Recent Recoveries Reports

Our inbox was recently graced with an email with the subject “BTO - Finding Recovery Report”. Always a joy to behold! This particular batch of recoveries came from birds we controlled in autumn and winter 2010.

Winter at Cosmeston Lakes saw the usual arrival of several dozen Canada geese attracted by the open water and promise of bread, bread and more bread. The glint of a ring among all those unringed legs was all too obvious and we soon became acquainted with 5254368. This particularly bird was originally ringed as an adult in the Chew Valley in 2008, 41km away and 910 days before its appearance at Cosmeston.

This was the first Canada goose to be caught on one of our sites, although several of the Cardiff Ringers are well versed in the catching of Canada geese having taken part in the Llangorse. But we are still yet to ring any on our own rings, but give us time as plans are afoot….

Rather fittingly for the time of year, the other two recoveries were from migrants that had called in to Cardiff Bay on their way South for the winter. The first year Whitethroat known as L052810 was originally ringed at Kilpasion Marsh in Pembrokeshire by our esteemed colleagues from the Pembrokeshire Ringing Group. 26 days later having travelled 126km and put on 2.6 grams we wished him luck on the rest of his journey.

The North Lancashire Ringing Group should be proud of L444850, a first year Sedge Warbler, who was somewhat quicker than Whitey above having covered the 325km from where he was ringed in Leighton Moss in just 14 days. But to be fair he had only put on a gram by the time we saw him.