Paul's Blog - All comments and views are my own,

Happy New Year to all.... A calm, dry morning, if a tad nippy, was perfect for a short ringing session at Pembrey Country Park. As I was on my own, although lucky to have Veronica "scribing" I only set one 40' net. The feeding station is swarming with tits and I didn't really feel the urge to put up more than was necessary, especially as I was hoping for a few more Jays. First round produced a new Jay and a new GS Woodpecker along with the inevitable mix of Blue and Great Tits.  There is a new project running looking at the moult strategy of Blue Tits, especially the way in which they moult their Alula feathers (numbered 3 in the diagram) so catching Bluti has even more scientific value. The session finished on 25 birds with Great Tits dominating, plus another two Jays; we have ringed six Jays in four sessions since November, there are still  more to ring....

Well so far it's not a lot like winter, Christmas has gone and the New Year beckons, what it will bring.... no one can foretell, but whatever it is lets hope for the best. 2018 has been a mixed year with lots of high points, getting paid to do what I love, and the low points of family tragedy. Having spent less time on the local nature reserves doesn't mean they have been neglected, far from it's just that each visit has been better quality, and with more maintenance being done by contractors those visits have been spent recording and monitoring. Some early observations have not been good, NO Strandline Beetles recorded in 2018, much lower numbers of Common Lizard and Slow Worm, and NO Grass Snakes. On the flip side butterfly numbers were higher than 2017, although I'm still waiting for the detail from the surveys carried out. No doubt the weather during late winter and early spring affected the reptiles and of course that heatwave influenced the butterflies, what