Where has the last month gone?

I can only apologise for what has been a month since my last post, which has in part been due to a new and very busy role at work, but also due to an extremely busy social calendar. In fact, things have been so busy that there was a period of seven days when I didn't even lift my binoculars, something I cannot remember happening before, and my camera has almost been mothballed.

Bird ringing activities have also been limited, but I have managed a couple of sessions. One was a ringing event on the Leckford Estate for Trustees of the John Spedan Lewis Trust and Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust on 21st June. It was a bit of a breezy day but we managed to catch 34 birds of 11 species. Given that the visitors arrive at 11:00 and leave at 15:00, I am always glad to catch anything, and the crowd pleaser's were undoubtedly the two Kingfishers and single Great Spotted Woodpecker. The supporting cast included two Marsh Tits (one a retrap from last year), 13 Great Tits, five Wren's, 3 Robins, two of each Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Goldcrest and single Blue Tit and Chaffinch, the latter a superb male.

Another session was at Manor Farm Country Park as part of my RAS project on 27th June. We ringed 46 birds of four species, 42 House Sparrows, three of which were retraps, two Blackbirds and single Robin and Wren. So plenty of target birds but very few retraps which was disappointing. In the afternoon I opened a net in my garden and caught 15 birds of five species, including six Great Tits, three Goldfinch's, 4 Blue Tits and single Chiffchaff and Robin.

Ringing at the Haven has also commenced for the autumn and to date we have ringed 131 birds of 16 species. Unsurprisingly Reed Warbler has been the most numerous species with 67 birds ringed, no doubt the local breeding population. Ten Cetti's Warblers, nine Blackcaps, eight Robins, five Chiffchaffs, four Dunnocks, three each Blackbird and Bullfinch, two Bearded Tit, Long-tailed Tit and Reed Bunting and single Wren, Song Thrush and Willow Warbler.

Juvenile Avocet, Titchfield Haven (Geoff Jones)

On the afternoon of the 18th July I received an email from the Haven with a picture taken by Geoff Jones, one of the Havens volunteers and a keen photographer. The image was of a juvenile Avocet wearing a yellow colour ring on its right tibia, and a yellow flag with the letters AC on it, on its left tibia. I knew that it was not one of the Haven birds as they have not been ringed, and based on the juvenile dispersal from the west of the county last year, I suspected it might be one of Graham Giddens' birds. 

Graham responded to my email immediately and it was indeed a chick he had ringed at a site in the west of the the county on 3rd June. It was disappointing to learn that this was the only bird to fledge from his site this year, the others being predated by large gulls and Grey Herons. The lack of success for Graham is not mirrored at the Haven where I understand over 25 chicks have fledged, the best ever year for breeding Avocet at the site.

Colour Ring Sightings Update

You can tell from my lack of posting this week that I have not been out in the field, although I did manage a couple of 30 minute ringing sessions in the garden at work. The result was four birds, a Blue Tit, retrap Nuthatch and Robin on Wednesday 3rd and a Firecrest on Friday 5th December. The Firecrest is the 5th I have ringed so far this year, hopefully there will be a few more yet.

I did hear back from Pete Potts regarding the colour ringed Grey Plovers and Turnstone that I had seen at Bunny Meadows on 28th November. As suspected all of the birds were ringed by Pete, and one of them, DD51882, I had seen back on 22nd August, also at Bunny Meadows. The details of each bird are provided below.

 

Another Eastern Surprise.....well not really!

With the weather forecast for the weekend looking wet and windy I decided to ring at the Haven this morning (17th October). Unfortunately being a weekday there was no one else free, although Barry did suggest that he might pop by at some stage. With the numbers of birds per session dropping right down now, and the overnight weather conditions not particularly good for a fall, I decided to open all the nets. The first round was as predicted and produced a measly four birds, but as I was approaching the ringing station I heard the distinctive call of a Yellow-browed Warbler. I quickly processed the birds I had and headed out for another round. This time it was slightly better numbers wise, with 13 birds made up of Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Robins, Goldcrests and, yep you've guessed it a Yellow-browed Warbler. I have been watching the bird news over the last couple of weeks and there have been good numbers around the country, so it was not a major surprise to catch one, but they have been proving more that a bit elusive in Hampshire. I think Barry must have a sixth sense as just as I got the bird out of the bag to ring it he appeared around the corner.

