Our wintering population of Whooper Swans has increased
recently with up to 97 birds counted in the wintering herd over the last week
or two, including 34 young, suggesting a relatively successful breeding season
in Iceland. It’s always nice to welcome them back each winter, and this year
we’ve been fortunate to spot two old friends – C3S and G5F – both ringed here in
2007. However, unfortunately, we have recently picked up four sick and dying
immature birds, which as part of our contribution to the Avian Flu monitoring
scheme have been tested, but as of yet, have come back clear. Last week we
sadly picked up another sick youngster which unfortunately died on the way to
the vets. However, Mark and the fantastic team at Battle Flatts Vets at
Stamford Bridge very kindly, and at no cost, x-rayed the bird for us, revealing
the cause for its demise. As can be seen from the x-ray, the bird has over 70
pieces of lead shot in its gizzard – picked up with grit in order help grind up
and digest its food. Lead shot has been banned in England since 1999 for the shooting
of waterfowl and over wetlands – so this lead may have recently been illegally used,
or it may be locked in the sediment at the bottom of ponds, the river or other
areas – we’ll be investigating in the valley and trying to take action to address
old deposits if we can locate them. Many thanks to Jean Thorpe and Battle
Flatts for their expert help and advice.
If you fancy a real life ‘wild goose chase’ then why not get yourself down to the valley and see what you
can find? The flocks of familiar Greylags and Canada Geese are often joined by
scarcer relatives, and so careful searching of these flocks is essential to
unearth one of these globe-trotting visitors. Pink-feet, Bean, Barnacle
and Brent can all occur (along with the odd Egyptian Goose which breed
near-by), and at present we have a flock of European White-fronted Geese
present at Bank Island. The White-fronted Goose is most easily distinguished
from other geese by the white flash on its forehead and around its bill, the
dark stripes on its belly and its rather bright orange legs, being somewhat
darker and smaller than our similar Greylags. White-fronted Geese are another
of our winter visitors, coming to the UK from Greenland and Siberia, for the ‘warmer’
climate. Birds that breed in Greenland winter in Ireland and the west coast of
Scotland, whilst birds from northern Europe and Siberia winter in southern
England. We are on the very western edge of the population’s wintering range
hence only small numbers occur in the country; though numbers can vary
considerably particularly in relation to severity of winter weather. It’s
likely that the present influx which has also seen several flocks along the
north east coast is in response to birds moving out of these countries.
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