Alne Wood Park frequently hosts a local bird ringing group, including during a few weekends earlier this year. Bird ringing is a harmless process and is a form of ornithological monitoring which involves placing a lightweight metal ring around a bird’s leg. The ring is uniquely numbered and is a reliable method of identifying individual birds. When the birds are caught again it is possible to gain information about how long they live, and how they move and migrate. The information is essential for bird conservation. Bird ringing takes place on the edge of Alne Wood Park, away from the burial ground.

During one of the bird ringing days the team caught an adult male Blackbird which was first ringed at Alne Wood Park in September 2020. It is possible that anyone visiting the burial ground since 2021 has been listening to this Blackbird over the past few years.

A wide variety of other bird species were spotted or caught during both bird ringing days, including, Raven, Carrion Crow, Green Woodpecker, Stock Dove, Wood Pigeon, Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-Tailed Tit, Great-Spotted Woodpecker, Robin, and Nuthatch.

It is a privilege to be able to host this kind of event, and to know that the environment and habitat at Alne Wood Park provides such a perfect location for this and other biodiversity studies.

Technical information: British Trust for Ornithology, Sam Macvie (Monitoring & Evaluation Officer, Heart of England Forest)