For birds dros adar

RSPB Wake up to Birds Week. 25^th to 31^st May. RSPB is putting the message across on how important gardens are for birds, they are an oasis for wildlife. Also on how climate change is affecting birds. Exhibits all over Britain. Internet watchers look up www.rspb.org.uk/wutb

Bishops Wood Caswell Bay September 28^th Woodland Fayre. Lots of craft stalls. We also have a stall. Come and see us

Margam Park August Bank Holiday. We have a stall at the bank holiday fayre. Volunteers needed to man the stalls.

Corks campaign Update Corks sent to RSPB are being made into a 300,000 piece (59,438 gallons of wine!) Most from Brian M!) sculpture, funded by the Portuguese Cork Producers Association. They will be turned into an Imperial Eagle, with a 10 metre wingspan, and flashing eyes. (I know the feeling. Ed??) Thanks to all our boozers!

Blackpill Wildlife Centre.

Photographs at the "outdoor event" at Blackpill on Sunday 3rd February 2002. Russell, the outdoor events leader, had made sure the weather was kind and also ordered the birds to arrive on time. The scopes were out in force, but not actually needed, as the high tide brought the oystercatchers, gulls and curlew up to within 18 feet of us.

Pictures by Colin Jones

Blackpill Wildlife Centre continues to thrive. Many visitors are being shown around the centre and being told of the importance of the Site of Special Scientific Importance (SSSI) is to Swansea, and how privileged we are to have such a special wild life reserve on our doorstep.

Don’t forget that it’s the Sanderling, Dunlin, Oystercatchers, Curlew and many more including rare species such as the Mediterranean Gull that have chosen this spot to feed on.

We owe it to them to preserve the area and habitat for them. West Glamorgan RSPB Members Group, Gower Ornithological Society, and Swansea City Council are partners in this project.

The centre is now closed for the summer, but will re-open in September. Watch the web page (www.westglam-rspb.org.uk) for dates and times. Colin and Daphne Jones are managing the centre for the West Glamorgan RSPB Group, and can be contacted at 01269-822876 to obtain information and to volunteer your services.

Snippet http://www.birdguides.com/birdnews/daily.asp is a source of rare / unusual bird sightings on the Internet. Just register your email address with them, and they will report weekly interesting sightings of birds in the UK.

JUNE 15^th & 16^th Poole Harbour Weekend Phone Russell to book 01792 208038

2002 Garden Birdwatch

Record numbers of bird enthusiasts went out into their gardens and local parks over the weekend of 26 and 27 January to record the highest number of each bird species seen at any one time.

Over 57,000 people have taken part via the RSPB's website, seeing a total of one million birds. This figure alone has beaten last year's total participation figure which finished at 52,000.

It is also believed that a further 90,000 - 100,000 paper survey forms have been received by the RSPB. This has resulted in the Royal Mail having to put into place special arrangements to deal with the volume of survey forms arriving on a daily basis, averaging 5,000 new forms per day.

Ruth Billingham of RSPB Cymru says: " The response to this year's survey has been tremendous. It is looking increasingly likely that we have exceeded our hopes of reaching 100,000 participants. We are on target to triple last year's total, so please do continue to send in those forms. "

"Provisional results for Wales suggest that the house sparrow may be toppled from the top spot by the blue tit, but all is still to play for, and the final results may produce a different outcome." She added, "It is hoped that Britain's mass observation may throw up some new and interesting data on the abundance of species."

THANKS TO ALL THOSE WHO TOOK PART

Migration Watch: the new spring migration project

The BTO and BirdWatch Ireland are delighted to announce a new project called Migration Watch designed to track the flow of migrants into and through the country. Migration Watch will be launched on 1 March 2002.

Despite the huge interest in birdwatching, surprisingly little is known about how migrants flow through the country each spring. Bird reports up and down the country are filled with first arrival dates but we don’t really know when the majority of migrants have arrived in the country. In recent years, warm weather in early spring has resulted in early sightings of migrants and there is good evidence that some migrants are generally arriving earlier than they used to.

