THE RINGER
Simon Evans, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
I’m jointly in charge of Thetford Forest ringing group. Being a firefighter, I have a head for heights, so am happy shinnying up ladders to reach swift nests. I also ring the swifts rehabilitated by Judith Wakelam. Swifts and kingfishers are the UK’s only birds to take a special ring designed to fit their very short tarsus (the exposed part of the leg). You have to take great care fitting it, ensuring the toes are out of the way. In swift ts, the hind toe has partly y rotated around the foo ot so effectively you have e four front toes.
Usually I ring just nestlings – parents at the nest are easily disturbed. If an adult happens to be in a nestbox and has a ring, I quickly pick it up to read the unique number, but never prolong the handling.
Ringing tells us about breeding success and longevity. In 2017, we had our first recapture – of a swift we ringed as a chick in 2015. Judith and I would love to find one of her rehabilitated birds to prove that it migrated back safely. People doing similar work in Barcelona have had a few ‘returns’, so it does work.