Catches

Pitsea - 27/03/2010: A day with few gulls on site, so clearly many had moved back out to their breeding grounds in the last few weeks. With the threat of showers we took a quick early catch of only Black-headed Gulls and re-set to see what the weather did. We were lucky enough for it to hold off and a small second catch was possible. A few Mediterranean Gulls were seen but none in the catching area.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 0 0 0 0
Black-headed Gull 151 4 1 0
Common Gull 0 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 0 0 0 0
Yellow-legged Gull 0 0 0 0
Caspian Gull 0 0 0 0
Herring Gull 0 0 0 0
Great Black-backed Gull 0 0 0 0
Catch totals 151 4 1 0

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 74 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 4 0 0 4
Herring Gull 31 1 0 31
Great Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 1
Catch totals 110 1 0 36
Trip totals 261 5 1 36

Pitsea - 06/03/2010: A large team went to Pitsea today and we were lucky to get a really good load of waste from the first dustcart in. Birds were quickly down but the compactor driver running over the cable meant the spare cable had to be deployed. Luckily there was lots of food and an excellent catch of 449 birds was soon in the bag. We elected to re-set for a second attempt and after a couple of hours with a single Mediterranean Gull in the catching area we took a second catch. It was still early so we re-set for a third attempt but ended up with too many birds in the catching area so did not fire. The day total ended up at 722 new birds. Highlights were also a control Common Gull from Finland and a Black-headed Gull from Denmark.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 305 2 0 0
Common Gull 8 0 1 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 33 0 0 33
Herring Gull 98 1 0 64
Great Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 1
Catch totals 445 3 1 98

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0 1
Black-headed Gull 174 0 1 0
Common Gull 1 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 27 0 0 26
Herring Gull 73 1 0 1
Great Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 1
Catch totals 277 1 1 29
Trip totals 722 4 2 127

Pitsea - 20/02/2010: A day that started with the threat of rain and snow turned out fine and we were able to take two really nice catches. A large catch of small gulls first with a splattering of other gulls. The second catch was very respectable but the best thing was the groups second Caspian Gull.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 441 0 3 0
Common Gull 5 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 8 0 2 9
Herring Gull 12 0 0 3
Catch totals 466 0 5 12

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 185 0 3 0
Caspian Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 92 1 2 48
Catch totals 278 1 5 49
Trip totals 744 1 10 61

Pitsea - 06/02/2010: Yet another tough day with problems before getting to the tip with the head gasket going on the Land Rover on Thursday! Alternative arrangements were made to get the kit to the tip and a session looked possible. The set was OK apart from the fact we had to run the cable accross the road with arctics and compactors running over it. We got the rubbish rolled at first break and we had taken a catch within ten minutes. This was a good catch of 300 plus birds and we should have been happy. However, we re-set and tried for a second catch - with at least one Mediterranean Gull in the catching area - but the firing cable had been damaged making it impossible to fire. All in all a good day.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 184 1 2 0
Common Gull 3 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 9 0 0 9
Herring Gull 108 1 2 52
Great Black-backed Gull 12 2 0 13
Catch totals 316 4 4 74

Pitsea - 23/01/2010: A tricky day with mild weather, fox and Starling problems making taking a catch very difficult. Excellent perseverance from the compactor drivers allowed us to take a catch of just over 100 birds. A quick re-set attracted birds including over 1000 Starlings, which we just could not fire on. However, 76 birds were colour ringed out of the catch and there was a Belgian control Herring Gull.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 34 0 0 0
Herring Gull 50 0 1 50
Great Black-backed Gull 26 0 0 26
Catch totals 110 0 1 76

Pitsea - 09/01/2010: A really good start to 2010 after a poor first half to the winter. The tip was full of birds and due to the cold conditions they were hungry. At first there were too many birds and safety was a problem. However, after about half an hour birds settled down and we were able to take a catch. We did not realise quite how big it was until we ran out of sacks with about 20 Herring Gulls still under the net. We ringed these birds direct from the net and took everything else off the tip and into the workshop to process. After processing we were really pleased with the number of big gulls in the catch.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 27 0 0 0
Common Gull 2 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 5 0 0 5
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 235 3 3 53
Great Black-backed Gull 55 0 0 55
Catch totals 325 3 3 114

