brewoodringers

BIRD RINGING AT BELVIDE

For more details of the West Midland Bird Club's Belvide Reserve see:-

http://www.westmidlandbirdclub.com/belvide

2009 Belvide Ringing Report

Introduction

At risk of repeating the same overall message—2009 was yet another ‘interesting’ year; by which we mean that it was different from the previous 3 years in a variety of ways. It gives strength to the argument that to really get to know a site in any detail requires many years of continuous study.

Now that most of our net sites are consistent from year to year, they have become well trampled so access to them in early July does not pose any risk to species which may still be nesting. In addition, the water levels were lower than in recent years, meaning that we were able to start the ‘post-breeding’ ringing programme earlier than ever on 8^th July, and continued until 19^th September.

This year, for the first time, we also embarked on what we hope will be a long-term study of those breeding birds using the many nest boxes around the reserve. The results from this are, as is often the case, raising as many questions as answers at this stage, but we look forward very much to continuing this study—the results of which are reported later.

Finally, we have done a small amount of netting at the reed-beds in November and December for Reed Buntings. Small numbers were coming in to roost, but this year unfortunately no Starling roost developed.

Results

Overall picture:

The table below shows the numbers of new birds ringed in 2009. Overall the year provided the largest number of new birds ringed so far—which is consistent with the early results from the national Constant Effort Scheme which suggests that 2009 was a good year for breeding success for many small birds. However, as can also be seen, the variety of species ringed was lower than in recent years. This need not cause real concern since the main ‘core’ species were present in good numbers; and often the number of species is a function of chance and extra effort in certain ways. For example if weather conditions are right, it’s possible to catch many Hirundines and Swifts—if not , then we don’t catch any, even though there are still plenty in the area.

Table of new birds ringed at Belvide 2009 compared to recent years

NB species marked * were ringed for the first time in 2009;

Numbers in brackets refer to chicks (pulli) ringed in the nest.

Indeed, the only new species ringed this year, were a chance encounter- Moorhen; and increased effort with nest boxes, in that the Stock Dove chicks were raised in one of the boxes erected to attract Barn Owls.

Specific groups:

Of the non-passerines, although there are some year-on-year differences, it’s probable that none of these are significant. For example, we caught no Sparrowhawks this year, but individuals were present. The lack of woodpeckers was probably due to a reduced catching effort at the feeding station, and the large number of House Martins was one of the chance occurrences mentioned earlier where weather conditions on one morning were such that this species was forced low to catch insects.

We have grouped the resident breeders into three loose categories. The first group appear to be in a steady state-Blackbird, Song Thrush, Treecreeper, Bullfinch, Greenfinch and Goldfinch all had insignificant variations in numbers caught suggesting there are holding their own.

Dunnock and Chaffinch both appear to have had very good breeding success with more young birds caught this year than ever. All 59 Dunnocks were juveniles with no ‘new’ adults ringed. Several adults were re-trapped from up to 4 years ago—it seems that this population of adult Dunnocks have pretty well got the place to themselves, and are obviously very good at defending their territories against interlopers. Coal Tit also increased, but there may been a chance that this was because perhaps one pair bred this year compared to none in the recent past.

Concern surrounds those species which appear to have had a poor breeding season. Given the similarities between Robin and Dunnock lifestyles, it’s a puzzle as to why Robins appear to have fared so badly this year. Perhaps it is easier to account for the lower numbers of Wren, Goldcrest and Long Tailed Tit. All three are well known to be vulnerable to cold snaps—of which there were more in early 2009 than in previous years, so the suggestion here is that the adult breeding stock was hit before breeding started. However all three species are also known to be able to bounce back given milder winters so let’s hope. The smaller number of Tree Sparrows is probably not significant—at least judging by the numbers of un-ringed birds at the feeder at any given time. The reduced ringing effort at the feeder is probably the reason.  

Summer visitors overall did quite well. It’s always difficult to know if numbers are due mainly to breeding or to birds calling into the reserve on migration. Whichever is the case, the numbers do give an indication of breeding success—either at Belvide or wherever birds have come from.

