RINGING UPDATE

Ringing & Sightings

Click  here to get the list  of the birds ringed from 1980 onwards.

May 2008 Sightings
3 May 2008 The highlight of the weekend's ringing was a male Cuckoo, caught on No3 bed, while warbler numbers are picking up across the reserve.

Sightings included an excellent male Whinchat on No1 bed, 5 overflying Whimbrel on No3, 2 Lesser Whitethroats and 2 Garden warblers.

April 2008 Sightings
26th April 2008 55 new birds were ringed over the weekend, including the first Wheatear for a few years, on No3 bed and a Common Redpoll on No1 bed, which was amongst a flock of 20 or so Lessers (16 of were caught including 2 ringed birds). Warbler numbers are starting to increase, with seven species ringed, while the first Linnet of the year was also ringed. Eight Willow Warblers were also caught on No1 bed that had been ringed in previous years.

Sightings included Swifts over both beds, 1 Cuckoo, 2 Med. Gulls and a Common Sandpiper, all on No3, with No1 producing 3 Water Rails and a Common Tern.

19th April 2008 The east wind was a little too much for ringing on No1 bed where a single Willow Warbler was the only new bird ringed, the more sheltered No3 bed fared better, with nine new birds, including the first Whitethroat and Blackcap to be ringed during 2008.

Sightings included a colour ringed Blackcap from 2005, Reed Warblers on both No1 and 3 beds with a Grasshopper Warbler reeling by the first barrier, and a Buzzard attacking a male Pheasant which escaped.

12th April 2008 The Bramblings keep on getting ringed on No3 bed, with another 7 caught, while incoming migrants were represented by 2 Willow Warblers and a Chiffchaff on No1 bed and another 2 of each species on No3 bed. 2 Song Thrushes ringed on No1 were their first for the year.

Sightings included:

No1: 1 Peregrine, 3 Snipe, 100+ Sand Martins, 4 House Martins, 20 Swallows, 5 late Fieldfare, roosting, 1 Sedge Warbler, 2 Blackcaps, 12 Willow Warblers and 15 Chiffchaffs.

No3: 2 Buzzards, 2 Stock Doves and 1 Sedge Warbler

5th April 2008 The ringing totals included the first Sand Martins and Willow Warblers for the year and more Brambling from No3 bed.

Sightings include 5 Scaup, Red Kite, 4 Whimbrel, 1 Med. Gull and a Wheatear all from No3 bed, where there was also 100+ Sand Martins/hour moving north.

Sand Martins were also a feature of No1 bed, with over 100 feeding over the pools.

March 2008 Sightings
29th March 2008 Kieran took advantage of half-term week and he and Stuart had ringing sessions on 25th and 27th as well as the regular morning session today. In total 45 new birds were rung, the highlight being Woolston's second Dunlin which walked into a basket trap on the scrape almost the same as Woolston's first Dunlin in 2006, except that the little bugger was too light to set the trap off by tself. It took three hours of gentle “twinkling” and a pull chord to eventually catch it. It was a remarkably tame bird, at times allowing approach to around 5 feet, so close in fact that Kieran could hear it pecking at the mud. Bramblings continue to be seen around the bed in reasonable numbers and 12 new birds were ringed during the week. The other highlights were a late Redwing on 25th, two new Willow Tits and the first capture in the new 'double' net , aka the canopy net. The bird was a returning ringed Chiffchaff, one of two such 'phloscs' caught this week.

Sightings included a Green Sandpiper, Oystercatcher, Lapwing and Dunlin (27th), 9 Sand Martins and 2 House Martins ( 29th) and 3 Scaup and an unusual sighting of a Pinkfooted Goose on the water with two Greylags (29th).

John and Tony arrived late to number one bed to do some work, sightings included two House Martin.

15th March 2008 Only ringing on No1, this weekend, with the first Chiffchaffs in and a new Yellowhammer ringed. Sightings included a Sandwich Tern, flying west along MSC and two flocks of Lesser Redpolls, on No1 and No3.

8th March 2008 The breezy weather restricted the ringing to the more sheltered feeding stations, reducing the potential catch although another Brambling was caught on No3 bed, their ninth of the year, so far', but two teal managed to escape from the duck trap on the same bed, and four different Great Spotted Woodpeckers were retrapped.

Sightings included (all No1 bed) 1 Merlin, 14 Snipe (including a drumming bird), 1 Woodcock and a Red-legged Partridge, only the third record for the reserve after two records on No3 bed in 2005.

1st March 2008 No mist netting this weekend due to the breezy conditions, although the No3 bed team managed to catch a Mallard in their duck trap.

Not many sightings to report, although a Stonechat was on No1 bed on 27th and there were a few Snipe about.

February 2008 Sightings
23rd February 2008 A quiet day, but another two Brambling caught on No3 bed.

Sightings included: Woodcock and four Yellowhammer on No1 bed, eight Woodcock on No2, Water Rail, 15 Goldfinches on No3 along with potential breeders Grey Heron and Lapwing, an early Common Sandpiper along the canal and two Mediterranean Gulls on the old Richmond works site.

16th February 2008 The team on No1 bed caught their first Willow Tit of the year, while the guys on No3 bed caught another three Brambling, 9 Chaffinches and their first Greenfinches of the year (10).

Sightings included a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker near No1 bed along with a Chiffchaff in the eastern reedbed.

9th February 2008 4 Scaup were seen on No 3 bed today, 3 males and a female, at lunch time they were showing well in front of the John Morgan Hide. Up to 4 Brambling were seen on the feeders at the Frank Linley along with the very regular Willow Tit. Several people have seen a small flock of Redpoll and Siskin.

The ringing team on No3 bed did well, although only catching seven new birds, their catch included 1 Coal Tit (just about annual on Ringing Totals) and two Brambling. The team on No1 caught their secon Woodpigeon of the year along with a Goldfinch and two Goldcrests.

Sightings included a 1st winter Glaucous Gull over No1 and 2 Buzzards, 8 Siskins and 6 Bramblings all on No3.

January 2008 Sightings
26th January 2008 Ringing took place on No1 bed on both Friday and Saturday with No3 bed being worked on the Saturday only. The conditions were windier than hoped for, although the feeding station on No1 did well with 53 birds caught, including two new Yellowhammers and a new Goldcrest, while the team on No3 bed caught four new birds, including a Coot and a new Water Rail.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: 300 Jackdaw, 1 Snipe, 20 Long-tailed Tits, Firecrest, 1 Chiffchaff, a Little Grebe (trilling) and two Skylarks.

No3 bed: 1 Jack Snipe, 5 Snipe, 2 Woodcocks, 2 Tawny Owls, 1 Pintail and a Ruddy Duck.

19th January 2008 The only sighting of note was the Firecrest, still on No1 bed.

12th January 2008 The highlight of this two week period was the male Lesser Spotted Woodpecker caught on No1 bed, the first since 2000, and only the fifth to be ringed at the Eyes. The Firecrest from before Christmas was retrapped on 5th, while Water Rail and Moorhen were both ringed on No3.

Sightings were restricted to a small flock of Siskins on Butchersfield Tip and two Woodcock on the track to No1 bed.

December 2007 Sightings
1st December 2007 Tom Westhead had a session on No1 on Monday 26th November, catching the ninth Yellowhammer of the year there.

