Thursday 13 March 2014

2013 Totals

The group totals for 2013 are in. 11,601 birds of 113 species were processed. 8632 were full grown birds, and 2969 were pullus. The only new species for the group was Black Tern.

The top 10 species were - 
Full Grown Pullus Total
1 Swallow 1219 241 1460
2 Arctic Tern 946 92 1038
3 Goldfinch 621 25 646
4 Herring Gull 497 108 605
5 Sandwich Tern 62 472 534
6 Chaffinch 446 12 458
7 Tree Sparrow 180 178 358
8 Sedge Warbler 197 152 349
9 Waxwing 326 0 326
10 Linnet 194 124 318

Sunday 2 March 2014

Roof-Nesting Oystercatchers

Aberdeen is famous for its roof-nesting oystercatchers.  We have been putting Darvics on chicks since 1997. The rings are white (a few yellow) with a unique combination of a letter and two digits reading down the leg  (see picture).  We have had a lot of sightings in the autumn and winter. Some locally but most from other estuaries round the UK including Musselburgh, the Wash, the Exe, north Wales, north-west England and Dublin.  Keep them coming in.  Had our first bird from Arbroath recently.  However, what we really want more of are sightings of birds during the breeding season. We have heaps of birds out there with Darvics on and we need more sightings.  Can observers please look carefully at any oystercatchers during the breeding season and check if they have a Darvic on the left leg.  The birds will  not necessarily be on roofs.  We have had birds bred on roofs nesting on the ground and vice versa.  

A prize of a bottle of whisky is offered to anyone who finds one particular bird – N87!

Any sightings contact Alistair Duncan on alistair@cairncry.freeserve.co.uk

S65, sighted at Foryd Bay, Caernarfon, North Wales on 21/01/12 (Emyr Evans)