Join in to help us understand the movements of Blue Tits in and around Gosforth Nature Reserve!
The Mystery
Do you realise that hundreds of Blue Tits visit the Feeding Station at Gosforth Nature Reserve? That’s right, it’s not just the same few coming back time and again. So, where do they all come from? They can’t all breed in the reserve!
Help Solve the Puzzle
That’s where you come in! We are asking for you to look out for ‘our’ Blue tits. To make it possible, we’re putting coloured rings on their left legs. This winter, 2023-2024, we will use only white rings with two black letters. For example, the first bird we caught was fitted with ring ‘AA’. We’re calling him ‘Adam’, though we can’t be sure Adam is male.
How To Let Us Know?
The easiest way to tell us if you spot one of these Blue Tits is by filling in the form on the NHSN website: https://www.nhsn.org.uk/citizen-science/ You can even upload a photo if you have one. A photo might help you read the two letters which identify the individual Blue Tit. Even if you can’t read the letters, we would still like you to report any Blue Tit with a colour ring.
Where You See The Bird
We are happy to hear of sightings from anywhere. We are most interested in sightings outside the Feeding Station. We would also be grateful for sightings from the Feeding Station from April to September. Ideally, we would like a grid reference as well as the name of the place where you saw the Blue Tit. If we need to check the location is correct, we will contact you using the email address you provide.
Feed or Breeding?
We are hoping to find out where they are nesting. When you report a colour-ringed Blue Tit, please tell us if it is showing any breeding behaviour, such as entering a nest box. We’ll be keeping a close eye on our nest boxes in Gosforth Nature Reserve, but with over 70, we appreciate any help.
How Do We Put On The Rings?
From October to March, we carry out bird ringing mornings in the Feeding Station every fortnight. We put up nets to catch birds as they fly to and from the feeders. We put a metal ring on the right leg of every bird we catch, unless it already has one. Blue Tits make up about half the birds we catch in a typical year. In October and November this year, we have put colour rings on 54 Blue Tits. We expect to put on at least another 100 this winter.
So, please start looking at Blue Tits’ legs to help us find where ours come from.