What makes for a long life?

Rob Robinson writes:

I am sometimes asked the question: “How long do birds live?” The answer is, as to many good

questions, “It depends”.

The oldest known wild bird is a Laysan Albatross called Wisdom who breeds on the very remote Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean and is around 70 years old. The oldest known bird in Britain is a Manx Shearwater from the island of Bardsey in north Wales that was over 50 years old when last seen back in 2008 (more on that in a bit). The reason we know this, of course, is because both of  these birds have been ringed, so we can follow them as individuals. In fact our shearwater outlasted both the original ring and its replacement, so was on its third ring when last caught!

Manx Shearwater. Photo by Lee Barber

Not all birds live so long, clearly; the longest-lived Blue Tit, by comparison, was last seen a few months short of his 10th hatchday. The graph below shows the longevity for each species ringed in Britain and Ireland. But measuring longevity in this way is tricky; to get an accurate figure we  generally) have to catch the bird to fit a ring in the year it was hatched, and then the individual has to be found shortly after it, sadly, dies (these are marked by squares in the figure). This happens rather rarely – Carrion Crow (at 21 years) is one example, but you can see there are relatively few other squares on the graph. More commonly, we catch the bird as an adult so don’t know when it was hatched (the downward-pointing triangles), or the individual is caught/seen before it dies (the upward-pointing triangles), or, sometimes, both (the diamonds on the graph). So the Manx Shearwater was first caught in 1957 as an adult (so at least five years old already, possibly more) and then seen every few years until its last capture in 2008, but we don’t know when it died; we only ‘knew’ it for part of its life.

The oldest ever Manx Shearwater, then, is (was or will be) certainly in their late 50s and possibly into their 60s. This highlights another issue with longevities, these individuals are, by their very nature, exceptional, and so few and far between (think how many people live beyond 100, for example). We also have to wait, sometimes for many years, before we can get a fair estimate. Goosander on the graph is a good example: we know the age of HW37685 fairly well, he was ringed as a nestling, and we know when he died (aged 9 ½), but only 10 or 20 goosanders are ringed each year, so the chances of someone ringing (and then finding) the oldest, or even close to the oldest, bird are pretty slim.

Fortunately, we have a better way of measuring longevity, through a measure known as annual survival, which is simply the proportion of individuals that make it from one year to the next; it is the flip-side of mortality. As the graph shows, and one should expect, there is a strong relationship between annual survival and overall longevity.

Species that tend to live longer have higher annual survival rates. Points are coloured by body size and the shape indicates whether the longevity of the individual is fully known. Squares represent a bird ringed as a nestling/juvenile and subsequently found dead. Pointed shapes indicate uncertainty in age, either at the beginning (downward-pointing) or end (upward-pointing) of the bird’s life.

While a few Blue Tits can live as long as 10 years, most do not. In fact, our ringing data show that the annual survival rate of an adult is 0.53. This means that for every 100 adult Blue Tits starting the year, 53 will make it to the end or, conversely, that 47 of them will die at some point during the year. It is worth just stopping for a second and reflecting on what this means out there in our gardens and woods. At last count, there were approximately 3.4 million breeding pairs of Blue Tits in Britain, so 7 million individuals, near enough. A survival rate of 0.53 implies that, in the normal course of things, around 9,000 Blue Tits die, on average, each day (7 million * 0.47 / 365); that’s about three in each and every 10 km square every day. Adding in young birds will, of course, make this figure much higher in the summer. The balance of productivity and survival is important then, since each of these birds needs to be ‘replaced’ if the population is to remain stable in size.

An alternative way of expressing survival is life-expectancy. In the Scottish play, Shakespeare reckoned on living “threescore and ten”, i.e. 70 years (a figure that, in fact, dates back to biblical times, although recently is more like 80 years in developed western countries but nearer 50 years in countries like Afghanistan and Somalia). Broadly, life expectancy in birds varies by size - heavier birds, marked by darker colours, fall more on the right side of the graph, lighter birds, in both colour and mass, to the left. Most small birds, like the Goldcrest, that fledge will not survive to breed. That is, their life-expectancy is less than one year; being a young bird is hazardous indeed! At the other end of the scale, Mute Swan cygnets have a reasonable expectation of making it into their early teens.