The following Saturday was very quiet, with only 12 new birds ringed, including the fourth Magpie for No1 bed this year.

Sightings were also restricted, with a Curlew flying over both beds 1 and 3, while No3 bed also produced 4 Snipe, 1 Tawny Owl and 2 Lesser Redpolls.

8th December 2007 A small amount of ringing took place on No1 bed on Friday, while there were sessions on Nos 1 and 3 on the Saturday morning. A total of 28 new birds were ringed, with the winter crop on No3 bed producing the best results.

Sightings included a Firecrest on No1 on the Friday, while birds counted going to roost on the bed included 500+ Starlings and 50+ Magpies. Sightings on the Saturday included a tawny Owl by the second barrier and a Woodcock and Chiffchaff on No1. No3 bed sightings included 2 Water Rail and a Tawny Owl.

15th December 2007 A new ringing species for Woolston and two new species for the year was the reward for the teams at the Eyes on Saturday. Kieran managed to 'rush' a Canada Goose into the new duck trap on No3 bed, while a Brambling was caught amongst the Chaffinches on the same bed, the winter crop there proving to be a great success with masses of finches and buntings making use of it. The highlight on No1 bed was a stunning male Firecrest with another one calling nearby.

Sightings on No3 bed included Tawny Owl, small numbers of Redwings and unusually for No3 bed, 3 Kestrels in the air together.

31st December 2007 Highlights of the past two weeks include the first water rails to be ringed this year and another four Moorhens and the second Brambling (all on No3).

Sightings included a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker on No3 and the Firecrest still present on No1.

November 2007 Sightings
20th October to 3rd November A total of 182 birds ringed with 83 0n No1 bed and 99 on No3, highlights included 5 Snipe and 4 Redwing on No3 along with and extraordinary 15 Bullfinches caught ther over two Saturday mornings. The birds on No1 included there first Coal Tit of the year and their 2nd - 5th Meadow Pipits, while Lesser Redpolls continue to be caught with 20 ringed across the reserve in the period.

Sightings include:

No1 bed: 3 Whooper Swans, 1 Pink-footed Goose, 2 Woodcocks, 1 Jack Snipe, 1 martin sp (probably House) on 29th, female Stonechat and a Chiffchaff.

No3 bed: 2 Pintail, 2 Jack Snipe, 8 Snipe, 1 Woodcock, 1 Buzzard, 1 Tawny Owl, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 3 Chiffchaffs, 40 Fieldfares (roost), 300 Redwings and 6 min. Bearded Tits.

10th November A breezy morning, but still one or two spots where nets could be put up out of the wind. Ringing took place on beds 1 and 3, and a total of just 17 new birds were ringed, the highlight being a new Willow Tit on No3.

Sightings were also few and far between, but included (all No1 bed) 1 Woodcock, 1 Jack Snipe and 1 Merlin.

17th November 63 new birds ringed including Blackcap (No3 bed) and Chiffchaff (No 1 bed), while the No3 bed Cetti's Warbler was caught again after a gap of six weeks. Six Lesser Redpolls, also on No3 was a good total and one of the Chaffinches, a male, with a 94mm wing was considered a probable continental bird.

The seeded area of No3 produced sightings of a Yellowhammer and four Bramblings, whilst other sightings there included Water Rail, 1 Jack Snipe, 1 Woodcock, 8 Snipe and a Tawny Owl.

Sightings on No1 bed included 4 Water rails, 8 Snipe, Merlin and 2 Sparrowhawks.

24th November A quiet morning with rain from 09.00. Very few sightings, but included small flocks of Fieldfare flying over No1 bed.

October 2007 Sightings
5th October 2007 The weather was a little too excellent over Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, with no wind but bright sunshine. Still, and excellent catch was had with 186 new birds ringed and four species added to the 2007 ringing list.

The team on No1 bed ringed 113 birds including Green Woodpecker (the first one to be ringed for two years), Meadow Pipit (first of the year) and Yellow-browed Warbler (third record for the reserve, second to be ringed), the latter bird being the first bird to be caught over the weekend. Top species was Greenfinch with 34 new followed by Lesser Redpoll with 21, eight Chiffchaffs and 12 Goldcrests were also good totals.

The No3 bed team ringed 73 new birds, including the first Cetti's Warbler of the year (fourth ringing record), in view of the sightings earlier this year and last year, could there be a be a hidden breeding population on the reserve? Three Reed Warblers and four Lesser Redpolls were also ringed here, along with five Redwings and five Song Thrushes.

Sightings included: No1 bed: 3 Tawny Owls, 1 Coal Tit, 2 Little Grebes, a late Whitethroat, and 1 female Wigeon. Visible passage included: 100+ Skylarks, 25 Meadow Pipits, 5 Grey Wagtails, 10 Redwing and 8 Siskin.

No3 bed: 9 Snipe, 1 Buzzard, 1 Tawny Owl and 1 Siskin.

12th October 2007 A little quieter this weekend, although an interesting retrap was a Reed Warbler caught on No1 with a fat score of 6 and weighing in at 14.8 grms.

Other warblers were few and far between, although three Magpies were caught, not quite as good as the Yellow-browed and Cetti's warblers of the week before!

Not much on the sightings front, either, with a light visible passage of Skylarks (approx. 100) over No1 and 15 Snipe on No3 bed scrape along with a male Wigeon on the river there.

September 2007 Bird Sightings
1st September 2007 The ringing team on No1 had a quiet time with 60 new birds ringed, including 3 Goldcrests and a variety of warblers, while the centre of No3 bed provided the team there with 133 new birds, including 97 warblers, of which an amazing 60 were Blackcaps and 17 Chiffchaffs.

There were few sightings of note, although the migration watch team counted 22 Buzzards from the top of Butchersfield Tip.

15th September 2007 These notes cover the last two weeks.

The team on number three bed have continued to have a good run of Blackcaps with another sixty-nine being ringed. They also managed a good day (by their standards) with thrushes on the 15th with 6 blackbirds and three sonth. Sightings wise, not much, but Tawny Owl calling in the copse and Badger.

David faired less well ringing 27 new birds during the first weekend though 17 of these were warblers.

John and Tony managed 57 new birds for the two weeks which included 5 Lesre from a flock of about 25 birds. Sightings including the first Woodcock of the year disturbed below the tip, along with two Snipe and two Grey Wagtails on the pools.

22nd September 2007 Just the team on No3 ringing, catching an excellent 51 new warblers out of 95 new birds.

29th September 2007 Excellent weather conditions Friday afternoon and Saturday morning made the session most enjoyable with 174 new birds ringed.

The team on No1 bed, present both days catching 114 new birds including 7 Reed Warblers, 26 Chiffchaffs, 8 Goldcrests and 15 Lesser Redpolls, while the No.3 bed team caught 60 new birds on the Saturday morning, including their first Woodpigeon of the year, four Blackcaps and a further three Bullfinches.

Sightings from No1 bed included; 1 Water Rail, 2 Tawny Owls, 4 Snipe, 5 Buzzards, 2 Sparrowhawks, 3 Mistle Thrushes and a Green Woodpecker. Visible passage included: 20 House Martins, 50+ Swallows, 50+ Skylarks, 10 Grey Wagtails, 2 Pied Wagtails, 30+ Meadow Pipits, 11 Lapwing, 3 Collared Doves, 20 Redwings, 2 Siskin, 20 Goldfinch and 20+ Lesser Redpolls.

