What a 'Start' !!

 The weather forecast this week suggest that we need to get sessions in when we can. So with this in mind when I woke up around 6 am to still, dull conditions I decided to have a try at Belvide. I opened only 3 nets as the wind was starting to increase but within a couple of minutes our newest net site  produced its very first bird--and what a start it was. To be precise it was our first Redstart of the year--and if previous years are anything to go by it will probably be our last.

This picture shows the key features of a juvenile male Common Redstart. The name red'start' comes from the old English name for a backside/tail which is this lovely orange-red colour. These birds accentuate this feature every time they perch by quivering the tail in a very characteristic way.

We can sex the bird as a male by the dark head and throat and the richness of the orange breast and belly.

I've closed in on the throat and breast to illustrate a feature of this and several other species. During the winter period the birds don't need their bright colours as they are not setting up territories or trying to attract a mate. SO-you can see that the colours are muted by having lighter/buffy tips to all the coloured feathers. These tips gradually wear off during the winter and hey presto! the richer colour further down the feathers are exposed just in time for the breeding season WITHOUT the high energy need to grow another set of feathers--how cool is that!!