Without a doubt the main highlight of the day and possibly the year was a Short-toed Treecreeper that was originally caught within the Bird Observatory compound at 07:00hrs. It showed classic features of Short-toed and was enjoyed by many birders throughout the day. It is the 1st record for Suffolk and the 26th record for Britain! Apart from the Short-toed Treecreeper it was extremely quiet, other birds of note were 1 Brambling, 2 Lesser Redpoll, 1 male Goldcrest, 2 Grey Heron migrating north and 1 Little Owl. Only 7 birds ringed in total: 1 Short-toed Treecreeper, 1 Robin, 1 Wren, 1 Blackbird and 3 Chaffinch. A Grass Snake was also seen today, found on one of the many paths within the observatory compound. Obviously the warmth is beginning to bring out the reptiles!
Landguard Bird Observatory has been informed of a recovery of a Long-tailed Tit that has gone to Somerset. This is quite a long distance for a Long-tailed Tit as they usually do not move very far at all! It is unusual for a bird ringed in Suffolk to go any further than Norfolk! The bird was ringed at Landguard on October 28th 2008 and found freshly dead in Somerset on March 3rd 2011.
