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Mini-expedition to Scotland’s breeding Greenshanks Part 1
Date: 07/06/2010
Farlington Ringing Group members Pete Potts and Ruth Croger travelled up to north Scotland to join local ringers and Greenshank enthusiasts to try and colour-ring chicks and adults in late May (28th-31st). The pilot trip to Sutherland was a great success made possible thanks to Robert Rae (known as Skitts) and Raymond Duncan of the Grampian Ringing Group liaising with long term Greenshank workers – Nick Christian, Ed Duthie and Des Thompson and visiting their study sites. Simon Foster and Stuart Rae were also part of the team.
We were taken to several nest sites making it possible to ring the chicks in the nest. 10 chicks were colour-ringed and two adults nest trapped and amazingly one was already ringed (see separate news item)! A new colour-ring scheme was started for the project using white flags in the lower right tibia position to signify Scottish breeding birds. Raymond Duncan will be maintaining the database.
We were also introduced to the Nethersole-Thompson family’s Greenshank study site and spent the day walking through a stunning valley; though birds were scarce we did see a Golden Eagle up against a mountain being mobbed by Ravens and tiny Merlins. There was a distant Ring Ouzel singing and occasional Meadow Pipits and Common Sandpipers on the stream. Luckily the previous day’s low cloud and rain had passed!
A big thank you to all those who made it possible, especially to Nick, Ed and Des for sharing their knowledge and study sites with us, and to Skitts for organising much of the trip, and lastly to Raymond for kindly collecting us from Aberdeen airport and taking us to Sutherland and back through some cracking scenery pointing out various bird and ringing sites along the way!
The Nethersole-Thompsons’ book Greenshanks was published by Poyser in 1979. Nick Christian and Mark Hancock have written up some of their work on Greenshanks in British Birds vol 102 (April 2009) pages 203-10. The paper is called ‘A 25-year study of breeding Greenshanks: territory occupancy, breeding success and the effects of new woodland’.
The photo (by Des Nethersole- Thompson) shows the team: Duncan Shaw the estate keeper, Stuart Rae, Pete, Skitts (and Kes), Des’s son John Matthew , Ruth and Raymond Duncan (and Bramble).
Pete Potts