What Migration Watch hopes to do is to record the arrival of the first migrants, track their flow through the country and see how quickly sites ‘fill-up’ with migrants. We will also be able to relate the pattern of arrival to weather conditions in Europe and investigate the strategies used during migration. We have chosen spring migration to study first because there is a defined ‘start’ to spring migration whereas autumn migration is much harder to study – it is always easier to record first dates than last dates!

What do you need to record?

Whether you watch the birds in your garden, or you are a keen birder or twitcher then Migration Watch will suit your birdwatching interest. We are keen to receive records from places that you visit regularly, be it the local park where you walk the dog or the gravel pit you visit every weekend. We want to know when you see summer migrants but also when you don’t, it will be just as important to record the fact that Swallows have not yet arrived in your area. There will be three levels of recording. Level one is a short list containing about ten easy to recognise species that everyone will be able to use. Level two is a list containing all migrants and Level three is a list designed for the birdwatcher who likes to record everything (all species listed). There will also be options for recording rare and scarce species using drop-down menus. In each of the lists you get the option of simply ticking a box if a species is present or recording the number present – the choice is yours. There will also be the facility to record casual records, such as the first Swift that you see whilst traveling to work.

How you can take part

Migration Watch will be fun and easy to take part in and is suited to all levels of ability and interest. Migration Watch is particularly exciting because it is the BTO’s first project to use the latest ‘World Wide Web’ technology. Because we are using modern technology and collecting data in an automated way we can produce new results every day and keep the website up-to-date. More and more people are coming ‘on-line’ and if you don’t have Internet access at home you can use it at most libraries and schools, or you could get a friend with a computer to help. Alternatively contact UK Online (free phone 0800 771234) to find out where site (www.bto.org/migwatch) or send an e-mail to migrationwatch@bto.org. If you log on now you will see some introductory pages about the new survey with links to other information about migration and migrants. We hope Bird Club members will enjoy this new project.

Sponsors

Migration Watch has been generously funded by the Swallow Appeal and Northumbrian Water Ltd. and promoted by Bird Watching magazine.

Dawn Balmer

Migration Watch Organiser

Editors Note. We have probably missed this years observations, unless you keep very good records. But those who are interested might be able to record data next year, and or contact BTO on the Web Site above.

Creepy crawly craze sweeps Ebbw Vale

A new craze is about to hit Ebbw Vale as the world of the creepy crawly goes under the microscope. On 21 April RSPB Cymru will delve into the world of the springtime insects which live on land and underwater in Ebbw Vale.

Stuart Thompson, RSPB Cymru education officer says "Many people are amazed at the number of insects that start their lives underwater. Without large clean wetland areas, many of our insect species, like dragonflies and
mayflies, would not survive. We hope to find lots of insects on and land and in water which will give us an indication of the health of our local environment."

You can join in the investigation into insects, which will run from 2pm - 3.30pm. This is a family event, and a responsible adult must accompany all children. Strong boots or wellies and waterproof clothing are advisable.

For more information on how you can investigate insects please contact the RSPB education centre on 01495 303971.

Raffle Prize Winners

1^st Mrs Gulley 4042

2^nd S. Thomas 11812

3^rd J. Whittaker 0770

4^th J. Thomas 6540

5^th R. Murray 6179

6^th M. Davies 4908

7^th J. Beaujea 7805

8^th J.Erskine 4807

9^th T. Burgess 9294

www.westglam-rspb.org.uk

An e-mail from Sue Primrose

I am not in W.Glam. RSPB but am a member from Cheshire. I wonder whether you or any of your members could give me some advice? I have had birds (blackbirds mainly) nesting in a Laurel/Clematis for the past few years. This year I Have a Thrush. Each year after the eggs are laid the cats get them either as eggs or baby birds. What can I do to prevent this from happening? The nest is about five-foot from the ground and the cats can approach it from the ground or the roof above the nesting area.

I am sorry to trouble you particularly as I am not a local member but hope you can help with my problem

Many thanks

Sue

This e-mail was forwarded to Melita Gibson at the RSPB Wales office in Cardiff, and here is her reply;

Dear Susan
I have been forwarded your emails with regards cats and bird eggs/fledglings. Cats are an unpleasant problem, but below there are a couple of things to consider and/or try.
'Renardine' is a brand name of a product which is supposed to be good to deter not only cats, but also dogs, rabbits, foxes, moles and badgers from the area in which they re not wanted. It is a formula that is applied to rags or firewood and placed around the area you wish to keep cat free and would appear to be quite safe. Unfortunately, I do not have a supplier list, but I should think garden centres or farm supply shops would sell it. I also do not have any advice on the price.
There are also electronic devices for deterring animals, but I believe these can be quite expensive and most large garden centres either sell them, or could give you more information about them. There may even be plants that cats don't like that could be planted and perhaps your local garden centre could advise on these.

