Dutch-ringed Yellow-browed Warbler

Way back in April 2008 we received details of a 'Willow Warbler' found dead outside Richard Lander School in Truro, Cornwall. This is perhaps a slightly early date for a returning migrant, but the interesting bit was that it was wearing a ring from the Dutch Ringing Scheme.

Following issues tracing the ring in The Netherlands, we have only just received the ringing details and these were rather surprising. Ring Y11467 was actually just the second foreign-ringed Yellow-browed Warbler to be found in the UK! It had been originally ringed on 3rd October 2007 on Schiermonnikoog (in red on the map below), an island off the north coast of the country, and had possibly spent the winter at one of Cornwall's many sewage works.


View Yellow-browed Warblers in a larger map

These works regularly attract wintering Yellow-broweds, especially so in recent years, with no fewer than five seen on one day at Carnon Downs Sewage Works in February 2012. Below is one of two birds present at Gwennap Sewage Works, Cornwall, in January 2013.

The only previous record of a foreign-ringed Yellow-browed was a Norwegian bird ringed in September 1990 and recaught on Fair Isle five days later (blue on the map). The only British-ringed bird to be found abroad was one ringed at Portland Bird Observatory in October 1988 and recaught the next day on Guernsey (green on the map).

Let the Cormorant nest recording commence

This year's nesting season has so far been mixed, with reasonably warm weather one day and then freezing conditions and snow the next. Now that March is here, the usual hunt for nests has started, with Blackbird, Robin and Long-tailed Tit nests being found already.


Simon Taylor, Mark Lawrence and Derek Spooner are already monitoring Cormorants in Devon and Cornwall. The laying dates for this species however can vary considerably even between colonies that are reasonably close.

Colour ringed Cormorant by Edmund Fellowes

Simon Taylor writes:
"Mark Lawrence first saw eggs at his colony in Plymouth, Devon, on 30th January and Derek Spooner has at least nine birds incubating full clutches on Looe Island, Cornwall. Meanwhile Cormorants at my site at Hells Mouth near Portreath, Cornwall, only started laying around the 9 March. Mark’s eggs in Plymouth have hatched now and the chicks are nearly big enough to be ringed, so my birds have some catching up to do."

If you would like to start nest recording click here and for those that have joined already, you can keep up with the latest information by joining the nest recorders Yahoo forum here.