Reed Warbler numbers are creeping back to the high levels of 4 years ago. The low water levels have undoubtedly helped with strong reed growth, which was combined with generally very good weather during the summer. Of the birds ringed 13 were un-ringed adults, probably from breeding colonies elsewhere, although none were bearing rings. Unfortunately we did not carry out a supplementary survey of actual nests. We hope that the clearing of areas of willow scrub will increase the available breeding habitat for this species in future years. Sedge Warblers are showing the same pattern, perhaps even more related to the low water levels this year providing more suitable breeding habitat.

Of the ‘Sylvia ‘ warblers, Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat and Garden Warbler appear to be relatively stable, with Blackcaps having a particularly good breeding season. The low water levels, dense bramble scrub and decent weather all seem to have promoted a good breeding season for this species, with most of the regular adult birds being re-trapped, and 83 young birds ringed.

Both Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler had their second highest totals in recent years. Chiffcahff appear to be breeding well in the area, and these numbers are bolstered by passage migrants—3 birds were caught bearing rings from elsewhere although details of these have not yet come through. No Willow Warblers bred on the reserve this year, so totals are based on passage migrants alone, so the generally high number is encouraging given the concern about the national decline overall in this species.

Nest Boxes

There are over 80 boxes of various types on the reserve, but apart from the Stock Doves mentioned earlier, the only boxes checked regularly and containing chicks were 45 ‘hole’ boxes. None of the open boxes was occupied. Of the hole boxes 60% were occupied -- by Blue and Great Tits.

Blue Tit:

19 boxes held Blue Tit broods, from which 156 chicks fledged—giving an average fledging success of 8.2 chicks per nest, with a range of brood sizes from 13 to 2, as shown below.

By any standards this feels like a good year for Blue Tit breeding and it will be interesting to compare these figures year on year. Weather conditions at fledging time were good so there is a good chance that most of these chicks will have at least had the opportunity of establishing themselves as independent individuals after leaving the nest.

With this in mind we have been monitoring the number of these chicks which have subsequently been caught on the reserve. The results have been as surprising as they are difficult to explain. Of the 156 Blue tit chicks which fledged in May/June, only 14 were re-trapped later in the year. The very high mortality rate in small birds undoubtedly plays a part in this, but some results suggest it is more complex than this. For example individuals X355349 and 409 were not recaptured at all through the summer—but were trapped at the Gazebo feeder in mid November. Could it be that, contrary to our initial hypothesis, young tits do not simply hang around in their breeding area—but move out to explore their surroundings ( as well as being chased away by their parents)—and some move back into the area as they become more experienced/assertive? We will need to monitor this in future years.

Great Tit:

11 boxes held 59 chicks giving an average brood size of 5.4, with a range of between 8 and 1, as shown below.

A very similar pattern is seen with Great Tits. Of the 59 fledged chicks, only 2 were ever re-trapped—TL 448415, and 430 were caught at the feeder in July, and neither they nor any of their fellow fledglings has been re-caught. Clearly there is a lot more work to be done.

Conclusion

Another very successful year has put a few more pieces of the jigsaw in place—but equally other puzzles have been thrown up. The scrub clearance carried out during the latter part of 2009 looks promising in terms of opening up some areas for possible breeding of species such as Willow Warbler. The concentration of willow bushes around netting areas may also concentrate available birds near the nets—only time will tell if next year’s catch will be significantly different. We hope to make a concerted effort to count and monitor Reed Warbler nests in 2010—providing the water levels make it safe for us to do so.

As ever, great thanks go to the West Midland bird Club for extending our permit to ring at Belvide; we hope that the range of ringing demonstrations has enhanced the interest/experience of the many visitors to the site. Continuing support from the Belvide management team in so many ways is again much appreciated; we hope that the findings help in some way towards the continued successful development of the site as a great place for both birds and birders.

The 2008 Report

Overview

The introduction to last year’s report mentioned the uniqueness of every year—and 2008 was different in so many ways to any of the previous couple of years ringing at Belvide. On the plus side, we managed many more ringing sessions than ever before-even when strong winds should have made any ringing impossible. The reason for this is that the well-developed hedge along the drainage dyke provides excellent wind shelter if the wind is anything from south to west north-west. We also had several new trainees this year whose enthusiasm prompted us to more sessions. The result was that we ringed more birds than in any previous year, and more species. (These 11 new species are shown with an asterisk in the totals table.)

