3 wader species on the beach

After 58 Woodcock ringed on upland pastures last winter, a nice change to be on the beach, watching the sunset over the sea.....
Juvenile Dunlins, Ringed Plovers, and this juvenile Curlew Sandpiper ringed -- a nice start to this phase of high tides at night.

Sylvia warblers next

(Lesser Whitethroat on Saturday, Tommy Evans)

We get the feeling that our Aquatics are not going to happen, but we are not giving up.... !
Emphasis now moving to Sylvia warblers, both on the reserve (ces over now) and at Towyn Burrows, our scrubland site nearer the estuary mouth.

Back to the beach...

With waders starting to move, a high tide look at the estuary this morning was calling so we took some spring traps down to Patch for a change.
This was earlier than our first attempt last year when our maximum catches were in October. It was well worthwhile though - 12 Rock Pipits ringed. With only 8 traps, a six bird round just 10 minutes after the previous round was a good result.
No rarities amongst the waders but the Turnstones and Sanderling on the spit make a dazzling attempt tonight look appealing.

TRG goes all weather!

It was good to have three enthusiastic children with us this morning for our last CES session of the year. Apart from one big round at 7am the morning was fairly quiet, particularly the reed bed - 55 new including 16 Chiffs, 15 Blackcaps, 4 Sedge Warblers and 1 Lesser Whitethroat. 16 retraps including 2 Treecreepers.

The weather could have been better but we had a chance to try out our new pop up gazebo to shelter us from showers that threatened all morning. With any luck we might have some hot days next summer and we can shelter us and the birds from the sun.


This was funded by Environment Wales as part of a start up grant.





Our £2 table and chairs have survived another season so until the day that we can afford the luxury of a ringing hut we are not too doing too badly for comfort. The only thing missing was Dawn with her supply of bacon sandwiches!

Aquatic free ...but a thank you

Karen, our latest Trainee, overseeing the drying of bird bags !!!
Steve in the photo, the finder of the recent Long-eared Owl, & Woodchat Shrike on the marsh.
Our ringing effort in the Mallard Run has been helped this season by 2 grants for ringing in this area of the reserve. A grant from the Welsh Ornithological Society directed at the Aquatic Warbler. A grant from Cardigan Town Council for our ringing in this area of the reserve where we are very accessible to interested members of the general public.

Alas no Aquatic Warbler ....yet !
Last August we ringed on 18 dates in August, catching 2 Aquatics and 215 Sedge warblers in the process.
To date, this August we have ringed on 24 of the 26 dates, no Aquatic but 281 new Sedge Warblers and 61 new Reed Warblers. A great plus in the Mallard this season has been 15 Grasshopper Warblers.
After our final CES tomorrow,........into Mallard mud again !!

Aquatic no, but Cettis.....

No surprise, no Aquatic yet, note -- 1 trapped in Dorset this morning.
Oliver Fox from the West Wiltshire RG with us for a few days with a juvenile Cetti's Warbler today. Oliver doesn't find many on Salisbury Plain !
Not sure how our Cettis have fared.. work in progress.

Still no Aqua but...

No Surprise !! No Aquatics on Patch either
-- but this juvenile Knot is rather nice.