We haven’t been out at all during the last week, because of the heatwave: I didn’t want to add any stress on the birds, or my team, come to that. I was joined for the morning by David and Pete. We set fewer nets than normal, because I was being cautious, still having some concerns about ensuring the welfare of the birds. I needn’t have worried: they came in small numbers, just one or two in a round, if we caught any.
All nets were 5-shelf. Rides 1 and 2 were 18m, 3 was 18m and a 12m, 4 was two 18m nets. Nice to see that Ordnance Survey have updated their aerial photograph of the area.
The list for the session was: Blue Tit 1; Wren 1(1); Robin 3; Blackcap 3; Whitethroat 1; Chiffchaff 2; Willow Warbler 2. Totals: 13 juveniles ringed from 7 species and 1 retrap, making 14 birds processed from 7 species. All birds ringed were juveniles, the retrap was an adult female Wren. She was currently refeathering her brood patch after the breeding season.
It actually isn’t our worst August catch at this site: that was just 10 from 6 species in 2021. Before yesterday our average August catch at Somerford Common was 41 birds processed from 11 species. It is hard to know whether yesterday was down to the heatwave or the lack of nets we set!
There were highlights. The key one was our first ever juvenile Whitethroat for this site.
This is only the third Whitethroat caught at this site. The previous two were caught 10 years ago: one on inward migration in April, the other on autumn migration in August of that year. No more for ten years, so a lovely record for the site. Juvenile Willow Warblers are always a joy! Somerford Common has always been our best site for the species, throughout the breeding season, although we catch more in the Ravensroost complex in August, but not in May, June or July.
We were a little surprised that we didn’t catch more Blackcaps, but that is just0the way it was. With the wind getting up at 10:30, we closed the nets at about 11:00. I spent the next 20 minutes extracting leaves from ride 2! There were easily 100+ birch leaves in there. Fortunately, a lot can be shaken out, but an awful lot needed extra assistance. Everything was packed away and taken down by 11:45 and we were off site soon after.
I think the key for now is to work near water. That leaves me with three options: Lower Moor Farm, Red Lodge (if I get in and cut the rides around the main pond) and Ravensroost Meadows. At least the first and last are good sites for autumn migration. That said, as soon as the wind drops, and I have managed to unseize the padlock at Blakehill Farm East, we will be out there for autumn migrants.