Finally, after 24 years of ringing Whooper Swans with Yellow darvic rings (both in Iceland & the UK) we used the last yellow ring & this year started to use Red darvic rings.
This wee guy was the first to have a Red darvic ring fitted!
The things we’ll do to ring birds! Well OK we did really want to get half naked and run around a lake catching swans! We didn’t need much persuading!
As always when Sverrir is out doing the rounds of the Whooper Swan lakes in Northern Iceland, he’s always on the look out for alert Golden Plover & Whimbrels. Once an adult has been located, we then use the car as a hide to search for any chicks.
Well the rings & gear have been packed away, data entered onto IPMR & a monthly submission file sent onto the BTO. Tomorrow I'm fleeing the country, heading back to Iceland for 4 weeks & having some familiar faces off this blog accompanying me! We're having a follow up visit to Flatey Island to ring pulli waders, seabirds & terns, as well as floating the boats & touring northern Iceland to roundup Whooper Swans!
Bless Bless (Good bye!)
Manchester had turned into Madchester on the roads this evening, with accidents on three of the major motorways (a lorry engulfed in flames just to the right of the reed bed above!). So both me & Steve were caught up in the traffic on the way home from work & were late for an evening of mist netting at the reed beds.
Even though we were late, we ploughed on & placed several nets at different locations throughout the site. Coupled with the lateness & a slight breeze whipping around the site, we didn’t do too badly and ended the evening session on 22 new birds, 4 recaps & another controlled Reed Warbler (X667744).
| Species | New | Recap | Control |
| Reed Warbler | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Sedge Warbler | 1 | 1 | |
| Whitethroat | 1 | 0 | |
| Reed Bunting | 7 | 0 | |
| Blue Tit | 0 | 1 | |
| Swallow | 3 | 0 | |
| Goldfinch | 6 | 0 | |
| 22 | 4 | 1 |
Hopefully, depending on the weather tomorrow – I’ll try and get into the reed bed to ring pulli Reed Warblers.
Out with Dave Edwards this morning, checking a few Barn Owl farms in Greater Manchester.
10 Canada Goose
Craig took over the monitoring of the Reed Warblers whilst I was away, so I was keen to get back into the reed bed to update the Nest Record Cards & to find new nests. So today Me & Chris headed in, to carry out the work.