Pitsea - 12/12/2009: A very quick and efficient set by an experienced team saw us set by 8am adjacent to two loads of rubbish that had been dumped the previous day. Birds were quickly down when the compactor flattened the rubbish and after a couple of lifts a catch of mainly Black-headed Gulls was taken with a few large gulls and a couple of Common Gulls mixed in. Although we reset to attempt a second, catch birds did not come back onto our waste and showers eventually forced us to pack up without a second catch.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 275 0 4 0
Common Gull 2 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 2 0 0 2
Herring Gull 8 0 0 8
Catch totals 287 0 4 10

Pitsea - 21/11/2009: After cancelling last Saturday due to weather, we elected to attempt a catch today as weather forecasts are not looking good for the next month. With a quick early set we were in position by 8am. Lots of birds came down but were spooked and we then had a long wait. Eventually a dust cart came in and although there was not a lot of food waste, it had enough to attract the gulls and after some excellent persistence by the compactor driver we were able to take a good catch of 219 birds.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 52 0 1 0
Herring Gull 151 0 2 102
Great Black-backed Gull 13 0 0 13
Catch totals 216 0 3 115

Pitsea - 31/10/2009: A small team arrived to difficult looking weather conditions. Although not raining on arrival, rain looked possible but it was unclear just when it would arrive. We elected to set and see what happened. Birds came down quickly on the first push of rubbish but there were two chairs in the wrong place that would have snagged the net. Birds took a while to settle again and only through the persistence of the compactor driver were we able to get them back. Due to the threat of rain a small catch was taken and quickly got under cover to process. One Lithuanian Black-headed Gull was the highlight.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 25 0 1 0
Herring Gull 42 0 1 40
Great Black-backed Gull 3 0 0 3
Catch totals 70 0 2 43

Pitsea - 17/10/2009: A good day at Pitsea today. Lots of Herring Gulls and good numbers of Great Black-backs on the tip. Black-headed Gull numbers are starting to build up. One Mediterranean Gull was seen but there was nothing else unusual. With a good early set, birds were onto the rubbish quickly. After not wanting to settle to start with and the wind keeping birds in the air a chance opened up and a catch or mainly Herring Gulls was taken. The birds were dealt with efficiently and we were packing up by 12:30.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 24 0 0 0
Herring Gull 170 2 0 54
Great Black-backed Gull 22 2 0 23
Catch totals 216 4 0 77

Rainham - 12/09/2009: Again at Rainham, a small team set efficiently and birds were quickly down on the rubbish. Initial safety problems meant we had to wait about half an hour for a clear window to fire. However, when we did it was worth the wait with a record catch of 71 Lesser Black-backed and 8 Yellow-legged Gulls.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 1 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 69 0 2 71
Yellow-legged Gull 8 0 0 8
Herring Gull 46 1 0 20
Catch totals 124 1 2 99

Rainham - 29/08/2009: Today saw us back at Rainham for the first time since January 2008. On arrival it was clear that the predominant species was Lesser Black-backed Gull. A small but experienced team set quickly and efficiently. After a long and frustrating wait we eventually had enough birds down and a respectable catch of 77 was taken.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Lesser Black-backed Gull 56 0 1 57
Herring Gull 20 0 0 20
Catch totals 76 0 1 77

Pitsea - 21/03/2009: Today saw another visit for training from Jez Blackburn and some of his team from Norfolk. Three catches were taken today with Jez taking two of the three. Highlights were a Med Gull in the second catch. Also seen on the tip were Iceland, Glaucous, Yellow-legged and Caspian Gull all just outside the catching area! The total of 549 (including retraps and controls) was good and takes the winter total to over 4000 gulls.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 148 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 11 0 0 11
Herring Gull 101 0 1 0
Catch totals 260 0 1 11

