Monday 20 March 2023

Siberian Lesser Whitethroat and project updates

The Lesser Whitethroat in Wendy's garden in Llechryd for 10 days around new year has been confirmed as a Siberian Lesser Whitethroat C.c. blythi. Many thanks to Professor Martin Collinson who said that the DNA matches multiple birds from Siberia and previous blythi that they have done from Europe. 


The open wing showing the short p2 in comparison with C. c. curruca


A Chough was resighted on 14th March that has been breeding on one of our headlands for several years. It was originally ringed in the nest near Cwm Tydu in 2013



Another resighting, this time a Curlew on the Teifi Marshes photographed by Rob Cox on February 13th at the Teifi Marshes.



It was ringed as an adult female at Ynyshir on the Dyfi estuary last September.



Project Curlew.. see the poster below about colour ringing Curlew on the Teifi Marshes.


Our other long standing colour ringing project - Reed Bunting is now in the 10th year.  
Although all colour ring sightings are valuable, we are entering the key period of sightings for the BTO RAS project which runs every year from April 1st to September 30th


When we started the project in 2014 we were the only Reed Bunting RAS and colour ringing project in the UK. 

Very interesting update - we are looking at a photo of a colour-ringed female from Colin Dalton taken on Saturday, it may be of a bird from another scheme in England. 


Some recent movements of our birds...

Lesser Redpoll    AJN8242

Ringed Wintersett Reservoir, Wakefield, West Yorkshire 10/11/2020 Wintersett Ringing Group

Re-encontered  Llechryd, Ceredigion 07/03/2022 847 days 275km SW

Not a long distance mover but quite old for a Chaffinch at 8 years

Chaffinch     Z250760
Ringed    St Dogmaels, Pembs 11/02/2015
Re-encountered   St Dogmaels 19/02/2023 Taken by a cat 2930 days

The 2nd Starling this winter that was ringed in Lithuania. This one wasn't trapped but Andy managed to read the ring 

Starling      KE61617

Ringed   Silutes, Lithuania 08/08/2021

Re-encountered  Bancyffordd, Carms 01/03/2021 570 days 1718km WSW




(Richard Dobbins and Wendy James)