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Lots of Willow Warbler about today (1 Viewer)

trw

Well-known member
Last year I mentioned counting 51 Willow Warbler on a walk in South Cumbria.
I did a slightly shortened version today and counted 36;the most numerous species of the morning.
Many are back in the usual locations elsewhere.
A few people said Willow Warbler numbers were down in some parts of the country, but this isn't so in the north-west apparently.
According to the last county report numbers in the north-west were up by 5% yet down by 9% in the UK.
I'm not sure why this is the case.
 
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Last year I mentioned counting 51 Willow Warbler on a walk in South Cumbria.
I did a slightly shortened version today and counted 36;the most numerous species of the morning.
Many are back in the usual locations elsewhere.
A few people said Willow Warbler numbers were down in some parts of the country, but this isn't so in the north-west apparently.
According to the last county report numbers in the north-west were up by 5% yet down by 9% in the UK.
I'm not sure why this is the case.

FWIW pratincol, WW have almost disappeared in my area NE.London, have been in decline for decades locally. For the first time ( I haven’t heard one yet in the regular local territory) going the same way as other (once upon a time breeders), thus it’s good to know that they’re prospering further North. :t:
 
FWIW pratincol, WW have almost disappeared in my area NE.London, have been in decline for decades locally. For the first time ( I haven’t heard one yet in the regular local territory) going the same way as other (once upon a time breeders), thus it’s good to know that they’re prospering further North. :t:

There's a definite shortage in my part of Norfolk, but Chiffchaff are more numerous than I've ever seen. We had almost no Whitethroat until about 4 days ago, when suddenly there were many calling males, but many fewer today.
MJB
 
There's a definite shortage in my part of Norfolk, but Chiffchaff are more numerous than I've ever seen. We had almost no Whitethroat until about 4 days ago, when suddenly there were many calling males, but many fewer today.
MJB

Strange how things differ- I had about 20 Whitethroats 3 weeks or more back on my patch which I visit weekly. Still good numbers when I visited a week ago. Blackcap the only warbler more numerous there.
 
There's a definite shortage in my part of Norfolk, but Chiffchaff are more numerous than I've ever seen. We had almost no Whitethroat until about 4 days ago, when suddenly there were many calling males, but many fewer today.
MJB

Same here with Chiffchaff; they're all over the show. So far I've recorded 42 individuals in different locations. We've even got one on our estate- never seen or heard one here before.
Willow Warblers are winning though, with 59 counted so far.
Normally there'd just a couple of Lesser Whitethroat around here. This year there's been 8 recorded.
Blackcap numerous too with 23 counted so far.
Sedge Warbler numbers average with 26 on the list this year.
 
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Same here with Chiffchaff; they're all over the show. So far I've recorded 40 individuals in different locations. We've even got one on our estate- never seen or heard one here before.
Willow Warblers are winning though, with 53 counted so far.
Normally there'd just a couple of Lesser Whitethroat around here. This year there's been 8 recorded.
Blackcap numerous too with 23 counted so far.
Sedge Warbler numbers average with 26 on the list this year.

It’s a “real” comfort to know that our loss is your gain pratincol....therein lies hope.:t:
 
It’s a “real” comfort to know that our loss is your gain pratincol....therein lies hope.:t:
I feel hopeful for this area in the future. Since large parts of Cumbria have National Park status there's an element of protection and limitations on concreting over huge swathes of the countryside. They even extended the Lake District National Park and the Yorkshire National Park, the latter has expanded into east Cumbria.
I've just come back this morning, from a short trip into the south west corner of the National Park where it has probably not changed much in the past 100 years. Most of the same species are being recorded as I did several years ago.
Highlights this morning: three Cuckoo[which are doing well round here], 2 pairs of Stonechat, a Little Owl,1 Pied Flycatcher and more Willlow Warbler[7] and Chiffchaff[2].
I particulary went to one place to check up on the Garden Warbler which come back year after year. Sure enough they've returned and I found six this morning
There's hope yet Ken!
 
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I feel hopeful for this area in the future. Since large parts of Cumbria have National Park status there's an element of protection and limitations on concreting over huge swathes of the countryside. They even extended the Lake District National Park and the Yorkshire National Park, the latter has expanded into east Cumbria.
I've just come back this morning, from a short trip into the south west corner of the National Park where it has probably not changed much in the past 100 years. Most of the same species are being recorded as I did several years ago.
Highlights this morning: three Cuckoo[which are doing well round here], 2 pairs of Stonechat, a Little Owl,1 Pied Flycatcher and more Willlow Warbler[7] and Chiffchaff[2].
I particulary went to one place to check up on the Garden Warbler which come back year after year. Sure enough they've returned and I found six this morning
There's hope yet Ken!

