Dutch Ringed Blackbird and Buzzard in 2010

Back on 11th December 2010 I caught a Dutch ringed adult female Blackbird at Manor Farm Country Park, and eleven months later, I have finally received news of its original capture. The bird was originally ringed on 7th February 2010 at Westkapelle, Walcheren, Zeeland, The Netherlands, NL18, 307 days previously. Its journey had covered 335 kilometres in a westerly direction, and since it was not captured again, I assume it must have continued on its journey and away from the cold weather that was covering the UK at the time. Whilst this control did not shed any new information on the movement of blackbirds across Europe, it was a notable capture for me, since it was the first foreign ringed bird I had captured at Manor Farm since I began ringing there in 1995.

Juvenile Common Buzzard 11th December 2010 Manor Farm Country Park

Interestingly, the 11th December 2010 proved to be a bit of a red letter day, since I also captured the first Common Buzzard for the site on that day.  Don't ask me how it managed it, but this bird forced its way into the bottom shelf of a 9m net and then wrapped itself up in it.

Juvenile Common Buzzard 11th December 2010 Manor Farm Country Park

I was pleasantly surprised to find that despite its large size, the bird was extremely docile and easy to handle. Ageing was also relatively straight forward, as this bird lacked the broad terminal band on the tail which adults show, and therefore was clearly a juvenile.