CALLING ALL RINGERS - Tickets still available.
South East Ringers' Conference at Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory:
April 5th 2025 09.30 -17.00
Admission is by ticket only please use this link: https://buytickets.at/sandwichbaybirdobservatory/1582702
Talks will include Waders on the Swale, Nightingales, Motus, Trapping methods, Turtle Doves
Raffle to win a pair of binoculars kindly donated by In Focus.
Saturday 22nd
Male House Sparrow showing off his nest box. Sue Smith 21 March 2025
With the mild weather nest activity is ramping up and it is good to see sparrows back around some of our boxes.
Friday 21st
Another mild night and a bit of cloud ensured an amazing sunrise. By mid-morning there was a bit of a fresher breeze. The cloud meant the Chaffinches heading south were visible and we actually caught four new ones.One of these was fat score 5 and weighed 27.1 grams, 6 grams above the average. The other eight new birds were two Robins, two Song Thrushes, two Chiffchaffs and the first Firecrest of the year. The remaining new bird was a male Mallard from the newly improved heligoland. He was accompanied by a female we ringed in 2023.
Tuesday 18th
It remains dry but windy. The spring sun fought with the cold wind and only won in sheltered areas. With a slight shift in wind direction we got some of the lower nets up. Despite groups of Chaffinches flying over at first light it did not last long and only three birds were caught - a Blackbird, a four-year-old Chaffinch, and a new Reed Bunting.
There have been several recoveries of our birds notified to us recently and they reflect how the changing climate and human activity is changing what birds do in the winter. Twenty years ago Goldfinches tended to head south to southern France and Spain for the winter now they make use of feeders and the generally milder weather to remain here. This is demonstrated by three different birds all retrapped just north of the river at Richborough this year already. The importance of feeders is also demonstrated by three Blue Tits retrapped locally at sites where feeding occurs. A Redpoll ringed here in October was already back north of us ay Hoylake, Merseyside by the start of the month.
Wednesday 12th
Mostly clear overnight and so it was an icy start. Despite a cool breeze the frost disappeared quickly. It was quiet in the ringing area although the seed is going down quickly. Fourteen birds were caught but only five were new - two Chaffinches and singles of Blue Tit, Goldfinch and Great Tit. The interesting trickle of Blackbirds which we have previously ringed but not seen over the winter continues with another three.
Persistence pays off!
Just to show how a camera can be used constructively, Jonny, our voluntary assistant, saw a Firecrest on the edge of the car park. He noticed it was ringed and took this series of photos (it costs nothing as they could be deleted if not of use) and so we could work out the ring number. It had been caught on October 4th last year in the Haven and is probably the one which has been noted on and off over the winter.
Tuesday 11th
A cooler breeze arrived and there was a surprise visit of a sprinkle of light rain - not conditions for ringing.
Another movement we have learnt of is that of a Chiffchaff ringed here on August 27th 2024 and caught by a ringer in Spain on October 19th at Cartaya, Huelva which is 1691 km SSW. Nothing unusual in this record but shows not all Chiffchaffs are wintering in the UK yet.
Monday 10th
We have been notified of a fascinating recovery of a Mediterranean Gull. The Observatory originally ringed it at Copt Point on February 22nd 2001. It was retrapped by South Essex Ringing Group at Westcliffe-on-sea, Southend on January 20th 2025. As it was ringed originally as an adult it is at least 26 years old. The previous record on the BTO database was 18 years 2 months.
Sunday 9th
The mild spell continues for a bit longer and once again new birds outnumbered retraps, this time ten to six. A Reed Bunting was a new species for the year as were two Moorhens. The latter have spent the winter avoiding being caught in the heligoland. The other new birds were four Chaffinches and singles of Blue Tit, Goldfinch and House Sparrow.
Friday 7th
A pleasant, mild, start which was great for ringing until the breeze got up around 10am.
The return movement continues and there were 12 new birds plus seven retraps. A male Blackcap was the first this year plus there were two new Chiffchaffs and a UK control, which had been ringed last May. Great Tits were on the move with four new ones plus three retraps. The other new birds were two Chaffinches and singles of Robin, House Sparrow and Goldfinch.
Wednesday 5th
Calm and frosty to start with followed by a warm sun burning through the mist. The slow return north continued and new birds included singles of Chiffchaff, Goldfinch, Siskin, Robin and Long-tailed Tit. Blackbirds continued to reappear and two were retrapped, one of these had not been seen since winter 2022. There was also a sighting of a nasal-saddled Pochard on Restharrow Scrape. We await details of the record from the organiser.
Sunday 2nd
There is a trickle of Chaffinches heading back north and another three were ringed. The rest of the birds were retraps the most notable of which was a Cetti's Warbler.