Box checking.

Having missed getting tickets for Radio 1's big weekend gig in Bangor - Chris decided that a weekend of nest box checking was the next best option. So on Friday evening I collected him from the train station for a weekend of ringing - after all he did want some experience of ringing pulli of nest box species for his pullus endorsement.

Saturday morning saw us in Atherton woods checking the boxes, the wood along with Lilford wood houses some 250 boxes (mainly tit boxes + owl/stock dove) but getting round to all 250 boxes in a day is very hard. However we did check around 80 boxes, with most of them containing nesting Blue Tits, Great Tits and one box having a family of Nuthatch (below).

Blue Tit - 115 + 1 recap
Great Tit - 22
Nuthatch - 6

After checking the boxes it was time for a quick beer (to cool down!) and then we decided to try our luck for Swifts at the local reedbed - but none where around - so we had to make do with Swallow instead

Sunday evening I met up with Steve at Botany Bay Woods to check his boxes, which resulted in a few Blue Tit & Great Tit being ringed. After box checking we had a drive around the fields and caught 4 Lapwing chicks (below).

Also ringed this weekend - 5 Song Thrush pulli + 1 adult.

As I sit here I can hear fledged Starling chicks, it's that time of the year again - I'll have to get the traps ready!!