I hope these suggestions prove useful and you have a garden full of thrushes this summer.
Regards
Mel

JULY7TH Skomer Island meeting Meet at St Martins Haven 9:15 Phone Russell 01792 208038

An e-mail from Patricia Smith

Sorry to bother you but I am trying to find out some information on Blue tits. I have had a nest box on my shed for 6 years. And every now and then I have a blue tit looking into it but that is all. On Friday I noticed a pair of blue tits taking in bits so I assumed they were nesting in there. I watched them on Saturday but have not seen them since. Could this be because they are now sitting on eggs or have they left the box and gone else were. Please help me and may be you could tell me what time of day I am most lightly to see them flying around.

Trish.

I am afraid I am not particularly knowledgeable about Blue Tits. We do not have detailed information about their lack of nesting ability in the office, but I have found an interesting web site:
http://www.gardenwildlife.co.uk/gw_box2m.htm - this has pictures of Blue Tits and their nest boxes, eggs, young, and it is possible looking at this that a male bird has been putting nesting material into your nest box and is trying (perhaps unsuccessfully) to attract a mate.
The email address from the web page is: info@gardenwildlife.co.uk and they may be more likely to have the information you require.
Regards
Mel Gibson

Opt out To help fund future newsletters, we may take advertising slips. The RSPB has told us that members have the right to opt out from receiving such material if they wish. Anyone wishing not to receive any advertising material with your newsletter, please let the secretary or editor know. To clarify, our mailing list remains safe in our hands, and is ONLY used for group mailings which are the two biannual newsletters. Any advertising will only be included in the envelope.

Beached Bird Survey 2002

Grim results of this year’s survey show that a total of 25 beached (dead) birds were found. The previous three years totals were 3, 10 and 8. No apparent reason was found, as generally little of no oil was reported, though one dead gannet was found to be oiled. 23 volunteers searched 52 kilometres of coastline. One razorbill was found entangled on fishing net.

Blackpill Wildlife Centre Report

Thanks to the dedication of our volunteers, from the RSPB and GOS, the first full season of the Blackpill Wildlife Centre has been a great success. The Centre has been open every other Sunday morning from September to Easter and we have had 150 signatures in our visitor’s book. As only one in a party signs the book this means we have had over 300 visitors. Young and old, local and from over the border, they have had their SSSI and garden bird questions answered whenever possible, picked up leaflets of interest, studied our impressive bird list of 46 species, and enjoyed the opportunity of seeing the birds up close through our scopes. On the Sunday when the West Glamorgan Group met at the Centre no scopes were needed. As can be seen in the photograph, the oystercatchers were just yards away! Thanks to everyone for manning the hut, helping to compile the bird list and for visiting. If you haven't yet come to see us, or if you would like to pay a return visit, the Centre will be open next season on September 29th, October 13th & 27th, November 10th & 24th and December 8th & 22nd. Look out for the 2003 dates in the Xmas newsletter. We look forward to seeing you. Daphne Jones

August 4^th Lliw Reservoir at car park 9am Sept 1^st Aberdulais Basin Railway Pub car park 9am

BLACKPILL WILDLIFE CENTRE BIRD LIST

Oystercatcher seen on every occasion with 1500 counted on February 3rd.

Curlew seen most days the centre was open with 150 on Sept 23rd.

Bar-tailed godwit none spotted after January 20th.

Ringed plover 150+ on February 15th.

Sanderling none after January 20th.

Black-headed gull seen on every occasion.