Yellow-browed Warbler, Titchfield Haven - October 2014

The bird was in excellent condition, the plumage was immaculate and it was carrying a lot of fat (ESF score of 4). This is only the fourth Yellow-browed the be ringed at the Haven, the first was in 1978, but the last three have been in 2011, 2012 and 2014.

Yellow-browed Warbler, Titchfield Haven - October 2014

The tail feathers on this bird were pointed indicating that it was probably a juvenile.

Yellow-browed Warbler tail - October 2014

The session continued with nothing else notable to report and only 37 birds ringed of which five were retraps. The total included 13 Chiffchaffs, five Blackcaps and five Goldcrests, two Robins and single Song Thrush, Blackbird and a lingering Reed Warbler.

A sad looking Goldcrest

After ringing I wandered along the boardwalk looking, and listening for the yellow-browed but there was no sign which was a shame as it would have been nice to see it in the field. 

A quick scan over the beach was also worth while as a mixed flock of gulls were roosting there. The flock included seven Common Gulls, 14 Herring Gulls, 96 Black-headed Gulls and 1 each of Lesser Black-backed and Mediterranean Gull. The Med was sporting a red colour on its left tarsus with the inscription PPP9. A quick look at the colour ringing website here suggests that this bird was ringed in Poland, I will let you know the details when I find out.

Adult Mediterranean Gull with its red colour and the alpha-numeric code PPP9 (honest)

Colour-ringed Godwits at Manor Farm (Part 2) - April 2014

Following on from my last post about the three black-tailed godwits I saw at Manor Farm Country Park, this week I received the information on each bird. Thanks to Pete Potts and Bodvar for sending the information through so quickly. Two of the three birds were ringed on the south coast of England, one on Thorney Island, West Sussex and the other at The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trusts Farlington Marshes reserve in Hampshire; the third was ringed in Iceland as a chick. In order to differentiate the birds I thought it best to re-publish the same photos, with a summary of their respective life histories below.

G//L+R

G//L+R was first ringed as a nestling, one of a brood of two, in north west Iceland in June 2003. Since then it has been re-sighted on 55 occasions in both Iceland and the UK. A summary of the sightings is provided below;

2003 - After ringing it was re-sighted seven times in north west Iceland.

2004 - There were only three sighting in 2004, all from Southampton Water, Hampshire, UK with one in February, March and April.

2005 - There were two sightings from north west Iceland, one in July and one in August.

2006 - There were 14 sightings in this year from both England and Iceland. In February there were two sightings from Titchfield Haven, Hampshire, UK but between May and August there were nine sightings in north west Iceland. Three further sightings, one in September and two in October, were made from Warsash, Hampshire UK.

2007 - There were five sightings this year, three in March from Titchfield Haven and the River Hamble in Hampshire, UK one from north west Iceland in May and a further sighting from the River Hamble, Hampshire in September.

2008 - This year was another good year with 11 sightings made, all from the UK. The majority of the sightings were from the River Hamble and Warsash, with three in the early part of the year, January, March and April and seven in September and October. There was one sighting from Pagham Harbour, West Sussex, UK in November.

2009 - There were only three sightings in this year, one in January on the River Hamble, Hampshire UK, one from north west Iceland in April and one Warsash in the latter part of the year (November).

2010 - There were only three sightings this year, all from Warsash on the River Hamble, one in April and two in September.

2011 - There were three sightings, all in April and from Iceland. One from west Iceland and two from north west Iceland.

2012 - In early April this bird was seen at Warsash, Hampshire, in May it was back in north west Iceland and in December it was again seen at Warsash on the River Hamble.

2013 - There were no sightings in 2013.

2014 - My sighting on the River Hamble last week has been the only one so far this year.

O+ON

This bird was originally ringed in June 2005 on Thorney Island, West Sussex and has been re-sighted 65 times since ringing. All of the sightings have come from the south coast of England. A summary of sightings is provided below;

2005 - After ringing this bird was re-sighted seven times; the first four sighting were near the ringing site in Emsworth Harbour and on Thorney Island in July and August. In October this bird had moved to the River Hamble, and in December it was recorded at Titchfield Haven.

