Thinks!

Where to go was the dilemma? Oakenclough had been quiet with poor catches, Tuesday might be too soon after our last uninspiring visit, and strange as it may seem, by 18 May, spring migration is already tailing off.

We knew that at Cockerham was a brood of Lapwings ready for ringing together with some “Acros”, the lazy birders' name for Acrocephalus warblers, small insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus small,insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus Acrocephalus.

We drove to where the Lapwing chicks were seen a couple of days ago to see the farmer's £200,000 sprayer heading across the field. Luckily the field is sizeable and the ringing job would be done and dusted before the huge machine reached the Lapwings or ourselves. Andy quickly located all three chicks and popped them into a tractor rut as the adults watched from above before returning to parental duties. 

Lapwing chicks

Crop Sprayer

Lapwing chick

In the same field were more Lapwings and an Oystercatcher sat on recently laid eggs. We didn't check but the oyk appeared there soon after the crop sprouted to give cover to the eggs. It went into my notebook for something to think about in coming days. 

Job done we set a couple of nets in nearby reeds and caught acros but no other species - 4 Reed Warblers and 4 Sedge Warblers. One of the Reed Warblers bore a ring ALJ4078 that we thought would be our own. It was, sort of. In fact our ringing colleague Seumus Eaves had first ringed the Reed Warbler on 6 August 2020 at Fleetwood Marsh just 20 miles away in a south westerly direction.

“Well what's so great about that” you might say - “It just followed the coast”.

Reed Warbler

Sedge Warbler

 

Fleetwood and Cockerham

Not so much is the answer except that in the intervening period of ringing at Fleetwood and recapture at Cockerham, the Reed Warbler had flown to Africa and back.

Last August and setting off at dusk from Fleetwood this bird found its way to sub Saharan Africa where it spent the winter of 2020/21. Don't forget, this bird was born in Britain and had never been to Africa before attempting this perilous, unknown adventure.

In early May 2021 it headed back to England, avoided Border Control checks and found it's way to Cockerham.  A little off target for Fleetwood but not a bad effort don't you think?

Linking this weekend to Eileen's Saturday and Anni in Texas.