Great Tit in poor condition and a Long-tailed tits nest.

A few weeks ago I caught this poor great Tit recently in the garden. It was  re-trap from 4 years ago so is a known age. It looks like it didn't complete its post breeding moult last year and the feathers are in very poor condition with faded and broken primaries. Whether this is age related or some other external factor we'll never know but it does highlight the pitfalls of using feather condition only to age birds in the hand.

At the same tame I took the chance of a fine evening to walk the couple of hundred metres from the house across to some farmland where I've recently installed some nest boxes. There are several ponds on this land which is all improved pasture. The ponds have breeding moorhens and / or Coot and attract the occasional Teal and on one memorable occasion, a few years ago,  a pair of Garganey.

Whilst checking the nest boxes I also came across this Long-tailed Tits nest built in a gorse bush.
A beautiful domed nest constructed from moss, lichens, spiderweb and feathers.

As you can see from a previous post the nest boxes have been very successful with at least 50 young fledging from 7 active nests.

The last brood was ringed last weekend and the smell of a freshly cut hay crop lingered in the air. I took the opportunity to sit by the pond and just breath in the lovely aroma.

The farm has a herd of jersey cows and makes delicious award winning ice-cream.