31/12 Snelsmore Common Feeder

Location: Snelsmore Common Feeder

Session: 31-Dec-2015 07:45 to 11:30hrs

Weather: Sunny, breezy and cold for a change.

Present: JL, IW, DL

Nets: 36’ one 18’ each side of feeders up from 08:00 to 11:00hrs

Lure (feeders): Fat Balls, Black Sunflower, Peanuts

Capture (New/Recapture) 46 (19/27):

Blue Tit 10/16	Coal Tit 3/7
Great Spotted Woodpecker 1/2	Great Tit 5/1
Marsh Tit 0/1

Recaptures: 27

Blue Tit 2y 9d, 1y 353d, 1y 220d from box CP12, 1y 55d, 354d, 225d from Box CP31 Coal Tit 1y 55d, also one ringed 20-Nov at the Bagnor feeder last captured there 15-Dec. Great Spotted Woodpecker 7y 36d (2008) and no intermediate captures. All other retraps recent.

Age Range: all 1st winter except
adults: Blue Tit 7, Coal Tit 2, Great Spotted Woodpecker 1, Great Tit 2

Notes: The last chance to ring in 2015 so despite some hesitation, due to the speed of the wind, on leaving home and arriving at the site, I decided to go for it. A check of the feeders showed they had not been very busy since being topped up the day before yesterday. In the first 20 minutes just a Great Tit and a Blue Tit captured. Things then began to look up with five 10 minutes later followed by 10 more at 08:50. Thereafter five or six captured each round until 10:45 when capture slowed to a Blue Tit followed by a Marsh Tit. These have been scarce here since late November with none heard or seen so one in the nets was a nice surprise. Three more birds were extracted when we took the nets down. The Coal Tit ringed at the Bagnor feeder is an unusual recapture between feeders for this species. The seven year old Great Spotted Woodpecker was ringed when we had the Snelsmore feeder down the road near Winterbourne Holt and probably explains why we have not caught it again until now. We last operated at this feeder 17-Mar-2009; the following autumn due to pressure from the ranger we moved the feeder to its current car park location. I enjoyed the session and thanks to all those who come to help me in the week during 2015 particular Ian and Reg. Happy New Year and don’t forget like horses all ringed birds are a year older at the turn of the year.

Sightings 19 Species: Due to the trees observation is very restricted at this site

Blackbird 4 Blue Tit 35 Buzzard 2 Carrion Crow 3 Chaffinch 6 Coal Tit 10 Dunnock 1 Goldcrest 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker 4

Great Tit 10 Greenfinch 1 Jackdaw 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull 5 Marsh Tit 1 Nuthatch 3 Red Kite 1 Robin 2 Rook 4 Woodpigeon 6