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West Midlands Ringing Group

@westmidlandsrg.bsky.social
1K followers 84 following 419 posts

National Award Winning Bird Ringing Group. Pioneered Thermal Imaging Technology for bird surveys, specialising in Farmland species #thermalimaging #bewareofimitations www.westmidlandsringinggroup.co.uk

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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
A stunning morning in Staffordshire monitoring one of our most spectacular birds of prey. 🦅 Three healthy Hobby chicks, all looking in fantastic condition. A real privilege to monitor these incredible birds, with hopes of including them in a future colour-ringing project.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
🌙🪶 Our #Nightjar project across Staffordshire continues! We were delighted to catch a free-flying juvenile during our latest survey. Since 2010, we’ve learnt so much about this fascinating, cryptic species. Long-term monitoring is helping us conserve these remarkable birds
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Another frustrating breeding season, with several reports of cats killing our ringed Blackbirds. One breeding male was killed by a cat just two weeks after being ringed, likely leaving dependent chicks without a parent. The impact of free-roaming cats on wildlife is significant
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
A great first ringing session of the year at @SevernTrentLife Minworth! 43 birds of 17 species ringed, including Great Spotted Woodpecker, Reed & Sedge Warbler, Blackcap and more. Looking forward to the rest of the season! 🐦
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
A disappointing visit to our Common Tern rafts @SthStaffsWater Blithfield Res A site that usually produces around 50 chicks per raft had just a total of 10 chicks this year after a late start to breeding our poorest season here in the last 5 years. Here’s hoping for a better 2027
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Continuing our #Nightjar theme this week… 🌙🐦 Fantastic to ring these Nightjar chicks, which will now be reared by their dedicated dad. Even better, finding the female on a new nest with the 1st egg of her 2nd brood already laid. An incredible breeding season in full swing!
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Today we are at the @GlobalBirdfair at the @PulsarWild stand talking all things thermal Come and join us
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Appeal for Identification We’re seeking to identify the individual pictured after the disturbance of a Sche 1 protected bird at an active nest. Their presence caused the adult birds to leave the nest potentially putting vulnerable chicks at risk during the current extreme heat.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
🌙🪶 We’ve continued monitoring Nightjars across Staffordshire, and over the last two weeks we’ve ringed 10 birds, including several that were first ringed in previous years. Every recapture adds to our understanding of these elusive birds and helps inform their conservation.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
🌙 Over the last couple of weeks we’ve continued our #Nightjar monitoring across Staffordshire using thermal imaging. This technology helps reduce disturbance while improving the accuracy of our surveys. Always fantastic to watch these incredible birds in flight
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
🪺 Another #Buzzard nest checked, with one healthy chick doing well. 🦅 This year’s monitoring suggests some raptor species have faced greater breeding challenges than others. That’s why longterm nest monitoring is so important, it helps us understand changes in breeding success
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Fantastic working with @WildPackington , Solihull to establish baseline data and help tell the story of our conservation journey. Great to add these 5 young kestrels to our colour-ringing project too! 🦅 #Kestrel #Conservation #BirdRinging
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
⚠️ We’ve been made aware of people disturbing and photographing Schedule 1 birds with dependent young in Staffordshire. This is a criminal offence, even from a public footpath or right of way if your actions disturb the birds. Images & information has been passed to local police for investigation
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
🐦 A lovely ringing recovery! A #ReedBunting ringed at Soulton Hall on 24/09/2025 was recaught by Redditch RG on 20/06/2026 at the Heart of England Forest, Warwickshire. 📍 Distance travelled: 55 miles Every recovery adds to our understanding of bird movements and survival.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
🦅 Hagley Falconry Centre to the rescue! A young male Peregrine Falcon was found beside a busy road and quickly recovered by volunteers. After expert care and assessment, he was released and successfully returned to the nest with his siblings. A fantastic outcome 💚
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
🐦 A sad end for a fantastic species. A Blackcap ringed at Cannock Chase, Staffordshire on 09/08/2025 was sadly found dead on 17/06/2026 at Gentleshaw Common, 9km from where it was originally ringed. important reminder of the valuable data that helps us better understand their lives and movements.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
