Brent Goose catching 26-28 January 2018
Our first catch of Brent Geese was taken at Blue House Farm over the weekend of 26-28 January 2018; the first time that this species has been ringed in Essex for forty years. Eighteen birds were colour ringed with green rings with two white letters.
Thanks to the various teams over the weekend and of course huge thanks to EWT and in particular Harry Smith (warden) and Tim Lawrence (assistant Warden) at Blue House Farm.
| Species | Ringed | Colour ringed |
|---|---|---|
| Brent Goose | 18 | 18 |
Methods
The Southern Colour Ringing Group catches Brent Geese using a cannon net, which involves firing a large net over birds feeding on grazed fields or salt marsh.
Once the net is set and the cannons connected, we wait for geese to be attracted to decoys we have put in the field near the set net. When enough geese are in the area and it is safe to do so, the net is fired.
The team of ringers then removes the geese from under the net and temporarily places them in hessian sacks which are stored in a holding area for processing. Birds are then aged and fitted with an uniquely numbered metal ring. Measurements may be taken to help identify the sex of each goose. We also fit colour rings (green rings with white letters and a two digit code) which allows the birds to be relocated without needing to be recaptured. There are many more bird-watchers looking for colour-ringed birds, than there are cannon netting teams, so this greatly improves our chances of understanding the movements of the birds from the Crouch Estuary.
If you see a bird with one of our colour rings, please send details (ring-code, date, location, species) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Ringing totals
2017-2018 winter totals
| Species | Ringed | Colour ringed |
|---|---|---|
| Brent Goose | 18 | 18 |
Grand totals
| Species | Ringed | Colour ringed |
|---|---|---|
| Brent Goose | 18 | 18 |