On the less positive front however—and this is developed more in the report, was the fact that many species appear to have had a poor breeding season—in some cases worse than that of 2007. Although nowhere near as wet as 2007, the water level in the reservoir had been kept high, and this impeded early reed growth. This appears to have had a profound and complex effect on Reed Warblers this year. The reasons behind poor the breeding season for other species is less easy to explain.

Finally in this section; it has been really rewarding for us to have had so many visitors to our ringing sessions, and so many ‘hits’ on our web site; it feels as though Belvide regulars have accepted the ringing effort for what it is intended, i.e. to provide supplementary data to the many hours of observations going on at the site. This has been further enhanced by the inclusion in the 2006 WMBC report of many snippets from the 2006 Belvide ringing report.

New birds ringed

Table 1 shows the total of birds which were newly ringed during 2008, and compares these numbers with those from 2007 and 2006. The text which follows picks up and suggests explanations for some the issues which jump out from the numbers in the table.

TABLE 1

Species marked :-         * are new since systematic ringing started at Belvide

() are birds ringed as nestlings

Analysis

Reed Warblers are one of THE classic breeding birds at Belvide, their song is one of the first and last things that visitors hear when walking round the site. However, finding out just how many there are is very difficult, even with the benefit of intensive ringing effort. This year appears to have been potentially quite unique. In overall total, 73 new birds ringed ( plus 2 nestlings) puts 2008 squarely between the very good breeding season in 2006, and the very poor 2007 season. On further analysis something else seems to have been happening. Of the total, 55 were young birds, but using this to give an estimate of the number of breeding pairs is unusually difficult for at least two reasons. First, the water was too deep for nest searching, so we have no ‘back-up’ indicator as previously. Second, breeding started late because of the lack of reed growth, so it is very difficult to say how many pairs managed one or two broods. It’s almost certain that none managed three broods as they sometimes do in good summers.

The most intriguing aspect of 2008 was the number of new adults which were caught. We only caught 5 adults which had returned to the reserve from previous years, whereas 20 adults were ringed for the first time. This represents a very large turnover of adults, and more than we would expect based on previous years. There needs to be some exchange of breeders each year to ensure genetic mixing, but why so much this year?  The only explanation we can come up with is that many ‘old stagers’ returned to find the reeds not well grown and decided to look elsewhere for suitable habitat. As the reeds grew, birds wandering about from other breeding colonies found ‘free’ nest sites so settled down to breed. There is some evidence for this. Adult bird V66955, was caught presumably breeding on 27^th July 2008. It had originally been ringed in June 07 at Swithland reservoir Leicestershire. Similarly, R982040, was also caught on 23^rd July, and it was originally ringed as a nestling on 5^th August 2004 in Belper, Derbyshire. Further supporting the theory is V222220, ringed at Belvide as a juvenile on 5^th August 2006, and recaptured on 4^th July 2008 at a breeding site in Shropshire.

Whatever the case, these recoveries do demonstrate the genetic interchange between Reed warbler colonies.

Before leaving this species, it may be sad to report that P465670, a female ringed originally in 2001, didn’t return this year. We can hope of course that she did, and then moved off somewhere else......? On a much more definite note: although we only managed to find one nest this year, it did provide an interesting insight into Reed Warbler breeding success. Unusually for this species, only two eggs were laid, but the chicks hatched successfully and grew quickly as you would expect with fewer mouths to feed. We ringed the chicks at just the right time, as their flight feathers were just about showing through. However, two days after ringing there were a couple of torrential downpours, and when we subsequently checked the nest, it had been washed out. A couple of weeks later however, both chicks were re-trapped flying about in the reeds in a very healthy condition! This is all part of Reed Warbler make-up, in that the legs of chicks develop very quickly for just such occasions—the birds can easily clamber about the reeds from a very early age and seek shelter under bushes etc. providing a great happy ending.

Sedge Warblers appear to have  had a very poor breeding season. Only 6 adults were caught, of which 3 were previous breeders. This suggests about 3 breeding pairs, and with only 20 young birds caught, this would seem to be a reasonable estimate. The potentially worrying issue is that this is much worse than even 2007.

Similar patterns show up for Lesser Whitethroat ( although this may at best be a sporadic local breeder); Whitethroat, where only 1 regular adult was caught and 7 young birds, and Garden Warbler where last year’s increase in breeding was not sustained. Only 4 adults were caught and 19 young birds.

