Sunday 31st
A breeze kept some of the ongoing heat reduced. Eight new birds included five recently fledged Chiffchaffs. The adult males seem to be setting up for the next brood and there is plenty of singing. It used to be a feature that there was a late wave of Reed Warblers noticeable around the end of May and it would seem this is going on now. One new one was caught and there were three singing along the Haven. The other new birds were two Robins.
Saturday 30th
It was another hot, calm start with a breeze getting up mid-morning. There were just two new birds but one of these was a stunning adult male Swallow. The other new bird was another juvenile Robin, The seven retrap tits were all fledglings, it is good to know they are out and about.
Friday 29th
The hot, sunny weather continues. A visit to the Jubilee Field proved fruitful with 13 birds ringed. Eight of these were juveniles namely three Whitethroats, two Chiffchaffs, two Robins and a Dunnock. The adults were a Robin, a Dunnock and three Whitethroats. Elsewhere a brood of four Song Thrushes were ringed.
Tuesday 26th
A hot day from the start, my garden thermometer (admittedly unscreened) said 27°C.
The ringing session was closed early due to the heat. There was not much activity although new Robins continued to appear and three more were ringed. A new Blackcap, not a fledgling, appeared as well. We ringed the last Blue Tit nestlings we know of, again the brood was small, just six, but healthy looking.
Sunday 24th
A hot calm start which continued to warm up but not as far as it could due to a slight breeze.
Thirteen birds were ringed helped by the continued appearance of fledged locals. There were eight Long-tailed Tits, two Blackcaps, and singles of Blackbird, Chiffchaff and Great Tit.
Friday 22nd
A disappointingly quiet morning considering the calm, warm, conditions. Just two new birds - a Blackcap and a Dunnock.
A wrap up of all but one of the tit boxes provided two late Blue Tit broods, each with five chicks. There were also two broods of House Sparrows to ring. The cold spell seems to have made things difficult and two Sparrow nests had given up.
The great news is that the House Martin colony is suddenly busy with the chatter of birds. Clearly they had been held up enroute by 2 to 3 weeks.
Thursday 21st
Finally the wind dropped and it actually felt warm. Eighteen birds were caught of which six were new. A male Cetti's Warbler was the highlight and the first new one this year. The other new birds were a Chaffinch, two Robin juveniles and two Whitethroats.
The run of cold wind appears not to have helped some nesting birds and there two dead chicks below one of the nest boxes.
Wednesday 20th
Still windy and cool in the wind. Some lower nets could be used but only for a short time. It was worth it because spring Spotted Flycatchers are few and far between with only a couple this century and so it was nice to get one today. Another juvenile Robin was an indication of plenty of breeding activity.
Tuesday 19th
Windy and often wet conditions are preventing any ringing activity, however, observers at Restharrow Scrape are doing us proud with colour ring observations. Please keep them coming!
Although we are still waiting for details on some UK and Dutch colour rings, e.g. geese, other schemes are being impressively prompt. The latest batch of three colour-ringed Mediterranean Gulls were all ringed in Hungary. One was ringed at Bugyi, Hungary on June 16th, 2022, was seen at Scolt Head, Norfolk on May 4th 2024 and on our scrape on May 13th this year.
The other two were both ringed as pulli at Fejer, Hungary on June 10th 2025. The first of these has subsequently been recorded in the Czech Republic, Copt Point (Folkestone), Icklesham (East Sussex) and then at Dungeness on May 5th. It was on our Scrape on May 12th. The second was subsequently seen in the Wissant area in August before moving to Littlestone at the end of that month and then Copt Point, Folkestone at the end of September. It was on our Scrape on May 14th and 16th.
In a straight line from Hungary that is 1,315 km but obviously they wander around a great deal.
Saturday 16th
With the run of cold weather it was with a bit of trepidation we continued the checking of nest boxes. There were mixed results and it we will not know until later the full effect of the cold weather. Twenty-seven more Blue Tit pulli were ringed, this takes the total up to 90, near how many were done last year. We were careful not to look yet at nests where we knew we had ringed chicks in case they were still around, although I am told the Coal Tits fledged mid-week. In other nests we did find some dead chicks, mostly in nests that were later in laying.