2006 - It remained at Titchfield Haven where it was again sighted twice in February. There were two further sightings, one in August on the River Hamble and one at Fareham Creek, Portsmouth Harbour in September.

2007 - There were 10 sightings this year, three in January, four in March and one in April all from the River Hamble and Titchfield Haven. In November and December the bird was seen once in each month on the River Hamble.

2008 - The was one sighting in February from the River Hamble. In November and December the bird moved to Portsmouth Harbour, where it was reported four times.

2009 - In April the bird was reported three times from the capture site on Thorney Island, West Sussex. In November it was again reported in Portsmouth Harbour.

2010 - In April 2010 the bird moved to Langstone Harbour, Portsmouth where I was sighted three times. In August it was back on the River Hamble.

2011 - There were nine sightings this year, five between January and April and four between October and December. In the early part of the year the favoured sites were the River Hamble and Southampton Water. In the latter part of the year the bird frequented the River Hamble before moving to Portsmouth Harbour.

2012 - There were only four records this year, all from Portsmouth Harbour, one in January, one in March and two in December.

2013 - There were 14 sighting during March and early April all from Southampton Water.

2014 - There have only been two sightings, including mine, this year, both from the River Hamble.

WA9+OW

This is the oldest of the three birds having originally been ringed at the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trusts Farlington Marshes reserve in October 2002. Since then it has been re-sighted 59 times from three countries, the UK, France and Iceland. A summary of sightings in provided below;

2002 - After ringing it was re-sighted at Farlington Marshes 10 days later.

2003 - There were four sightings this year, one from the Avon Valley, Hampshire UK in January, two from the Loire Valley, France in August and then back in the UK at Lymington in the north west Solent in December.

2004 - The were two sightings in the north west Solent in April, and one back at Farlington Marshes in September.

2005 - There were only three sightings this year, all from March. Two were on Thorney Island and one from the north west Solent.

2006 - There were seven sightings this year, one from France in February, one from south west Iceland in July and five from the River Hamble, Hampshire, UK during September and October.  

2007 - In January the bird was reported twice on the Brittany Coast in France, in April it was back on the River Hamble, but in September it was recorded in Kent, UK.

2008 - This year it was recorded initially in April on the River Hamble, then in July it was recorded in Kent, UK, before returning to the River Hamble in September where it was recorded twice in September and once in October.

2009 - There were two sightings in January, both from Western France, there were no further sightings this year.

2010 - There were nine sightings this year, the first was in France in February. There were then five sightings in April on the River Hamble, UK and two and one in August and September, respectively from Kent, UK.

2011 - There were seven sightings this year, two in March and one in April on Southampton Water, then two further sightings in April on the River Hamble. In August this bird was reported in Essex, UK before moving to France where it was reported in October.

2012 - There was only one sighting this year and that was from the Wash in Lincolnshire, UK.

2013 - This bird spent the early part of this year in Hampshire where it was reported on the River Itchen, Southampton and on the River Hamble 11 time between late March and early May.

2014 - The only record this year is mine from the River Hamble in April.

The sightings for these three birds highlight the importance of a providing network of feeding sites throughout their wintering range. According to the BTO website the maximum recorded age for black-tailed godwit is 23 years, 3 months and 21 days, set in 2001. 

Colour-ringed Godwits at Manor Farm Country Park - April 2014

This morning I nipped down to Manor Farm Country Park to check out the route in preparation for my dawn chorus walk there next Sunday, 27th April. It was a fine day and the park was busy, with out of control dogs everywhere. Fortunately my walk starts at 5am so there shouldn't be too many people around then. After sussing the route I headed down to the River Hamble to check out the intertidal on the rising tide, there had been a recent report of an Iceland gull further up river so I was also hoping for that. A couple of whimbrel were the first I had seen on the patch this year, as were a small flock of black-tailed godwits. Initially there were five birds, with one colour-ringed individual; I didn't have my scope and unfortunately couldn't work out the combinations so I quickly headed back to the car. When I returned there were seven birds, three of which were colour-ringed.