August 2007 Bird Sightings
4th August 2007 An excellent week's ringing with 591 birds ringed across the reserve. Highlights included 151 Swallows and 27 Sand Martins caught in the centre of No3 bed, where a roost of 1000 or so has built up, 59 Reed Warblers, 24 Blackcaps, 63 Chiffchaffs and 37 Willow Warblers. Bullfinches are still being caught in good numbers with 14 new birds ringed during the week including 10 on No1 bed, although Blue and Great Tits are only being caught in low numbers.

Sightings included Hobbys over both No1 and 3, Green Woodpeckers on No1 and by the main track near the Old Pumphouse, Tree Pipit and Yellow Wagtail both over No1.

11th August 2007 The team on No3 bed had two successful mid-week catches of Swallows, followed by a reasonable catch on the Saturday morning, which included 60 Greenfinches. The No1 bed team caught 134 new birds over the Friday afternoon/Saturday morning session, including 3 Lesser Whitethroats and six Garden Warblers, while David Norman, working the east bank of No3 bed caught 71 new birds including 18 Reed Warblers and 15 Chiffchaffs.

Sightings included tawny Owls on Nos 1 and 3 beds, with up to 1000 Swallows roosting on No3.

18th August 2007 Of note, excellent hirundine roost on No3 bed and the first Tree Pipits caught on No1 bed for a while.

Sightings include two Hobbies and a flock of 35 Lapwings - both on No3 bed.

25th August 2007 299 new birds were ringed during the week up to 25th. The size of the Swallow roost on No3 has reduced, with only 300 birds or so present, resulting in the reduced catch of 61 birds. 55 Blackcaps were ringed, with good numbers across the reserve, and the three Kingfishers caught by John Blundell and Tony Davies by the west pool on No1 bed were the first for the year.

Sightings included single Hobbys on Nos 1 and 3, Peregrine on No1 along with Tawny Owl, while 80+ House Martins and 2 Curlew were seen on No3. Sighting of the week was probably the five Kestrels soaring over No1 along with a Buzzard and a Raven!

July 2007 Bird Sightings
7th July 2007 The team on No3 bed had an excellent Saturday morning, catching 179 birds (136 new), including superb numbers of Wrens (15) along with juvenile Great-spotted Woodpecker, Treecreeper, Willow Tit and 2 Jays.

The teams working beds 2 and 1 had much quieter sessions, although, again, good numbers of Wrens were caught.

There were no real sightings of note.

14th July 2007 Good numbers of birds again ringed at the Eyes, including 21 Willow Warblers on No1 bed 13 Blackcaps on No3 bed.

Sightings included 2 Ravens, 2 Grasshopper Warblers and 2 Grey Partridges all on No1.

21st July 2007 Rain again interrupted the ringing session over the weekend, with 56 new birds ringed on No1 bed including a juvenile Yellowhammer and an excellent 17 Sedge Warblers. 45 of the new birds were warblers, 80% of the total.

44 new birds were ringed on No3 bed, including an astonishing 11 Bullfinches (out of 20 caught!), along with 2 Jays, 2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a Treecreeper.

28th July 2007 376 birds were ringed over the period, the highest weekly total of the year.

130 new birds were ringed on No1 bed during Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, including 88 warblers, of note were 28 Reed Warblers, 2 Lesser Whitethroats, 2 Garden Warblers and 22 Willow Warblers, while single Blue and Great Tits was an indication of the poor breeding season for these species.

David Norman had his first session of the year on the east side of No3 bed, after opening his rides he caught 9 new birds, including eight warblers.

The team working the centre of No3 had an excellent session on Tuesday 24th as well as the weekend, resulting in a superb catch of 237 new birds for the week, including 144 warblers. They caught their first Swallows of the year as they left their roost, while the warbler total included 14 Sedge Warblers, 60 Reed Warblers, a Lesser Whitethroat and 28 Chiffchaffs.

Sightings included a Little Owl on No1 and three Ravens soaring over No3 bed.

June 2007 Bird Sightings
1st and 9th June 2007 Numbers of juveniles are steadily increasing, with the first Coal Tit and juvenile Willow tits caught on No3 bed. A Garden Warbler with brood patch trapped on No1 bed. The first free flying Lapwing for a number of years was caught on No3.

Not many sightings to report, other than Stock Doves and a House Sparrow both seen on No3, both unusual sightings there.

16th June 2007 Rain during Friday evening and Saturday morning restricted the ringing activities to 4 hours on No1 bed during Friday afternoon and 4 hours on No2 bed on the Saturday morning. A good flock of Long-tailed tits was caught on No1, while the only sighting of note was a 2nd summer Mediterranean Gull on No3.

23rd June 2007 The Thunder storms on Friday reduced the ringing opportunities, with only 14 or so birds caught on No1 bed. Saturday morning proved to be much better, with overcast conditions and little wind. Alan Hitchmough and Dave Riley caught 58 new birds on No1 bed, including the first Starling to be ringed for two years, and their first Willow Tit of the year, along with their second Sand Martin and Juvenile lesser Whitethroat and Goldcrest.

30 birds were ringed by the No3 bed team, including two Willow Tits and their second and third Willow Warblers of the year.

Sightings included 2 Water Rails on No1 and 2 Wigeon on No3 along with good numbers of Black-necked Grebes.

30th June 2007 For the third week in succession, rain spoiled the ringing activities, with light showers from 04.40 on the Saturday morning, restricting the time with the nets open to less than 4 hours on No1 bed. Reasonable numbers of Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs where caught there, while Swallow, Magpie and Linnet were added to their annual ringing list.

Sightings were minimal, with a Pochard brood and Barn Owl seen on No1 and 2 Mediterranean Gulls on No3.

May 2007 Bird Sightings
12th May 2007 Sightings included ten species of warbler recorded on No1 bed on Friday afternoon, possibly a first for the reserve? An outbreak of excitement occurred on No3 bed, when Dave Steel found a Swift sp. with a white rump over No3 bed, but after it was scoped, it was identified as an aberrant Common Swift. Cuckoos were recorded on all three beds, while swifts were present in good numbers and a Hobby was seen flying from No3 bed over to No2.

19th May 2007 Breezy conditions restricted the ringing session on both days, but good numbers of pullus tits were ringed, particularly on No3 bed. New species caught for the year included 2 Goldfinch on No2 bed and a Grasshopper Warbler on No1.

Good numbers of Swifts were present on No1 on the Friday, while Wheatears and Lesser Whitethroats were both noted on Nos 1 and 2 on the Saturday. An excellent count of eight Water Rails was made, also on No1 bed, on the Saturday.

26th May 2007 A reasonable session with the catch of juvenile birds increasing by the week, highlights included a Lesser Whitethroat with a brood patch on No1 along with the first Sand Martin of the year and two juvenile Goldcrests on No2. Excellent numbers of Reed Warblers were caught on both beds 2 and 3, while two broods of Long-tailed Tits (totalling 21 birds) were caught on No3.

Sightings included Cuckoos on beds 1 (1 bird) and 3 (2) and a third juvenile Goldcrest on No1, also of interest was a Long-eared Bat caught in the nets on No1 and successfully released.

