Wednesday, 22 April 2015

Blackcap returns.

I only caught one bird this morning at Thornton, but it was an old friend!
 At first I thought it might be a second summer bird returning from last year.  There was some brown in the head. Not obvious in this image , but certainly in the one below.
 The first and 6th tail feathers were not pointed although I thought they might be more rounded if it was an older bird.
 All the greater coverts seemed the same.
You can see some brown in this image.
In fact I had first rung this bird on 3rd April 2011 as a second summer, so it is returning for its sixth summer. I had also retrapped it on 9/7/13.
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2 comments:

  1. Birdringal-andalus22 April 2015 at 12:42

    Hi, Greetings: after more than 25,000 Sylvia atricapilla ringed in the last six years my dare I explain a method of dating for the species.
    It is diagnosed in more external secondary wing in adults with flat termination and in most of the cases speared in adult birds and these same feathers always rounded in young birds.
    You can accompany this parameter with very red iris color in adults and young greenish gray.
    You could see pictures in my blog here:
    http://birdringal-andalus.blogspot.com.es/2011/12/soledad.html
    It is not recommended dating this species for traces of brown males in the hood, this parameter may also occur in some adult males, have seen many cases where banded birds two years earlier.
    Regards, Fernando.

    ReplyDelete
  2. andy smith22 April 2015 at 12:49

    Thanks for your helpful comments Fernando. I will consult your blog.

    ReplyDelete

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