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0 0
Black-headed Gull 100 0 2 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 9 0 0 9
Herring Gull 55 1 0 0
Catch totals 165 1 2 9

Catch 3

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 15 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 104 0 0 0
Catch totals 120 0 0 1
Trip totals 545 1 3 21

Pitsea - 07/03/2009: Still good numbers of gulls on the tip. With a very large team we elected for two catches. Aiming for 200 in each catch. Good numbers of Lessers were evident with 20 trapped including a Norwegian bird. The remainder of the Herring Gull colour rings were used for this winter on the first catch. A few colour ringed birds were sighted by Richard, Steve and Pete

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 101 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 9 0 0 9
Herring Gull 58 1 1 30
Great Black-backed Gull 3 0 0 0
Catch totals 171 1 1 39

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 124 1 2 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 10 0 1 11
Herring Gull 72 0 0 0
Catch totals 206 1 3 11
Trip totals 377 2 4 50

Pitsea - 14/02/2009: Today was a tricky day. Birds at first did not want to come on to feed on the rubbish. Phil the compactor driver did a fantastic job and when we got birds it was in abundance. Foxes then became a problem for a while but eventualy a half chance presented itself and a catch was taken.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 2 0 0 0
Black-headed Gull 669 2 6 0
Common Gull 13 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 5 0 0 5
Herring Gull 63 0 0 19
Catch totals 752 2 6 24

Pitsea - 24/01/2009: A chilly start with no wind looked perfect. Gulls at first did not want to come to feed. After about an hour birds became interested and a catch was taken with good numbers of Great Black-backed Gulls. A Glaucous Gull was seen near the catching area on a couple of occasions but evaded capture.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 25 0 0 0
Herring Gull 155 2 0 19
Great Black-backed Gull 46 0 1 0
Catch totals 226 2 1 19

Pitsea - 10/01/2009: A very large team took two catches with a superb total of 587 birds from both catches, which included 9 Starlings. The small gulls were back in force apparently frozen out of thier normal sites after the prolonged cold spell. The highlight was a Polish ringed Med Gull and a retrap Black-headed Gull which was ringed nearly 17 years ago at Pitsea by Mr Harris.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 0 0 1 0
Black-headed Gull 367 1 2 0
Common Gull 3 0 0 0
Herring Gull 23 0 1 0
Great Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 0
Catch totals 394 1 4 0

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 24 0 0 0
Common Gull 1 0 1 0
Herring Gull 140 0 1 54
Great Black-backed Gull 12 0 0 0
Catch totals 177 0 2 54
Trip totals 571 1 6 54

Pitsea - 27/12/2008: The tip was only open for the morning and with little domestic waste due to arrive, we were lucky to get a large load of mixed rubbish which was atttractive to the gulls. We managed a quick fire and just about got the catch processed in time.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 24 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 0
Herring Gull 104 0 2 19
Great Black-backed Gull 59 0 1 0
Catch totals 188 0 3 19

Pitsea - 20/12/2008: After a week of mild weather we were concerned that the gulls would not be hungry enough to come onto the waste in the catching area. The breezy conditions allowed a lot of birds to hang in the air and for those on the ground to get easily spooked - but they were hungry. With each lift-off birds returned quickly and increasing numbers of large gulls stayed in the catching area. The resulting fire included our largest ever catch of Great Black-backed Gulls.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 19 0 0 -
Herring Gull 139 0 2 79
Great Black-backed Gull 69 3 2 14
Catch totals 227 3 4 93

Pitsea - 29/11/2008: Hoping for quick fire with the threat of rain, we were intially frustrated by the proximity of the catching area to the main tip face, with birds streaming in over the net. Eventually things settled and we were able to take a small catch.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 3 0 0 -
Herring Gull 73 0 0 73
Great Black-backed Gull 43 0 2 44
Catch totals 119 0 2 117

Pitsea - 15/11/2008: The arrangement of the tip face made it difficult to select a location for the net, and when we did efforts were frustrated by operational traffic on the tip. Eventually a reasonable catch was possible, with good numbers of Great Black-backed Gulls once again.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 7 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 177 5 0 57
Great Black-backed Gull 32 0 0 31
Catch totals 217 5 0 89

