Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Rained off.

That was a whole week of doing not a lot. Well I did have man flu and a chesty cough plus the weather was pretty grim for birding while at death’s door, so that’s the excuse and I’m sticking to it. 

But back home and sat at the computer with phone at the ready, birdy things bubbled away. The Ringing Group gained permission from a very supportive landowner to conduct a number of ringing projects on land at Cockerham - more of that in 2018. 

Meanwhile a phone call or two and follow-up emails to a friendly farmer and Natural England resulted in permission to catch Linnet and Twite in a field of bird seed mix at Glasson Dock. The flock there has built from 130+ birds in October to 350+ last weekend. During that period it had been almost impossible to guesstimate the number of each species other than to say that the majority were Linnet but that more than one Twite was present on more than one occasion. 

Twite

Linnet

For Tuesday morning the forecast was “dry and cloudy” so Andy I met up at the field and proceeded to make a ride for a couple of nets. We caught a couple of Linnets as cloud and mizzle arrived from the south. Of the two Linnets we caught one proved to be a rather large male of wing length 86mm, and rather dark appearance suggestive of Scottish origin. 

Linnet

By 10am we had to call it a day as the drizzly stuff turned to more solid rain. We had seen 250+ Linnets, a Sparrowhawk, several Blackbirds and a couple Song Thrush so hope to return and try again soon.

Here's wishing all of my readers and followers a Happy Christmas and A Prosperous New Year. 

Linking this post to Eileen's Blog and World Bird Wednesday.



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14 comments:

  1. eileeninmdDecember 19, 2017 at 2:12 PM

    Hello, sorry you were feeling ill. The weather does not often cooperate with birding trips. It is great that the farmer lets you use his land to catch the birds. The Linnet is beautiful, great photos.

    Merry Christmas to you and your family. Enjoy your day and week ahead!

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  2. SondraDecember 19, 2017 at 10:34 PM

    I have never seen a photo of a Twite! Really cute lovely little finches.

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  3. Betty J. CrowDecember 20, 2017 at 1:32 AM

    Hope you are feeling better. Not a good time of the year to be ill. There is a pond not far from here that always has ducks and geese, but it is too far from the road to get good shots. I'm hoping to find out who owns the land and see if I can trespass. Great shots!

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  4. Stuart PriceDecember 20, 2017 at 5:04 AM

    The Twite and Linnet look almost identical!

    Snowed off here..........

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  5. DanielaDecember 20, 2017 at 10:00 AM

    Dear Friend,
    I hope you're getting better and better :)!

    Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas,
    and a New Year filled with Love, Peace and many Blessings,

    XOXO Daniela at ~ My little old world ~ (Dany)

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  6. David M. Gascoigne,December 20, 2017 at 11:31 AM

    My word, you were so productive at home, maybe you should do more of that. I am sure that the others will be happy to have you act as official secretary for the group. They might even let you rejoin them banding now and then. To you and Sue, Phil, may I wish you all the best for Christmas and a phenomenal New Year with many exciting discoveries in the nets. It has been a pleasure to have you as a blogging friend for so many years now. Long may it continue. David

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  7. A Colorful WorldDecember 20, 2017 at 2:48 PM

    Wonderful post! Sorry you have been sick...I've been battling illness this week, myself! Enjoyed the photos.I have been reading about Lewis & Clark's expedition, and was happy to read they observed linnets along the Missouri R. I didn't even know we had linnets here in the States. That was a nice discovery. Have a wonderful Christmas, and be well!

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  8. Lowcarb team memberDecember 20, 2017 at 8:00 PM

    Sorry to read you were not feeling too good, hope you are a lot better now.
    I loved all of your photographs.

    Sending my good wishes to you and yours for a Happy Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year too.

    All the best Jan

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  9. Leslie's GardenDecember 23, 2017 at 12:20 PM

    Such cute little birds! Think that chesty stuff is world-wide right now!

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  10. eileeninmdDecember 23, 2017 at 12:29 PM

    Hello Phil, I hope you are feeling better now. The birds are waiting for you!

    Thank you for linking up and sharing your post over the past year. I appreciate your comments too. Have a happy weekend. I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas!

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  11. sandylandDecember 23, 2017 at 6:51 PM

    MY BIRDS ARE DOWN RIGHT BOW EXCEPT A PERSISTENT HUMMINGBIRD BUDDY

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  12. SchotzyDecember 23, 2017 at 8:03 PM

    Merry Christmas and prayers for a healthy and vigorous New Year... I have a very difficult time telling the twite from the linnet... but they are fine specimens!

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  13. David M. Gascoigne,December 23, 2017 at 11:09 PM

    Re A Colorful World above........ There are no Linnets in the U.S. Lewis and Clark used European names for birds, as did many other naturalists of the day. That is how the American Robin came to be so named. It is not a robin at all, but a thrush. In fact, its scientific name, Turdus migratorius, means migratory thrush. Europeans, nostalgic for home, saw a bird with a red breast and called it a robin, calling to mind the robin (a flycatcher) they had left behind.

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  14. Stewart MDecember 27, 2017 at 6:44 AM

    Looking forward to the new ringing location for 2018. I think I'd struggle to tell Twite from Linnet these days (maybe in the past as well!)

    Cheers (and hope you had a good Christmas) - Stewart M - Melbourne

    ReplyDelete

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