2015 Group Ringing Totals

Everyone in the group (unofficial) has entered their ringing data to IPMR and submitted it to the BTO, so we now have the complete catch totals for the year.

All birds have been ringed in Northern Ireland with the exception of the Black-headed Gulls, Common Terns and Sandwich Terns which were ringed in County Donegal.  There were also 22 garden birds ringed in the Scottish Borders following the relocation of Nick (C permit), following the completion of his PhD.


Species                          Full grown       Pullus        Total

Storm Petrel                      105                                     105
Sparrowhawk                      3                      3                6
Moorhen                             1                                         1
Oystercatcher                      1                                        1
Turnstone                          
Black-headed Gull                                      22             22
Sandwich Tern                                           189           189
Common Tern                                             31             31
Woodpigeon                       3                                         3
Collard Dove                      1                                         1
Swift                                   1                                         1
Kingfisher                           2                                         2
Skylark                                5                                        5
Sand Martin                       132                                    132
Swallow                              37                      4              41
Meadow Pipit                    128                                     128
Grey Wagtail                       1                                         1
Pied Wagtail                                                 4                4
Dipper                                                          11              11
Wren                                  50                                        50
Dunnock                            61                                        61
Robin                                 95                                        95
Stonechat                           9                                          9
Blackbird                           78                                        78
Song Thrush                      42                                        42
Redwing                             19                                        19
Grasshopper Warbler         2                                          2
Sedge Warbler                    6                                         6
Whitethroat                          2                                         2
Blackcap                            63                                       63
Yellow-browed Warbler      1                                         1
Chiffchaff                            13                                       13
Willow Warbler                   80                                       80
Goldcrest                           19                                       19
Long-tailed Tit                   22                                       22
Coal Tit                             103                                      103
Blue Tit                             195                       80          275
Great Tit                           184                       66          250
Treecreeper                         3                         5             8
Starling                               2                                         2
Jackdaw                              1                                         1
Rook                                   3                                         3
Starling                               3                                         3
House Sparrow                  14                                       14
Tree Sparrow                      2                         10           12
Chaffinch                          262                                     262
Greenfinch                         38                                       38
Goldfinch                          350                                      350
Siskin                                45                                        45
Linnet                                42                                        42
Lesser redpoll                   75                                        75
Bullfinch                            45                                         45
Reed Bunting                    19                                         19

53 Species                      2375                         425       2800

                                        

These totals do not include retraps or controls but with them included it equates to close to 4000 birds processed. 
The changes in totals from last year are mostly down to effort and sites used, with a big increase in Thrushes, Stonechat, Reed Bunting, Meadow Pipit, Willow Warblers and Blackcaps particularly.  The notable decreases are in Goldcrest, Sandwich Tern, Swallow and Storm Petrel.  The Swallow roost of 2014 didn't materialise in 2015, so much fewer were caught, but with increased effort.  The Storm Petrel season was also disappointing with no big catches, with similar effort.  The poor early season weather thwarted the breeding success of the Sandwich Terns. 

Controls have been few and far between and are restricted to the Belgian Sedge Warbler, for which we are still awaiting the details, the various controls/recoveries of Storm Petrels and a few local movements of passerines less than 10km.  There have also been a couple of Sandwich Tern and Black-headed Gull movements, which were mentioned in a post back in September.

2016 has started off slow with a series of storms restricting ringing activity.  Hopefully things will pick up in time for the first spring migrants!