Pitsea - 01/11/2008: With rain forecast we elected for an early start. The gulls were clearly hungry and were soon onto the rubbish. After a frustrating 20 minutes with birds in danger, on and too close to the net, we were able to fire and took a catch of predominantly Herring Gulls. The rain started just as the pack-up was complete and the birds were ringed under cover off of the tip.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 10 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 166 1 0 64
Great Black-backed Gull 6 0 0 6
Catch totals 183 1 0 71

Pitsea - 11/10/2008: Armed with our new colour rings, we were fortunate to get a couple of loads of rubbish containing a lot of food and birds were quickly attracted into the catching area. Many larger gulls walked in from beyond the range of the net. What was initially thought to be just over a hundred birds turned out to be a massive catch of mostly Herring Gulls.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 50 1 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 5 0 0 4
Herring Gull 316 3 3 183
Great Black-backed Gull 4 0 0 4
Catch totals 375 4 4 191

Pitsea - 13/09/2008: Uncertain what a September catch might bring we arrived to find most birds loafing on the fields to the north of the tip. What was initially though to be a small catch was taken but our new net deploys much faster and caught more birds on the edge of the catching area than expected. We reset for a second catch and after a long wait and some encouragement from the compactor driver stirring up the rubbish, we had around 600 birds in the catching area - too many to catch safely. Suddenly most of the smaller gulls lifted leaving the Great Black-backed Gulls on thr ground. We fired almost immediately for our second ever largest catch of this species.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Lesser Black-backed Gull 4 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 138 1 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 4 0 0 -
Catch totals 147 1 0

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Herring Gull 30 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 52 0 0 -
Catch totals 82 0 0
Trip totals 229 1 0 0

Pitsea - 08/08/2008: An excursion to Pitsea was undertaken as part of the Rye Meads ringing course, to give delegates some experience of gull ringing and fitting larger ring sizes. A small catch was taken.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 6 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 7 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 79 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 2 0 1 -
Catch totals 95 0 1

Pitsea - 29/03/2008: Another quick and efficient set and rubbish with plenty of food waste brought the gull in quickly. We waited a little to increase the proportion of large gulls but took an early first catch. Attempts at a second catch were frustrated by vehicle movements on the tip and the proximity of the net to where driver were closing the rear doors on their lorries. With the possibility of rain a small second catch was taken.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 43 0 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 92 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 13 0 0 -
Catch totals 150 0 1

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 33 0 0 -
Herring Gull 5 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 -
Catch totals 39 0 0
Trip totals 189 0 1 0

Pitsea - 22/03/2008: Although it was raining with gusty winds on arrival at the tip, the forecast did predict a clearer spell in mid-morning, so we sat it out. When we could see the clearer weather arriving we set quickly and had several opportunities to fire, were it not for the Starlings all over the furled net. Eventually we were able to fire safely and removed the gulls to the relative comfort of the shed off of the tip.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 12 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 3 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 4 0 0 -
Herring Gull 112 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 12 0 0 -
Catch totals 143 0 0

Pitsea - 15/03/2008: Buoyed up by our success on 23rd February, we were keen to return to Pitsea, but the weather forecast was not good. The first load of rubbish contained very little food and birds were moving on quickly, with the larger gulls hardly stopping. Concerned that the weather might curtail operations, we took a small token catch of mainly Black-headed Gulls. But is was still early so we reset and did get a much better load of rubbish delivered. The birds still did not seem keen to settle and after a wait were able to take a modest second catch.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 41 0 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 1 0 0 -
Catch totals 43 0 1

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 87 0 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 6 0 0 -
Herring Gull 26 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 2 0 0 -
Catch totals 121 0 1
Trip totals 164 0 2 0

