25/08 Greenham Common Western Enclosure

Location: Greenham Common, Western Enclosure

Session: 25-Aug-2015 06:10 to 10:30hrs
Weather: Sunny, clouding over, wind calm, breezy towards end of session
Present: JL,RGS
Nets: 180’ in two rides of 60’ and 60’ up from 06:45 to 10:10hrs
Lure: Audio: Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Firecrest, Garden Warbler intermittently
Capture 14: Blackcap 3/0, Blue Tit 1/0, Chiffchaff 5/0, Garden Warbler 1/0, Redstart 1/0, Whitethroat 1/1, Willow Warbler 1/0
Recaptures: Whitethroat 13 days, ringed on the 12th also recaptured on the 19th; seems to be hanging around and no change in fat score and only gained a little in weight.
Age Range: all juveniles except for the adult Willow Warbler

 

Redstart immature female

Bright rump and tail hence the name

Notes: The weather forecast for this week is quite dismal but I noticed that it was reasonable from dawn until about 10:00 hrs today. I limited to two nets in case the forecast rain came early. My reward was the first Redstart of the season; I thought we had missed them this year. Otherwise the usual fair. Finished at 10:00 hrs by which time the weather was beginning to close in.

Sightings 29 Species: Yellow Wagtails going over early, probably more from the calls but could only be certain of two. Not many Redstart reported locally yet this migration season. Green Sandpiper dropped on to the flooding from yesterday’s rain. A male Sparrowhawk spent much of the morning hunting the gorse to the west of the enclosure with a female soaring high over.

Blackcap 4 Blue Tit 3 Carrion Crow 2 Chaffinch 2 Chiffchaff 6 Dartford Warbler 1 Garden Warbler 1 Goldfinch 3 Great Spotted Woodpecker 1 Green Sandpiper 1 Green Woodpecker 2 Jackdaw 5 Jay 1 Kestrel 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull 2

Little Egret 1 Magpie 5 Pheasant 1 Pied Wagtail 1 Redstart 1 Robin 2 Sparrowhawk 2 Stock Dove 1 Stonechat 1 Swallow 4 Willow Warbler 2 Woodpigeon 10 Wren 2 Yellow Wagtail 2