A good mate of mine, Pete Potts has been studying godwits for many years, and birds are colour-ringed in Iceland, the UK and I believe Portugal. These birds seemed to have different types of colour combinations which could suggest that they have been ringed in different locations, or are part of different schemes. In addition I could not see a metal ring on any of the birds, which could also suggest that they have not been ringed in the UK.

This bird had four colour rings - orange over black or right tibia, orange on
left tibia and red on left tarsus

This bird had white over white, with the letters A9 on the right tibia, orange
over white on the white tibia and red on the left tarsus

This bird had red on the right tibia, green on the left tibia and another
ring on the left tibia. It was difficult to decipher this ring but I think it is a
discoloured white ring but it may be yellow

I tried to contact Pete but he was away for the weekend. Hopefully he will be able to give me their history, but I will submit the details to the BTO too, and let you know once I have found out.

The Value of Colour Ringing Mediterranean Gulls - April 2014

Back in the summer of 2001, the 26th June to be exact, I was part of a team of ringers who visited the RSPB islands in Langstone Harbour with the specific aim of ringing Mediterranean Gull chicks. I remember it well as it was the first time that pullus, or nestling Med Gulls had been ringed in the County. The Mediterranean Gull was a recent colonist to the Hampshires breeding avifauna in those days and the aim of the project was to colour ring a sample of nestling birds in the hope of understanding their dispersal and survival rates. All of the captured birds were ringed with a standard BTO metal ring and a Darvic ring that included a combination of letters and numbers.

I was not the lead ringer and therefore I had not heard of any recoveries of the birds that we had ringed on that memorable day, until this week when I received an email from Pete Potts, the project co-ordinator. It would appear from Pete's email that there have been several sightings of one particular individual, since it was ringed. Below is a summary of its sightings.

2001 - Darvic ring number 2C31 was ringed on the RSPB islands in Langstone Harbour. After fledging it was first seen at Bembridge on the Isle of Wight before moving to Devon and then onto Sandy Cove in County Dublin where it was last seen on 8th November.

2002 - There were no sightings until 16th July when it was again reported at Sandy Cove. With the exception of occasional visits to other sites in Ireland it remained in this area until 12th September.

2003 - In March 2003 2C31 was reported Asturias Province, Spain before moving to Marias D'Olonne in France in April. There were no further sightings until it returned to Sandy Cove, County Dublin in July. It remained until there until September 2003.

2004 - There were only two sightings in 2004, both from Sandy Cove, County Dublin in July.

2005 - In March 2005 2C31 was seen three times at Marias D'Olonne, France before being reported in Berkshire, England in early April.

2006 - No Sightings

2007 - No sightings

2008 - In early May 2C31 was reported at Titchfield Haven in Hampshire, England.

2009 - There were two January sightings of 2C31 in Spain before turning up in Worcestershire in July. It was back in Spain in November where there were two sightings in Asturias Province.

2010 - There were three sightings in Ireland in 2010, one in August, one it September and one in October.

2011 - Three further sightings were recorded in Ireland in 2011, one in July and two in August.

2012 - This was the best year for sightings to date with 11 reported. Three were from France in March and April with the remaining sightings reported from Ireland between 16th July and 24th October.

2013 - In March 2013 2C31 was sighted near Madrid in Spain. There were no further sightings until July when it was again reported in Ireland, where it remained until 20th October. 

2014 - The latest sighting was from the 9th April where it was reported for the first time in Zeeland in the Netherlands.

Mediterranean Gull 2C31 is now the oldest recorded Med Gull to frequent Ireland where its preferred wintering site seems to be Sandy Cove, County Dublin. Since being ringed it has been recorded 62 times from four countries. On one occasion in 2003 it was recorded paired with an unringed male in France. It is now approaching 12 years since this bird was ringed and interestingly it appears never to have returned to its natal site. 

The amount of data gathered from this one bird is an excellent example of the value of colour ringing birds. The maximum recorded age of a Med Gull in the UK, according  to data from the BTO website is 15 years, three months and seven days.