April 2007 Bird Sightings
7th & 8th April 2007 The recent fine weather has seen the arrival of spring migrants with the first Willow Warblers and Blackcaps reported this weekend. Black-necked Grebes have increased to 12 and 3 Little Gulls were on No.3 bed on 8th April. A Great White Egret flew over the Reserve on 7th and a survey on 4th produced 46 singing Chiffchaffs.

Butterflies have been present in good numbers with up to 20 Peacocks and similar numbers of Small Tortoiseshell. The first orange Tip was seen on 4th April and a male Brimstone on 6th was the first of the year. So far seven different species have been reported.

Sightings include the following:

No1: 07/04: 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Cetti's Warbler, 10 Redwing, 9 Sand Martin

No3: 07/04: 1 Woodcock, 1 Common Gull, 2 Blackcaps, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Bearded Tit

No3: 08/04: 3 adult Little Gulls, 2 singing Willow Warblers

13th & 14th April 2007 42 new birds ringed across the reserve, with 23 caught on No1 bed. Amongst the highlights here were 15 Willow Warblers - the first this year - including 9 retraps from previous years. 3 Lesser Redpolls were also caught, including a fine male originally ringed on the bed four years ago.

John Blundell and Tony Davis caught 10 new birds on No2 bed, including 2 Chiffchaffs and three Blackcaps, while the team working on No3 bed caught 27 birds of which nine were new, including the reserve's first Magpie of the year and a further three Blackcaps.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: 2 Shelduck, 9 Snipe (including 5 leaving the reed bed at dusk), 1 Whimbrel, 2 Curlew, 3 Water Rails, 10 Sand Martins, 3 Swallows, 3 Blackcap, 30 (min.) Willow Warblers and 1 Coal Tit

No3 bed: 2 Shelduck, 1 Buzzard, 3 Lapwings on the scrape, including display, Mediterranean Gull, 6 Little Gulls (incl. 5 adults) and 2 Skylarks flying east, also seen were the first Orange Tip butterflies.

20th & 21st April 2007 More migrants in this week, with Sedge Warbler, Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Blackcap, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff caught. Also of note were single Snipe (No1 bed) and Willow Tit (No3 bed), both ringed.

Sightings included (max. counts over the two days):

No1 bed: 4 Water Rails, Oystercatcher, Common Sandpiper, Ringed Plover, 2 Tawny Owls, 2 Wheatears, 1 male Cetti's Warbler, 4 Grasshopper Warblers, 1 each of Reed and Sedge Warblers, 10 Blackcaps and 2 Whitethroat.

No3 bed: 1 Ringed Plover, 1 Swift, 1 Grasshopper Warbler, 2 Reed Warblers, 1 Whitethroat.

March 2007 Bird Sightings
2nd March 2007 Generally a quiet session, the only surprise being four different Great Spotted Woodpeckers caught at the feeding station on No1 bed on Saturday - 2 males and 2 females.

Sightings included: The 'sinensis' type Cormorant, 4 Buzzards, Peregrine, 2 Grey Partridge, 2 Water Rails, 100+ Fieldfare and 100+ Redwing (roosting), a Cetti's Warbler (singing) and an over flying Brambling.

10th March 2007 39 new birds were ringed at the Eyes over the weekend. The highlight of the 19 new birds caught on No1 was a new Yellowhammer - the seventh of the year, while Reed Buntings are still being caught in reasonable numbers.

John Blundell and Tony Davis caught seven new birds on No2 bed, including the second Song Thrush of the year for them and the reserve. 29 birds were caught on No3 bed, of which 13 were new, including their first Jay of the year, while a male Sparrowhawk (originally ringed during 2006) was also caught.

Sightings included:

No1 bed Friday 9th - 2 Woodcock, 50+ Fieldfare and 12 Redwing. Saturday - 1 Curlew, 1 Oystercatcher, 2 Snipe, 1 Woodcock, 1 Peregrine, 6 Buzzards, 2 singing Cetti's Warblers and 2 Bearded Tits.

No3 bed Saturday - 3 Buzzards, 3 Water Rails calling, 1 Chiffchaff, 2 male Bearded Tits and 1 Siskin.

17th March 2007 Ringing took place on No1 bed on Friday and Saturday, with the weather conditions on the first day allowing a slightly better catch. A total of 16 new birds were caught, including 11 Greenfinches, although the first bird caught on Saturday morning was a returning Chiffchaff, originally ringed as a 3j on 8th July 2006.

John Blundell and Tony Davis operated on No2 bed on Saturday, catching nine new birds, including the first Chiffchaff of the year, quickly followed by the second.

Sightings included the following:

No1 bed (16th): 4 Buzzards, 2 Snipe, 2 Grey Wagtails, 4 Fieldfare and 1 Chiffchaff (17th): 5 Grey Lag Geese, 2 Peregrines, 5 Buzzards, 1 Sparrowhawk, 4 Kestrels, 1 Woodcock, 1 Grey Wagtail, 5 Redwing, 1 Yellowhammer.

No2 bed (17th): 3 Goosanders flying along MSC, 15 Redwings leaving roost at dawn along south bank.

24th March 2007 Ringing took place on No1 bed on Friday and Saturday. A total of 22 new birds were caught, including 12 Greenfinches.

John Blundell and Tony Davis operated on No2 bed on Saturday, catching seven new birds.

15 new birds were trapped on No 3 bed including the first Chiffchaff ( plus a second retrapped) and the first Song Thrush of the year.

Sightings information is restricted to No3 bed and included 1 Jack Snipe, 2 Buzzards, 3 Water Rails, a Green Woodpecker (rare on No3), 3 different mink and the sunshine encouraged Comma and Peacock butterflies onto the wing.

31st March 2007 Sightings include the following:

No1: 1 Nuthatch, 2 Cetti's Warblers, 30 Redwing.

February 2007 Bird Sightings
3rd February 2007 An excellent session with over 100 birds ringed for the first time this year.

Dave Riley and Alan Hitchmough operated No1 bed, catching 96 birds (37 new), including 10 Chaffinch, 2 Yellowhammers and 14 Reed Buntings, while John Blundell and Tony Davis caught 12 new birds on No2, including a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

The team on No3 did exceptionally well, catching 118 birds (74 new), including a female Mallard, 10 Chaffinch, 41 Greenfinch and 12 Reed Buntings, they have now caught 2 more Reed Buntings during 2007 than they did for the whole of 2006.

Few sightings of note including the first returning Little Grebe and singing Yellowhammer - both on No1 and single Snipe and Sparrowhawk on No3.

10th February 2007 A quieter morning than the previous week, although the team on No3 did very well with the water birds, catching a Mallard, Moorhen and two Coot.

Not many sightings of note.

17th February 2007 A quietish weekend produced the third Coot of the year, on No3 and the fourth Yellowhammer, on No1, along with excellent numbers of Reed Buntings and Chaffinches.

Sightings included:

No1: 2 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Little Grebe, 1 Peregrine, 4 Buzzards, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Green Woodpeckers (displaying), 4 Collared Doves, 12 Skylarks, 60 Redwings and 2 Cetti's Warblers.

No2: 1 Buzzard, possible Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and 5 Bullfinches

No3: 1 Buzzard and 2 male Bearded Tits

24th February 2007 A reasonably successful Friday/Saturday session on No1 bed with 37 birds ringed including 2 Yellowhammers and 11 Reed Buntings, while John Blundell and Tony Davis caught 4 new birds on No2 bed including their first Treecreeper.