The graph shows how most birds cluster about an average line; as survival increases so does the recorded longevity. (The line curves sharply upwards on the right simply because, numerically, survival cannot be greater than 1.) Species that fall well below the line (like Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and Capercaillie) are ringed in such small numbers that we simply don’t have a good estimate of their total longevity yet; in future years these points should rise to become closer to the line. All the conservation effort that has been put into looking after Red Kites, probably means the longevity of that species is a bit higher than it might have otherwise have been. For Wigeon, on the other hand, the annual survival is much lower than we might expect from their longevity because they are hunted over much of their range, the point is well to the left of where it might otherwise be. This leads us on to the main reason why knowing about survival rates is interesting, and why ringing individuals is such a powerful tool.

By measuring how survival varies in different places or times we can understand how and why populations change. By and large, adult survival usually does not vary very much – we find it is pretty consistent between places and over time. When it does change though, the effects can be dramatic. The decline of the Lapwing (see figure) was caused, in large part, by a run of cold winters that made it hard for birds to find food. The population hasn’t recovered, though, not because survival rates have stayed low (they bounced back), but rather because the number of chicks that can be produced in Britain’s intensively managed landscapes was too low to replace those that succumbed. Similarly, the population of Oystercatchers on the Wash (and elsewhere) is sensitive to reduced survival caused by over-harvesting of cockles and mussels, a fact which is now taken into account in managing the shellfisheries there. More often though, it is the balance of survival and productivity that is key, as we see in the decline of Willow Warblers in England and understanding this balance is key to designing effective conservation measures.

Survival of lapwing (purple dots, with 95% confidence limits) was reduced during a period with cold winters (blue arrows) causing a decline in the breeding population (green line, shading indicates 95% limits) in the 1980s. Redrawn from Robinson et al. (2014).

So. What does make for a long life? Certainly if you are a bird being larger helps, and the ringing report shows that all the longest-lived birds are seabirds. But what I hope I have shown is that while the longest-lived individuals are interesting, ringing tells us more about how well the average individual does, and this is why the efforts of ringers are still important. Although tracking studies are producing fascinating new insights virtually every week, the number of birds tagged (or likely to be tagged in the near future) will generally not be sufficient to help us measure survival of birds across the population. Ringing remains the only way to do this, and will continue to be a vital tool in understanding and managing our bird populations for years to come.

If you find a dead bird with a ring on, even one that has hit a window or been brought in by your cat, then you too can contribute to our monitoring of survival. Please tell us by filling out the details at www.ring.ac. There is more information on where birds go, what happens to them and how many birds are ringed in each county on our online ringing and nest recording reports.

It's National Nest Box Week!

It is National Nest Box Week (NNBW) this week and our wild birds are starting to think about the coming breeding season. This year is the 20th year of NNBW, which aims to encourage everyone to put up nest boxes for birds and to raise awareness of their needs ahead of the breeding season. While our migratory birds are preparing for their journeys back to Britain and Ireland for the summer, lots of our resident species are already singing to affirm their territory, finding a mate and choosing a nest site.


Tiny Blue Tit chicks thinking food has just arrived. Photo by Lee Barber

Around half of all households feed birds, so while food can often be plentiful, the lack of suitable nesting sites can be a problem. Putting up a nest box can therefore provide a welcome boost for some species. Blue and Great Tit are the most-frequent users of nest boxes but there is an amazing variety of species that use boxes, and by providing a suitable box, you could encourage them to set up home in your garden. House Sparrow, Nuthatch, Starling, Swift, Stock Dove, Tawny Owl and Kestrel are among the species that need suitable nesting sites and providing a box could really help them and some of our other declining red or amber listed species. For more information on what boxes are suitable for which species, click here.


Tawny Owl chicks waiting for the next delivery of food. Photo by Lee Barber

When buying a nest box, one of the most important features that I look for is a removable lid. This aids cleaning the box at the end of the breeding season (cleaning can be done between 1st September - 31st January) but most importantly it means that the contents of the nest can be recorded. BTO volunteer Nest Recorders around Britain and Ireland record the number of eggs, fledglings and the outcome of nesting attempts, providing a wealth of information on how our wild birds are doing every year. Nest recorders are provided with a code of conduct to make sure that the nest is checked in the safest possible way, so valuable information is gathered without affecting the birds.


BTO nest recorder checking on a Blackbird nest. Photo by Lee Barber

Nest cameras are a very popular choice and this also means that you can record the contents without even leaving your living room. They are particularly useful for boxes which are usually placed quite high or are difficult to get to, like Tawny Owl and Swift.

