A dreary Siberian wednesday

I felt like I'd deserved some good ringing after the two exams I made yesterday, preliminary to some intensive days of studying over the last few days. I decided to head to Castricum today to join the ringers there for their daily session. The last days were very good at their ringing station; lots of birds present, many Robins, Blackbirds etc. but also a amazing variety of rarities such as 2 Olive-backed Pipits, 2 Radde's Warblers and so forth!

This morning, I got out of bed at 5.15 and got on the train of 6.00 in Apeldoorn. Around 7:30 I arrived in Castricum and from there I cycled into the dunes with my oldskool folding bike. 

As I arrived it was clear there hadn't been much arrival in the night. Just a few Blackbirds, Song Thrushes, Redwings jumped out of the bushes in front of me. The weather was really sombre with here and there some slight drizzle. At 8.00 I entered the ringing hut where I met the ringers, Jan, Arnold and Luc. The first round held some Blackbirds and Robins together with some other common species and amongst others 3 Fieldfares. Throughout the morning we kept catchin all kinds of different species, making up a nice species total. Two Rock Pipits were a nice addition to the list, next to that we caught 2 Meadow Pipits (one was a unknown Dutch-retrap). A single Skylark was also caught with the clapnets. 

In the round of 12.00 I came along a nice surprise in the net: a Cetti's Warbler. It was a retrap, ringed on 19-10-2012. My first in the hand in the Netherlands. 

In the final round Arnold brought back another good bird: a Siberian Chiffchaff! 

The totals:

Water Rail 2 - 

Great-spotted Woodpecker - 1

Skylark 1 -

Meadow Pipit 1 - 1

Rock Pipit 2 -

Wren 5 -

Dunnock 2 -

Robin 21 - 2

Blackbird 14 - 1

Fieldfare 3 -

Song Thrush 3 -

Redwing 4 -

Cetti's Warbler - 1

Reed Warbler 1 -

Blackbird 13 -

Chiffchaff 3 -

Siberian Chiffchaff 1 -

Goldcrest 4 - 1

Blue Tit 6 - 2

Great Tit 25 - 6

Starling 5 -

Chaffinch 1 - 1

Goldfinch 1 -

Total 118 - 16

23 species

 Skylark (Alauda arvensis)

 Rock Pipit (Anthus petrosus), 1cy

 Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris), 1cy male

 Cetti's Warbler (Cettia cetti), female

Siberian Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita ssp. tristis)