News from the south: They're on their way back

Here at BTO HQ, we are hard at work loading all the ringing data from our ringers for 2011. This is sure to be a record ringing year but we won't know by how much until this process is completed.

We are also processing birds that have been recovered in 2012, which include a couple of very interesting recoveries. With 'most' of our BTO Cuckoos slowly returning to the UK the first interesting recovery is of another migrant. A young Lesser Whitethroat ringed at Icklesham, Sussex on 03 September 2011. This bird was caught by ringers in Eilat, Israel, three days ago (25 March 2012)! A minimum distance of 3721km in 205 days. Obviously on its return migration so hopefully it will make it back to a lucky ringer here next week.


The second was a ring found in a clothes peg bag. This was bought into a secondhand shop in Roxburghshire (Borders) last week. Was it a Starling, pigeon or Blue Tit? Nope, a Goshawk ringed in 2009 in Dumfries and Galloway!

Thanks to Dawn Balmer for the photo.