About the project

We have consulted with the British Trust for Ornithology, who actively encourage the monitoring of Red List species such as the House Sparrow, and this project had been registered with them as a Retrapping Adults for Survival (RAS) scheme, using ringing and colour-ringing birds to enable them to be individually identified by bird ringers, birdwatchers, or members of the public.The birds are captured (under licence) and are fitted with a BTO metal ring on their right leg, and with a colour ring on the left leg. The colour ring has a code (the rings are Black, with White lettering, and the code is 2 digits either numbers or letters) that can be easily read using binoculars. Anybody seeing a House Sparrow with a colour ring can contact us at shetlandsparrows@gmail.com. We need to know the code on the ring, and the date and place you saw it. Many thanks for your help!

Thanks to the support of the following:

Shetland Ringing Group for supplying the metal rings for this project

The Shetland Wildlife Fund for covering the cost of buying the colour rings

Plantiecrub Garden Centre and Shop (www.plantiecrub.co.uk) for supplying bird feeders and wild bird seed

Shetland Walking and Wildlife (www.shetlandwalkingandwildlife.co.uk) for allowing Graham time to put his surveying and bird ringing skills to good use

Saturday 13 April 2013

Norwegian Robin

Just about to close the nets down when a Robin popped in.

Now in Shetland Robins are fairly exciting at the best of times, but my heart started racing as I saw that this individual was already ringed - No, I haven't ringed any here in Skeld.

I extracted the bird then checked the ring - below the ring number was written 'Stavanger Mus. Norway'! A bit of hop across the North Sea then for this healthy bird.

The Norwegian Robin in Shetland!
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1st colour-ringed birds of the project

Yes, the Shetland House Sparrow Project is officially up and running! Yesterday we opened the nets in Skeld for half an hour, and caught a female, closely followed by a male. These were ringed with a BTO metal ring on the right leg, and a colour-ring on the left. The female now wears a black ring with AA engraved in white, and the male sports black with AB!

A Starling was also caught and ringed.

Today, another short session at the net, and the 3rd spadger of the project was soon caught and ringed. Another male - he has become AC.

AA - the 1st House Sparrow of the project
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