Four go to Lundy

Four of the Group headed off to Lundy on Tuesday 15th September for the Group's first ever ringing excursion....and what a good time we had! Robin organised everything, and it all went very well. 

On the run up to the trip, Ian suggested that we each select two 'special' birds that might turn up on the island. We recorded our choices, but they remained secret. If one of 'your' birds was caught, then you would get to ring it....if it was on more than one list, then those names would go in the hat. If the bird was on no ones' list, then all names would go in the hat as usual. 

We had an early start on 15th, meeting at Robin's at 0545 & travelling together to Bideford to catch the 0830 ferry, the MS Oldenburg. 

Heading up the Torridge estuary from Bideford

We arrived on Lundy at about 1050, a bit soggy from spray. It was then a fair walk up a track to the village. There's no transport to take up passengers, but luckily there's an efficient system whereby your luggage is delivered direct to your accomodation.

Looking down on the MS Oldenburg from the track up to the village

Plenty of seals, along with some pups, around quay (Photo: Robin Pearson)

Chris Dee, the leader of the Lundy Bird Observatory Ringing Group was on the island, and we met him at the Millcombe Valley ringing site where he'd had a very quiet morning. Luckily he did have a few birds to show a visiting group of school children, after which we helped him to furl the six nets before heading up to the pub, the Marisco Tavern, which is pretty much the centre of everything that happens on the island. 

After lunch, we headed off to our accommodation, Bramble Villas East, a cabin usually used by visiting ringers which is located close to the three ringing sites. It was actually more comfortable than I had expected, and had a great view!

A lounge with a view...which doubled as Alan's bedroom

Chris came with us & helped to set up four nets in the relatively open area of St John's Valley just above our 'villa'. He also showed us where another 3 nets were set & furled in a small wooded area near the Kasbah a short walk for the villa, so we then had seven nets open

St John's Valley nets above Bramble Villas (ours was the furthest half of the building).

We set up our ringing station on the picnic bench in our garden, and started to catch a few birds, including eight Meadow Pipits, a Sedge Warbler & a Spotted Flycatcher.

A ringing base with a view.

During the session we received word that a young Manx Shearwater had been picked up in the village....they get disorientated and occasionally turn up in odd places. Alan headed off to ring it under the supervision of Thomas, the Bird Observatory warden, whilst we continued at the mist nets. After a pleasant afternoon we furled the nets and headed off to the pub for tea. Chris had left to catch the ferry back to the mainland, leaving us to our own devices. 

Back at the villa, we were thinking of turning in when again we got word that two Manx Shearwaters had been seen in the village. Myself & Robin headed out in the dark to meet Thomas & Eleanor to look for the birds. We found one alongside the 'main' street (a gravel track!) and I got to ring it, again under the supervision of Thomas. They have odd shaped legs, so need a bit of getting used to. 

Manx Shearwater

We failed to find the second, but were then informed that one had walked into the Marisco Tavern! We knew it was the centre of the village....but that's ridiculous! The bar tender had it in a box, and when Robin took it out he found it was already ringed. It turned out that it had been ringed in the village the previous day, and returned to a hole on the cliffs. It had obviously enjoyed its experience & returned for a second go! 

Not may people get served a Manx Shearwater in the pub!

A Manx in the pub.

We headed off with Thomas & Eleanor to the colony nests on top of the cliffs some distance away with the two Manx Shearwaters in boxes. They were placed back into holes where they would be safe until ready to attempt to leave again. Whilst there, Thomas spotted another bird near a hole further down the cliff, so we clambered down to find the bird which Robin then ringed. It was pitch black, which was probably just as well as we couldn't see the drop below us.... it all felt a bit precarious!

Robin ringing a Manx Shearwater on top of a cliff!

By the time we made it back to the villa....Alan & Ian were knocking out the Zs. It had been a long but excellent day.

We were up early on 16th to open the nets in Millcombe Valley for first light. The electricity wasn't due on until 0630, so we had to head off tea-less. We then took it in turns to return for tea & breakfast whilst ringing continued at the six nets. We had a bit of a fall of Blackcaps.... caught 66 during the day, most during the first few hours. It was quite impressive watching flocks move up the valley, and we obviously only caught a very small fraction of the birds moving through. 

Looking down on the Millcombe Valley ringing site from above the 'Slope net'.

When things slowed down, myself and Robin headed off on the footpath that runs north along the top of the cliffs from the ringing site. We were heading to the Heligoland Trap trap located on the Terrace about 30 mins away. A Western Bonelli's Warbler had also been seen several times recently in a copse just south of the trap, which I hoped to see. It was lovely walk on a narrow path, but unfortunately I failed to find the Bonelli's despite checking for a while on the way to& from the trap. I'd never seen a Heligoland Trap before, and Robin only once. We worked out how to set the trap, and actually managed to catch a Blackcap. It was an awful lot of effort for one Blackcap, but worth it for the experience. 