Tree felling around the nets in the centre of No3 bed had an adverse effect on the ringing, with 11 new birds ringed, including a Moorhen and a Willow Tit.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: Friday: 2 Little Grebes trilling, 100+ fieldfare and 26 Redwing roosting.

Saturday: 'Sinensis' type Cormorant on the canal, Goosander, Goldeneye (on west pool), male and female Peregrine

No3 bed: 2 Greylag Geese, 2 Water Rails and a Ramshorn Snail.

Common Toads were seen on Nos 1 and 3.

January 2007 Sightings
6th January 2007 A quiet morning's ringing across the three beds, although six new Reed Buntings were caught on each of beds 1 and 3, while a new Great Spotted Woodpecker was a surprise on No1, along with two re-trapped birds.

Not much to report in the sightings, with three Woodcock, 1 Snipe and 35 Redwings (flying south) reported from No1 bed.

13th January 2007 The breezy conditions didn't help the ringing teams on Saturday, but some nice birds were caught.

No1 bed: Dave Riley, Helen Williams and Roger Short (visiting from Devon) caught seven new birds, including a Great Spotted Woodpecker and two Redwings, they also caught the first Yellowhammer of the winter, a male originally ringed in early 2006.

No2 bed: John Blundell and Tony Davis caught five new birds which included the first Goldcrests for the reserve this year.

No3 bed: The team here were busy coppicing, but managed to catch 10 new birds including a female Sparrowhawk and seven new Reed Buntings, bringing the latter species to 13 for 2007, an excellent number considering they only caught 36 for the whole of 2006.

Sightings included:

No1: 1 male Peregrine, 8 Meadow Pipits, 14 Skylarks, 50+ Redwing (roosting), 25 Fieldfare, 2 Cetti's Warblers (both singing), 5 Lesser Redpolls and 1 Siskin.

No3: 1 Woodcock and four Lesser Redpolls.

20th January 2007 Breezy conditions restricted activities on beds 1 and 2, with no new birds caught on No1 and only 2 new Great Tits on No2. The team on the more sheltered No3 bed fared better, with 35 new birds over two sessions on Saturday and Sunday. The Budgie Mix, put out at the feeding station, continues to attract Reed Buntings, with an excellent 13 new birds caught, while, unusually for this time of the year, 13 new tits were ringed (6 Blue and 7 Great).

Sightings include:

No1 bed: 1 Woodcock, 2 Green Woodpeckers and 1 Cetti's Warbler.

No2 bed: 1 Woodcock

27th January 2007 A better weekend with 60 birds ringed, with good variety.

The No1 bed team caught 20 new birds including a male Sparrowhawk, 2 Redwings, 2 Linnets and a Yellowhammer, although finch numbers were low generally.

John Blundell and Tony Davis were rewarded with a Great Spotted Woodpecker and three new Robins on No 2 while the team on No3 caught 38 new birds, including Willow Tit and Treecreeper. Robins were caught in good numbers with 7 birds ringed, perhaps females arriving back?

Sightings included:

No1: 2 Peregrine (1 Male - different to the usual, 1 Female), 3 Water Rails, 3 Lesser Redpolls, 3 Yellowhammers and a Nuthatch (Woolston rarity)

No3: A mixed flock of finches reported from the centre of the bed including, Goldfinches, Siskins and Lesser Redpolls.

December 2006 Sightings
2nd December 2006 A quiet weekend, with only 30 new birds ringed, including 1 Chiffchaff (No3 bed) and 2 Linnets (No1 bed).

Sightings included:

No1 bed: Friday 1st December: 1 male Peregrine, 1 Snipe, 1 Tawny Owl and 2 Siskins
Saturday 2nd December: 1 male Peregrine, I Sparrowhawk, 3 Buzzards, 1 Water Rail, 2 Grey Wagtails, 10 Fieldfare and 1 Mistle Thrush

No3 bed: A Common Seal seen on the river bank by the bund below the Sybil Hogg hide.

9th December 2006 Although the weather was suitable for ringing, only 13 birds were actually caught, with 8 on No1 bed and 5 on No2, with the highlights being a Linnet on No1 and a Goldcrest on No.2.

Sightings included (all Saturday):

No1: 2 Water Rails, 2 Grey Partridge, 1f Peregrine, 2 Skylark, 1 Grey Wagtail, 1 Mistle Thrush, 170 Fieldfare (mainly small flocks all flying south), 26 Redwing, 1 Chiffchaff, 100+ Linnets (leaving roost) and 1 Yellowhammer.

No.3: 1 male Goldeneye, flying north.

16th December 2006 A quiet morning on No1 bed with just four birds ringed, although one of them was a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

The team on No3 fared better, ringing 18 birds including 3 Blackbirds.

Sightings included the following:

No. 1: 2 Whooper Swans, 6 Wigeon, 2 Snipe, 1 Water Rail, 3 Skylark, 1000+ Jackdaws, 1 Siskin and 2 Hawfinch

No 3: 1 Buzzard, 4 Skylark, 2 Lesser Redpolls and good numbers on Chaffinches flying around the bed.

23rd December 2006 An improved catch over the weekend, with the highlight on No1 being a flock of eight Lesser Redpolls (six new), which included two retraps, one from this Autumn and one from 2005. 38 new birds were ringed on No3 with good numbers of finches present, while eight birds caught on No2 included their first Great Spotted Woodpecker of the year and a Song Thrush.

Sightings included:

No1 bed 22/12/2006: 1 Jack Snipe, 2 Snipe

No1 bed 23/12/2006: 5 Redwing, 50+ Linnets (roost), 30+ Reed Buntings (roost), 6 Yellowhammers, Chiffchaff and the (assumed same) Cetti's Warbler singing again.

No2 bed: Merlin on 22nd

No3 bed 23/12/2006: 16 Wigeon, 4 Fieldfare and 10 Redpolls.

30th December 2006 The highlight was a male Sparrowhawk caught on No3 bed.

The Cetti's Warbler was still singing on No1 and may have joined by a second bird.

November 2006 Highlights
4th November 2006 Ringing took place over Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, on beds 1, 2 and 3 with 136 new birds ringed of 19 species.

Dave Riley and Tom Westhead worked No1 bed on both days, catching the bird of the weekend, a stunning adult male Merlin, which flew into one of the nets while Tom was extracting. The bird posed well for the photographers amongst the ringers and the images will been shown on the Eyes website soon. 17 Lesser Redpolls were also caught, bringing the total to 63 for the bed this year, while the three Goldfinches brought the annual total to 13 for this species.

John Blundell and Tony Davis worked their site on No2 bed, catching eleven birds which included two Goldcrests.

The team on No3 bed had a red letter on Saturday, catching the third Cetti’s Warbler for the reserve, a female, along with the first Brambling of the year and a further four Redwing.

Sightings included the following:

No1 bed: 1 Wigeon, 1 Water Rail, 1 Stock Dove, 1 Tawny Owl, 150+ Fieldfares (at last!), and 1 Cetti’s Warbler (the male still present, maybe it will get together with the female on No3!). Tom had an interesting sighting, when he saw two probable Little Egrets flying south over the bed, unfortunately he didn’t have his binoculars with him, so will remain only a probable.

