Ringing
In 2014, the long-term study of Manx Shearwaters and the colour-ringing of breeding Wheatears continued. Together with the mist-netting of spring and autumn migrants, they contributed to a total of 2,112 birds being ringed. This is lower than in the previous few years, for a number of reasons, but plenty of valuable information was gained from the ringing that took place.
Ten days of ringing in April and two-and-a-half weeks in late September and October provided less coverage for the ringing of migrants than usual, and there were few days with significant bird movements during these times. Groups primarily targeting shearwaters at night were also able to catch some migrants by day, during their three weeks of coverage in late August and early September, but again the weather conditions did not produce big catches. The year’s work also involved ten days at the end of May, when the main objectives were to continue the Wheatear and Manx Shearwater studies.
A table of the year’s ringing totals is given below. For the first time, Blackcaps were top of the list, with 429 captured. This species is becoming increasingly common in Britain, and the high number ringed reflects this. The other species with three-figure totals were Manx Shearwater (356), Swallow (306), Chiffchaff (181), Willow Warbler (195) and Meadow Pipit (249). The scarcer species caught included four Yellow-browed Warblers and a Common Rosefinch, and while Merlins are seen regularly on Lundy, one caught in October 2014 was only the sixth to be ringed on the island. However, perhaps the most significant moment of the year’s ringing was the discovery of a Storm Petrel chick in the main Manx Shearwater colony, providing the first proof that they are breeding on Lundy.
The shearwater work was very successful in terms of ringing and recapturing adult birds, with a record 235 new adults ringed. Seventy-six others that had been ringed on Lundy in previous years were recaptured, and one bird visited the island after originally being ringed on Bardsey. Of the recaptured shearwaters, 15 were particularly interesting because they had been ringed as chicks, so that their ages were known. These contribute towards an understanding of the recruitment of young birds into the breeding population. Since the number of chicks ringed has been high in recent years, returning Lundy-bred birds should become more numerous in the future, and the combined data from the next few seasons will be extremely informative.
In contrast to adults, the number of shearwater chicks ringed in 2014 dropped to just 121, the lowest total since 2008. This did not appear to be because of a population decline or poor chick survival, since large numbers of adults were delivering food into burrows in late August and early September. Instead, the breeding season seemed to be running late for a high proportion of pairs, with fewer chicks than usual ready to emerge from burrows in the weeks when ringers were looking for them.
The Wheatear Recapturing Adults for Survival (RAS) project is developing well, with 22 colour-ringed birds re-sighted from 2013 and 25 new birds marked. These provided valuable data for estimates of the size of the Lundy breeding population and of adult survival rates between the 2013 and 2014 seasons.
A list of the ringed birds found on Lundy or moving elsewhere is given below. Among them are some long-lived birds including a Manx Shearwater and three Lesser Black-backed Gulls originally ringed in the 1990s. In contrast, a rapidly moving Blackcap, ringed at Land’s End, reached Lundy the next day. Other migrants travelled longer distances, with Sedge Warblers moving to and from France, a Blackbird found in Sweden and a Chaffinch recaptured in Norway. These four movements fit into the normal migration patterns of the relevant species; but Wrens are not strong fliers and do not normally move far, so that one ringed on Lundy in September and found in south Dorset four weeks later was particularly noteworthy. It provides proof for the first time that Wrens move between Lundy and the mainland.
Number ringed in 2014 |
|
Manx Shearwater |
(121) 356 |
Storm Petrel |
(1) 1 |
Sparrowhawk |
1 |
Merlin |
1 |
Swallow |
(5) 306 |
House Martin |
6 |
Tree Pipit |
1 |
Meadow Pipit |
249 |
Wren |
41 |
Dunnock |
5 |
Robin |
35 |
Redstart |
5 |
Stonechat |
7 |
Wheatear |
(11) 44 |
Blackbird |
16 |
Song Thrush |
10 |
Redwing |
46 |
Grasshopper Warbler |
4 |
Sedge Warbler |
13 |
Reed Warbler |
2 |
Blackcap |
429 |
Garden Warbler |
6 |
Lesser Whitethroat |
3 |
Whitethroat |
12 |
Yellow-browed Warbler |
4 |
Chiffchaff |
181 |
Willow Warbler |
195 |
Goldcrest |
61 |
Firecrest |
1 |
Spotted Flycatcher |
5 |
Pied Flycatcher |
1 |
Treecreeper |
1 |
House Sparrow |
5 |
Chaffinch |
33 |
Goldfinch |
21 |
Siskin |
2 |
Linnet |
1 |
Common Rosefinch |
1 |
Bullfinch |
1 |
Total number of birds ringed |
2,112 |
Total number of species ringed |
39 |
Numbers in brackets indicate pulli – i.e. chicks/nestlings – ringed in 2014. The number of pulli is included in the main total.

Ruppell's Warbler by Mike Langman from The Birds of Lundy
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