Birds enter the wide end and are funnelled to a catching chamber

Catching chamber with the door shut.

We made sure that the trap was safe and unable to trap birds inadvertently before walking back to join Ian & Alan who had furled the Millcombe Valley nets, and heading off to the pub for lunch. 

In the afternoon we again opened the two sets of nets in St John's Valley, where we caught several more Blackcaps & a few other bits & pieces, although it was very quiet compared to the morning. We were thinking of furling the nets when Greg stopped by. He's the volunteer warden & Trainee ringer, who'd been ringing with us whenever his other duties allowed. We were chatting when he suddenly stopped & said he thought he'd just heard the Western Bonelli's calling! He was right, it called again & put in a few brief appearances in the trees behind our villa. So much for the long walk in the morning to look for it! I was lucky enough to see it several times, although I was the only one of the team that got on it. The others weren't fussed about it anyway, so that worked out well. Unfortunately my views were too brief for a photo. 

We gave it a bit longer just in case the Bonelli's stumbled into a net, but it didn't, so we furled and went to the pub for dinner.

Every evening at 8pm, there's a roll call of the birds that have been seen during the day, either by the person assigned to walk a designated route during the daily census, or by other visiting birders and ringers. A detailed list of birds on the island is therefore maintained throughout the migration seasons.

Bird roll call....in the pub of course.

It had been another enjoyable day, and thank goodness for the fall of Blackcaps or we would have only caught a handful of birds all day. 

On 17th we used the same system....an early start to open the six nets in Millcombe Valley for first light, followed by lunch in the pub and an afternoon opening the seven nets in St John's Valley. It was much quieter than on 16th, and although there were still a few Blackcaps moving through, nothing like the same numbers. We decided to try an new approach to catching the Meadow Pipits which were responding to a tape lure, but moving about on the ground near the net and flying off as we approached. There was a steep slope down the other side of the valley, so I walked around and asked the people staying at the villa at the top of the slope if it was OK for us to walk down the slope in the hope of flushing the Meadow Pipits into the net, rather than away. It actually worked, and although not huge numbers, we caught 16 & a Stonechat. 

Robin (look closely!) making his way down the slope to flush Meadow Pipits

One advantage of ringing at the villa is easy access to the kettle!

Off to the pub for dinner, and then whilst waiting for the nightly bird roll call, myself & Robin went to visit the old lighthouse, imaginatively called The Old Light. The view from the top was impressive, but I didn't have time to try out the deckchairs!

The Old Light

View from the top.

The 18th was our last full day, and we followed the usual pattern. We were treated to a lovely sunrise. 

Sunrise from Millcombe ringing base. 

There were still a few Blackcaps moving through, but after the first flush, even they dried up by 0915. After that, we had empty nets apart from one Chiffchaff & one Goldcrest until the round at 1200....when bingo!!! Robin extracted a bird, and wasn't sure what it was! When it came out of the bag, it was indeed a bit of an LBJ, streaky with a beady black eye & a bit of a wing bar. It was a Rosefinch!! None of us had ever seen one before, but Greg the volunteer warden happened to be there and confirmed the ID. He'd seen it whilst doing the daily bird census a week or so earlier. And that's when I got to play my Joker.....it was one of the two birds on my wish list, made before we left home. I was the only one with it on my list, so no hat required, and I got to ring it. What a fab end to a very slow morning! Just goes to show, you never know what may turn up. 

Common Rosefinch

We furled the nets and headed off to the pub for a celebratory lunch

Toasting the Rosefinch!

The weather was deteriorating, which was a shame as we couldn't open the St John's Valley nets & try to flush in more Meadow Pipits. However, we didn't give up, but opened the nets in Millcombe Valley again which are more sheltered. However, we only caught another one or two birds all afternoon. I took the opportunity to climb up to the flag pole on the hill above the Slope Net & opposite our villa.

View from the flag pole. You can just make out Bramble Villas on the opposite slope.

We were due to leave in the afternoon the following day, however the forecast was so bad that we were told that it was likely that the ferry would be cancelled. We were told to go to the pub at 0900 to find out if we were going home or staying an extra day. We had our final evening meal in the pub, and attended the bird roll call before heading back for our last night....or not!

We woke up on 19th to some very wet and windy weather. We'd been told to pack up & leave our bags outside by 0900 as usual, just in case we were leaving. I then walked tip to the pub....and although I'd thoroughly enjoyed the visit, I must admit that I was pleased to see that the ferry would be running as scheduled. We cleaned up and vacated the villa by 1000, and as the weather was way to bad to ring, we went to spend some time in the pub, where we had fun playing the Lundy Letterbox game. 

