A snowy start to garden ringing in 2013

Well after a lengthy absence I thought that the first birds ringed in the garden this year deserved a mention. This morning saw a much welcome break in the harsh easterly winds that have been driving snow across most of Britain for the last few days so a mist net was hastily erected to capture a sample of the birds that have been making use of the food provided in the back garden.

A couple of Lesser Redpolls have been seen at the Nyger on a number of occasions recently and being a new species for the garden it was a pleasant surprise to find myself ringing one, particularly one with a very conspicuous moult limit which isn't always the case for Redpolls.

                              Lesser Redpoll                                                    Chaffinch 

                       Wren                                       Robin                                      Starling

All birds caught seemed to be very active and were all of good weights with some individuals showing good fat reserves indicating that for these birds at least, food isn't in short supply during the current cold snap.

                     Coal Tit                                     Blue Tit                                   Great Tit

It is my sincere hope to post a number of catchups further documenting my work in Scotland last summer and my trip to Canada in the Autumn (or should that be fall?), of 2012. However, trawling through and editing 2000+ photos is proving to be a somewhat onerous task so I thank readers in advance for bearing with me. In the meantime, I shall endeavour to keep posts as regular as time and activities permit.

Totals - 18 new, (2) retraps
Wood Pigeon - 1
Robin - 2
Blackbird - 1
Wren - 1
Great Tit - 2, (1)
Coal Tit - 1
Blue Tit - 6, (1)
Starling - 2
Chaffinch - 1
Lesser Redpoll - 1

Not bad for the first garden ringing of 2013 and an interesting species mix it would have been nice to have had an overwintering Blackcap but I've not recorded one yet in five years.

A brief trip into Great Yarmouth in the afternoon provided the opportunity to snap some twilight snow scenes as the night fell.

 Looking west towards the Breydon Bridge

Eastwards from where the rivers Yare and Bure meet