A lovely Lesser ?

Lesser Whitethroats -- still not a very regular bird we catch.
We've only trapped 7 adults before, and I don't remember seeing one undergoing a complete moult before, tail-less and a fine example of flight feather replacement..
Otherwise a quiet CES, a new juvenile Cetti's perhaps the best of the c90 bird session.
(photo Tommy)

Weather for Strumble?

Not for sea-watching but......
Saturday night relaxing after an early CES...!!
8 Storm Petrels trapped in a 2 hour session, the session started early, the 1st being at 22:47 including a stormie in active wing moult, 2 new primaries with c10mm in sheath, was an unusual observation for me in July.
(photos in the dark, Rich. Stonier)

Nice birds at dawn and dusk.........

An early (pre) dawn in the Mallard Run picked up a new Grasshopper Warbler, then 40 acros.
A couple of hours CES this evening........and oh !!

Will the week-end live up to this >>>>>>>>>>>

A Sedge & Reed warbler excite us this morning !

L637855 - a juvenile Sedge Warbler caught this morning, a control from someone?

L250798 - a retrapped adult Reed Warbler for us this morning, good RAS stuff we retrap many. (our next project ? !).
OUR pocket PC with all our IPMR data held on it, tells us not only we ringed it as a juvenile 25/7/2010, ..........AND.........Icklesham caught this juvenile as a control 17/8/2010....

Don't we love this in the field technology and an upto date IPMR !!

Also into double figures of both Sedge & Reed warblers caught this morning plus another Grasshopper Warbler.

Last night we introduced Bethan, a new trainee to her 1st Swallow roost. We packed up nice and early with 34 Swallows, 5 Pied Wagtails, 3 Sand Martins in the bags,...... still c1000 in the sky !

CES toThe Mallard

Our 2nd Magpie was a bizarre high-light of the week-end CES. (A new bird for a leading member of the group!)
c40 new birds amongst the c30 retraps.......good CES data though, with c20 Reed Warblers, and 2 juvenile Treecreepers nice.

This a nice shot of the undertail coverts of a Grasshopper Warbler, note the weak feathers of the tail, indicating poor feeding conditions when growing.

An early visit to the Mallard Run on Sunday, producing some nice birds moving through the reedbed.... 3 Grasshopper Warblers, a Willow Warbler, and a Goldcrest along with c30 new acros. Juvenile Reed Buntings starting to move through too.

A calling Green Sandpiper dropping on the Mallard pond edge...... that would be nice....!!

This week-end last year (24/25 July) we caught c100 Reed warblers in the 2 sites, only c40 this year in comparison........what will the week ahead deliver...??

Tuesday's Moorhen

A first for the TRG, not what you expect in the top shelf of a net!
A short dawn to 7.30am session this morning in the Mallard reed bed was again worthwhile. 13 Sedge and 12 Reed Warblers, a Grasshopper Warbler, a Cetti's warbler, Pied wagtail and surprisingly, a juv Whitethroat.

The Teifi at dawn -ish

An early visit this morning.
Amongst the Reed & Sedge Warblers, another new juvenile Kingfisher.
The 20 Reed Warblers, almost certainly home-grown Teifi birds most juvenile with small amounts of body feathers in sheath. At least one of the 11 Sedge Warblers a certain migrant, a new adult, with a fat score of 6 and 30% heavier than the others.
(photo Dawn)