Darviced Mute Swans

Back in February, I blogged about 2 different darviced Mute Swans ( see here and here). Yesterday, I had a text from Luke to say that he'd spotted some different  Mute Swans on Walton Dam in Chesterfield that also had Darvic, colour rings. I drove across this afternoon, and saw 3 individuals with the ring numbers 460Y, 461Y and 462Y.

Mute Swan 460Y

Mute Swan 461Y

Mute Swan 462Y

460Y was at the east end of the reservoir/dam on it's own, whilst the other two were together at the west end. All 3 birds came readily to seed.

A little research on the internet showed that the birds had been ringed by Sorby Breck Ringing Group, and details from David, our data manager, showed that they had been ringed at Walton Dam on 5th September 2016.

Looking at the one of the pictures of  462Y it's interesting to see that its leg is pale, compared to the other two birds whose feet were black.

462Y

This means that 462Y is a "polish" Mute Swan. See here for details about another "polish" bird seen at Clumber Park in 2016. I'll pop back over the summer to check on the these birds, and update on any developments.