Kvismare fågelstation, Sweden - Day 35

 Freshly moulted 2CY+ male Blackcap

Another juvenile Red-backed Shrike leaving a lasting impression on our fingers!

Today we attended Vallen for the first CES here in 6 days which was nice as it is obvious that the juvenile Reed Warblers are getting ready to move with a lot of stored fat and in good numbers too.

Totals from the morning were: (retraps in brackets)
Reed Warbler - 42
Sedge Warbler - 6
Willow Warbler - 15 (2)
Marsh Warbler -2
Great Reed Warbler - 4
Garden Warbler - 4
Blackcap - 4
Whitethroat - 5
Lesser Whitethroat - 1
Blackbird - 1
Song Thrush - 1
Red-backed Shrike - 1
Reed Bunting - 8

Taking a blood sample from a Great Reed Warbler

It was really nice to catch 4 unringed juvenile Great Reed Warblers, because Kvismaren have been undertaking a study on this species for 29 years. Over the past week I have been undergoing training to take blood samples on birds which has been really interesting as I don't think I'll ever get the chance to do this in Britain due to requirements of vet licenses etc.
I have found myself being really comfortable with the delicate procedure and a Great Reed Warbler is a really nice bird to take a sample from because they are a proper sized bird, so aren't too fiddly... We are also helping out with a project for Lund University and I have, in the last week, taken samples from Garden Warbler, Reed Warbler, Willow Warbler, Blue Tit, White Wagtail and Wren (the latter being only a very very small sample for obvious reasons).