So far this year we've only seen a few birds inspecting our boxes at BTO HQ in Norfolk. Nest recording isn't just about those species that use boxes though; there are already a few Collared Doves sitting on eggs and we've also seen a brood of Egyptian Goose goslings paddling up the river. It's only a matter of time before we find our first Blackbird nest of the year and then the tit species will start building. It's a very exciting time!

Egyptian Geese are one of the earliest breeders. Photo by Lee Barber

For more information on becoming a nest recorder, check out our Nest Record Scheme website.

See you at Rutland Birdfair

It's that time of year again, when birders from all over the world gather at their 'Glasonbury' - The Birdfair.

Over the years, the Birdfair has raised mind boggling sums of money for bird conservation all over the world. Many wildlife charities attend to help with this cause and promote their charity at the same time. The BTO has attended the Birdfair for many years and this year is no exception, so when you are there, pop over to marquee three (stand 36-38) and say 'Hi'. It would be great to meet our many thousands of volunteers and members and we can let you know what has been going on at BTO HQ recently.

For the Ringing and Nest Recording Team, the pinnacle of the Birdfair has to be the ringing demonstration, run in partnership with the Rutland Water Ringing Group. We're in the same place as previous years, which is next to marquee four and the red car park. Over the years we've had some fantastic birds including Kingfisher, Sparrowhawk, Turtle Dove and Nightingale, but it's not all about the rarely caught birds. All the data collected during Birdfair will go into the BTO national ringing database and supplement all the fantastic work done by the Rutland Water Ringing Group.

Ringing demo in action. Photo by Sam Franks

Our main species caught are Reed and Sedge Warblers, some of which have been ringed in previous years, and now have clocked up quite a few miles during their life by going to Africa and back. Once we have processed all the birds, our attention switches to ringing people. If you are 'ringed' with one of our wrist bands, pop over to the BTO stand (marquee three) to find out what happened to you.

Releasing a Dunnock. Photo by Peter Carr (@wildlifePete)

There is a lot to do at Birdfair, but make sure you visit us at the ringing demo and the main BTO stand, as it would be great to see you (we may have a small slice of cake for you too).

Who gives a hoot

Occurring throughout England, Scotland and Wales the Tawny Owl is well known, especially during the winter when their territorial calls can be heard during the night.

The Tawny Owl is amber listed, i.e. a species of medium conservation concern due to recent population declines. Surveying this species can be difficult, but studying them is easier due to their readiness to use nestboxes. Ringing the adults and their chicks, as well as following the progression of the nesting attempt (nest record), provides very useful information to help interpret population changes.
 


Adult Tawny Owl. Photo by Rachael Barber



Adult Tawny Owl with a more grey plumage. Photo by Lee Barber

The number of Tawny Owls ringed each year varies considerably; in the last five years the number ringed has ranged from 920 to 2,748 birds. The number ringed also varies by county, with ringers in Northumberland topping the list with an average of 183 birds per year. This is followed by Lincolnshire (107), North Yorkshire (100), Nottinghamshire (92), Norfolk (81) and Cumbria (81). Around 80% of the birds ringed each year are chicks. Ringing chicks enables researchers to follow an individual throughout its lifetime, providing vital information on where birds move to and exactly how long they live.


Tawny Owl chicks. Photo by Lee Barber

For most of the recoveries the BTO receive, the cause of death is unknown, but for some the cause of death is clear. Being hit by a vehicle is the most reported cause of death for Tawny Owls, followed by train casualty and drowning in artificial water containers like horse or cattle troughs. This doesn’t mean that 66% of all Tawny Owls die from vehicle strikes, however. Birds killed by vehicles are inevitably more visible than a bird that dies of natural causes in the middle of a wood. Also, as most of the birds that are reported are from areas with high concentrations of people, these are more likely to be reported when found.

By recapturing ringed birds, licenced bird ringers are in the privileged position to be able to gather information on the presence and condition of Tawny Owls that are alive and well. Last year one of our ringers re-caught a Tawny Owl that was originally ringed as long ago as 2003. This bird was ringed as a chick and re-caught in the same place (Kielder Forest, Northumberland), so the exact age of this bird is known (13 years). A bird ringed in 2004 at Rowlands Gill in Tyne and Wear which was also caught during 2016, that was an adult (at least 1 year old) so she could have been much older. It would have been doing very well to break the longevity record of 21 years 10 months.

