03/03 Bagnor feeder

Location: Bagnor feeder

Session: 03-Mar-2016 07:45 to 11:30hrs

Headlines: The penultimate session of the winter. A cold start and captures very slow until the last two rounds when 8 and 14 captures. The threat of a rain shower late on probably turn attention from territory to food and the second best session here so far, in the second half of the winter; 42 21st January the best. It is interesting that Siskin have started using this feeder, they have ignored it for most the winter; a flock of about 50 early on regularly came to drink in the stream a few metres away.

Weather: Sunny, cold, breezy with a few spots of rain late in the session.

Present: JL, RGS

Nets: 12metres, a 6m net each side of feeders up from 08:00 to 11:00 hrs

Lure (feeders): Peanuts, Black Sunflower, Nyger

Capture (New/Recapture) 35 (23/12): Blue Tit 13/9, Dunnock 1/0, Goldfinch 2/0, Great Tit 1/1, Greenfinch 1/0, Long-tailed Tit 2/0,

Siskin 2/2, Wren 1/0

Recaptures: 12 all less than 100days except Blue tit 1y 289d from Winterbourne Holt nest box WH25, 1y 56d, 364d, 297d pulli: one from Mount Hill box B08 and one from C03, 283d pulli from Mount Hill box B01, 112d. The two recaptured Siskin were recently ringed at the Snelsmore Feeder.

Age Range: All 1st winter except Adults Blue Tit 4, Great Tit 1;

Indeterminate Long-tailed Tit 2.

Sightings 32 Species: The first Yellowhammer of the year singing, three Raven in a territory dispute, lots of singing on territory, particularly by Great tit, one large flock of c50 Woodpigeons; the only substantial flock or movement.

Blackbird 2 Black-headed Gull 4 Blue Tit 30 Buzzard 1 Carrion Crow 3 Chaffinch 3 Dunnock 2 Goldfinch 5 Great Spotted Woodpecker 2 Great Tit 6 Greenfinch 1 Jackdaw 5 Jay 4 Kestrel 1 Little Egret 2 Long-tailed Tit 2

Magpie 4 Mallard 2 Mistle Thrush 1 Moorhen 1 Pheasant 2 Raven 3 Red Kite 1 Reed Bunting 1 Robin 3 Rook 1 Siskin 8 Skylark 1 Song Thrush 1 Woodpigeon 76 Wren 2 Yellowhammer 1