Common gull ditto

Herring gull most days

Lesser black-backed gull seen on all but two occasions

Mediterranean gull seen on half the open days with 3 on October 7th

Great black-backed gull seen on most occasions

Knot 3 spotted on October 7th and ticked on 3 other days

Dunlin 500 on November 18th, none after February 17th

Cormorant seen most days

Shelduck 12 on October, seen on 4 other occasions

Kittiwake spotted on September 23rd

Curlew sandpiper spotted on October 7th and February 3rd

Little stint spotted once on October 7th

Grey plover seen on 4 occasions with 20 on January 6th

Redshank seen on 4 days with 4 on December 23rd

Ring-billed gull spotted once on March 17th

Turnstone 1 on December 23rd and January 6th

Teal 13 on December 23rd 4 on January 6th

Common scoter 2 on December 23rd

Wigeon spotted on November 4th

House sparrow seen on 2 occasions

Linnet last spotted on November 18th

Goldfinch seen several times throughout the season

Starling seen in the spring

Swallow flying south on September 23rd

Magpie seen on several occasions

Wood pigeon ditto

Pied wagtail seen on most days

Grey wagtail spotted on September 23rd and again on October 7th

Carrion crow seen on most occasions

Jackdaw ditto

Rook seen on 2 occasions

Great-crested grebe seen on half the days with 45 on Nov 18th, 24 on Jan 6th and 98 on 20th

Robin seen once on November 4th

Chaffinch seen on 2 occasions

Greenfinch 25 on November 4th and seen on 3 other days

Jay spotted once on November 4th

Long-tailed tit seen on 2 occasions

Blue tit ditto

Peregrine spotted on November 18th

Mallard seen on the pond beside the centre in March

Sept 29^th Gwent Levels Wetlands at reserve car park 10am. Cwm Clydach Work Party 10am Bring tools

Our Newsletter sponsors

Donation to the Group

Last year Mrs Cheryl Schaverien donated two sizable and impressive birdfeeders to the group. These were raffled at the group’s barbecue and at the AGM last year. Between the two raffles over £50 was raised for good causes for the RSPB. Thank-you Cheryl.

PEN-YR-ALLT HOTEL

Once again Dave and Mags Horn have been generous in giving the group a £20 meal voucher as a raffle prize. The hotel was a finalist in The Taste of Wales 1995. The Pen-yr-Allt Hotel is renown for its good food and accommodation. Why not take the family out for a meal to support our groups sponsors.

Gower Heritage Centre

Roy Church, manager of the centre donated a family membership to the group as a raffle prize. The winning member eagerly accepted it. On April 26t^h, the group had a meeting at the centre. Roy took us around to show us many of the ducks in the mill leet, and on the trout pond (huge rainbow trout!). We also looked at the various fowl that roam around, and in runs. Some beautiful guinea fowl, and huge hens who provide eggs for the centre. Roy showed us his newly acquired Rhea’s, a pair of South American birds rather like an emu. We are taking bets whether they are a male and female, or are a pair of single gender birds. (Book is with Maggie!) Roy is building a new hide, and is looking for a pair of 2^nd hand binoculars for the children to use. Contact Roy Church 01792-371-206. Many thanks for the lovely evening Roy, which included coffee tea and Welsh cakes.

Bird Acrobatics

During the winter months, I have made many mixtures of lard and porridge oats for the birds, patted into used yoghurt pots. I hang them upside down from the tree outside of the kitchen window. The tits were the usual takers of this food offering for most of the winter. To my surprise, several other birds started to take a fancy to the upside down tub full of fat and oats. The local blackbird looked up from the ground under the tree, and flew straight up grabbing a large beakfull. The robin worked out two techniques. He hovered like a humming bird taking little beakfulls before settling onto a branch to eat his food. He also learnt to grab the little boot lace that comes out of the fat, and grabbed the mixture, much like the tits. Finally, and surprisingly, the chaffinch and his mate learnt from the robin, to flutter in the air grabbing food before settling down to eat. Recently, a hungry Jackdaw was seen grabbing beakfulls of food in the same manner as the blackbird. These tubs of food are made from the recipe in the winter’s edition of the newsletter, and provide a high calorie meal for wintering birds.

Mark Johnson

Editor Mark Johnson, 55 Woodville Street, Pontarddulais, Swansea, SA4 8SH. Tel 01792-882146 Fax 01792 882183

Email mark@westglam-rspb.org.uk

Group Leader Maggie Cornelius 01792-229244 Membership Secretary Nester Steins 01656-740960

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