Unlike some other owl species, Tawny Owls doesn’t generally travel very far or cross large bodies of water, so their distribution is restricted to mainland Britain.  Due to this behaviour we have had no foreign recoveries in the history of the BTO Ringing Scheme.


Tawny Owl chick about to be ringed. Photo by Lee Barber

I have received one recovery while working at the BTO, of a ring found in Iceland (without a bird) which was originally put on a Tawny Owl chick. This was an amazing record so (as with all our recoveries) some investigation followed. Unfortunately, this wasn’t quite as amazing as we’d hoped as we had a previous record that this bird had already died. The ‘used’ ring was put on a binocular strap for safe keeping after reporting. Some years later the finder was on holiday in Iceland when the strap broke and the ring was lost, only to be found later by someone else who reported it to the BTO via www.ring.ac.

The vast majority of data from ringing and the resulting finding of dead birds can provide an amazing amount of information, so if you do find a ringed bird please report it via www.ring.ac.  As a thank you, you will receive the information on where and when the bird was ringed.

Feeling a bit broody

With winter loosening its grip on the British countryside our bird life is starting to look forward to spring! Here at BTO HQ, we are winding up to a busy nesting season and are searching the hedgerows and bushes for nests.


Egyptian Geese - photo by Rachael Barber

So far this year we have found nests of Coot, Egyptian Geese, Mallard, Robin, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Long-tailed Tit, Wren, Collared Dove and Dunnock, with more species being added every day. Each nest will be fully recorded for the BTO Nest Record Scheme (NRS) with nest finders following the NRS code of conduct.


Mallard nest with nine eggs - photo by Lee Barber

Robin nest - photo by Rachael Barber

Several BTO staff and volunteers record nests around Thetford, Norfolk, but how do we avoid recording the same nest? The answer is that we share a Google Map between us, with colours and shapes used to denote the progress of each nest and a note included of who found the nest. After a day of 'nesting' we update the map with our exciting discoveries and this informs everyone of where the nest is, the species, when it was found and at what stage the nest is at (nest only, nest with eggs, chicks, not active). Each recorder will then follow 'their' nests and submit them to the BTO (usually via the ringing group) at the end of the season/nest completion.



Last years nest locations on a shared Google map

Across the country there are some species that have been nesting for some time already including Grey Heron, Raven, Dipper, Stock Dove, Cormorant and Crossbill. The BTO NRS Forum has come alive with reports of nests, includes a Peregrine laying in Woking, Surrey (webcam link), a Woodpigeon squab about two weeks old in North Cornwall and Moorhen, Mistle Thrush and Ring-necked Parakeet with eggs in London. Dippers have full clutches in the Scottish Borders and some chicks have already been ringed in Wales. A Stock Dove in North Norfolk must have fledged by now as well.


 

Blackbird nest - photo by Lee Barber

Nest recording is vital to our understanding of productivity and every nest counts! It is amazing how much difference one nest record can make. By looking at the NRS submission totals, you can see what nests have been recorded previously (2016 records are still being analysed). In 2015, just 24 Goldcrest, 15 Snipe and nine Grasshopper Warbler were recorded in the whole country. Take that down to the county level and you could make a big difference to the totals, especially if you focus on one particular species. Open nesting birds are particularly under recorded because they are generally harder to find, but with a little practice and patience it can be done. Click here to find out how to take part and develop your nesting skills.

We're stuck in 2016

Since the end of 2016, the Demography Team has been hard at work loading all the ringing data received from our ringers. Data are still coming in by the 'file load', but here is a sneak peek at a few highlights of 2016.

The big question is always, "how many birds were ringed in 2016?". I don't think we will reach a million birds ringed this year, possibly due to Blue and Great Tit not having a great year. We are currently on 990,808 birds ringed and there is a corresponding 281,880 records of birds already wearing rings (either caught again by ringers or found dead by anyone).

The graph below shows the 20 most ringed species in 2016. Despite them having a poor year, Blue Tit is still by far the most ringed species but perhaps more interestingly, Goldfinch is in second place. BirdTrends records show that Goldfinch numbers have increased substantially in recent years; however it is only the 10th most recaught species.




Top 20 species of birds ringed in 2016. Click to enlarge.

