Another successful night at Atlit saltpans
(6-7/5) produced 111 birds caught. Most interesting was Common Tern with the
ring: HN 45.088 ST.ORN.GDANSK POLAND. This is the fourth foreign control since
I started my tern project in 2010 and first in spring migration, joining Finnish,
Lithuanian and German Common Terns caught in this place. Totals were 105 Common
Terns, including retrap from last year, only 3 Little Terns, 1 Ruff and 1
Little Stint.
After I ended my ringing session in the
morning I received a call from Tuvia Khan who had just observed three of my
Little Terns at Ma'ayan Tzvi fishponds, 12.5 km south. One ringed in August
2010, one in June 2011 and to my surprise one from this night. Interesting info
kept coming in; was continue when I arrived back to my computer I saw another
report of two ringed Common Terns observed and photographed in Hula Nature Reserve
by Dror Galili. IIF was ringed in August 2010 and IT3 ringed in June 2011, both
from Atlit, 76 km south west. Very interesting data about their movement inside
Israel.
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| IIF |
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| IT3 |
This night I ended all possible combinations for white plastic rings and started work with green rings for Common Terns.
Another note from this night: we caught many
Common Terns with dark bill. I don't know what the explanation for this is; perhaps
only regular variation within our local
breeding population or geographical variation among migrant birds.
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| Little Tern |
Many thanks to my team: Rafi, Ron, Eilai,
Yishai and Shachar.
Short ringing session in Tzor'a on Friday
produces 120 birds; first fledglings of Clamorous-reed and Cetti's Warblers
were ringed. Also I ringed this juvenile Whitethroat with active partial moult
- first sign of the upcoming autumn?
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| Juvenile Whitethroat - active partial moult |