RAS Ringing at Manor Farm Museum, Botley

In the year 2000 I began ringing House Sparrows at Manor Farm Country Park near Botley, Hampshire. Initially the numbers of birds ringed was fairly modest but as more birds were ringed I decided to set up a BTO RAS project. I have previously written about the project on this blog, and it is one of the driving factors why I continue to ring birds at the site. Over the years, the numbers of birds I have ringed has fluctuated quite significantly, this has been due to a number of reasons. The main issue has been work commitments, which has limited the amount of time I could put into the project. But management practices at the site, and accessibility (the site is open to the public) have also played their part. 

House Sparrow with Inscribed Darvic Ring

Many years ago I began colour ringing sparrows as I thought that this would increase the recapture rate of the project. Sparrows are very clever and will remember a net site thereby making them difficult to recapture. I began using small plastic colour rings, but it soon became evident that the sparrows were removing them. I then started using overlapped rings, before ultimately settling on overlapped darvic rings with a letter and two numbers inscribed on them. 

Graph Illustrating Total Numbers of House Sparrows Ringed per Year (blue)
and Retrapped per Year (Red)

Since the year 2000 I have ringed 656 new birds and have retrapped 453. The longest lived individual recorded to date is 4 years 276 days, and the second longest is 4 years 267 days; there have only been three retraps of birds over 4 years during my study. According to BTO data the maximum recorded age is 12 years and 12 days, which was set in 1978, so an individual from this population has someway to go to get to that ripe old age. There have been several theory's about the decline of the House Sparrow including changes in farming practices (increased use of pesticides, cleaner farming, and changes in cropping regimes), loss of nesting sites and increases in predator species such as sparrowhawk. At Manor Farm these changes have not really occurred but nonetheless the population seems to be declining. I have witnessed sparrowhawks taking birds from a recently flailed hedge, so maybe that is the cause here.  

Ageing House Sparrows after their post juvenile/post breeding moult is not possible since the extent of the moult is complete for both adults and juveniles. I have not previously looked in detail at ageing birds, but there have been several suggestions by various authors in the past describing how to separate first year from second year birds. These include a less pure grey crown and broader chestnut edges in first year birds, a difference in the pattern on the upper middle secondary covert, and the colouration of the bill, specifically the yellow bill colour and fleshy lateral lobes at the base of the bill.

Two male house sparrows, note the all dark bill and paler check of
the left hand bird, but the yellow base and grey check to the right
hand bird

Over the last few weeks have started looking at the bill on some of the birds I have captured, although at this stage I cannot make any assessments as I am catching mainly new birds. However, in male birds I have noticed considerable variation in the colouration of the bill. This is illustrated above where the bird on he left has an all dark bill, and also a more defined head pattern and a whiter cheek. However the bird on the right has a paler bill with yellow at the base, a less well defined head pattern and greyer cheek. Unfortunately both birds were new birds so I could not confirm my suspicions that the bird on the left is an adult.

Adult male House Sparrow which was originally ringed on 2nd
January 2010 and retrapped on 30th November 2013 (3 years 332
days later)

One male bird that I retrapped this weekend was originally ringed on 2nd January 2010 (image above). Like the left hand bird in the previous image this bird had a mainly black bill, although not as dark as that bird, and a clearly defined head pattern. Interestingly this bird also exhibited a very well marked black face mask and dark lores. The cheeks are pale grey in colouration.

This male again had an ill-defined head pattern, pale horn
coloured bill with a yellow base

The image above illustrates another male bird, this time with an ill-defined head pattern and black mask, paler horn coloured bill with a yellow base. The cheeks on this individual are quite pale, but appeared slightly buff coloured as opposed to the dark billed birds which were greyer. I have yet to look in detail at female birds, but of the ones that I did the bill colour seemed to be fairly consistent, being dull pink in colouration with a yellow base. Over the next couple of years I will look more closely at this and maybe by the end I will be able to confidently separate adult and juvenile birds.

Female House Sparrow with dull pink bill and a yellow base.

In two sessions this weekend I caught 50 new birds and retrapped 12, of 10 species. The new species included 28 house sparrows, eight goldfinches, five blackbirds, three robins, two blue tits and single wren, great tit, nuthatch and carrion crow. Of the retraps the most notable were a long-tailed tit, that was originally trapped 2 years and 270 days previously, a blue tit that was originally ringed 2 years 269 days previously and three House Sparrows that were ringed 4 years 276 days, 3 years 332 days and 3 years 156 days previously.

