Autumn migration is GO

Gryllo, Mick and Shaun made 4 trips to Durlston over the last week with the peak of birds quite bizarrely coinciding with a Bioblitz on Saturday 10th Aug - A total of 246 birds caught that day.

Heres what Gryllo had to say about the morning:

What an excellent morning.

 

Started well when Shaun and I saw a young Badger at the entrance to the park at 0530.

 

Fairly quiet for birds 0630 - 0730 when a massive wave of Willow Warblers meant we had to furl some nets. Managed to ring and release all by 0745 just in time for the public demo when numbers trapped returned to normal. Some 15 birds in the hand, of 7 species, were shown to the assembled group of about 20 visitors.

 

Also a good array of butterflies on the buddlia in the garden included many Painted Ladys and a Dark-green Fritillary.

 

The moth traps were interesting too, examined at 1000 when the ringing was quiet.

 

Totals

 

Tree Pipit 1

Swallow 3

Blue Tit 1

Great Tit 1

Dunnock 2

Wren 1

Common Redstart 1

Garden Warbler 1

Blackcap 1

Common Whitethroat 5

Sedge Warbler 10

Chiffchaff 2

Willow Warbler 211

Chaffinch 1

Greenfinch 2

 

Total 243 birds ringed of 15 species plus 1 retrap Willow Warbler from a couple of weeks ago.