About the project

We have consulted with the British Trust for Ornithology, who actively encourage the monitoring of Red List species such as the House Sparrow, and this project had been registered with them as a Retrapping Adults for Survival (RAS) scheme, using ringing and colour-ringing birds to enable them to be individually identified by bird ringers, birdwatchers, or members of the public.The birds are captured (under licence) and are fitted with a BTO metal ring on their right leg, and with a colour ring on the left leg. The colour ring has a code (the rings are Black, with White lettering, and the code is 2 digits either numbers or letters) that can be easily read using binoculars. Anybody seeing a House Sparrow with a colour ring can contact us at shetlandsparrows@gmail.com. We need to know the code on the ring, and the date and place you saw it. Many thanks for your help!

Thanks to the support of the following:

Shetland Ringing Group for supplying the metal rings for this project

The Shetland Wildlife Fund for covering the cost of buying the colour rings

Plantiecrub Garden Centre and Shop (www.plantiecrub.co.uk) for supplying bird feeders and wild bird seed

Shetland Walking and Wildlife (www.shetlandwalkingandwildlife.co.uk) for allowing Graham time to put his surveying and bird ringing skills to good use

Sunday 13 January 2013

Too windy for mist netting

Another windy day in Walls, Shetland.

30 - 40mph winds with occasional rain and hail showers means yet another day where mist netting for House Sparrows just can't happen.

I did a count in our back garden today though. Good numbers of Sparrows, Starling and Rock Dove making the most of all those full feeders:

Our garden birds today:

House Sparrows - 142
Starling - 95
Rock Dove - 15
Blackbird - 3
Moorhen - 1

So, not much variety there, but then you wouldn't expect there to be in Shetland at this time of year.

For now, I'll keep the feeders going at my ringing sites, ready for when the wind stops, or at least leasens a little.

Watch this space!
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