Scandinavian Swap!

In this particular post, you will have to jog your memories back to the cold month of February when myself and Zac hinchcliffe, spent several days reading Black Headed Gull rings down in Bangor Harbour.. After successfully reading 3 foreign ringed gulls, on 15th March, Zac received a letter from Finland regarding one of these birds.

Ringing information:-

Ring number - ST239892
Species - Black Headed Gull {Chroicocephalus ridibundus}
Age - Full grown - hatched before 2005
Ringed on - 15/4/2006
Ringing site - Turku, Turku - Pori, Finland
Status - Healthy, wild bird
Method of capture - Caught with trap
Ringer - Jyrki Oja

Recovery date - 8/2/2011
Recovery site - Bangor Harbour, Gwynedd, United Kingdom
Status - Alive

This bird had been missing for 4 Years, 9 Months and 23 Days since the date of being ringed! Also, it had travelled 1,788km in a South, Southwest direction..

If your wondering the logic behind the title it's because after reading the finnish ringed bird in Bangor Harbour, a few later, we received our first movement of a Black Headed Gull from the new colour-ringing project. In fact, on 25th March Kane received an email from Morten Helberg in Norway regarding 2A00!!

This was the first bird to have been ringed as part of the new project and he was now in Norway! Fantastic movement! The bird was ringed on 1st March at Bowness-on-Windermere. The bird was last sighted there on 17th March by Cumbrian bird ringer, Robin Sellers. Most interestingly, the next report of 2A00 came in on 24th March from Radhuskaia, Oslo Havn, Norway!

Let's hope the others go this far. If you would like to see where exactly this bird was last seen in Norway, check out Kane's blog for more information @ http://www.birdringing.blogspot.com/.

Black Headed Gull legs and Map, photographed by Zac Hinchcliffe