09 December 2010

The Godwit Club


The amazing International Schools Godwit Project links children and birds from Iceland, Ireland and the UK. Children from all three countries are learning about bird migration and ecology and at the same time they are helping scientists in their study of the species. Many Black-tailed Godwits are being colour marked in their breeding grounds -Iceland- so their movements and home ranges can be traced by birdwatchers and scientists!
The Topsham Primary School Godwit Club has been meeting weekly after school to study the amazing migration patterns of the Icelandic Black-tailed Godwits. Last week they met up with David Lindo and a BBC filming crew and went searching for wintering coloured marked Godwits, and it seems that they had a lot of fun too!
If you want to know more about this great project don't miss this week's BBC's Countryfile, on Sunday 12th December 2010, or visit the schools' update by clicking here.
Reporting colour ringed birds is very important as it helps in the understanding of their ecology, which can be used in the future for their conservation. So please, next time you spot a colour ringed bird make sure that you make a note and contact us here.

1 comment:

  1. Hi Diana,

    Glad you picked up on our project. Just want to clarify a point raised in your blog entry above. The International Schools Godwit Project was set up by myself and local school teacher Willie McSweeney here in Cobh, Co. Cork, Ireland back in 2005., with the support and backing of the international team studying the Icelandic Black-tailed Godwit using colour rings. We linked with Gudny Robertsdottir's school in Siglufjordur in northern Iceland. Topsham school joined last year and is now linked in with the Irish and Iceland school and we are hoping to build on this in the future to link with schools in other parts of the godwits wintering and breeding range. The work of the project is all voluntary and currently no linked with any Bird NGO. If you need to contact me you can use the email address on our website

    Love the blog and keep up the great work!

    All the best,

    Jim Wilson

    PS I could not find a contact email address on the BTO website.

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