No2 bed: 20 Pink-footed Geese flying south

No3 bed: Small numbers of Redwings and Lesser Redpolls present.

11th November 2006 Another two Redwings were caught on No3.

Main sighting concerned six Red-breasted Mergansers seen over No1, after being flushed off the canal by a ship.

18th November 2006 Only 74 new birds this weekend, but including 3 Redwing and 5 Lesser Redpolls.

Sightings included the following:

No1: Steady movement of Starlings, with at least 300 birds seen, mainly flying north but some west, 70+ Fieldfare (all south), 3 Buzzard, 1 Sparrowhawk and 1 Kestrel.

25th November 2006 As the weather forecast for Saturday morning was a little disappointing, less nets were used, resulting in less birds being caught. As it turned out the weather on Saturday was excellent giving the teams the opportunity to do some ringing.

No1 bed was operated on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, catching 18 new birds, including four Chaffinch and a single Goldcrest. The team on No3 were present on Saturday morning only, catching a total of 41 birds including six new, along with some interesting 'old' retraps.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: Friday - 1 Green Woodpecker, 50 Fieldfare, 1 male Peregrine, 1 Jack Snipe, 1Common Snipe, 2 Collared Doves (unusual on this bed). Saturday: 3 Goldeneye (west pool), 1m Gadwall, 4 Grey Wagtails, 1 Woodcock, 1 Siskin.

No2 bed: 1 m Merlin (Saturday)

No3 bed: 2 Woodcock, 2 Buzzards, 6 Snipe (all Saturday).

October 2006 Highlights
21st October 2006 Good ringing conditions on both the Friday afternoon and Saturday morning resulted in 195 new birds ringed.

On No1 bed, Dave Riley and Alan Hitchmough ringed 136 birds during both days, with 33 new Lesser Redpolls the highlight along with their first Redwing of the year. The feeding station has started to pull in Greenfinches with 57 new ringed and only one retrap.

John Blundell and Tony Davis worked the south-west corner of No2 bed for Saturday morning, catching 12 new birds, including 2 Goldcrests.

The team working the centre of No3 bed caught 47 new birds, including 3 Lesser Redpolls, their second Redwing of the year and a late Blackcap.

Sightings include:

No1 bed: 1 Curlew, 1m & 1f Sparrowhawk, 1 Peregrine, a very pale Buzzard, 250 Pink-footed Geese, 100 Pied Wagtails (south), 2 Grey Wagtails (south), other southerly movement included 350 Redwings, 2 Song Thrushes, 5 Blackbirds, 20 Meadow Pipits, 200+ Skylarks, 5000+ Woodpigeons. Other sightings included 1m Stonechat, 2 Yellowhammers and the Cett's Warbler.

No3 bed: A light southerly passage of Thrushes and Lesser Redpolls.

28th October 2006 205 birds were ringed during the week, with sessions on Tuesday 24th (No3 bed), 27th (No1 bed) and 28th (both beds). The total included a massive 110 Greenfinches, 8 Redwing (including six on No3), 14 Lesser Redpolls, 8 Goldcrests, 1 Blackcap and the first Magpie to be ringed on No3 this year.

Sightings included 60 Pink-footed Geese over No3 and a Stonechat by the Frank Linley hide, while considerable numbers of Redwings moved south over the bed. A similar movement of Redwings was noted over No1, with 700+ birds counted over the two days ringing took place, also involved were 100+ Skylarks, 20 Meadow Pipits, 10 Pied Wagtails and 2 Fieldfare.

September 2006 Highlights
2nd September 2006 Dave Riley and Alan Hitchmough worked No1 bed, joined by Tom Westhead for the Friday afternoon, catching good numbers of Blackcaps during the Friday afternoon along with roosting Swallows and Linnets during the evening. The Saturday morning was very wet and the nets were furled by 8am, although 40 or so birds were caught during the proceeding two hours.

David Norman returned to the east side of No3 bed, catching 15 warblers during the late afternoon/early evening session when the Swallows came in to roost, resulting in 54 new birds being ringed and two retraps, including a bird from the 2004 Woolston roost. The Saturday morning session was productive until the rain came in and forced a premature end. Seven species of warbler were caught, an excellent selection for September and included a Garden Warbler with a fat score of 5 and weighing 23.4g, thus carrying 7 or 8g of fat.

The team in the centre of No3 had an excellent session, including the first Mute Swans to be ringed at the Eyes, when two immature birds were caught as they fed on grain. The duck trap came into it's own, resulting in three new Teal being trapped, while 17 Blackcap was a good total and the feeders proved their worth, resulting in 45 new Greenfinches ringed.

Sightings included:

No1: 3 Swift, 2 Tawny Owls

No3: 3 Greylag Geese, 6 Snipe, 3 Tawny Owls

9th September 2006 Excellent weather over the weekend meant all the regular beds were worked, contributing to a total of 419 new birds of an amazing 33 species.

No 1 bed was worked on 6th, 8th and 9th, ringing 132 new birds, with 30 Linnetes taking pride of place, and an early Siskin causing surprise.

John Blundell and Tony Davis are still unable to get to their favoured ringing location on No2 bed, due to dredging, so continue to work the south bank of that bed, catching 11 new birds including 5 Blackcaps.

David Norman just managed to ring the east side of No3 on the Saturday morning, catching 73 new birds including good numbers of Blackcaps and Reed warblers which accompanied Garden Warbler, Chiffchaffs and a Treecreeper.

Michael Miles and Kieran Foster enjoyed a superb Friday evening/Saturday morning session on No3, catching an amazing 203 new birds, with Woosltons first ringed Dunlin being the star individual, along with high numbers of warblers and another two Mallard.

Sightings included a fly over Woodlark on No1 bed (Woolston's first, if accepted), along with an excellent passage of Swallows (700+). Sightings on No3 included Little Owl, 1 Greenshank, 1 Buzzard, 3 Tawny Owls and 7 Snipe on the scrape.

16th September 2006 Generally the weather conditions on Saturday morning were perfect for ringing, being overcast and still and a total of 278 birds were ringed over the two days, including 112 warblers.

Dave Riley was joined on No1 bed by Tony Davis on the Saturday morning, catching 79 new birds, including 35 warblers and three Goldcrests, while John Blundell worked No2 bed, catching 33 new birds on the Saturday morning, with just three nets open.

David Norman arrived late on the Friday, just having time to put his nets up and catch a Swallow and a heavy Reed Warbler, weighing 14.1g with a fat score of 4. Including the Saturday morning session, David caught 48 new birds, including 30 warblers.

The number three bed team had a full team out, catching 118 new birds including 44 warblers, the highlight being a late Lesser Whitethroat. Of the non-passerines ringed, the team added two Teal, 2 Moorhens and a Sparrowhawk to the 25 Swallows caught at roost on the Friday evening.

Sightings included:

No1: 2 Water rail, 4 Grey Wagtails, 1 Cetti's Warbler (singing throughout the Saturday morning and seen on the Sunday) and 20+ Chiffchaffs.

No3: 150 Swallows roosting.

23rd September 2006 As summer draws to an end, the number of birds has reduced significantly, with only 155 new birds ringed at three sites on the reserve, including 47 warblers.

No1. Dave Riley caught 79 new birds, including 20 Chiffchaffs and 12 Meadow Pipits, whilst amongst the retraps, the highlight was the Cetti's Warbler originally caught on 22nd July, although it had been singing in the area for the previous two weeks.