I’ll drink to that pratincol. B :) :t:
 
Spent the day at a site 100m above sea level just a few miles north west of Durham today and had 20 singing Willow Warblers without walking more than a few hundred metres from the highest vantage point. It was hard to imagine there being room for any more territories in such a small area. Similar with Whitethroats, only slightly fewer singing males in the same location. I haven't been to the site since 2001, so I have nothing to compare it with, really, but a pleasing count nonetheless.
 
Spent the day at a site 100m above sea level just a few miles north west of Durham today and had 20 singing Willow Warblers without walking more than a few hundred metres from the highest vantage point. It was hard to imagine there being room for any more territories in such a small area. Similar with Whitethroats, only slightly fewer singing males in the same location. I haven't been to the site since 2001, so I have nothing to compare it with, really, but a pleasing count nonetheless.
Great news!
I often see Willow Warblers flitting in and out of bushes and trees and assume they're engaged in territorial battles. Better that than there not being enough Willow Warblers around to even have to dispute territories.
 
My local patch here in south Derbyshire has seen a dramatic decline in Willow Warblers. Going back to the 80's and 90's there were numerous territories. A note from 1985 says "abundant visitor and breeder." In my time down there since 2001 there are sometimes blank years. We may get 1 or 2 if we are lucky in spring but they quickly move through. Autumn records are now even rarer. Other Warblers seem to be doing ok.
 
In the early to mid 90s I used to spend my October holidays on Lundy for a few years in succession. In our holiday cottage we had some bird reports from the 1980s, and in them I recall seeing in approx three years out of five, single day falls of 1000 or so Willow Warblers in the first week of May. I really thought I would never see that type of thing in my lifetime, but in early May 2012, weather conditions conspired to dump a minimum of 1000 Willow Warblers on St Mary's, Isles of Scilly, alone. How many were scattered across the other islands we do not know. At one point at the north end of the island , I saw a single flock of 120 birds feeding on the ground out in the open, moving together as a single wave when flushed! As a rule Willow Warblers do not breed on Scilly, although late that month a friend and I saw a pair nest-building, outcome unknown. It has been my experience in SW England (Mainland Cornwall) and County Cork, Ireland since I came back from living in the United States in 2001, that most singing Willow Warblers I have seen/heard after the second week of May, have been in hilly, upland areas. I generally took WW so much for granted in my formative years in the UK that I have nothing to compare my later experiences with regarding elevation and I don't recall whether they ever bred at sea level in this region?

Here's what Concise BWP (approx 2005?) has to say about population size in Willow Warbler:

2.3 million territories 1988–91. Stable (minor fluctuations) late 1960s to mid-1980s, but marked decline (47%) in south 1986-93.
[Update: 2 125 000 pairs (2000), decreasing (BirdLife International 2004).]

Some figures for other select countries: France 2.5 to 4.5 million pairs; Norway 2-10 mp; Sweden 8-12mp; Finland 8-13mp; Russia (west of Moscow) 10 mp.
 
Willow Warblers seem to be doing well still in Ireland. There are at least 4-5 pairs in my local area including a pair holding a territory in my garden vying with a feisty pair of Blackcaps. It seems they are doing better or holding their own in northern and western parts of the British Isles. On recent returns to visit family in Sussex I have found Willow Warblers harder to locate even in areas where they used to be easy to find. In some areas they have vanished or they tend to be very localised.

Si
 
Yesterday down the local canal in Worcestershire ....the call was over overwhelming wth Willow Warblers and Chiff Chaff are singing everywhere. In fact every time I see a Skype interview on TV I can hear Chiff Chaff in the background. I've heard more Cuckoos this year than previous and Blackcap, Whitethroats and Yellow Hammers are about in good numbers. Less road noise helps enormously.
 
FWIW I caught up with my ''heard only'' Willow Warbler yesterday, in between the two territories of singing birds last year....presume one or the other, not heard today...but will persevere!

Cheers
 
Lots more Willow Warbler about last night. I visited an SSSI which is in fine fettle; its predominantly a gorse area.
Sixteen counted along the way.
A Cuckoo and a Tawny Owl were calling at the same time. Can't remember hearing both species at the exact same time.
 
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