31st May 2010

2 Cuckoo, 2 Reed Warbler, 6 Sedge Warbler, Garden Warbler, 4 Reed Bunting, French ringed Blackcap – Nightingale Wood, South Marston – Graham Deacon

‘northern’ Willow Warbler, French ringed Sedge Warbler - Swindon STW – Matt Prior

Spotted Flycatcher, 10 Corn Bunting, 3 Yellow Wagtail – Roundway Hill – David Bush

2 Red Kite, Wheatear – Barbury Castle – Ken Cypher

Hobby – Langford Lakes – Tom James

3 Grasshopper Warbler, Cuckoo – SPTA centre – Robin Nelson

30th May 2010

Hobby – Salisbury – Daniel Kronenberg

Cuckoo – Malmesbury – David Wall

Yellow Wagtail – Avebury – Robin Nelson

4 Yellow Wagtail – Beckhampton – Graham Deacon

29th May 2010

Red Kite – Tisbury – Georgia Wells

28th May 2010

Raven – Trowbridge – Mike Trew

20+ Ringed Plover, 25+ Dunlin, Redshank – CWP74 – CWP Website

27th May 2010

Turtle Dove – Marlborough Downs – Matt Prior 

26th May 2010

2 Red Kite – Chippenham – Mark Coller

4 Duke of Burgundy, Green Hairstreak, 2 Small Blue - Morgan’s Hill - Mark Coller

Curlew, Reed Warbler – Blakehill – Robin Griffiths

WOOD WARBLER - recently at Scotspoor Plantation, Chute – Norman Chappell

Red Kite – Salisbury – Daniel Kronenberg

6 adult Lapwing with 7 chicks – Amesbury – Bob Blamey

25th May 2010

OYSTERCATCHER, 54 Ringed Plover, 6 Little Ringed Plover, Redshank, 3 Shelduck, 2 Wigeon – CWP74 – CWP Website

24th May 2010

2 Greenshank, 38 Ringed Plover, 3 Little Ringed Plover - CWP74 (but no sign of yesterday’s Temminck’s Stints) – Nigel Pleass

OYSERCATCHER – CWP68c – Mike Trew

Little Egret, Cuckoo – CWP59 – Mike Trew

Red Kite – Wootton Bassett – Bob Philpott

Marsh Fritillary - Barbury Castle – Geoff Bown

 

23rd May 2010

2 TEMMINCK’S STINT - Kent End, CWP, 0700 but gone by 0800 - Malcolm Royal

2 TEMMINCK’S STINT - CWP74, late evening - Kim Milsom

2 Spotted Flycatcher – Wylye – John Fishwick

3 Cuckoo (inc. calling female) – Nightingale Wood, South Marston – Phil & Graham Deacon

Spotted Flycatcher – Grittleton - Stewart Dobson

4 Raven, 2 Red Kite – Tollard Royal – Andrew Rose

Spotted Flycatcher, Lesser Whitethroat – Webbs Wood – Robin Griffiths

3 OYSTERCATCHER, 4 Greenshank, Redshank, 31 Ringed Plover, 4 Little Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Common Sandpiper, Little Egret, 6 Gadwall, Cuckoo - CWP74 – Nigel Pleass

4 OYSTERCATCHER, 3 Little Ringed Plover, 2 Greenshank – Kent End, CWP – Nigel Pleass

2 BLACK TERN - CWP32 – Colin Menendez

PEREGRINE – CWP68d – Maciej Syczgielski

Tips for cat owners!

From the RSPB website:

It’ll be a tough few weeks if you’re a baby bird, relying on others for food and shelter and predators at every turn waiting for their chance to pounce. But cats and birds can live harmoniously in our gardens this breeding season with a few simple measures, says the RSPB. Baby birds in particular are vulnerable from predators like cats at this time of year, but with some minor interventions, the number of chicks killed can be minimised. The wildlife charity is keen to tell cat owners what they can do to avoid chicks being caught in the next few weeks and is offering the following advice:

- Put a bell on the cat’s collar – an RSPB study shows that this can reduce predation of birds by 41%. The collar should have a quick release buckle and fitted properly

- Make sure cats are well fed and cared for. This may encourage them to stay close to home and be less likely to wander

- Keep your cats indoors around sunset and sunrise and after bad weather – birds are most vulnerable at these times as its when they are most likely to come out to feed.

-Take your cat indoors if a fledgling is in the garden, until its parents lead it away

-Avoid putting food on the ground for a few weeks where cats are known to catch birds. Use a bird table or higher ground where cats cannot reach it

- Place spiny plants such as holly or an uncomfortable surface around the base of the feeding station to prevent cats sitting underneath it

- Position nest boxes where cats cannot reach them or sit close to them (preventing the parents birds from getting to the box.

Lee Hollingsworth, RSPB Wildlife Adviser, says: “People are often surprised that the RSPB is not against owning cats and firmly believes that cats and garden birds can exist side by side quite comfortably with a bit of sensible pet ownership and taking a few simple measures.

“Baby birds are extremely vulnerable and it is very upsetting if you discover the remains of one that has been eaten by a cat so by fitting a bell, keeping them indoors for the most risky times of day and raising your feeding stations, you could avoid distress for all.”

Dianne Rogers, RSPB Member says: “I have a young cat that is extremely active and I also have two feeders, a water bath and a bird table which is full of all sorts of birds. Of course my cat is a hunter and does what comes naturally to him from time to time but if I try and feed him at dawn and dusk, this is inevitably followed by a sleep which is the other thing that comes naturally to him! It makes no difference to me or him, but could be the difference between life and death for the baby birds in my garden”

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