No2. A quiet morning on No2 bed for John Blundell and Tony Davis, as they are still unable to get into their favoured trapping area, catching 10 new birds, including Four Greenfinches.

No3. The team on No3 bed caught 66 new birds, with 21 warblers, the majority of which were Blackcaps (10), but also included late Garden Warbler and Willow Warbler.

Sightings included:

No1. 1 Curlew, 1 Tawny Owl, Southerly movement included 34 Lapwing, 500+ Swallows, 50 Skylark, 100+ Meadow Pipits and 6 Siskin.

No2. 50+ Pink-footed Geese flying south east.

August 2006 Highlights
5th August 2006 The team on No1 had a quiet Friday afternoon, until the Hirundines came in to roost, catching 24 Swallows and three Sand Martins. The Saturday morning session was spoilt somewhat by light drizzle, starting at 03.30 and continuing until 09.00, during which period the birds stopped moving around. Once the weather brightened, birds began to be caught, resulting in 76 warblers being caught in the full session, along with two Goldcrests and a Coal Tit.

John Blundell and Tony Davies experienced the same problems with the weather as No1, but still caught 46 new birds, with 41 warblers, including 17 Reed Warblers and 13 Whitethroats.

David Norman's session on the east side of No3 was halted early because of the weather, with 17 new birds ringed, but one of the highlights was an adult Reed warbler aged as a 6 in July 2002, last handled in August 2004, therefore at least six years old.

The team working the centre of No3 made use of Kieran Foster's break, ringing on the Thursday, Friday and saturday mornings, catching an excellent 270 birds, with 222 new, including 139 warblers, notably 67 Reed Warblers, 17 Sedge Warblers and 23 Chiffchaffs. Amongst the Reed Warblers were a Spanish ringed bird on the Friday and a Dutch ringed bird on the Saturday, both caught in the same net!

A Moorhen was the first to be ringed on the reserve for two years and the Goldcrest caught on the Friday was the first for the second part of the year.

12th August 2006 The ringing sessions were carried out in mainly dry conditions with occasional showers and slight breeze. Dave Riley was joined on No1 bed by David Norman, catching 160 birds, of which 137 were new including 68 warblers, the majority of these were made up of Reed Warbler (17) and Willow Warbler (24), while 2 Grasshopper Warblers and the first Lesser Whitethroat for the bed for the year were also caught. A small hirundine roost on the Friday evening contributed to the totals with 30 Swallows and 5 Sand Martins.

John Blundell and Tony Davis caught 56 new birds on No2 bed, including an excellent 30 Reed Warblers and 9 Whitethroats out of a total of 47 warblers.

Kieran Foster had a mid-week session at the hirundine roost on No3 bed, catching 80 new Swallows and 10 Sand Martins, while the Saturday session produced the first Water Rails (2) of the year along with 16 Reed Warblers and four Sedge Warblers.

Sightings included a few Redpolls buzzing around No1 bed, while No3 bed held 2 Snipe, 2 Greenshank and a Tawny Owl.

19th August 2006 Dave Riley was again joined by David Norman late Friday afternoon, along with visiting American bander Annie Lindsay. Ringing was slow during the first session, although the rain did keep away, but Saturday morning made up for that, with rain almost from dawn restricting the activities of the team. 102 birds were caught (83 new), including 43 warblers, single Lesser Whitethroats and Garden Warblers being the highlights.

John Blundell and Tony Davis caught 22 new birds on No2 bed (19 warblers), with the usual excellent numbers of Reed Warblers (11), while the No3 bed team had an excellent morning, catching 151 birds (128 new), including an amazing 13 Moorhens, while Teal and Mallard were the first of these species to make the reserves ringing lists for a number of years. Good numbers of warblers was still the order of the day and included 22 Reed Warblers and 22 Blackcaps, while the newly resurrected feeding station produced 16 Greenfinch and 4 Chaffinch.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: A steady passage of Swifts flying south including one group of 50, and a Grey wagtail on the west pool.

No3 bed: 10 Greenshanks circling the bed before dropping in to the north-west pool, and a Tree Pipit on Friday 18th.

26th August 2006 Dave Riley and Alan Hitchmough were joined by David Norman and Andrea Lindsay for the Friday/Saturday session, which, along with a short attempt to catch Swallows on the 23rd, resulted in 161 birds being processed (129 new, 72 warblers). The most unexpected bird was an adult female Stonechat, with brood patch, only the third to be ringed at Woolston. Other highlights included 25 new Blackcaps and a Garden Warbler.

John Blundell and Tony Davis relocated their ringing operations because of the high water level due to pumping. They caught 31 new birds, including 12 Blackcaps and 7 Chiffchaffs.

Margaret Rawlings and Hugh Pulsford worked the centre of No3 bed, during the Saturday morning, catching an excellent 90 new birds, including 49 warblers, with 23 Blackcap the highlight.

All reported sightings were from No1 bed and included single Buzzard, Water Rail, Snipe and Tawny Owl, along with 2 Sparrowhawks, 1 Swift, 30+ Chiffchaffs and 50+ Linnets roosting in the reed bed. 3 Green Woodpeckers were seen on 23rd.

July 2006 Highlights
1st July 2006 Sunny and very hot for the Friday and Saturday, with a welcome return to Woolston ringing for David Norman on the east side of No3 bed, where he had the usual high quality catch which included 17 new Reed Warblers, as well as the only Garden Warbler of the weekend.

The team on No1 bed made use of the good weather, ringing from 13.00 on Friday, and catching 110 new birds (out of 157 handled), including four new Kingfishers and a juvenile Yellowhammer (possibly the first juvenile to be ringed at the Eyes).

John Blundell and Tony Davis, had a session on No2 bed, with two new Blackcaps amongst the highlights, while the team working the centre of No3 bed caught 74 new birds, including 31 new warblers and five juvenile Black-headed Gulls. A Treecreeper was the first to be ringed there this year.

Sightings-wise, it was a little quiet with the highlight being a Common Tern seen flying west along the Ship Canal by the car park.

6th -7th July 2006 Ringing took place on No1, No2 and the east side of No3 over the weekend.

No1 Bed: Another two Kingfishers were caught, both new and both birds of the year, along with 60 warblers of six species, although only one Sedge Warbler was amongst these, it was the juvenile of the year. A Swallow roost is now forming on the bed with 300+ flying around at dusk along with 50-100 Sand Martins and 200 Swifts, 16 swallow and three Sand Martins were caught.

No2 Bed: John Blundell and Tony Davis enjoyed their best catch of the year with 33 new birds, including the only Garden Warbler of the weekend and four Song Thrushes.

No3 Bed: David Norman ringed the east side of the bed, where he caught a total of 108 birds (83 new) of the usual high quality, including 58 warblers, amongst which were 32 Reed Warblers, 16 Blackcaps and the first Lesser Whitethroat of the year.

Sightings included 5 Lesser Redpolls, 2 Tawny owls and an Oystercatcher on No1 and 18 Black-tailed Godwits seen flying around No3 bed during the evening of 30th, before appearing to go down in the centre of the bed.

14th -15th July 2006 The hot and still conditions produced staedy, but not spectacular ringing, with 172 new birds caught on No1, 11 new on No2 and 31 on No3.

