of the birds. Unfortunately, the recent strong winds had brought down a tree into the ride where net 5 is sited so we had to leave that net out for this visit. Blackcaps made up the majority of the catch, but it was nice to get 4 juvenile Treecreepers. A Blackcap from 2022 was the oldest retrap. We also had a control blackcap from Northamptonshire.

Visit 6 was made on 21 June and we were back to a low catch despite Emmeline and the volunteers from NWT clearing the fallen tree prior to our visit. We had just 19 birds, the usual mix, and the oldest retrap was a Reed Warbler from 2024.

Kev 

Barn Owl - a lucky escape!

In June I ringed a brood of 4 Barn Owls at a farm in Woodborough. These farmers are extremely keen to support their wildlife, so much so, that I also ringed another brood of 5 Barn Owls and 4 Kestrels in two of their other nest boxes. They understand the perils young owls face when they fledge and learn how to survive, including the dangers posed by water troughs, which they protect with netting.

This nest box is close to their house and they were delighted to film the 4 chicks learning to fly around their garden. However, this soon turned to a horror show when they saw one young owl enter the water butt and realised that it wasn't protected with a lid or netting. Fortunately John reacted in time, rescuing the owl and emptying the water. After drying off, the young owl resumed its flying practice, perhaps wiser after its near miss!

Looking at the video, it makes you wonder what made the owl to fly into the water. Was it the water or its reflection? Whatever it was, it seemed very interested in what was in the water butt.

A very lucky escape for this young owl and hopefully a cautionary tale for others who have Barn Owls and water butts.

Mick P

Bumper Beginning to Barn Owl Season

The Barn Owl season has kicked off to an incredible start, with early breeding birds found in many boxes and brood sizes large. There has even been evidence of a little cached food, suggesting that prey is sufficient, if not abundant. 

Of the boxes I check, average brood size is currently standing at 4.5 and it'll be interesting to see if that changes. Several 5s and 6s and even two broods of 7 have now been ringed by the group and that was all by the end of May!

Pete

A brood of 7 Barn Owls in the Vale of Belvoir.

 

 

Mist-netting in May

We started the CES at Attenborough on 4 May. A reasonable visit with 46 birds caught, the usual range of species but 2 Cetti's and 2 Reed Buntings were nice, particularly as one of the Reed Buntings was a retrap from 2022. We also had a few returning warblers from the last couple of years. Visit 2 was carried out on 10 May. What a difference! Only 16 birds caught. One interesting bird was a retrap Garden Warbler from 2023 in the adjoining net to where it was originally caught but we did not catch it in 2024 or 2025. Visit 3 was carried out on 24 May and was thankfully a small improvement on visit 2 with 26 birds, including 8 Reed Warblers, one of which was a returning bird from 2024 and 2025. The low numbers continued for Visit 4 last Sunday: just 22 birds. We had a Dunnock and Great Tit from 2022 but the bird of the day was a Whitethroat, the first on the CES since 2011.

Between CES visits 2 and 3 we had a session at Holme Pierrepont. The site was very quiet and a couple of the usual nets failed to catch anything. We finished with just 22 birds, but 5 of them were Garden Warblers.

Kev

Reed Warbler, Holme Pierrepont, May 2026 (KJH)

Unusual Tawny Owl

In 2021, at the request of the Parish Council, Jim and I installed some large nest boxes at William Lee Memorial Park in Calverton. Even though the habitat didn't look ideal, except perhaps for Kestrel, we were told Tawny and Little Owl were seen and heard in the park so we went ahead and put up boxes designed for Tawny Owl, Little Owl and Kestrel.

After several years of monitoring, and finding Stock Doves, squirrels or bees in the boxes, we have finally had success with the Kestrel box.

However, unusually it has been used by Tawny Owls, and with Jim's many years experience this is only the second time he can recall it happening.

Apart from our understanding of the best design for a Tawny Owl box, the photos show how un-Tawny-Owl-like the habitat seems to be and unfortunately the park has become an island surrounded by continuing housing development since.

Mick P

 

April at Allestree

This marks the start of the second full year monitoring birds at Allestree Park in Derby. After setting
up the site with an improved area for netting, we undertook two ringing visits this month. A total of
35 birds were caught during these visits, including a wide variety of species and some valuable data
gained.

New species for the site included a Jay, a Magpie, and a Whitethroat (pictured). Other species of
interest included a Nuthatch and a Garden Warbler (also pictured), indicative of the scrub and
woodland habitats in which we operate. 

With it being the breeding season, we also found multiple pairs of birds actively breeding, including Coal Tits, Blackbirds, Great Tits, and Chiffchaffs.

Of the 35 birds encountered, 13 were retraps. Some of these included Blue Tits which were last
recorded on site in November 2024. Even more interesting were Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs, and Willow
Warblers who we also encountered breeding on site last year. Some of these will have undertaken impressive migrations to southern Europe or even Africa since last year, and have returned to the same area of Allestree Park to breed once again.

Our monitoring work at Allestree will continue throughout the spring and summer to continue investigating the trends of birds on the site and look at how important these habitats are for breeding and migrant birds. 

Josh

 

Checking Tawny Owl boxes

I managed to fit in a few box checks around other jobs today. I think it's the first time I've been so sweaty carrying ladders across fields in April - it was remarkably hot today. No Tawnys, but some Great Tits, a clutch of 7 Jackdaw eggs and a Stock Dove nest fashioned out of a dead squirrel, with a spare set of cold eggs on the side...

 Pete