Blackcaps, however, appear to have been unaffected by whatever negative influences were around! Eight adults including 6 ‘old stagers’ were caught, as were over 50 young birds, demonstrating their overall success.

Common Phylloscopus warblers appear to have had a good breeding season, both on the reserve and in populations which migrate through Belvide. From the first ringing session in early July it was apparent that there were lots of Chiffchaff about. We caught 24 new birds on 4^th July, and another 28 new birds on 28^th July. This pattern continued right through the season resulting in 251 new birds in total. Of course as the season rolls on, more and more of these will be birds which move in from elsewhere, but nevertheless it is clear that Belvide is an important area for this species. The last bird was caught on 11^th November while we were trying to catch Redwings at roost!

The vast majority of the Chiffchaffs were juveniles, as would be expected, but only 4 adults previously ringed at Belvide were recaptured suggesting that many birds do in fact move in from surrounding areas, perhaps to feed on the insect-rich willow carr at the water’s edge.

There was no evidence from singing birds of Willow Warbler breeding this year. It was all the more surprising that we caught such large numbers. The timing, mainly August, and the fact that almost no adults were caught, suggests that these were mainly migrants which, like Chiffchaffs, found good feeding in the scrubland to enable them to put on weight quickly for their onward migration. Of course, which breeding populations these birds were coming from remains a mystery since we have no controls (i.e. birds already ringed elsewhere).

In terms of the resident birds, breeding seems to have been pretty good.

Kingfishers obviously bred locally, and the high water levels meant that birds were often caught where the nets were over the edge of the water. Robin, Wren, Dunnock and Goldcrest were all caught in bigger numbers than last year, with quite a few adults from previous years continuing to produce good numbers of young. Although Blackbirds appear stable, the number caught is artificially high due to early Winter catches which didn’t feature in previous years’ figures—so their breeding seems to have been quite poor. On a similar note, Long Tailed Tits have not bred well this season. This is not because of low adult numbers—winters have been quite benign, and adults ringed 2, 3 even 4 years ago are still being recaptured. It appears that their productivity of chicks for some reason was low this year. It may even be that the regular presence of Sparrowhawks around the reserve has taken its toll—although this would only be relevant if other observations showed there to have been more predators around than in recent years.

It is difficult to say much about species such as Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Tree Sparrow, Reed Bunting, Starling and Redwing since the numbers caught are probably more a reflection of ringing opportunities, than they are clues about breeding success. However, Redwing numbers are indicative of the huge influx from the continent which occurred during October and November as reported all over the country. Goldfinch numbers are again showing similar patterns across the country where they are finding garden feeders in winter help to sustain large summer populations which roam around searching for suitable natural food—of which there is a lot at Belvide. One of the adult females we caught on 19^th July is a classic case, since she was originally ringed as an adult on 25 January 2007 in Newport, Shropshire.

Finally, it looks as though both Blue and Great Tits have had a good breeding season, with much larger number caught this year than previously. This needs closer analysis, because more time was spent this year catching birds at the Gazebo feeding station during late winter and late summer, than previously. The most interesting analysis is of the post- breeding time of year, where we find that we caught 21 new, and 6 ‘old’ adult Blue Tits and 64 juveniles. If we assume this represents about 14 breeding pairs, then they on average produced about 4.5 chicks each. Accounting for post breeding predation and other causes of chick mortality, this may be a reasonable success rate.

For Great Tit, a similar analysis gives 10 new adults and 4 ‘old’ birds, and 49 juveniles. Based on 7 pairs this would mean average productivity of 7 per pair which appears very good.

For both these species we need to do more work in future to try and devise more systematic means of assessing populations and breeding success.  

We hope this report has been both interesting and informative. We believe it demonstrates the benefits of a systematic ringing effort, as further insights into the birds of Belvide continue to accrue as time goes on.

We would like to thank the WMBC for continued permission to ring at the site, and all of the visitors who have attended the sessions for their enthusiasm, support and questions. The many ‘hits’ on our website are also encouraging. Finally we would again like to thank the Belvide management team for their interest, enthusiasm, practical help and presence at many of our ringing sessions.