Unlike Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff has been doing very well recently, and as you can see from the graph, was the fourth most ringed bird in 2016. The preliminary results from the CES scheme show that Chiffchaff had the highest adult abundance in the history of the scheme last year. Unfortunately, productivity was significantly down in 2016 and the Nest Record Scheme results show that the mean laying date was eight days later than average. Chiffchaff that had originally been ringed in the Channel Islands, Germany, Spain, France, The Netherlands and Portugal were found in Britain and Ireland in 2016. All, apart from three birds were caught by our BTO ringers, one was found dead and two hit a window (one survived and one didn't).



A young Chiffchaff. Photo taken by Lee Barber

Coming in at number five of the most ringed bird for 2016 was Blackcap. This bird also had a high adult abundance and an even lower productivity than Chiffchaff  in the preliminary CES results. The North Wilts RG ringed an impressive 2,209 Blackcap in 2016, and their ringing session on 11 September, where they caught 257 Blackcap (most of which would have been on autumn passage), will always be remembered by the team on that day.

Male Blackcap. Photo taken by John Dunn.

Some of the more unusual recoveries we received in 2016 include a Blackcap which was found in a 'Horse water bucket', ringed by the West Wilts RG in 2011. We occasionally get birds being hit by vehicles, however I have never heard before of one which was 'trapped inside locked vehicle (entered through partly open window), fresh dead'. We also received a report of the fourth Slovenian ringed Blackcap found by a non-ringer. There are still a few records to be processed of BTO-ringed Blackcap that were found abroad and we look forward to processing those and letting the ringers know if it is one of theirs.

All of the recoveries of fresh dead birds and recaptures of live birds, feed into the longevity records for Britain and Ireland. It will be a little while until the 2016 records are added, but there are a couple of records that look to update the current longevities. The Bisham Barn Owl Group look to have just pipped the current record by a few days, originally set in 2012 (of 15 years 3 months). Click here for more information. The Mediterranean Gull record currently stand at 15 years 3 months as well, and Allan Hale has reported two colour ringed Med Gulls at Great Yarmouth beach, which were ringed just two days apart breaking the current record by over three months.

This post covers just covers the tip of a very big 'data' iceburg, so as we have more time to look into this data, we will undoubtably uncover more exciting information.

What happened to all the Jays?

Around the UK, Jays haven’t needed to dip into their large cache of acorns much this winter, with the weather being so mild. They will top up their diet with invertebrates and any other meaty treats they can get. This search can lead them to gardens during cold periods and some of these gardens are occupied by BTO ringers.

Jay taken by John Flowerday

Last year our BTO ringers ringed 506 Jays in the Britain & Ireland (c700 is the five year average) and as Jays can live to a maximum of 16 years old, there are a good number of ringed Jays in the wild population. Being very clever birds, they can provide a challenge to ringers to catch them but once caught they deserve respect as they are incredibly powerful birds with very sharp claws and beaks. Once in the ringers hands the birds are ringed, aged, and several measurements taken to record the condition the bird and if any moult or breeding is occurring.

Jay taken by Lee Barber

Thankfully 89% of the reports of ringed Jays come from our ringers by re-catching them, months or even years later. This information is vital to understanding the movements, behaviour and survival of this beautiful bird. Ringed Jays are also found by non-ringers, which usually report them through www.ring.ac website.

Most of these birds are just found dead with no cause of death given, however a large proportion are legally shot/trapped with the aim of reducing their impact on other species nesting attempts. The Jay is not without its own predators however, as 6% of ringed birds reported to the BTO have been taken by a predator. Even the Peregrine is a little partial to the odd Jay as a recent BTO Demog Blog post can testify.

Exceptional Siskin Surge

The Siskin movement this autumn has been exceptional, for both the early start and vast numbers involved, as indicated by BirdTrack. With the peak movement and arrival of continental birds still to come, numbers in the UK are expected to increase considerably.


BirdTrack Siskin reporting rate

Jeff Kew from Thetford, Norfolk writes:

This has been an exceptional September for Siskins in the UK, with large numbers being reported across southern Britain, due to a major irruption from Northern Britain.

Last autumn Siskins were fairly scare in Southern England with a few being reported on feeders in February and March, the usual peak time to see and ring this species. Reports from Scotland indicate a bumper cone crop last summer and consequently most Siskins stayed at home for the winter, this Autumn with dwindling food supplies the picture is very different.

In the Norfolk / Suffolk Brecks area we have not seen anything like the numbers coming to feeding stations in September since 2005.

