The Lincolnshire Bird Club

Fairly quiet early this morning, but with evidence of more blackbirds in, estimated 100+.

It's interesting trying to estimate birds here in such densely covered areas. Yesterday, I quoted 400+ blackbirds, but Birkland's RG caught 100, even in such windy weather, so my estimate had to be very low. Today, they also caught nearly 100 blackbirds, which they had arriving during the day as well, along with 30 robins, which would have been my estimate for birds present. Earlier in the week, I estimated 3000+ redwing, but watching numbers decrease during the week clearly indicated that I had underestimated by at least 2000. It gives a base-line though. They had several woodcock coming in and dropping from height, whilst most of the blackbirds were low off the sea.

Birkland's also caught a single Waxwing today.

Hen harrier ring tail present

Starlings in roost in our garden exceeded 500 this evening and gave a good pre roost display.

regards
Cliff

It may be an unpopular viewpoint (for some) but I have to speak out....... although what may be considered as progress often originates from initially unpopular viewpoints.

Is it right and proper that "coastal" ringers, such as the Birkland's Ringing Group in its present operations, should be allowed to trap hundreds of migrant birds which have just arrived on our shores? The birds have survived a daunting and perilous sea crossing, are probably half-dead from exhaustion, and then they have to go through the trauma of trapping/ human handling, possibly before they have even had a chance to feed. I wonder how many migrant birds die as a result.

One hundred Blackbirds.....what is the point? 2 or 3 Blackbirds, perhaps but 100, and "daily".......all being repeated around our coasts by dozens of ringing groups for dozens of species.

Shouldn't we think of the birds' welfare first, and in this instance of arriving migrating birds, our obsession with ringing and data gathering second? Are, perhaps, eg. the hundreds of Blackbirds really regarded as acceptable collateral damage for the one highly-prized Pallas's Warbler or Red-flanked BT?

Ringing inland is one thing but coastal ringing especially at peak migration times should be tightly supervised and monitored with minimal numbers and quotas allowed. It's not the migrants that should be controlled but the obsessive coastal ringers.

Freddy

A point well made freddy, i totally agree.

_________________
George Rutter

Thanks, George, for being the first man.......and I use the word advisedly.....to put your head above the proverbial parapet and say what you think.

Regards,

Freddy