Cape Wrath Capers!

Tuesday, June 25th 2019

Sporting their matching green wellies, some members from the Swaledale Ringing team are exploring the coast on the most North Westerly tip of Scotland. They are on a ringing expedition to the MoD bombardment ranges in Cape Wrath. Today they have been ringing Sand Martins in the sand dunes.

The Sand Martins are caught using mist nets which are placed in front of the dunes (in between poles) in order to catch the adults as they fly to and from their sandy burrows.

The team have ringed plenty of birds so far although some, such as these Buzzard chicks, appear to be a bit 'late' this year and are too small to be fitted with a BTO ring. At least they have a surplus supply of food to help them grow.

Kittiwake are also 'behind' compared to previous years with many of the adults still on eggs.

The list of species ringed is extensive and includes Cormorant, Heron, Sand Martin, Common Tern, Black Headed Gull, Herring Gull and Skylark (shown below).

Tonight, the ringers are catching Storm Petrels and will be working throughout the night (it is only dark for a couple of hours at this time of the year), photographs to follow later in the week. In the mean time, here is a photo of Jack in a tree, captions on a postcard please! 


(0) Comments:

There are no comments for this blog post yet. Why not start the discussion? - use the form below:


Leave a Comment:

Please complete this field, it's required. Your email address will not be displayed but it's required.

Your email address will not be displayed but it's required.

Remember my personal information

Notify me of follow-up comments?


Back to Top

Help Support Foxglove

Friends of Foxglove

The Friends of Foxglove Covert is for those individuals, families and organisations who would like to support the reserve through an annual membership subscription. Friends receive a regular newsletter and invitations to attend our various activities and social events.

More Details

Upcoming Events


Access to Foxglove Covert Nature Reserve

Monday 18th March 2024 |

Foxglove Covert LNR is currently open with limited access. The number of visitors able to accesss the reserve at any one time will be limited.

Please be aware that this means you may be turned away or asked to wait when you arrive at the front entrance to Cambrai Lines

The usual signing in procedure remains in place; you will need to sign in at the front barrier and provide photographic ID.

 

We are hopeful that access will improve in the near future, but in the meantime, thank you to everyone for the continued patience and support.



Spring Crafts Day: CANCELLED

Wednesday 27th March 2024 |

The Spring Crafts Event is cancelled.



VIEW ALL EVENTS

Recent Blog Posts

Blog Archive