A surprisingly clever & fun board game!

Pasties for lunch, and I then had a very wet & windy walk around the southern part of the island, where I failed to see any interesting birds. Robin meanwhile had sensibly gone to the more sheltered east side & walked the path towards the Heligoland trap, where he saw a Grasshopper Warbler. Ian & Alan stayed warm & dry in the pub!

Robin's Grasshopper Warbler (Photo: Robin Pearson)

It brightened up just in time for us to head down to the pier to catch the 1600 ferry back to Illfracombe. The crossing was actually more comfortable than on the way out, with big rolling waves rather than choppy wet ones. And I even managed to add Great Skua to my year list.

Total numbers caught are shown below. We also managed to get the colour ring combinations of a couple of House Sparrows from the local project, one of them was in the pub at the time....no surprise there!

It really was a great trip, and I think we'll be doing it again!

Colour ringed House Sparrow, this one in a bush rather than the pub! (Photo: Robin Pearson)

	Ringed	Retrapped
Blackbird	1	2
Blackcap	99	5
Chiffchaff	11	1
Dunnock	1
Goldcrest	6
Goldfinch	1	1
Manx Shearwater	3	1
Meadow Pipit	25
Robin	6	4
Rosefinch	1
Sedge Warbler	1
Spotted Flycatcher	1
Stonechat	2	1
Willow Warbler	4	2
Wren	1	1
	163	18

Sand martin ringing between 17/5 and 03/08

Sand martin pulli

The sand martin pulli this year were generally ringed on a Sunday, though we did do a couple of midweek sessions when required.  The total number of pulli ringed was 742, up from last year's total of exactly 500.  The season started very strongly with early nests doing well.  The hot spells of weather may have resulted in some eggs being abandoned, perhaps in favour of starting new nests.  This is reportedly the case in other artificial banks, but was anecdotally worse in other areas.  The water under the bank may help to keep the bank cool.  While the number is still much higher than last year, there is still plenty of space in the wall for further increases next year.  We are indebted to the efforts of Doug, who works tirelessly on the monitoring of the wall and uses his excellent spreadsheets to keep us informed of when we need to ring the pulli.  We do not believe we missed any fledged pulli this year, ringing 100% of the birds which fledged from the wall.

On the 31/05 alone we ringed 105 pulli.

The activity behind the wall is of great interest to passers by, with many visitors entertained by members of the group as we explained what we were doing and the purpose of our work.

Sand martins in front of the wall

This year we have carried out mist netting sessions in front of the sand Martin wall once a fortnight on Sundays.  Our first session was on 24/05 and subsequently we made catches on 07/06, 21/06, 05/07 and 19/07, with a final catch on 03/08.  

On our first session we used the technique we used last year, with two nets in front of the entire wall, with one team of ringers and another of extractors.  This year we videoed the front of the wall as we caught to try and identify the holes from which individual birds emerged to fly into the nets, and used individually numbered bird bags to keep track of each extracted bird.  This proved a challenge as tracking the birds and linking them to the numbered bags was difficult using this method. 

The first session was very successful with a total catch of 130 birds, one of which was a blackbird which was caught once the nets had been set up, but before they were moved in front of the wall, so it was extracted before the nets were moved into position.

Of the sand martins caught 86 birds were retraps, with both birds which were adults and pulli ringed in the wall in 2025.  42 birds were unringed so must be birds which had found their way to the site either late in the season in 2025, before making their way south, or on their way back this spring.  Because sand martins complete a pre-breeding moult of all their feathers it is not possible to tell in spring whether the birds were hatched in the previous year or not.  One bird was a French ringed control, and was a bird we had caught previously last summer, returning again to breed.

White clothing shows up birds in the net better.

On the second session, on 07/06, we continued to try to identify the holes the birds were coming from.  Again this was challenging despite some improvements of the technique we used.  We caught 149 birds, of which 86 were retraps.  14 of the birds were birds hatched this year, with 2 of these unringed and therefore not hatched at the Wetlands.  We identified the holes of 36 of the birds.

Session 3 on 21/06 saw us adapt our technique to improve our identification of the holes the birds were using.  We used only one net and moved the net in to position, recording the process using video, then, when a suitable number of birds were caught, we brought the net back out  before extracting the birds.  This led to fewer birds caught in total as birds leave the holes while the net is not in place, but a much better data set. We caught 118 birds, identifying the origin of all bar 10 of these.  17 birds were from this year's hatching.

Buff edges on Greater Coverts indicate this is a young bird

Subsequent sessions on the 05/07 and 19/07 used the same method.  Again we managed to identify the majority of the holes the birds were from.  Numbers gradually diminished as the breeding activity in the wall slowed down and birds started to leave to head south.  77 birds were caught on the 5th, with only 4 first year birds, and all birds allocated to holes except for 4. 

The proportion of first year birds in the catch increased in the final two sessions, with 73 birds caught on 19/07, 13 of which were first year's which (as good adolescents!) tended to appear later in the morning.  22 of the birds could not be allocated to holes in part due to the sun making seeing the video difficult. On the 3rd August we caught only 69 birds of which just 15 were adults the remainder being juveniles with only 3 unringed birds.  We allocated 41 of the total birds for the day to holes.

Overall the sand martin bank has been very successful.  We are in the process of writing more detailed reports for this which will published in due course. 

General Mist Netting - 17/05 to 23/08

In between the sand martin netting, sand martin pulli and swallow roost ringing we have fitted in a number of sessions of general mist netting, targeting primarily reed bed warblers, such as reed, sedge and Cetti's warblers.  We have generally been ringing around the Discovery Hut area, including in the Willows area just nearby.  We made catches on 26/05, 27/05, 12/06 (a demonstration for Age UK), 13/06, 27/07, 02/08,  09/08, 15/08 and 23/08.

Most of these were dominated by reed warblers but we also managed, on 26/05, to catch, amongst 27 birds, a juvenile siskin suggesting that breeding of this species occurs on, or very near, the site.  

Juvenile Siskin

Bare belly of juvenile Siskin

We caught 28 birds on 27/05 of 13 species ringing in the Willows area. The catch included a juvenile long-tailed tit.

Juvenile long-tailed tit

The demonstration on 12/06 started at 10:30, with the first birds ringed at 10:40.  Despite this relatively late start, 15 birds were caught, with captures including a kingfisher and a great spotted woodpecker.

Demonstrating to the group

The Great Spotted Woodpecker

The next day we caught 41 birds including three sand martins and three house sparrows, which are unusual around the Discovery Hut where we were working.  There was also a small rabbit.

A rather cute bunny!

Not quite so cute?  The team in action!

One of the sand martins

On 27/07 45 birds were ringed including an adult linnet and on 02/08 56 birds were caught including 2 kingfishers and another linnet with a prominent brood patch.  

One of the two kingfishers

On 09/08 we caught another juvenile linnet amongst a total of 65 birds.  These captures reinforce the idea that linnet is locally breeding.  52 birds were caught on 15/08 including 2 swallows (see the Swallow Roost Ringing post) and a juvenile reed bunting suggesting breeding nearby, while on 23/08 40 birds including 5 swallows prompted the decision to attempt a swallow roost catch.

Willow warbler (left) and chiffchaff caught on 23/08...

...and two of the swallows.

Overall this period was productive when considering that these catches were really interspersed amongst sand martin and swallow ringing.  Tables showing the full catches are given below.

	26th May		27th May		12th June		13th June
Species	New	Retrap	New	Retrap	New	Retrap	New	Retrap
Blackbird			1	2				1
Blackcap			1	1
Blue Tit				1			1
Cetti's Warbler		1		1			3	1
Chaffinch				1
Chiffchaff			1	3
Dunnock				1		1	1
Great Spotted Woodpecker					1
Great Tit							1
Greenfinch							2
House Sparrow							3
Kingfisher					1
Long-Tailed Tit			2
Reed Bunting						1
Reed Warbler	8	16	2	2	3	6	5	19
Robin			4	1
Sand Martin		1	1				2	1
Sedge Warbler					2
Siskin	1
Song Thrush			1				1
Wren				2
Total	9	18	13	15	7	8	19	22

	27th July		2nd August		9th August		15th August
Species	New	Retrap	New	Retrap	New	Retrap	New	Retrap
Blackbird			1		1		1	1
Blackcap			1
Blue Tit	4		5	1	2		1
Cetti's Warbler	2	3		6	1	2		1
Chiffchaff					4		3
Dunnock			1				1
Goldcrest							1
Goldfinch					1
Great Tit			1		1
Kingfisher			2
Linnet	1		1		1
Reed Bunting							3
Reed Warbler	13	6	16	7	10	9	11	4
Robin	2						1	1
Sedge Warbler	11		10		21	5	14	2
Swallow							2
Whitethroat			1
Willow Warbler			2		4		3
Wren	2		1		1		1	1
Total	35	9	42	14	47	16	42	10

	23rd August
Species	New	Retrap
Blackbird		1
Blackcap	2
Blue Tit	1
Cetti's Warbler		2
Chiffchaff	2
Dunnock	1
Reed Bunting	1
Reed Warbler	9	3
Sedge Warbler	6	2
Song Thrush		1
Swallow	5
Willow Warbler	2
Wren		2
Total	29	11