Eight Warblers!

Expecting migrant warblers as well as a few other long distance migrants to be arriving in some numbers, I took myself off for a walk around Netherfield Lagoons in south Notts this morning. I was not disappointed! There were three Little Ringed Plovers and three Common Terns present as well as over twenty Sand Martin and a handful of Swallows. But the warblers were the thing! There were eight species present although I only managed to see seven, failing to see or even hear a Grasshopper Warbler. I had been reliably informed that two birds had been reeling earlier in the day but they were silent when I was there. Obviously I'll have to get up a bit earlier.
The most common warbler this morning was Blackcap with at least eleven singing males recorded. Scientific name Sylvia atricapilla roughly meaning Black-haired Wood Sprite is pretty damned apt I'd say.

Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla

 Loads and loads of Chiffchaff singing. A few weeks back this site held a Siberian Chiffchaff but not today. Collybita is from the Latin for a money-changer! The chiff - chaff song sounding like coins clinking together. With Phylloscopus being Greek for leaf-seeker then we have a Leaf seeking money changer!! A bit of a stretch that one.

Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita

 Common Whitethroats had only just arrived and I heard and saw only three singing males. Sylvia being wood or sprite and communis meaning common then it makes sense if this is a common wood sprite. Only they aren't as common as they were.

Whitethroat Sylvia communis

 In fact there were more Lesser Whitethroats singing than Common Whitethroat and they had been present for a few days, arriving in Notts slightly earlier than Common Whitethroats. Curruca, would you credit, means unidentified small bird! So for me, from now on, there will be Little Brown Currucas!

Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca

 Sedge Warblers were present in small numbers, presumably they had been there a few days but there were no Reed Warblers there, leastways I didn't hear or see one and there had been no reports when I spoke to other birders. Schoenobaenus means reed-treader - how good's that! What with Acrocephalus translating as topmost or highest we have the Highest Reed-treader.

Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus

 There were at least five Cetti's warblers blasting out their explosive song but I didn't get much of a glimpse of any of them never mind a photo opportunity but the Willow Warblers were far more obliging. Trochilus is Greek for wren and so pertains to the old name of Willow Wren I presume, back in the days of confusion between Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Wood Warbler...not that anyone would confuse any of these birds today!!!

Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus