Some
news today about a colour-ringed chough on Dinas Island that we mentioned in a
posting a few weeks back. Its ring combinations were seen at closer range by
Sue Southam, on 21st September. She forwarded observation details, plus
a photo of the bird, to Adrienne Stratford who, along with Tony Cross, ring
most of the choughs in Wales.
The Dinas
Island bird is Right leg Green/Red inscribed “1F” Left leg: White/BTO. It
is a 6-yr-old female, originally ringed as one of a brood of three by
Tony at Ynys Lochtyn in South Ceredigion (34km away) in 2015. Apparently, there
have been very few sightings that Adrienne and Tony know of since it was ringed.
So, she’s been “under-the-radar” so to speak for over 5 years!
 |
| Sue Southam's recent photo at Dinas Island |
She is likely to be a colour-ringed bird seen by Jane Hodges back in the spring that bred on Dinas Island this year. More recently (in early Sept.) we saw her too on Dinas island, but until this most recent sighting, the ring combinations had not been seen well enough to confirm its identity.
Whilst
about choughs, the total number, from counts undertaken at several roosts by various people between
late August and early September this year, is the highest we have recorded since annual roost counts commenced in the county in 2014. Jane Hodges and I would like to thank everyone who helped with these counts over the years, and also everyone for their posts of flock-counts from various places. These
sightings continue to add useful information about likely “hot spots” for feeding choughs that can be highly mobile in the late summer and autumn period.
