The weather had been rather variable so it turned out that Saturday 18 June was the first day that we were able to do CES session 5. We caught 28 birds and of these 12 were juveniles. We had our … Read More
The forecast over the previous twenty-four hours had varied considerably, and it was looking like we might be rained off as recently as the evening before. It therefore came as some surprise that the conditions were perfect for ringing for … Read More
A near windless overcast day on the marsh made for perfect ringing conditions. We put 660 feet of net across the reed bed and in surrounding scrub. The catch of 80 birds was an improvement on recent weeks. The breakdown … Read More
CES 4 took place on 2nd June and there were more juvenile birds than on earlier sessions. There were 3 recently fledged great tits with an attendant female and a young blue tit also with a female. In these circumstances … Read More
On what turned out to be a cold morning, the third Constant Effort Site (CES) session took place on Monday 23rd May. We caught our first juvenile Robins of the season which were all a healthy weight. The most interesting … Read More
Despite consistent forecasts of very low wind speed on both the BBC and the Met Check websites all week, there was in fact a moderate south-easterly blowing throughout the morning. Overhead conditions were good (mainly cloudy), though, and we were … Read More
The second Constant Effort Site(CES) session took place on Friday 13th May. The number of birds ringed was down on the first session, however, we had some interesting captures. There were two new Bullfinches bringing the year total to eight, … Read More
A light to moderate south-easterly breeze and a dry morning, following overnight rain. We put out just over 300 feet of net in reedbed (240 feet) and scrub. The catch was as follows: Species New Recaptured Total Wren 0 1 … Read More
The Constant Effort ringing started well on 5 May with a total of 47 birds. Notably there were 10 new Blackcaps but only 2 Chiff chaffs. It was also good to have 6 new Bullfinches. Most birds showed signs of … Read More
A day of settled weather with overcast skies and a light northwesterly wind that gradually strengthened and became gusty. We put out a total of 580 feet of net in reed bed and scrub habitats, in the knowledge that the … Read More
A light northerly wind strengthened and gradually swung around to the south-east over the course of the morning. We put up a total of 580 feet of net, the majority of which was along a bund through the reed bed. … Read More
A light north to north-westerly wind that strengthened slightly over the morning, along with variable cloud cover, made for reasonable conditions for a session The catch was larger than in recent weeks, and was made up as follows: Species New … Read More
A light to moderate north-westerly wind, albeit a little stronger than forecast, and a bright start made for reasonably good ringing conditions this morning. As the longer distance migrants are starting to come through, and conditions were conducive, we put … Read More
An overnight frost made for a cold start at the marsh. We put out 340 feet of net, most of which was across the open reed bed. The catch was very modest and is detailed in the table below: Species … Read More
Settled weather allowed us to complete two sessions this week. The numbers of birds in the marsh remains modest, and the catches reflect this. It appears that the large flocks of finches present in January and February have now dispersed, … Read More
This morning saw overcast skies and a light easterly wind. We put up 480 feet of net: a 60 foot net by our bird feeders, a triangle of 40 foot nets to try to capture pipits and a complicated arrangement … Read More
A period of settled weather allowed the completion of two short visits to the marsh this week. During the first the wind speed picked up quickly, making the single net billow, while during the second session the conditions were ideal, … Read More
A light to moderate north-westerly wind made for a cold morning. We put a complicated configuration of five sixty-foot nets in a small area of rushy ground close to one of the large freshwater pools on the marsh as well … Read More