Tuesday 25 October 2011

A perhaps unexpected AA morning

Heysham Obs
Ringing/vis from dawn for an hour or two today with the aim to catch some pre-dawn thrushes, then the finch passage.  A nocturnal unringed (therefore just landfalled?) Wren in a mist net set the tone of the morning which saw a chunk of "AA" rings used on common birds and conversely relatively few Blackbird and Chaffinch in evidence today.  The low point of the morning was the first evidence of obvious trichomonosis this autumn (500+ finches handled) on a fairly old retrap Greenfinch - this was released immediately it was extracted and the number noted.  Less numbers but quite a bit of variety on the vis mig today with more of a cross-bay corridor than recent days

Vis mig 0720-1030
Starling - 396
Chaffinch - 179
Redwing - 286
Greenfinch - 4
Woodpigeon 38S, 16N
alba Wagtail - 5
Lapwing - 2
Reed Bunting - 3
Brambling - 3
Meadow Pipit - 4
Blackbird - 25
Song Thrush - 4
Mistle Thrush - 1
Bullfinch - 1
Goldfinch - 20 then flock of 25 over about 1130hrs
Siskin - 5, then 2 with above Goldfinch flock

Grounded
Goldcrest - small influx with 4 ringed and c6 on circuit of reserve
Blackbird - at least 27 on mid-morning walk
Wren - small influx with 3 ringed (one caught in the dark!) and 10 seen/heard on reserve circuit
Robin - lot of activity at dawn with two unringed lightweight "British-looking" birds caught in the half-light
Chiffchaff - 1
Blackcap - 1
Coal Tit - 3 unringed birds
Treecreeper - 2
Long-tailed Tit - flock of local birds held two unringed individuals, then unringed flock of 5 caught

Ringing
Not quite what was expected with the following new birds: Wren (3), Long-tailed Tit (7), Chaffinch (3), Coal Tit (3), Blue Tit (2), Bullfinch (2), Greenfinch (2), Goldfinch (2), Blackcap (1), Song Thrush (3), Blackbird (1), Redwing (1), Goldcrest (4), Robin (2)

Moth
Brick attracted to the security light but not surprisngly, nothing in the easterly-facing moth trap