Manchester Peregrines ringed

Urban-nesting Peregrines have become more of a common sight in recent years, but they never lose their appeal.


These photos show the ringing of chicks reared on their custom-built highrise tray in Manchester last week. Peregrines have bred in the city since 2006, and even appeared on the One Show last summer.


The provision of a nesting tray by the Greater Manchester Bird Recording Group has suited them fine though, and the birds can regularly be seen on the BBC Big Screen at the Triangle behind M&S, so do go along and see what's happening. Video of the birds can also be seen on the BBC website here.


Thanks to Adrian Dancy for the images, Craig Bell for letting Adrian tag along and, of course, the steeple jack Colin Brooks who offers his services free of charge to retreive the chicks for Craig to ring.

Travels of an urban gull

We've just found out one of 'our' new population of city gulls is holiday-ing in Spain for the winter. Lesser Black-backed Gull GA37483 was originally ringed as a chick in the massive colony at Orfordness, Suffolk, in July 2002. The colony was home to 25,000 pairs of gulls, but after years of Fox predation, the colony has shrunk to just 7,000. Many of these have birds moved inland, and since 2006 Norwich is slowly being colonised. Most birds are seen in industrial sites around the city, and one site held over 30 pairs last year.

These birds still retain their natural migration patterns though, and GA37483 does get around. It was seen in Portimao, Portugal, in March 2003 and is currently in Malaga, Spain (see Google map below).


View Larger Map

How do we know all of this? Well GA37483 also carries a single red ring with SUD stamped on it, enabling it to be read through a telescope. The photo here shows a similar Orfordness bird, with ring RJS. Many birds such as gulls and waders carry these colour rings, and they are unique to that bird. So if you do happen on a colour-ringed bird, then do report it online at www.ring.ac.

Thanks to Mike Marsh from the Landguard Ringing Group for letting us know about this bird, and also for the photo.