In our Thetford garden we have already ringed 611 Siskins this month (in just 4 ringing sessions), with an amazing 368 caught on the 18 September.

One of the hundreds of Siskins recorded taken by Jeff Kew

We have had birds ranging from exceptionally light (10.4g) to exceptionally heavy (17.0g) - which presumably indicates a mix of recently arrived birds and birds with serious intent to travel much further south. The majority are juveniles, which appear to have done less post juvenile moult than our local breeders.

Post juvenile moult strategies are interesting with the amount of post juvenile moult being variable and probably linked to both fledging date and food supply. We believe unmoulted juveniles (3JJ) can reach us from Scotland.

Thinking back to what we saw in 2005 we had high numbers through September, followed by two recoveries in Spain in Navarra and on Mallorca - which could give an indication of where some birds of this years birds may end up this winter.

Greg Conway from Thetford Forest Ringing Group writes:

The extent of post juvenile moult is highly variable, with some typically retaining one, or more, old greater coverts along with juvenile tertials and tail feathers, whereas others replace all coverts, tertials and tail (see below).  However, there are also many in between that replace different numbers of tertials and tail, often symmetrically but not always centrally!

Juvenile Siskin with replaced greater coverts, tail and tertials - Greg Conway

Juvenile Siskin with replaced greater coverts and two inner tertials - Greg Conway

Juvenile Siskin that has replaced outer pair and 2 central pairs of tail feathers contrasting with juvenile feathers (pointed and browner) - Greg Conway

To better understand the mix of different migration and post juvenile moult strategies occurring this autumn, and add to long-term data collected from Thetford Forest, ​any ringers catching Siskins are encouraged to record the following biometrics (in addition to age/sex, wing & weight):

All birds if possible!
1) Number of unmoulted greater coverts (including those with zero)
2) Fat score (0-8 scale)​

And if time allows!
3) Tertial moult (record in IPMR moult card)
4) Tail moult (record in IPMR moult card)
5) Pectoral muscle score (0-3 scale)

Nightjars and Lightbugs

Nightjars are now returning to the Forestry Commission's Thetford Forest and are pairing up ready to start nesting. Thetford Forest Ringing Group members were out on Thursday night in order to catch these birds to understand more about their movements on migration and particularly in their wintering quarters, as surprising little is currently known about this species. A first catch of four birds was a marvellous start to this new BTO/Biotrack project, supported by Shoreham & District Ornithological Society.

Unlike the Cuckoo, previously reported, the Nightjar is too small to have a Satellite transmitter fitted. Geolocator tags are an excellent alternative but we have to catch the birds again next year to download the information on their movements. These tags, known as Lightbugs, collect data on day length and time, which is used to calculate the bird’s global position to within 100km, each day. These daily locations will help reveal migration routes and wintering locations within Africa.


Just when you thought a near perfect night couldn't get any better, one of the females was discovered to be already ringed, RP01170. She was originally caught on migration, 171km away at Icklesham, Sussex on 15 September 1999 and we had not seen her since she was caught in the forest in 2008.

RP01170 has now broken the previous British and Irish longevity record, which stood at 11 years and 10 days, by 257 days. Amazingly, Brian Cresswell who helped fit the Lightbug to RP01170, originally caught the previous oldest Nightjar, in Dorset, back in 1992! So, quite a privilege to have handled the two oldest Nightjars in Britain and Ireland.

Thanks to Brian Cresswell and Forestry Commission for their valuable help and to Kate Risely for the photo (Lee Barber on left and Brian Cresswell on right).

One for sorrow, Two for Joy... actually one for Joy!

Living in Thetford, Norfolk I have access to some fantastic ringing sites on the BTO reserve and in Thetford Forest but when there is not much time, I ring for the odd hour in my garden.

On the 11th November 2009 I put a mist net up in my garden to ring the odd Blackbird and Blue Tit but what I didn't expect was to catch a Magpie which became ET11453. The only one I have ever caught.

Out of the 1393 recoveries we have for Magpie in Britain and Ireland the average distance flown for a Magpie is 5km (1118 have moved 5km or less). So I had a shock when this bird was found in Hollesley, Suffolk, unfortunately in a Larsen trap, a distance of 63km! Making it into 14th place for the furthest travelled.

Why it went such a long way from Thetford is anyone's guess, but thanks to ringing we know that ET11453 did make that unusual movement.

Thanks to Mike Toms for the photo