The totals on No1 included 65 warblers, with their second Garden Warbler of the year along with their highest catch of Sedge Warblers (10) for 2006 so far. A small roost of Hirundines (about 100) has formed on the bed, which includes a good proportion of Sand Martins, resulting in 34 new Swallows and 15 Sand Martins being ringed.

The small catch on No2 included a high proportion of Warblers, as it did on No3, with 25 of the 31 birds ringed also being warblers, including an excellent female Lesser Whitethroat with an extensive brood patch.

Not many sightings to report, although a Turtle Dove over No1 was an excellent record, and Water Rails were seen/heard on both beds 1 and 3, while a Green Sandpiper was on the scrape of No3.

20th -22nd July 2006 460 new birds were ringed over the three day period of 27 species and ncluding an excellent 287 warblers of eight species, with an adult male Cetti's Warbler, only the second for the Eyes, being caught on No1 bed.

During the period, three ringing sessions took place on No1, with Alan Hitchmough and Kenny McNiffe working the swallow roost on 20th, where they caught 39 Swallows and five Sand Martins. The Swallows failed to materialise on the Friday, but a Treecreeper was caught, while Saturday proved to be amazing, with many warblers processed, including the Cetti's. Also present were another three Treecreepers, three Garden Warblers and two Coal Tits.

John Blundell and Tony Davis worked No2 bed, catching 17 Reed Warblers and the first House Sparrow of the year, in a total catch of 37 new birds.

David Norman continues to have high quality catches on the east bank of No3, with 29 Reed Warblers out of a total catch of 60 new birds, 79% of which were warblers.

Michael Miles ringed the centre of No3 bed catching, again producing a high quality catch with almost 91% of the total being warblers which included 47 Reed Warblers, 12 Blackcaps and 13 Chiffchaffs.

It was good to see 38 Sedge Warblers appearing in the totals.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: 2 Tawny Owls, 1 Oystercatcher, 1 Snipe and 1 Yellowhammer.

No2 bed: 1 Hobby, 1 tawny Owl (copse)

No3 Bed: 1 Tawny Owls, 2 Black-tailed Godwits and 1 Redshank, both wader sp. seen on the scrape in the middle of the bed. Another very interesting record was of an adult Grey Partridge with at least two young.

28th -29th July 2006 Another excellent ringing session, with 453 new birds ringed, including 303 warblers (1 Grasshopper Warbler, 31 Sedge 146 Reed, 33 Whitethroat, 5 Garden, 24 Blackcap, 32 Chiffchaff and 31 Willow Warblers) and a new Kingfisher.

167 new birds were ringed on No1, out of 190 processed and included 97 warblers. Two Grasshopper Warblers were caught, one a new bird of the year, while the second had been ringed a few weeks ago as an adult and was still showing an active brood patch. A Treecreeper caught on Friday afternoon was the sixth of the year and a retrap Yellowhammer had been ringed on 5th May this year.

John Blundell and Tony Davis had their best session of the year on No 2, catching 51 new birds which included 27 Reed Warblers and 10 Sedge Warblers, all this in two nets!

The east bank of No3 provided David Norman with 52 new birds, with just less than 50 % being Reed Warblers.

The team on No3 caught 214 birds of which 183 were new, including 132 warblers, 62 Reed Warblers was a massive total, as was the 12 Sedge Warblers, they only caught 5 of the latter species during the whole of 2005!

Not much to report, sightings wise:

No1: Tawny Owl, Green Woodpecker, Grey wagtail and a Water Rail seen on the track by the parking area on Friday evening.

No2: Tawny Owl in the copse.

No3: Green Woodpecker - although seen regularly on No1, still a major sighting on No3.

June 2006 Highlights
16th-17th June Ringing on Both Beds 1 and 3 this weekend with good numbers of juveniles about including the first Whitethroats and Chiffchaffs, while a juvenile Coal Tit on No1 was a surprise.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: 5 Lapwing, 2 Water Rails in the main reed bed, 1 Nuthatch initially heard calling in the south-east corner of the bed, before before seen flying to the north-west.

No3 bed: 100 Gadwall, 4 Shoveler, Water Rail and 1 Lapwing.

The previous week's (10th) included a Great White Egret, seen twice over No3 bed and 2 Red Kites, one with wing tags and one without, both seen in the No3/No4 bed areas.

23rd-24th June Juvenile warblers are becoming more frequent, with young Reed Warbler, Whitethroat, Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler appearing in the ringing totals, while the Magpie caught on No1 was the first of the year and the Kingfisher, the third.

Sightings included:

No1. 1 Oystercatcher

No3. 1 Shelduck, 1 Oystercatcher and 1 Grey Partridge

May 2006 Highlights
5th-6th May 87 birds ringed of 19 species, including 42 warblers of 8 species with Garden Warbler (caught on No2) the first for the year. The highlight for No1 bed was the amazing eight Yellowhammers caught on Friday - all at the feeding station, it seems that the decision to 'feeding season' seems to have proved to be beneficial to the buntings. All of the yellowhammers caught were in breeding condition and I assume that they have come across the canal to feed.

The highlight of the ringing on No3 was the capture of their first new Grasshopper Warbler of the year, after the retrap last week, unfortunately it couldn't be sexed, while two of the Blackcaps caught were from last year.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: Large numbers of warblers, particularly Reed Warbler (the volume of song at dawn from the large reed bed was incredible) and Whitethroats, 2 Lesser Redpolls, 4 Grasshopper Warblers and 2 Cuckoos.

No3 bed: Immature female Marsh Harrier appeared to roost, 2 Cuckoos and 20 Lesser Redpolls.

12th-13th May The ringing session disturbed by rain, especially on the Saturday, losing a couple of hours. Another Yellowhammer was caught on No1 along with a Garden Warbler and two Grasshopper Warblers, amongst the eight species of warbler handled there. The team on No2 caught a female Sparrowhawk as well as three Whitethroats, while the No3 bed team caught a total of 32 new birds, also including a female Sparrowhawk and an excellent six Sedge Warblers.

Sightings included:

No1 bed: 1 Hobby, 1 Turtle Dove and 1 Lesser Whitethroat (not included in warbler count, as it was seen only)

No3 bed: 2 Buzzards and an Oystercatcher.

Mammals included 2 Stoats on No1 and a Fox on No3 which trotted across in front of the centre hide.

20th-22nd May For the second weekend running, ringing was curtailed by the weather, with breezy conditions on the Friday and rain on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. The first juvenile Robins and Greenfinches of the year were caught, along with a new Grasshopper Warbler on No1 and a new Garden Warbler on No2.

Sightings included:

No1: 2ad Canada Geese with 6 young

No2: Drake Garganey and 1st. summer Med Gull

No3: Oystercatcher, Dunlin and bubbling Cuckoo.

26th-27th May Alan Hitchmough was running No1 Bed whilst Dave Riley is away on Fair Isle and managed a total of 50 new birds and 16 retraps - interesting sightings included x20 Noctule bats feeding over No1 bed at dawn and Grasshopper Warbler reeling at the east pool throughout the day and night. 4 out of 5 nestboxes checked were occupied with a total of 18 Blue Tits (10 & 8) and 14 (5&9) Great Tits ringed.

John Blundell and Tony Davis managed to ring on both No2 and No4 beds with a total of 16 new birds caught - including their first Reed and Sedge Warblers this year.