Friday 15th
Cool and a bit breezy and the only migrant caught was a retrap Chiffchaff. Birds continue to fledge with a young Dunnock, Blackbird, and Robin ringed. The other Dunnock, a Woodpigeon, a Wren, and two Goldfinches were not from this year. Along on Sandown Road the House Sparrows have fledged.
Thursday 14th
With all the gulls passing through at present several colour-ringed ones have been recorded on Restharrow Scrape. Please let us know if you see one. Some of the European schemes are very efficient at replying as well which is great. There are several to come but this one has just come in. A Mediterranean Gull on the 12th had been ringed as a pullus at Pionierinsel Luhe, Germany, last year on 21st June. It was later seen at Praia de Lago Spain on 24th November before showing here.
Wednesday 13th
It was windier than hoped but still okay before thundery and icy showers arrived mid-morning. The attempt was rewarded with a variety of new birds. This included the first juvenile Chaffinch and Long-tailed Tits (8). A new, full adult, Blackbird and a Chiffchaff were unexpected. It will be interesting to see if the colour ringing of the Blackbird helps reveal if it is indeed local. The bird was caught in the Heligoland which is one of the few remaining patches of damp, soft, ground. The other new birds were singles of Moorhen and Woodpigeon.
Unsurprisingly, after a very slight increase, House Martins disappeared this afternoon. We usually hope for about 4/5ths of the 19 boxes to be occupied but there are 3 or 4 at best so far. I hope this pattern is not repeated around the country.
Saturday 9th
An interesting, if sad, Goldfinch movement has been reported. The bird was ringed here on 16th October 2025 and was found freshly dead at Burravoe, Yell, Shetland on 18th April. This is 1,035 km north. It would be difficult (using straight lines) for a bird to do a much longer movement within the UK.
The main activity over the last two days has been nest box checks and 30 Blue Tits, 19 Great Tits, and ten House Sparrow pulli have been ringed.
Friday 8th
The wind dropped and with a strong sun the day quickly warmed up. Eight new birds included the first Reed Warbler of the year and a second Lesser Whitethroat. Amongst the subsequent encounters was a Whitethroat which had been ringed elsewhere in the UK last year.
A Mediterranean Gull with a colour ring was recorded on Restharrow Scrape on 5th May. It had been ringed as a chick last year on 24th June, at De Natte Hond, North Holland.
Wednesday 6th
The wind shifted back to North-East and it was noticeably cooler. This put a stop to migration and ringing yielded nine retraps (three Blue Tits, two each of Robin and Great Tit, plus single Dunnock and Chiffchaff).
Most interest was provided by the start of checks of the nest boxes. Those that are being used are doing well, hopefully this cool snap will not last and the birds will do fine. We ringed a brood of nine Coal Tits - the first to use a nest box on the Estate. We also ringed 36 Great Tits and 17 Blue Tits.
A check of House Sparrow boxes showed that around the Observatory they are finally getting going (about two weeks later than 500 metres down the road at Sandown Road).
The big concern now are House Martins. Although they have been around for nearly three weeks there have been no more than 12. At most only four boxes are being used, maybe they are waiting for this cool wind to go?
Monday 4th
A calm, mild, start to the morning meant a small team could get some nets up. The session was ended mid-morning as a fresh, cool, wind from the sea got up.
There were five new birds, including singles of the usual Chiffchaff and Blackcap, plus the first Lesser Whitethroat of the year. The other two birds were a bit of a surprise as they were both Song Thrushes, but both birds fledged last year.
The first tit pulli of the year were ringed - eight Great Tits.
Saturday 2nd
A rarity last night it rained heavily, if only for 15 minutes. The morning was warm and calm. The trickle of Chiffchaffs (three) and Blackcaps (2) continues along with a single Whitethroat. The interesting bit about the new migrants is that they have healthy fat scores of three or four, not indicative of having done a long journey.
Friday 1st
A drop in the wind, but not quite as much a hoped for, allowed ringing to proceed. It remains very dry. There was little change and the new birds included two each of Blackcap and Whitethroat and singles of Blackbird, Goldfinch, Wren and a juvenile Robin.