Ringing at Ho-Ho-Home!

...sorry I couldn't resist. Through this week we have been very active at the feeding stations at Crosby Hall, Fulwood Marsh and Brook Vale. When I have been filling the feeders, I usually retreat to a distance to watch and see what comes to the feeders. This makes a change from the usual feeding routine as I am usually feeding up in the dark after work.

In the past week, the number of Reed Buntings at Brook Vale and Fulwood have increased, with birds now visiting the feeding stations, something that they weren't doing before the cold snap. Woodcock have also become more visible, with the number of observations at eight in three visits to Rimrose Valley. On Friday, there were three Snipe seen at Brook Vale, in addition to three Water Rail. Whilst at the feeding station, I did my best to break as much of the ice as possible (which brought a Snipe in within twenty mins) although given the temperature, it quickly refroze. A Buzzard was getting a hard time from seven Magpies and flew across the football fields, during weather like this, birds of prey are bound to suffer, as reported by the BTO (here)

A mist net in Moxey's garden (allowing for birds to be removed immediately) has yielded a few goodies over the past few days:

L.T.Tit - 1
Blue Tit - 3 (2)
Great Tit - 2
Coal Tit - 1
Wren - 3
House Sparrow - 1
Redwing - 3
Blackbird - 8 (2)
Fieldfare - 1
Song Thrush - 1
Robin - 1 (1)
Collared Dove - 1
Greenfinch - 1
Starling - 2
Sparrowhawk - (1)

TOTAL: 29 (6)


The Sparrowhawk was originally ringed on the 4th December in Thornton by Ian, a short-term retrap and a cracking male!