🦅 A great day checking 3 Buzzard nests and ringing 4 chicks. Broods appear smaller than usual this year, but it was fantastic to see these stunning raptors up close. We’re also looking at restarting wing-tagging to better understand Buzzard movements across forestry landscapes.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
🐦 Why do we colour ring birds? This stunning photo by Tony Slater shows Common Tern A62 in flight. Ringed @SthStaffsWater Blithfield on 07/07/23, sighted for the first time since ringing at RSPB Middleton Lakes on 14/06/26. Every sighting helps us track these amazing birds
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
🦅 A terrible year for West Midlands Peregrines. Of the 6 Peregrine Falcon nests we monitor, most have failed following very late breeding this season. It’s the first time since 2012 we’ve seen such poor results across our sites, with others also reporting low brood numbers. 💚
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Another day, another album cover. 🦅 This week we colour-ringed another Goshawk nest at a private Staffordshire site, bringing us to 5 nests for 2026. True ghosts of the forest. Fantastic to see plenty of grey squirrel prey in the nest too. #Goshawk #Raptors
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Staffordshire Osprey Project! 🦅 We’ve been privileged to colour-ring Staffordshire Osprey chicks since the county’s first-ever breeding pair was discovered. One bird, 4R2, ringed as a chick in 2023, has now been found nesting at a private site in Leicester around 45 miles away
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
🌙 Nightjar season is here! With our expert nest finders and thermal drone, we’ve already located this incredible Nightjar nest with 2 eggs 🥚🥚 We can’t wait to see what this season brings, continuing learning more about these amazing birds marking our 16th year of the project
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
Another bird survey, another discarded balloon found in breeding bird habitat. What goes up always comes down somewhere, often in places wildlife depend on to survive. Surely there are better ways to celebrate or remember loved ones than releasing litter into the environment.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
🦉 What a year for Barn Owls! A recent visit to @No1FarmerJake Worcestershire saw us ring 14 Barn Owl chicks from 4 nest boxes, a fantastic turnaround after last year’s poor season. Everything crossed for a successful fledging season and for these youngsters to thrive. 🤞🦉
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
This picture would make an incredible album cover! 🦅 Yesterday morning we colour-ringed a nest of young Northern Goshawk at a private site in Staffordshire. Truly stunning and deadly raptors. We’re privileged to monitor this species and look forward to future recoveries.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
🦅 He’s back! After previously capturing a Kestrel visiting our Sand Martin Bank @stwater , Minworth on our @ZEISSBirding trail cams, we’ve recorded another hunting attempt. This time, he struck one of our plastic lures instead of a real bird 🐦
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Great teamwork between us, Hagley Falconry Centre and Birmingham Airport to rescue, recover and return a young kestrel to its parents and siblings. 🦅 A fantastic result and a reminder that this is far from a one-off. Partnership working makes a real difference for wildlife
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Fantastic update from our @stwater Minworth Sand Martin Bank 🐦 We’ve already ringed 22 chicks, with more nests still to check! After ringing 38 chicks in total last year, we’re on track to beat that record in 2026. Great to see all the hard work paying off! 🙌
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Exciting times for our new Kestrel colour-ringing project, with another 6 birds ringed @handles4forks 🦅 Great to see a new pair taking up at the farm following the loss of the previous female. We’re looking forward to future sightings and learning more about their movements
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
🤯🐦 One of our ringed Redwing LEGS has been recovered in Finland! Ringed at Cannock Chase in Oct 2024 and recovered in Kouvola, Finland, in May 2026, 1,961 km (1,219 miles) away. 🇬🇧➡️🇫🇮 Every recovery helps reveal the incredible journeys these birds make. #BirdRinging
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
🦉 What a hoot! Last night we visited the fantastic wildlife-friendly farm at @LeedhamAlan to check and ring some young Barn Owls. We were amazed to find 6 healthy chicks 🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣 in the nest box! A real credit to the parent owls, who are doing an incredible job💚
Young barn owl with a fluffy head being held during the ringing process
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
🚨 Serious cuteness alert! 🦉💛 Is there a better-looking owl chick than a Little Owl? We don’t think so. Sadly, they seem to be declining in some of the areas we monitor. One of the biggest issues? Grey squirrels taking over nest boxes, which is why we’re careful where we install them.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
🐦 Great to be working with @Hartpury today, sharing the world of bird ringing with students interested in conservation & animal management. We hope to inspire the next generation of volunteers to support the BTO and help protect our wildlife for years to come 💚
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
