Gedling CP, July/August

I got things going a bit earlier this year at Gedling, with my first visit on 23 July. It was a fairly short session, possibly made shorter by the fact I had forgotten to pack my new string of A-rings, so I was chucking away as many birds as I was bagging up! It was generally quiet anyway, so I had to make do with a few Phylloscs, but I did get a Treecreeper, the first I’ve caught here.

I spent the morning of 4 August on site in much better conditions and armed with some sound-lures. I ended the session on a healthy 54 birds, which kept me very busy on my own. It was fairly ‘tit-heavy’, with 24 Blue Tit, but a mix of other species included 8 Whitethroat, my first Lesser Whitethroat for the site, and the second Woodpigeon to be ringed there.

On 14 August, I was joined by Jim, as he was interested to see how I was getting on at the site. It was nice to have a ringing companion, making setting nets and processing birds a lot more manageable. We started well with a decent first net round, but the sun and heat soon got too much and birds appeared to stop moving about, so we took down not long after 10am. We managed 28 birds, with the catch thankfully not being dominated by Tits! Willow Warblers were certainly on the move, with 15 trapped, and a few Whitethroat were still around.

The totals for the three sessions comprised: 26 Blue Tit (and 2 retrap), 23 Willow Warbler, 11 Whitethroat, 10 Great Tit, 7 Chiffchaff, 4 Blackcap, 2 Long-tailed Tit and singles of Goldcrest, Lesser Whitethroat, Treecreeper, Woodpigeon and Wren. 

Tom 

Linnets

Towards the end of July I noticed that a reasonable flock of Linnet was building up around some of my Spring Oilseed Rape plots that were maturing early thanks to the hot, dry weather. This was a great opportunity to try and ring some of these rather under-recorded birds, so I packed a couple of nets and ringing kit and headed out the following morning, a couple of hours before I was due to start work.

The plants weren’t particularly tall and this was a challenge as the birds could quite clearly see the mist-net towering above the crop, but with so many zipping about the plot, I managed a small catch of 7 Linnet and a handful of Whitethroat.

I tried another session a couple of days later but didn’t manage anything, though bird numbers appeared to have dropped. However, when I checked the field after I returned from a weekend away, the crop had been harvested and there were even more birds feeding on spilt grain, so I returned the next morning.

With the crop being gone, I set a net against a hedgerow where birds had been congregating previously, and this time used an audio-lure. This attracted large numbers of birds but the hedgerow was taller than the net and the majority of birds were found to fly over the net into the tops of the bushes. I managed 9 birds, a small sample of the large flock on site.

It was nice to handle a few individuals of a species not regularly encountered by the group, but as usual time restraints meant a more consistent effort could not be made. Once the food dries up these birds will move on, but hopefully more opportunities to study these finches will come up again in the future.

Tom

 

More Barn Owls

With reports of pairs on second clutches, this is shaping up to be one of the best, if not the best Barn Owl year on our books. Below is another picture from a security camera of a brood of 6 in the Vale of Belvoir.

 

Little Egret resighting

A Little Egret ringed as a chick at Attenborough NR on 28 May 2026 (and it was still present there on 29 June) has been resighted by Nick Coulbeck on the Lincolnshire coast on 5 August. Many thanks to Nick for the video and letting us know!

 

 

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....