Colin McShane ( on behalf of Brewood Ringers)

December 2008

The 2007 Report

Overview

For anyone interested in birds or wildlife generally, every year is different, and in many ways that is exactly what keeps us interested. As can be seen from the following report, ringing at Belvide in 2007 was very different from 2006, primarily as a result of the exceptionally high rainfall during June and July. In fact, we had almost abandoned any hope of ringing because even by mid July, the net rides were thigh-deep in water. Another local ringer, Dave Clifton, at Hams Hall abandoned all ringing when most of his net poles and guys were completely washed away! However, back at Belvide, by the end of July, most rides had drained sufficiently to allow nets to be set safely. As the water was let out of the reservoir we managed to have almost the same number of ringing sessions, during the main post-breeding period, using approximately the same number and length of netting as 2006. This means we now have an emerging picture based on a reasonably standard ringing effort—thereby enabling some robust year-on-year comparisons to be made. Although currently we can only do this for the last two years, this will obviously improve each year, and will satisfy one of the main aims of the ringing effort at Belvide.

We did improve coverage of other aspects this year, mainly on the winter roost in the Gazebo reed-bed, and around the feeding station outside the Gazebo hide. The effects of these on the totals are explained in the text.  

New birds ringed

Table 1 shows the total of birds which were newly ringed during 2007, and compares these numbers with those from 2006. The text which follows picks up and suggests explanations for some the issues which jump out from the numbers in the table.

TABLE 1

Analysis

Some species appear to have been unaffected by the weather conditions. Robin, Dunnock, Wren, Goldcrest, Chaffinch and Bullfinch were all caught in very similar numbers to last year. These species possibly bred before the poor weather hit, or nested in places less affected by the rain. For example, Goldcrest nests are usually quite high in conifers so assuming the birds sit tight during rain they should be relatively unaffected. The lower number of Goldfinch caught is not a reflection on population trends, but due to them roosting near a net site in 2006 and not in 2007.

Some other apparently interesting results can be explained quite easily. The large numbers of Reed Bunting and Starlings were due to the extra effort in catching them at their roosts in the reeds. Although we will continue in future, comparisons with Starlings may be impossible due to their erratic behaviour at roosts. The large number of Tree Sparrows was due to increased effort at the feeder station outside the Gazebo hide—this again may be continued to build up a more complete picture of just how many birds of this important species are being supported by the feeding station. The increased number of Greenfinches and Blue Tits ringed was due to the same reason.

However, the number of Great Tits gives some cause for concern. The expectation would have been for their numbers to have been largely unaffected by the weather in that they nest reasonably early and largely in boxes or holes in trees. However, we caught very few during the normal ringing sessions, and the only reason the numbers caught are as high as they are is due to the extra effort at the feeding station. On the positive side however, the ratio of adults to chicks was as it should be. This compares favourably with some reports from around the country where only adults are being caught, demonstrating very poor breeding. The low numbers of Long Tailed Tits is also difficult to explain. Their numbers generally have been increasing largely due to a series of mild winters. Indeed we caught lots of LTTs but a large proportion were re-traps from previous years which had clearly survived well ( see later section). For some reason it appears that their productivity this year was low; it could of course have been that any nests which were a little later than normal may have been washed out.

Blackbird and Song Thrush numbers are encouragingly high, with, as expected the majority of the new birds being birds reared during the year. Both species tend to nest early, and have several broods, so they probably missed the main deluge. Furthermore, wet weather can be very beneficial to both these species in that it keeps the ground soft enabling them to find worms more easily. The single Redwing signifies little other than a chance catch near the feeding station from what was a big influx of this species across the country.

The two most exciting birds of the year in some respects were the Pied Flycatcher and Cetti’s Warbler—both of which were new birds to be ringed at Belvide. The origins of the flycatcher are unknown, but it could have come from the small breeding population on Cannock Chase, or from the very large population throughout Wales. The timing is consistent with birds gradually moving off south, but catches away from the breeding range ( other than at coastal sites) are unusual. Our big hope is that it is recaptured, hopefully at a nest box in its natal area. The Cetti’s is potentially more exciting in that this is one of an increasing series of records as the species continues its northward spread in Britain. This individual was a female (based on wing length), which suggests it is a separate bird from the one heard singing briefly in Gazebo bay a couple of weeks later. With luck it may become a breeder at Belvide in the near future; the habitat certainly seems suitable when compared to other breeding sites in various parts of the country.

