Linacre Ringing -31st August 2013

Before going to "twitch" the Spotted Crake yesterday I had a three hour ringing session with my trainer and 3 other members of the Sorby Breck Ringing Group at Linacre. We caught 40 birds of 9 different species, including both Chiffchaff (2 birds) and Willow Warbler (1). All 3 were all 3Js, birds born this year, which will soon be heading off to Southern Europe and Africa for the winter.

Chiffchaff

Willow Warbler

 

Other species ringed were: Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Bullfinch, Dunnock, Robin, Blue and Great Tit. Here's a young Chaffinch's  head turning blue as it moults.

 

Chaffinch

 

This morning I went back to Linacre for a walk around. The usual water birds were around, but I also managed to spot a Cormorant, a Kingfisher, which caught and ate a fish on the bottom reservoir, 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (2 adults and a juvenile bird), which, for the first time, were seen to fly down to the water and pick something to eat (they're usually seen flying over), a Green Woodpecker, a singing Chiffchaff and, the best of all, a flock of between 10-15 Crossbills, which were flying and calling over the larch woodlands on the south side of the middle reservoir.