More Redpoll

Managed to get out for a couple of hours before the weather kicked in during the last few days.

another 20 Redpoll ringed with 4 Redwing, 5 Blackbirds 2 being Continental bird's, few more Goldcrests and Coal Tits another Jay and a Drake Mallard that came to close to the car while we were ringing

Redwing ageing as well as Tail shape white wedges show on the young birds

Tertials

Twite season ends

Reports this week from Dr Guy Anderson down on The Wash at Terrington Marsh that he had a good flock of Twite with a mixture of colour rings some Nicks and some ours from this Autumn RED/WHITE above Pink and a few 2008 birds and 2007 birds.

So they are on there way again.

This year i have caught 307 Twite in the Pennines with 227 of them being new birds

{Unringed}

Since August i have ringed 143 birds that were born this year.

That with Nicks pulli project of 250 birds

makes 393 1st year birds ringed in 2009.

Also report of unringed Twite still being seen, so all in all not a bad year for this cracking little bird, again lets hope all is being done to try and improve Breeding grounds, wintering grounds

feeding areas etc so this bird can keep making its journey back and fourth for years to come.

Meadow Pipit Turns up

Just got news of a Meadow Pipit we ringed at Kex Gill Quarry in 2007 {two pink rings on left leg} was recaught at Thistledown, nr Nympsfield in Gloucestershire on 13/10/2009 . Nice to know they are still out there.

Thanks to Phil Williams for letting us know.

Also had a quite week as have been laid up with the most awful cough since Sunday

managed to open net in the garden with a few more Starlings ringed

and the Goldfinch number is now touching 70 well 69.

hope to be out at the weekend weather don't look good.

Timble

Another great morning at Timble with 35 more Redwing Ringed and 26 Redpoll.

Also 4 More Goldcrest and Coal Tits and Blue/Great Tits.

Good Flock of 29 Crossbill near nets but not playing.

Like most Thrushes you can Age Redwing on Tail Shape

The rounded tail feathers belonging to the Adult birds

Euring age 4

{Hatched before current calendar year}

Pointed tail Feathers belonging to the juvenile bird

Euring age 3

{Definitely hatched during current calendar year}

More Redwing

I Could not make it out today more's the pity. Andy reports another 32 Redwing ringed and 6 Redpoll.

A touch of Autumn

A fantastic morning spent at Timble with Andy. We initially went for Redpoll and Crests, as we were setting up 100s of Redwing were moving through. So the plan changed.

Species Ringed

30 Goldcrest

5 Coal Tits

1 Jay

6 Redpoll

1 Robin

49 Redwing

other birds about

Crossbills

Brambling

Sparrowhawk

Lapland Bunting Heard

All morning Redwings passed over must have been 3000

Cooper Bridge

A nice morning at Cooper Bridge today.

Species ringed

2 Blue Tits

2 Long-tailed Tits

2 Gt Tits
1 Chaffinch

3 Bullfinch

1 Blackbird

7 Greenfinch

2 Goldfinch

1 Gt Spotted Woodpecker

and

2 Chiffchaff

Also

50 Goldfinch ringed in the garden now in two weeks with only 1 retrap

Twite at Rishworth

Another good Morning at Rishworth 25 new Twite ringed today with 4 retraps form 2 weeks ago none from last week and 3 of Nicks Birds.

Dave Sowter and Myself have always started catching more new birds as October kicks in we think its new parties of birds that are now moving down the Pennines. Maybe small colonies that have nested further up on the moors on the move . Who knows, maybe as it gets colder and food starts to run out they come into a food source.

148 New birds Colour ringed since August

72 of them at Rishworth.

Ringstone comes to me

After 4 years of going to Ringstone edge reservoir watching, photographing and ringing birds there. Today it came to me . A Dunnock i ringed there on 06/12/08 turned up in my garden today.

Twite at Rishworth

Met Up at Rishworth yesterday with Kane and set up for Twite. A beautiful sunny morning with up to 46 Twite seen. The birds were very flittish at first and would not settle on seed. After about 2 hours i moved my car and firing string back away from the catching area another 60ft. That seemed to work and within 10 minutes we had caught 15.

23 Twite caught with 11 new birds being colour ringed.

6 of Nick Wilkensons birds

and 5 retraps from september

ALSO

1 control from Deer Hill a 2007 bird, which was a nice surprise as

i have not seen any of these birds this year ?

and we ringed over 200 with Yellow/Blue Blue/Yellow .

also 1 female linnet ringed.

birds about

1 sparrow Hawk

1 Wheatear.