Tuesday 19 September 2017

Norwegian-ringed Little Stint

18th September 2017 - Topsham


I honestly never thought I'd be writing another post about a stint so soon after the July bird - we just don't see that many in Devon - still, you gotta take your excitement where you can...

To cut a long story short: found a colour-ringed Little Stint on BGM on Sunday 17th September (Dave Boult, Keith Birchall and probably a few others had also seen it from the hide). Couldn't read the code that day but it reappeared the next when it briefly came close enough for me to read. Tracked down the ringing scheme in Norway and got a very quick reply. Here's the details:

Little Stint Calidris minuta
 
Left tarsus: metal ring Stavanger ED08797, red ring above
Right tarsus: yellow ring 6UC (black engraved)

1st cy; wing 100mm, weight 21.9g

Ringed 10:00 12/9/2017 (i.e. five days previously) at Makkevika Bird Reservation, Island of Giske,
Møre & Romsdal, Norway (se map below).

Ringers: Kjell Mork Soot, Petter Birger Folkestad and Eldar Arne Giske / Sunnmøre Ringing Group.

Clearly the bird was on passage when caught in Norway so how far it had already travelled we'll never know.

Little Stint yellow 6UC, Norway to Topsham.
 In the short time the bird came close enough to read the code I had no time to take photographs so here's a few of Dave Boult's phone-scoped shots from Sunday - pretty good under the circumstances.

Little Stints - Topsham 17/9/2017 (Dave Boult)

Little Stints - Topsham 17/9/2017 (Dave Boult)

Little Stints - Topsham 17/9/2017 (Dave Boult)

Little Stints - Topsham 17/9/2017 (Dave Boult) code just about readable on this shot, if you know what it is.

Little Stints - Topsham 17/9/2017 (Dave Boult)

Little Stints - Topsham 17/9/2017 (Dave Boult) three together (there were five in total).
Thanks to DB for the use of his photos and to Kjell for replying so quickly.