On 30th March local ringer Gerry Rawcliffe put up a net in his garden (just outside the park recording area) in the hope of catching a Siskin - small numbers have been visiting local feeders as well as wintering in the park."After some initial frustration with birds wriggling out of the net," Gerry reports, "I got lucky on ... with a female Siskin [left], and then I was just about to take down the net to go out when I noticed a Mealy Redpoll [below] come to the feeder, and after a few nerve-wracking moments it popped into the net."
This Mealy is clearly a male, and appears to be one of the two well-watched males which have commuted between the park and Dukes Avenue this winter. The species is a scarce visitor to the London Area, and must be a real rarity for ringers in southern England.
