WMBC Kestrels’ first ringing event
The trouble with planning events weeks / months in advance is that you are at the mercy of the weather when the day arrives, and so it was with the WMBC Kestrels’ first ringing event.
The days leading up to the session had been dominated by news of the first two winter storms, Storm Austen on Friday and Storm Boelo on Saturday. With our session planned for Saturday morning, we were hoping for a small window of opportunity between the two fronts.
Colin McShane (WMBC Trustee) & Liz Clipson (WMBC Newsletter Editor) were both leading the planned ringing session, as part of the Belvide Ringers. With ringing being so dependent on the weather it was left until the last possible minute to make the decision whether it was on or not.
Fortunately, it looked like the day would dawn calm and dry, before the rain ahead of Storm Boleo would begin to arrive around 10am, so Colin made the call that we were on…not that he needs much excuse to get out ringing!
The session was fully booked, with lots of new Kestrels members joining us for the first time. So it was great to see so many eager, smiling faces at 7:15am in the carpark, especially given they’d all had to get up well before dawn on the first day of their half term holidays! To be fair, the parents seemed as excited as the young birders!
We made our way down to the ringing hut, on the edge of Belvide Reservoir, with a backdrop of a stunning sunrise, the sky being a glorious mix of blues, pinks and purples. Another reminder why autumn mornings are so special. Colin and Liz were there to greet us, and movement from several ringing bags hinted that the first review of the nets had been a successful one.
Less than a week ago, Belvide had seen a record count of 7379 Redwing passing over, so hopes were high that a few of these gorgeous winter Thrushes would find their way into the nets. We were not disappointed either, as each review of the nets saw several Redwing amongst the other, more common, species.
Colin and Liz did a fantastic job of explaining all about ringing, and talking about the types of feathers and the key factors that help them age and sex the different birds. They took time to answer the many questions that were asked and were absolutely brilliant with all the young birders…and the adults.
I’m sure the highlight of the morning for everyone was being able to see the birds up close, seeing the wonderful colours each species have. Be it the red underwing and bright supercilium of the Redwings or the crown of the male Goldcrest, which changed from a bright gold colour to an incredible fiery orange, when Colin blew gently on its head to show the hidden feathers it uses to attract a mate.
Once each bird had been ringed, and the details recorded, they were ready to be released, and each of the attendees got to experience this. Colin showed everyone how to make the ‘ringer’s grip’ and the birds were carefully handed over to be released.
The two hour session absolutely flew by and, until the last 10 minutes, we managed to stay dry. During the session we ringed Redwing, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Goldcrest, Chiffchaff and Reed Bunting. There was also the added bonus of seeing a juvenile Long-tailed Duck out on the reservoir, that had been blown in on Storm Austen.
There has been some lovely feedback on the session, and we all want to pass on our thanks to Colin and Liz for making the session so enjoyable and for teaching us so much - thank you!
If you know a young birdwatcher, aged 8 - 17, who would be interested in joining us on future walks / sessions, please send me an email and I’ll add you to the distribution list for future events. The email address is Kestrels@westmidlandbirdclub.org.uk