The results for Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler are interesting on several counts. Willows were definitely more numerous this year than last, but it is debateable if the increase in Chifchaff is statistically significant. Whichever is true, neither species appears to have suffered from the bad weather. Both nest on or close to the ground, and so they both should have been affected. It is possible therefore that many of the individuals of these species nest close to the reservoir, in drier areas, and use the margins of the reservoir to feed up prior to migration. If this is the case then the reserve is no less important than if they do not actually breed, since pre-migratory fat deposition is a critical aspect of survival. The number of Willows also, undoubtedly, contains some migrants from further afield. The following table shows an unexpected trend difference between these two species. The high numbers of Willows earlier in the season fits with the notion of local birds wandering the natal area feeding up ready for migration, then as migration gathers pace, these birds move out, and are not replaced by migrants from further north ‘dropping in’ en route south. This is a little surprising because this species typically flies several short distances on migration. However, the period in question was typified by clear skies and following winds which presumably were ideal conditions for migration, and Willow Warblers left the country quickly. Chiffchaffs on the other hand typically migrate later than Willows, and the data show two peaks corresponding to two waves of birds passing through the reserve, with typically later dates for birds lingering into the Autumn.

Table 2

The varying fates of the ‘Sylvia’ warblers are very difficult to explain. Presumably, Whitethroats were unaffected by anything, and appear to have kept their small breeding population on the reserve. Given that their nest sites are very similar to Blackcap, it’s very difficult explain why the latter species appears to have done so badly this year. This is even more puzzling when the success of both Garden Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat are added to the equation. Garden Warblers were heard singing across the reserve and they appear to have bred successfully—and at last we managed to catch 2 adult birds proving that they do breed like other birds, rather than by spontaneous generation as we suspected last year! Lesser Whitethroat is an uncommon breeder in most places so it is doubly exciting to see their numbers looking so good. Two of the birds we caught were adults suggesting they bred nearby, so we can only hope that this is part of a trend, rather than a peculiar case in 2007—time will tell.

Clearly the most upsetting effect of the high water levels was the very poor breeding season experienced by Sedge and Reed Warblers. Sedgie numbers were down, but not disastrously so, partly we suspect, because they are less reliant on nesting over water than Reed Warblers. The effect on the latter can be seen in the stark numbers. What makes it even more significant is that almost half of the new birds ringed were adults, showing what a poor breeding season they had. We were unable to get into the reeds to look for nests for obvious reasons—but 3 nests were found in willow bushes, which the birds will use in dire circumstances. At least one of these nests was successful in that 3 chicks were fledged—the only Reed Warbler chicks ringed on the reserve in 2007. The fact that so many new adults were ringed does give some hope for the future, along with re-traps from previous years discussed later. This does show that the site is very attractive, and, given more normal conditions next year, we can be reasonably confident that numbers will be back where they were in 2006—we hope!

Keeping Track

One of the main purposes of marking individual birds, is that it allows us to keep track of them. This applies primarily to birds which are resident or nest at Belvide, but sometimes ‘our’ birds are recovered elsewhere—either dead or alive—thereby helping us to understand their movements. We are now starting to accrue some re-trap data, some of which is presented below.

 First, ‘our’ birds which have been found elsewhere:-

ChiffchaffAPK397, ringed as a juvenile bird on 23^rd August 2005, was found breeding in Buckinghamshire as a male the following year.

Sedge Warbler V228148, ringed as a juvenile on 27^th July 2006, was caught by ringers on its way to Africa on 27^th august 2006 in Sandouville, northern France, 397k from Belvide. From what we know about Sedge warbler migration it is very likely that the bird flew in one step—probably the night before, and was feeding up for the next stage of its migration.

Reed Warbler, V228258, ringed as a juvenile on 14^th August 2006, was found at a breeding site in Pocklington, Humberside. Clearly this bird was not faithful to its natal site. Having part of a breeding population move out is essential for species survival and for mixing gene pools.

