Tuesday 7th April 2026

 

A female Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe), the scientific name originates from Greek, meaning "vine" (oenoē) and "bloom" (anthos), referring to the birds' arrival in Greece in spring, coinciding with the blossoming of grapevines. 4 Wheatear have been seen today.

A clear morning with a brisk wind from ESE produced some more interesting migrants. A group of 12 Little gull where seen flying north with our first Common tern of the season flying shortly behind. A little later in the morning we ringed our earliest ever Whitethroat, beating the previous record by a day. Signs of nesting are starting to happen around the site, with a Linnet seen collecting nesting material.

Sea watching also produced 3 Avocets, 2 Curlews and 2 Black-headed gulls, all flying north. 12 Shelduck where seen flying south. 

Moth trapping: usual mix of Quakers joined by the Swallow prominent, the larvae feed on Poplar trees and the adult emerges from a chrysalis underground post winter.  

Swallow Prominent (Pheosia tremula).

Ringing: 4 Chiffchaff, 2 Blackcap, 1 Linnet, 1 Pied wagtail, 1 Whitethroat. 

Whitethroat (Curruca communis) - Todays nice adult male with a reddish orange iris compared to a more gey iris seen in birds born last Spring. *Supporting other ageing criteria: such as rr4-5 showing distinct white markings*.

Monday 6th April 2026

A pleasant bank holiday morning in the calm ambient conditions delivered a perfectly acceptable selection. A Sedge Warbler was our second earliest ever only beaten by one on 5th April 2003 with a Great Spotted Woodpecker flying through a scarce spring visitor. Other migrants include 15 Chiffchaff, 15 Wheatear, 12 Blackcap, 2 Willow Warbler, Firecrest plus a Rook flying south. 11 Oyks also went south with offshore passage almost non-existent. What is quite likely to be the Serin from a couple of days ago was whizzing around mid-morning.

Ringing: 10 Blackcap, 10 Chiffchaff, 1 Firecrest, 1 Robin, 1 Sedge Warbler, 1 Song Thrush, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Wren.

Sunday 5th April 2026

Windy morning following overnight gale didn't prevent a half decent arrival of fairly predictable early April fare. At least 50 Chiffchaff is our largest ever spring "fall" for this species whose numbers are increasing over the years due to climatic amelioration. The supporting cast included 10 Willow Warbler, 6 Wheatear & 2 Blackcap making for an acceptable arrival. Offshore southbound 10 Black-heads, 2 Avocet, 2 Brent, 2 Rook, 2 Shelduck, Heron, Oyk & Turnstone.

Only two moths in the traps including this Double-striped Pug which is a very common species with multiple emergences that will be flying all year round before long.

Ringing: 34 Chiffchaff, 9 Willow Warbler, 2 Blackcap.

Saturday 4th April 2026

 

Serin singing his cotton socks off from 0610 to 0630 hrs was the first here since three different birds in 2022. The photos on the blog of those individuals are all clearly identifiable, whereas this mornings, in the early morning gloom takes a leap of faith on behalf of blog readers.

Other migrants include 4 Chiffchaff, 3 Blackcap, 2 new Songies, 2 Wheatear, Fieldfare, Goldcrest, Mipit, Redwing & Swallow.

Northern Drab is a saltmarsh specialist that is not recorded that often in Suffolk probably due to few moth traps set along the estuaries early in the season. It has been noted here in most years this century, but not last.

Ringing: 2 Blackcap, 2 Chiffchaff, 2 Linnet, 2 Song Thrush, 1 Goldcrest, 1 Redwing.

Friday 3rd April 2026

A ringed, Ring plover (Charadrius hiaticula) most likely one of our own ringed as a chick.   

A bleek morning, with strong SSW wind with spells of drizzle, brought in a new female Wheatear alongside a male late morning, with both disappearing by lunch. 

Visibility remained good for sea watching with 10 Oystercatcher, 2 Black headed gulls and a Gannet seen flying north. 3 Gannet and 2 Greylag were seen flying south. 7 Common scoter were seen riding the waves.  

Moth trapping produced less than 5 individuals between the 3 traps... consisting of hebrews and quakers. Perhaps the moon reduced the draw of the traps!  

The full moon seen to the east last night, marking the easter weekend. 

Ringing: 5 Chiffchaff

 

Ringing Recoveries

Blackbird ringed Reddingbootpad, Vlieland, The Netherlands, 10th November 2022 retrapped 286 km away at LBO 15th November 2025 would be on autumn migration through both sites three years apart.

Lesser Redpoll ringed LBO 18th October 2025 was retrapped 306 km away at Nettlefield Wood, Cheshire on 21st March 2026. This bird would be on autumn migration & heading north in spring through Cheshire.

Thursday 2nd April 2026

 

Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) taken yesterday of a ringed bird, unfortunately our efforts to capture it were unsuccessful and the bird remained too distant to get a clear photo of the ring, it may have been one of the 14 ringed in April 2024, or could have been further afield..... frustrating!!!!! 

Today, remaining overcast, with few random spells of sunshine, the wind was once again northerly, with the sound of Fieldfare and Redwing moving through first light. 

Good visibility out to sea produced; a Marsh harrier, 18 Black-headed gull, 5 Cormorant, 3 Greylag and 2 Red throated divers, all flying south. Flying north where; 3 Common scoter, 3 Red-throated divers, 2 Brent Geese and a Shelduck. 

A new Wheatear was spotted - without a ring, on the peninsular and no sign of the Stonechat from yesterday, with it last being seen at dusk. 1 Firecrest was seen and a Common snipe was flushed twice within the observatory, however avoiding nets each time! A Fulmar was also spotted flying along the shore. 

Early thorn (Selenia dentaria) - First for spring this year. 

Moth trapping - Common quaker and Hebrew character present again, most notable was the Early thorn shown above, this moth has two emergences, in spring and late summer - with the later brood being paler. The moth larvae feed on a variety of deciduous trees.  

Ringing: 7 Chiffchaff, 1 Blackbird, 1 Blackcap, 1 Redwing 

Today's somewhat grey looking Redwing! (Turdus iliacus), perhaps one of the last ones until autumn to pass through, with none ringed here in April since 2022!