Normally when I go to Rufford CP, it's to catch up with the Black-headed Gulls that over winter there. Yesterday's trip there was for exactly that reason , but I must admit my head was turned a little when I spotted two ringed Egyptian Geese! Not only was this my first record of this species here, but they were also very confiding allowing me to get their metal ring numbers: 1312215 and 1312233. 15 was first seen on 1st January 2004, making it at least 16 years old! 33 was ringed, as a juvenile bird (age 3), in December 2011, making it 9 years old.
Whilst there, I also manged to spot two metal-ringed Canada Geese (5215963, 5230424). 23 had been ringed in September 2006 as an adult, so is 14+ years old, whilst 24 had been ringed, as a 3, in August 2013, making it 7 years old.
I also spotted 2 Greylag Geese wearing metal rings: 5230419 and 5230471. 19 was an 8 year old bird, having been ringed in June 2012, as a 3. 71 was ringed in December 2014, as an adult, so is 6+ years old.
The last species wearing a metal ring was a single Mute Swan. This bird had the ring number W17370, and had been ringed 7th September 2014, as a 3, so was 6 years old.
All of the above birds were ringed by Birklands Ringing Group, either at Pittance Park (part of the Center Parcs complex) or at Rufford itself.
After all the excitement with the geese and swans, I eventually looked at the gulls (!) and spotted 7 darvic-ringed birds: 217A, 240A, 243A, 258A, P519, EUM3 and V77K. These are all well known birds (click on labels for full details), but 243A was the "best" as yesterday's sighting was only the third since being ringed at Center Parcs, 2km away, on 11th December 2019, and the first of the winter.
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