🪶 Red Kite day! 🪶 9 healthy chicks ringed from 3 nests today. A fantastic result for one of the UK’s greatest conservation success stories. An incredible species. ❤️ #RedKite #RaptorConservation
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
🦅 WMRG’s latest project is underway 👀 Colour-ringing Kestrels! Spot a white ring with black lettering? Report it and help us understand more about our West Midlands Kestrels. #Birding #Conservation
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Yesterday on Cannock Chase, Staffordshire we were lucky enough to ring this stunning male Cuckoo. Still amazes me that these birds travel all the way from Africa to spend just a short time here in the UK. Absolutely incredible species 🐦✨
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
🌙 The Nightjars are back on Cannock Chase and their haunting, almost alien calls are pure magic. Last night we ringed a new bird and recaptured another first ringed in 2025 — returning to the very same site after migrating back from Africa. Incredible birds. 🌍🕊️ #Nightjar #CannockChase
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
How much of nature do we miss when we’re not there? 👀 A recent visitor to our Sand Martin bank appeared to mistake one of our plastic decoys for the real thing. Without our @ZEISSbirding trail cam, we’d never have seen it. 🌿 #Kestrel #nature
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
A brilliant day yesterday with Sophie from @bbcmtd in Staffordshire, ringing 4 healthy Peregrine Falcon chicks 🦅 A real privilege to share our knowledge of these incredible birds and see the next generation thriving. Conservation in action 💛
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BTO | British Trust for Ornithology @btobirds.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
It’s May, so no more seed and peanuts in bird feeders. BTO Senior Research Ecologist Dr Kate Plummer, part of the Technical Steering Group that carried out the evidence review on which the new guidance is based, sets out the reasoning behind the changes in this BTO blog ➡️ www.bto.org/our-work/new...
Two Greenfinches perch on a hanging bird feeder.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
“Is there anything more stunning than a Nuthatch nest? 🍂🐦 During monitoring we found TWO nest boxes full of Nuthatch chicks, each nest carefully built with individual oak leaves. Tiny architects at work. 🌿✨”
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
🦅 Mixed fortunes for our Urban Peregrines this year, but some fantastic news from Staffordshire, one pair has hatched 4 healthy chicks and they’re all thriving! 💛 Hard to believe these fluffy youngsters will grow into the fastest animals on Earth ⚡🌍 #UrbanPeregrines
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
🐦✨ Amazing moment this morning while monitoring Pied Flycatcher nests, we caught a breeding female already carrying a ring from when she was ringed as a chick in 2025, just 9km away @RSPBCoombes completing migration to and from West Africa to breed here in the UK 🌍💚
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
A lovely morning spent checking 20 nest boxes on a private site in Warwickshire 🌿🐣 An incredible 110 Blue Tit chicks were ringed today — a fantastic sign that it’s shaping up to be a positive breeding year for this beautiful species 💙 Always a privilege to monitor these nests.
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Who can resist an oystercatcher chick? 🐣🖤🤍 Three of these incredible little chicks were colour ringed a few days ago, all under the watchful eyes of mum and dad. Always a privilege to see them up close, and even better to report that all three are doing brilliantly 🙌 Tiny feet, huge personalities
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Happy 100th Birthday to David Attenborough 🎉🌍 Your voice, passion, and storytelling have inspired generations to love and protect our planet. Thank you for opening our eyes to the beauty of the natural world and changing so many lives along the way. 💚 #DavidAttenborough #HappyBirthday #PlanetEarth
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Amazing to see this Nightjar back safely 🪽 Ringed by us in Staffordshire in June 2024, it flew all the way to Africa for winter — and has now returned to the exact same field to breed a year later. Migration is truly magical 🌍✨ #Nightjar #BirdMigration #Nature #Wildlife
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Ducklings hatched on a 6th-floor balcony, Birmingham what could go wrong? Adil & friends stepped in 💛 Carefully rescued them, reunited them with mum, and walked them to the canal mum following every step 🐥 Safe, together, back where they belong Pure compassion in action 👏❤️
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Guess who’s back? 🌙✨ We were privileged to ring our first Nightjar of the season in Staffordshire last night, a sure sign summer is on its way! These amazing birds nest on the ground, so please stick to paths and keep dogs on leads 🐾 #Nightjar #NatureMatters
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West Midlands Ringing Group @westmidlandsrg.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Incredible news 🌍✨ A CTT-tagged Jack Snipe, sponsored by @ZEISSBirding from our Odyssey project has reached Russia 🇷🇺 the furthest live-tracked Jack Snipe migration ever recorded from the UK! Small bird, extraordinary journey 💚🐦📡 #BirdMigration #Conservation
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