Pitsea - 23/02/2008: This was our first attempt at Pitsea for over 10 years. It was an easy set but we couldn't understand why the birds didn't want seem to want to settle, until we realised that there was a fox in the catching area. Once chased off (no easy feat) birds came back in force and a sizeable catch followed quickly. We decided to reset, but were delayed from firing again until we had emptied enough sacks from the first catch. At this time up to three Mediterranean Gulls were in the catching area, but by the time we were able to fire only one remained and was successfully caught.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 145 1 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 3 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 2 0 0 -
Herring Gull 138 0 1 -
Great Black-backed Gull 4 0 0 -
Catch totals 292 1 2

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0 -
Black-headed Gull 98 0 0 -
Herring Gull 27 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 2 0 0 -
Catch totals 128 0 0
Trip totals 420 1 2 0

Rainham - 05/01/2008: An early start meant setting the net in the half-light. Too any birds and problems with lorries stopping in the firing line were eventaully overcome and an early catch of large gulls was taken. After resetting it was difficult to get birds to settle in tha catching area, so the second catch was mainly of Black-headed Gulls.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 88 0 0 -
Common Gull 3 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 12 0 0 -
Herring Gull 68 0 1 -
Great Black-backed Gull 2 0 0 -
Catch totals 173 0 1

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 122 0 1 -
Common Gull 1 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 3 0 0 -
Herring Gull 13 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 2 0 0 -
Catch totals 141 0 1
Trip totals 314 0 2 0

Rainham - 27/12/2007: With the tip having been closed over the Christmas break expectations were high that the gulls would be hungry and easy to catch. Once we had the rubbish in th right place a catch was taken relatively quickly.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 101 0 1 -
Common Gull 5 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 31 0 2 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 35 0 1 -
Great Black-backed Gull 3 0 0 -
Catch totals 176 0 4

Rainham - 15/12/2007: A difficult set right on the edge of the tip, but once ready the gulls came into the catching area very quickly and we soon took a first catch. For the second catch we wanted to wait for more large gulls and with the wind picking up birds were hanging in the air making it difficult to find a catching window. Eventually we did take a second catch that included a good number of Herring Gulls.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 123 0 3 -
Common Gull 1 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 28 0 0 -
Herring Gull 50 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 1 0 0 -
Catch totals 203 0 3

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 62 0 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 7 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 2 0 0 -
Herring Gull 57 0 1 -
Great Black-backed Gull 2 0 0 -
Catch totals 130 0 2
Trip totals 333 0 5 0

Rainham - 11/11/2007: A quick set with catching opportunities only thwarted by Starlings walking all over the net. The resulting catch included our first Caspian Gull.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 58 0 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 30 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 4 0 0 -
Caspian Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 64 0 0 -
Catch totals 157 0 1

Rainham - 27/10/2007: Two modest catches with good numbers of Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

Catch 1

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 72 0 2 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 40 0 2 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 14 0 0 -
Catch totals 127 0 4

Catch 2

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 51 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 61 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 13 0 0 -
Catch totals 126 0 0
Trip totals 253 0 4 0

Rainham - 31/03/2007: The first trip of the re-formed North Thames Gull Group, returning to Rainham for the first time since 2004. The catch was exclusively of large gulls our primary target.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Lesser Black-backed Gull 34 0 0 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 28 0 0 -
Catch totals 63 0 0

Westmill - 06/03/2004: A small catch, as we learn how best to utilise this site.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 87 0 0 -
Common Gull 3 0 0 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 9 0 0 -
Herring Gull 8 0 0 -
Catch totals 107 0 0

Westmill - 12/02/2004: An initial catch at this new site in Hertfordshire.

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Black-headed Gull 21 0 1 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 9 0 1 -
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 -
Herring Gull 37 0 0 -
Great Black-backed Gull 9 0 0 -
Catch totals 77 0 2

Show most recent catches and totals

Methods

The North Thames Gull Group catches gulls using a cannon net, which involves firing a large net over birds feeding on freshly spread rubbish.

Once the net is set and the cannons connected, a load of rubbish is dumped and a waste compactor vehicle spreads it out and withdraws from the catching area. When enough gulls are in the area and it is safe to do so, the net is fired.

