Vol
14 No 1
Water
Regime Management
Bird Ringing 2006
Shorebird counts (2000-2006)
|
|
Bird
Ringing 2006
at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve
|
By James Gan
Senior Conservation Officer
|
Main
article | Summary of records part 1 ,
part 2 | Longevity records
 Bird
ringing has been conducted at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve (SBWR)
since 1990. This article gives an overview of some of the results
of the bird ringing effort at Sungei Buloh over the past year. In
2006, a total of 658 birds from 66 species were ringed. The ringing
field works was carried out on scheduled days and nights throughout
the year. A summary of the number of birds ringed in 2006 (and the
previous six years) is provided in Table 1.
The most commonly ringed bird species were (Numbers ringed in brackets)
: Pacific Golden Plover (89), Yellowvented Bulbul (72), Scalybreasted
Munia (69), Common Redshank (61) and Collared Kingfisher (42). Compared
to the previous year (2005 ringing results), the number of birds ringed
has increased from 479 to 658. The increase is attributed to the additional
hours of mist netting.
Four new species of birds were ringed for the first time at SBWR in
2006. They are the Dollarbird, Greater Coucal, Lanceolated Warbler
and Oriental White-eye.
Other interesting species ringed include the Bluewinged Pitta, Greater
Sand Plover, Ruddy Kingfisher, Ruddy Turnstone and Siberian Blue Robin.
There were 62 recoveries from 21 species that had been ringed before
2006. The Common Redshank had the most recoveries with 10 birds while
the Pacific Golden Plover saw 9 recoveries.
 One
use for the data obtained from recovered birds is the enabling of
longevity records and the survival of the different bird species in
the wild to be determined. A Common Redshank ringed on 1 Nov 1990
was recaptured (controlled) on 12 Sep 06. This is the oldest recaptured
bird for Sungei Buloh with a retrap interval of 190 months (15 years
10 months). The longevity records based on birds recovered in 2006
are provided in Table 2.
There are other notable recoveries worth highlighting. An Oriental
Magpie Robin had been recovered and found to have made Sungei Buloh
its home for the past 10 years where it was first ringed in 1996.
This suggests that the protection afforded by the wetland has helped
this sought after bird in the song bird trade improve its chances
to survive in the wild.
A Pallas Grasshopper Warbler mist netted in March had been ringed
the previous year in May and is the first of its species to be controlled
at Sungei Buloh.
A Lanceolated Warbler was ringed on 23 Feb 06 and retrapped on 5 May
06. This species is believed to be a migrant that breeds in Eastern
Russia, Northern China, Japan and Korea. The recovery is evidence
that Sungei Buloh could be serving as the wintering home for this
individual bird.
A weight gain of about 10% was noted when the warbler was measured
in May compared to its weight in Feb. This could indicate fattening
in preparation for its migratory flight back to its breeding grounds.
Further work could help reveal information on the extent of fattening,
and the arrival and departure dates as they pertain to the presence
of the warbler in the wetland.
The ringing data also revealed that four Asian Paradise Flycatchers
were netted with an early arrival recorded on 19 Jul, one individual
in Sep and two individuals in Oct. Previous years had recorded at
most one bird ringed for the year. The presence of Yellow-rumped Flycatchers
(usually detected in the wetland through mist netting work) was confirmed
when three individual flycatchers were ringed in October. October
was also the month when a single Siberian Blue Robin was ringed. Yellow
Bitterns appeared a month later in November 2006.
In summary, bird ringing in 2006 has continued to reveal surprises
in the presence of bird species, their movements, abundance and survival
in Sungei Buloh. Data collected is invaluable for the long-term conservation
and management of the wetland reserve.
Comments or feedback? Email at info@sbwr.org.sg
Acknowledgements
This article is possible because of the field studies supported by
NParks. Thanks to fellow ringers Ramakrishnan, Charles Lim, Mustaffa
Hajar, Abdul Khalid, Jeremy Ang, Tay Soon Lian and Ong Hai Chwee for
contributing to the ringing work. Many others assisted with the ringing
including staff, volunteers and friends especially Halilah Ahmad,
Supardi Mohd Shariff, Jack Wong and Jeanne Tan. Jeremy Ang, Tay Soon
Lian and Ramakrishnan took a number of photographs and catalogued
them for documentation purposes.
References
Wells, D. R. 1999. The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Vol 1. Academic
Press, San Diego
Wetlands Vol 8, No.1, April 2001, Bird Ringing in Sungei Buloh Nature
Park in 2000,. Pp 7 –10, Publication of SBNP, National Parks Board,
Singapore
Wetlands Vol 9, No.1, April 2002, Bird Ringing in Sungei Buloh Wetland
Reserve in 2001,. Pp 8 –11, Publication of SBWR, National Parks Board,
Singapore
Wetlands Vol 10, No.1, April 2004, Bird Ringing in Sungei Buloh Wetland
Reserve in 2002,. Pp 6 – 8, Publication of SBWR, National Parks Board,
Singapore
Wetlands Vol 10, No.2, Nov 2004, Bird Ringing in Sungei Buloh Wetland
Reserve in 2003,. Pp 8 – 11, Publication of SBWR, National Parks Board,
Singapore
Wetlands Vol 10, No.4, Apr 2005, Bird Ringing in Sungei Buloh Wetland
Reserve in 2004,. Pp 6 – 9, Publication of SBWR, National Parks Board,
Singapore
Wetlands Vol 10:7, Apr 2006, Bird Ringing in Sungei Buloh Wetland
Reserve in 2005,. Pp 7 – 10, Publication of SBWR, National Parks Board,
Singapore |
|
wetlands