With Reed Warblers arriving in good numbers it was the right time to try our first session of the year at the canal. This site is under threat by the canal being dug out and eventually turned back to a navigable waterway which will devastate it from a breeding bird perspective. The main two species at this site are the Reed Warblers and the couple of pairs of Grasshopper Warbler. There were two male Grasshopper Warblers reeling and a good bit of work by Noah saw us catch and ring one, there are only a handful of pairs of Grasshopper Warblers breeding in the River Ray Parkway and they face an ever increasing threat by development and over-population. We did okay with Reed Warblers with seven ringed and two retrapped. One Reed Warbler was originally ringed at Swindon STW in the spring of 2015 and retrapped there last year, the other one was ringed as a nestling in the canal in June 2015.
We retrapped a Willow Warbler that was ringed as a breeding male last year and another that was ringed at Purton Wood as a juvenile last summer. Both of the retrap Chiffchaffs were ringed last summer at Purton Wood, one as a breeding female and the other as a juvenile. The retrap rate of Whitethroats between sites is very low but we retrapped a female today that was originally ringed as a breeding female at Swindon STW last spring.
This was a very interesting session and shows just how important these last few remnants of good habitat are for birds. MP, AM, NW, GH
Reed Warbler 7 (2), Sedge Warbler 8, Grasshopper Warbler 1, Blackcap 7, Whitethroat 3 (1), Garden Warbler 2, Lesser Whitethroat 1, Chiffchaff 7 (2), Willow Warbler 5 (2), Goldcrest 2, Blackbird 2 (1), Song Thrush 3, Long Tailed Tit 3, Blue Tit 2 (1), Great Tit 6, Dunnock 7 (4), Robin 9, Wren 3, Bullfinch 4 (1), Chaffinch 1
