Tried out Merlin yesterday pm and, lo and behold, we have cirl bunting and yellowhammers singing in our plot. Hiding tho as we've never seen them but have suspected there are lurkers for a long time.
Now to try it early morning to see who else is out there.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
One of the first birds it identified was the marsh warbler which was singing incredibly loudly, but nearly always at the same time as blackbird and chaffinch so the songs blended.
I don't know where you live @Buttercupdays but Marsh Warbler is a very rare bird in the UK.
Opinions are divided in the birding world about the Merlin app. It's very new.
Based in Sussex, I garden to encourage as many birds to my garden as possible.
I’ve heard Marsh warblers down near Minsmere … I find the Reed warbler’s song very similar … and they’re much more common in the southern UK at this time of year … but that’s not to say @Buttercupdays’ app isn’t correct.
😊
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Another vote for Merlin! It's great and is pretty accurate - with my ok-ish birdsong knowledge I always find myself agreeing with it, so I trust it on the ones I'm not sure of. Obviously there are bound to be some dubious results too though!
We had marsh tits in Belgium and a wide range of warblers too but never willow tits and, just once in 25 years, a wee flock of long-tailed its visiting the penut feeder.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I’ve heard Marsh warblers down near Minsmere … I find the Reed warbler’s song very similar … and they’re much more common in the southern UK at this time of year … but that’s not to say @Buttercupdays’ app isn’t correct.
😊
Lucky you to have encountered one. Never common in UK but Minsmere more likely than most places to encounter a Marsh Warbler. See this for info about Marsh Warblers:
That part of Suffolk was my stamping ground for a large part of my life @Redwing and I still have family and friends in the area … a wonderful part of the world ❤️
I’ve also heard one at Hen Reedbeds at Reydon … and often heard (and seen once) bitterns there too.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Lucky you. I've been to Minsmere; it's a wonderful place. I've never knowingly seen or heard Marsh Warbler but breeding occurs in East Sussex about once every five years or so. A little more regular on nearby Kent marshes. Bitterns more common here in winter, not breeding though but always a thrill to see or hear one.
Based in Sussex, I garden to encourage as many birds to my garden as possible.
Posts
Now to try it early morning to see who else is out there.
Opinions are divided in the birding world about the Merlin app. It's very new.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
https://www.bto.org/understanding-birds/birdfacts/marsh-warbler
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.