The team of ringers then removes the gulls from under the net and temporarily places them in hessian sacks which are stored in a holding area for processing. Birds are then identified to species, aged and fitted with an uniquely numbered metal ring. Measurements may be taken to help identify the race or breeding population of the birds we are catching.

Starting in 2008 we have also started fitting colour rings (orange rings with black letters and numbers) which allows the birds to be relocated without needing to be recaptured. There are many more bird-watchers looking for colour-ringed gulls, than there are cannon netting teams, so this greatly improves our chances of understanding the movements of the birds from the Thames Estuary.

If you see a bird with one of our colour rings, please send details (ring-code, date, location, species) to

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Totals

2010 calendar year

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0 1
Black-headed Gull 1575 7 10 0
Common Gull 19 0 1 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 86 0 2 86
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0 1
Caspian Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 699 8 8 302
Great Black-backed Gull 96 2 0 97
Totals 2478 17 21 488

2009/10 winter

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0 1
Black-headed Gull 1952 7 16 0
Common Gull 21 0 1 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 213 0 5 216
Yellow-legged Gull 9 0 0 9
Caspian Gull 1 0 0 1
Herring Gull 1136 11 11 546
Great Black-backed Gull 134 4 0 136
Totals 3467 22 33 909

2009 calendar year

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 3 0 1 0
Black-headed Gull 1950 4 18 0
Common Gull 19 0 1 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 172 0 4 176
Yellow-legged Gull 8 0 0 8
Herring Gull 1208 7 7 366
Great Black-backed Gull 100 2 1 39
Totals 3460 13 32 589

2008/09 winter

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 3 0 1 0
Black-headed Gull 1692 5 13 0
Common Gull 17 0 1 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 64 0 1 52
Yellow-legged Gull 2 0 0 0
Herring Gull 1993 14 11 597
Great Black-backed Gull 333 3 7 99
Totals 4104 22 34 748

2008 calendar year

Species Ringed Retraps Controls Colour ringed
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0 0
Black-headed Gull 788 2 6 0
Common Gull 4 0 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 48 0 0 6
Yellow-legged Gull 9 0 0 0
Herring Gull 1704 10 9 475
Great Black-backed Gull 309 3 6 99
Totals 2863 15 21 580

2007/08 winter

Species Ringed Retraps Controls
Mediterranean Gull 1 0 0
Black-headed Gull 1136 1 13
Common Gull 10 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 226 0 4
Yellow-legged Gull 16 0 0
Caspian Gull 1 0 0
Herring Gull 715 0 4
Great Black-backed Gull 44 0 0
Totals 2149 1 21

2007 calendar year

Species Ringed Retraps Controls
Black-headed Gull 467 0 8
Common Gull 6 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 231 0 4
Yellow-legged Gull 10 0 0
Caspian Gull 1 0 0
Herring Gull 261 0 2
Great Black-backed Gull 6 0 0
Totals 982 0 14

2006/07 winter

Species Ringed Retraps Controls
Lesser Black-backed Gull 34 0 0
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0
Herring Gull 28 0 0
Totals 63 0 0

2004 calendar year

Species Ringed Retraps Controls
Black-headed Gull 108 0 1
Common Gull 3 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 18 0 1
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0
Herring Gull 45 0 0
Great Black-backed Gull 9 0 0
Totals 184 0 2

2003/04 winter

Species Ringed Retraps Controls
Black-headed Gull 108 0 1
Common Gull 3 0 0
Lesser Black-backed Gull 18 0 1
Yellow-legged Gull 1 0 0
Herring Gull 45 0 0
Great Black-backed Gull 9 0 0
Totals 184 0 2

Prior to 2007

Historical data from the Basildon Ringing Group may contain minor errors

Species Ringed Retraps Controls
Mediterranean Gull 3 0 1
Black-headed Gull 14028 200 159
Common Gull 1088 7 8
Lesser Black-backed Gull 187 2 3
Herring Gull 1363 8 14
Great Black-backed Gull 513 2 2
Totals 17179 219 187


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