Some Recent Recoveries from BTO HQ

This week I received some good news in the form of five ringing recovery/control sheets back from the BTO. Two were of birds that I had ringed, and three were of colour ringed birds that I had see whilst out birding. 

With regard to the two recoveries, the two birds in questions were both reed buntings that I ringed in my garden on 11th March 2012. The birds appeared to be a pair and were feeding on some millet that I had scattered around under the feeders. I was aware of one of these birds being recaptured, since it was trapped by Barry Duffin at Titchfield Haven, in the Quinoa field. However I was surprised to see that he had also caught the second bird, at the same site, one month later.

Species: Reed Bunting          Scheme: GBT          Ring no: Y303175

Ringing details

Age: 5  Sex: male  Sex meth: -  P.ringed: -  P.alive: -  Condition: -

Colour marks added: -  Metal marks added: -  Act1: -  Act2: -

Ringing date: 11-Mar-2012

Finding details

Ring not verified  Age: 4  Sex: M  Sex meth: -

Colour marks added: -    Metal marks added: -    Act1: T  Act2: -

Finding date: 30-Oct-2012

Reg code: TFH  Place code: TFH  Site name: Titchfield Haven, Hill Head, Fareham, Hampshire

County code: GBHAM  Grid ref: SU5302   Co-ords: 50deg 49min N  1deg 15min W

Hab1: B7  Hab2: C7

Biometrics: Wing: 82 mm.   Weight: 18.6 g.   Time: 1030hrs

Finding condition: 8:20  Movement: --

Controlled    Intentionally Taken

Remarks:

Duration: 233 days    Distance: 7 km    Direction: 203deg (SSW)

Species: Reed Bunting          Scheme: GBT          Ring no: Y303176

Ringing details

Age: 4  Sex: female  Sex meth: -  P.ringed: -  P.alive: -  Condition: -

Colour marks added: -  Metal marks added: -  Act1: -  Act2: -

Ringing date: 11-Mar-2012

Finding details

Ring not verified  Age: 4  Sex: F  Sex meth: -

Colour marks added: -    Metal marks added: -    Act1: W  Act2: -

Finding date: 30-Nov-2012

Reg code: TFH  Place code: TFH  Site name: Titchfield Haven, Hill Head, Fareham, Hampshire

County code: GBHAM  Grid ref: SU5302   Co-ords: 50deg 49min N  1deg 15min W

Hab1: E3  Hab2: --

Biometrics: Wing: 76 mm.   Weight: 18.8 g.   Time: 1330hrs

Finding condition: 8:20  Movement: --

Controlled    Intentionally Taken

Remarks:

Admittedly a movement of seven kilometres, was not that noteworthy, but nonetheless it was a 100% recovery rate for reed buntings ringed in my garden in 2012.

The next bird was a colour-ringed redshank that I saw at Bunny Meadows on 6th October 2012. I think I may have speculated at the time that this bird was probably ringed at Hamble Point, since that is a regular ringing location on The Solent, and sure enough, that was the case.

Species: Redshank          Scheme: GBT          Ring no: DD51278

Ringing details

Age: 6  Sex: unknown  Sex meth: -  P.ringed: -  P.alive: -  Condition: -

Colour marks added: I  Metal marks added: -  Act1: -  Act2: -

Colour marks left below knee: W, right below knee: W,Y, left above knee: M, right above knee: W

Ringing date: 27-Mar-2011

Reg code: HAM  Place code: HAM  Site name: Hamble Point, Southampton Water, Hampshire

County code: GBHAM  Grid ref: SU4805   Co-ords: 50deg 50min N  1deg 19min W

Hab1: H3  Hab2: --

Biometrics: Wing: 177 mm.   Weight: 172 g.   Time: 1455hrs

Remarks:

Finding details

Ring not verified  Age: 4  Sex: -  Sex meth: -

Colour marks added: -    Metal marks added: -    Act1: -  Act2: -

Finding date: 06-Oct-2012

Reg code: ---  Place code: BUNMED  Site name: Bunny Meadows, Warsash, Hampshire

County code: GBHAM  Grid ref: SU4808   Co-ords: 50deg 52min N  1deg 19min W

Hab1: H3  Hab2: --

Biometrics: Wing: -- mm.   Weight: -- g.   Time: --hrs

Finding condition: 89:81  Movement: --

Sight record by a ringer    Identified by Colour Ring(s)

Remarks:

Duration: 559 days    Distance: 4 km    Direction: 0deg (N)

Again this bird doesn't break any records on the distance or longevity scale, having been ringed 599 days previously and only four kilometres away, but it highlights the value of colour ringing birds again. I will be looking out for this bird in the future.

