This month the group returned to Wraysbury to prepare the site for the CES and catch the migrants as they returned to the country.
Top species were Blackcap (41 individuals), Chiffchaff (14) and Dunnock (11). By the last session (which was CES #1) we recorded the season’s first Garden Warbler (6) and 3 further Whitethroat (we’d captured our first on 15th). Regulars noted the absence of Willow Warbler this year - we’d recorded five last year and this April we didn’t even hear any song.
I took four of our trainees around the woodland boxes at Woolley Firs on 23rd. Last year I had reduced the number of boxes to be intune with the thinning of trees carried out by BBOWT. All remaining boxes were occupied and all but two had begun clutches.
I mentioned to the trainees that we had a couple of years of Great Tits nesting in a Tawny Owl box at Woolley. A great example of a bird’s natural instinct to build a nest even when the choice of site is far from ideal. In both years the clutch successfully fledged. We removed the box after seeing this two years running and put up a smaller box, just for the tits.
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