We have been busy during the last couple of weeks, so have just a few bits of stories to share.
Over the August new moon we ran two Storm Petrel public ringing demonstrations, aiming to present folks the uncommon probability to see these wonderful birds up shut. The guests to Porthgwarra weren’t solely handled to seeing just a few Stormies within the hand (and having fun with their distinctive scent), but additionally a few Manx Shearwaters! These are solely the second and third we have caught in Cornwall so it was extremely fortunate to have two on the identical night time. So far as we will inform, solely 28 Manxies have ever been caught within the county, together with seven in 2002, one by the ringing group at Lizard in 2015 and now two extra.
Over the weekend we additionally took the chance to go to the final two lively Barn Owl websites we monitor. each of which we expect are alternative clutches after an early failure. Sadly one in every of these did not progress previous two eggs, however the different had a brood of very younger chicks (and probably two unhatched eggs), so these are prone to be able to ring in September. We hardly ever ring chicks this late within the season and actually we have solely ever ringed one brood in September, on the very late date of twenty second September 2020.
Lastly, we have been contacted this morning by the Head Greenkeeper at Newquay Golf Membership as one in every of their employees had discovered a useless Curlew on the course, sadly predated. The fowl was ringed although and is actually the primary ever Norwegian-ringed Curlew to be present in Cornwall. We have had birds from Sweden and Finland up to now, however this fowl completes the Scandinavian trio, so it’s going to be attention-grabbing to see the place and when it was ringed.