Then next two birds were mute swans, both of which were seen at Weston Shore, near Southampton. The birds were both adult, and were part of a family party of five birds. Many mute swans are ringed on the south coast, with the majority ringed in Christchurch Harbour, Dorset by Dave Stone, during the annual swan round up. As it turned out, that is where these birds were ringed.

Species: Mute Swan          Scheme: GBT          Ring no: W22151

Ringing details

Age: 1  Sex: unknown  Sex meth: -  P.ringed: 4  P.alive: 4  Condition: -

Colour marks added: I  Metal marks added: -  Act1: -  Act2: -

Colour marks left below knee: ON(J5A)

Ringing date: 01-Oct-2006

Reg code: XCH  Place code: XCH  Site name: Christchurch, Dorset

County code: GBDOR  Grid ref: SZ1692   Co-ords: 50deg 44min N  1deg 46min W

Hab1: H3  Hab2: G7

Biometrics: Wing: -- mm.   Weight: -- g.   Time: --hrs

Remarks:

Finding details

Ring not verified  Age: 4  Sex: -  Sex meth: -

Colour marks added: -    Metal marks added: -    Act1: -  Act2: -

Finding date: 09-Dec-2012

Reg code: ---  Place code: WESTON  Site name: Weston Shore, Southampton, Hampshire

County code: GBHAM  Grid ref: SU4409   Co-ords: 50deg 53min N  1deg 22min W

Hab1: H1  Hab2: --

Biometrics: Wing: -- mm.   Weight: -- g.   Time: --hrs

Finding condition: 89:81  Movement: --

Sight record by a ringer    Identified by Colour Ring(s)

Remarks:

Duration: 2262 days    Distance: 33 km    Direction: 60deg (ENE)

As you can see this bird was ringed as a chick (age code 1) six years and 69 days previously. Again this is by no means a record, in fact the maximum recorded age for mute swan is 27 years, 6 months and 27 days, so it has a long way to go before being a recovery of note.

Species: Mute Swan          Scheme: GBT          Ring no: W26469

Ringing details

Age: 5  Sex: unknown  Sex meth: -  P.ringed: -  P.alive: -  Condition: -

Colour marks added: I  Metal marks added: -  Act1: -  Act2: -

Colour marks left below knee: ON(N7L)

Ringing date: 19-Sep-2009

Reg code: XCH  Place code: XCH  Site name: Christchurch, Dorset

County code: GBDOR  Grid ref: SZ1692   Co-ords: 50deg 44min N  1deg 46min W

Hab1: H3  Hab2: G7

Biometrics: Wing: -- mm.   Weight: -- g.   Time: --hrs

Remarks:

Finding details

Ring not verified  Age: 4  Sex: -  Sex meth: -

Colour marks added: -    Metal marks added: -    Act1: -  Act2: -

Finding date: 09-Dec-2012

Reg code: ---  Place code: WESTON  Site name: Weston Shore, Southampton, Hampshire

County code: GBHAM  Grid ref: SU4409   Co-ords: 50deg 53min N  1deg 22min W

Hab1: H1  Hab2: --

Biometrics: Wing: -- mm.   Weight: -- g.   Time: --hrs

Finding condition: 89:81  Movement: --

Sight record by a ringer    Identified by Colour Ring(s)

Remarks:

Duration: 1178 days    Distance: 33 km    Direction: 60deg (ENE)

W26469 was ringed as a second year bird (age code 5) three years and 81 days previously. When recording colour rings it is worth remembering to note the colour of the ring, the lettering, if present, the colour of the letters and the location of the ring on the swans leg, since there are so many colour combinations around at present.