That Was Spring!

Well spring was nice and warm and sunny, which is not always the case, so much so that we are now at risk of drought (allegedly). Anyway, following the trend of recent years now summer has officially started, the weather has turned and we have had rain, winds and the temperature has cooled off. No ringing this weekend, so time for a quick summary of the SRG activities in 2025. 

We started the season in early April and have had regular sessions at weekends and midweek. So far we have ringed a total of 801 birds, as follows: Barn Owl 2, Blackbird 12, Blackcap 64, Blue Tit 231, Bullfinch 7, Cetti's Warbler 1, Chaffinch 3, Chiffchaff 25, Dunnock 13, Garden Warbler 6, Goldcrest 1, Goldfinch 2, Great Spotted Woodpecker 1, Great Tit 134, Grey Wagtail 4, Jackdaw 14, Jay 1, Kingfisher 2, Lesser Whitethroat 7, Linnet 26, Long Tailed Tit 13, Mute Swan 3, Redstart 1, Reed Bunting 18, Reed Warbler 33, Robin 19, Sedge Warbler 37, Song Thrush 6, Stock Dove 4, Swallow 6, Tawny Owl 1, Tree Creeper 8, Whitethroat 22, Willow Warbler 10, and last of all Wren 13! This does not include retraps. 

That's 35 species thus far; the reservoir record is 69 from 2020, so we have some way to go. Last year we had a rather lean 57 species; we certainly want to improve on that! Special mention to AGH and the nest box team for the Owls, Stock Doves and many Tits. We are now starting to get small numbers of juveniles appearing, for example:

 

Juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker- note the red cap

Slightly unusually DS and JLU in the Paddock ringed two Kingfishers on the same day, adult Male and Female, so likely to be a pair; of late there have been quite a few sightings of juveniles out and about, hopefully we shall get to ring a few of their offspring. 

 

No caption needed I think. Anyway, here's to a productive summer at Stanford Reservoir.  Watch this space for more ringing related shenanigans at Stanford Reservoir! 

 

Celebrating 50 years of bird ringing at Stanford Reservoir!

 
On 10th May, we gathered to celebrate 50 years of ringing at Stanford Reservoir and the subsequent formation of the  Stanford Ringing Group. 
The Chequers hosted and put on a marvellous spread alongside some well-earned liquid refreshment for the group, its supporters and friends from over the years. Mick provided a potted history of the group and its formation along with some interesting facts and trends relating to the birds ringed by the group.  

Mick holding forth to a captive audience

Over the years, the ringing locations, ringers and species of bird have changed. We have lost several species from our main ringing site at Stanford Reservoir. However, we have also gained a few along the way too. Who knows what species we might be ringing in 50 years’ time! 

Various miscreants from the SRG, partners and friends

A big thank you to all whom came along to join in the celebration and make it so special. A special thank you to the Chequers for their hospitality and to Gina Jones for the fantastic cake, which not only looked amazing but tasted great too!

Lastly, our thanks to Mick for all of his efforts and hard works over the years. Without his dedication and commitment, the group would not be what it is today!
Here’s to the next 50 years.

Written by JLU 

Warblers in April

The group is out and ringing on a regular basis now that spring is here. It is even quite warm at times! The SRG really specialises in warblers, therefore April is an exciting time, as our warblers have been arriving from foreign climes. Here is Josh ringing at the point on a very cool day, hence the many layers:

Using the BTO's Demography Online standard report Initial Ringing Year function, it is easy to identify our own birds ringed in previous years, which have returned to us.

So at the end of April we had 3 Blackcaps returned and 45 new birds ringed, Chiffchaff  22 returned 33  new, Garden Warbler 13 returned 4 new, Lesser Whitethroat 2 returned 3 new, Reed Warbler 13 returned 10 new, Sedge Warbler 11 returned 33 new, Whitethroat 11 returned 17 new and lastly Willow Warbler 11 returned and 7 new. These will form the basis of our breeding population, but of course more birds will arrive through spring.

 

Very site loyal a recently returned Reed Warbler

 

Ready to breed, note the bright eye of a mature Whitethroat

The oldest birds were ringed in 2020, and comprise 3 Sedge Warblers and a single Garden Warbler, so they clearly have a lot of miles on the clock, and this suggests that our Sedges are quite robust!

All Quiet on the Western Front

 

At first glance, Stanford Reservoir in early March at the Point, is quiet and tranquil, an ideal spot for a bit  of bird watching.

However, turn the corner on a Saturday morning and you will find a very different story, a veritable hive of activity:

 Kate working, Adam watching

 Stuart Keeping the fire going 

Mick and Dawn and a load of mud.

Yes, this is the mighty SRG enjoying a spot of scrub bashing, the maintenance work we carry out to maintain a good breeding environment for our warblers. This year, we have worked from the Railtrack out to the Point. 

We recently had a Blackcap BCD3425 ringed at Stanford in September 2024 which was retrapped on 10 February 2025 at the southern tip of Gibraltar, thanks to Mark Cutts and the team at Gibraltar Bird Observatory! So we know the warblers are coming, making their way north, but as yet not much evidence of their arrival; we are just waiting for the returning Chiffchaffs to start calling to know that we are in business. Watch this space for more ringing shenanigans!

Rejoice!

 

Be Glad, for the 2024 Annual Report is now available at no extra cost from: http://www.stanfordrg.org.uk/srgstats/2024-annrep.pdf  

Peter