Second, some of ‘our’ birds which have been found back at Belvide:-

 Sedge Warbler T569298, and Reed Warblers T569141, T569267, T569342 are all becoming ‘old favourites’ in that they were all first ringed as breeding adults in 2005, and they were all re-caught in 2007 at least trying to breed again. These are exactly the hard core of returning birds which we hope will return next year to help the recovery after this year’s bad breeding season.

Blue TitsT569266, T569354, and Great Tits, T22646, T569371, T569321 are similarly becoming regular breeders. Although they don’t have the rigours of migration to overcome, they do have to survive our winters, and these were all ringed initially as adults in 2005, and were all re-trapped at the site during the Summer 2007.

Garden Warbler V228020, was originally ringed as a juvenile in July 2006, but obviously returned, as a ( presumably) breeding adult and was re-trapped in July 2007.

Chiffchaffs1U9114, 1U9115, BRV384, 1U9197, were all ringed during the Summer of 2006, and were re-trapped during the Summer of 2007, presumably part of the strong breeding population around Belvide.

Now a real gem! Reed Warbler P465670 is a very game old bird. She was initially ringed at Belvide as a recently hatched juvenile ( not sexed) on 14^th August 2001. We re-caught her on 18^th August 2007 with a brood patch showing that she was female and at least trying to breed. Hopefully she will now be spending the Winter in a safe reed bed somewhere in Africa getting ready to embark on her eighth period at Belvide. What a phenomenal feat that will be if she does make it. We shall certainly be keeping a sharp eye on every re-trap next season in case she turns up again!

We hope this report has been both interesting and informative. We believe it demonstrates the benefits of a systematic ringing effort, and we hope that further insights into the birds of Belvide will accrue as time goes on. Finally we would again like to thank the Belvide management team for their interest, enthusiasm, practical help and presence at many of our ringing sessions.

Colin McShane ( on behalf of the Bache, Shearwood and McShane ringing group)

January 2008

BELVIDE 2006 RINGING REPORT

 In General

This was a very successful year in terms of both numbers, and variety of species caught. The ringing effort (number of nets/number of visits/time nets open), in 2006 was a little under twice the effort in 2005. This is very important when trying to compare totals between years.

Ringing of Reed Warbler nestlings was not as good as expected, mainly because visits were not timed as well as they could have been, with several broods already fledged, while others were either too small or still in egg—of which there is more later in this report.

The clearing of rides helped the catch rate generally, but some willow sp. bushes had increased in height since 2005, which resulted in the nets beside these being less successful as birds flew over the nets. It will probably take a few more years before we have established exactly where the most productive sites are, and how best to manage the vegetation around them. What also helped generally was the weather, which provided a hot dry period during Summer which helped most relevant species in their breeding attempts; with reasonably still conditions during the main ringing period which helped the catch-rate. Those who experienced being caught in the heavy downpours may find this more difficult to believe!

 Specific species:-

Swallow, martins, and Yellow Wagtail

All but one of these were caught in one net during one morning when the weather conditions were such that the flies were very low, at the edge of the water, and very near to that particular net. We can therefore deduce nothing from this of a more general nature. 

Wren, Dunnock and Robin

The reasonable assumption here is that these birds are resident and numbers reflect the breeding population. Only 19 definite juvenile Wrens were caught, and overall the numbers compare unfavourably with 2005, we suspect they were not very successful in their breeding attempts in 2006. About twice as many Dunnock and Robin were caught this year—consistent with the extra effort—probably they did as well as 2005.

Grasshopper Warbler 

This was an unexpected catch as there were no records of the bird breeding this year. The bird was a juvenile, so we must assume that it ‘dropped in’ to the area on its southward migration—or was on an exploratory flight near to its nest site near to Belvide?

Sedge Warbler

Only 10 adults were caught this year (14 last), from which a total of 43 juveniles were ringed. We suggest that most of the birds were hatched at Belvide since most were caught in July and early August; however there may have been some immigrants from passage birds. Although only 28 juveniles were ringed in 2005, given the extra effort this year, we feel that this species has not done as well as in 2005.

Reed Warbler

Again we feel that most birds relate to those breeding at Belvide—we even caught two freshly fledged birds as late as the first week in September. However, we also know there is some immigration as we have records of birds ‘commuting’ between the site and Chillington.

Approximately the same number of adults were caught as last year. Catching adults is not susceptible to the sa