Posted by Major Gilbert on April 15, 2009 at 2:46 PM
D3 + 600mm AFS II + 1.4 Conv.
1/1600 @ f7.1
ISO: 1250.
Ex Comp 0 EV.
WB: Auto.
AF Area Mode: Dynamic 21 point.
Taken yesterday evening on the airfield.
There are at least four pairs of Barn Owl that frequent the airfield at anyone time.
To my knowledge there is only one unringed bird.
I am somewhat annoyed by this perticular ring as if you look carefully there is a long sore/scar running vertically down the birds leg and I may be wrong but I thought these awful looking rings should have no overlap but a butted joint. This is not the first Barn Owl I have photographed that has had this type of wound or abrassion to the leg. What is the continuing purpose of this on such a bird I ask myself.
Cropped to the vertical and gausian blur added to the BG.
Major.
Posted by Lewis Thomson on April 15, 2009 at 3:17 PM
Very nice Major! Nice old post and the background blur has worked a treat. Agree about the ring, annoying and arguably no longer necessary.
It does look as though the ring is damaging the bird's leg. I just hope the benefits of ringing outweigh the costs, but I'm not convinced. Anyway, a beautiful bird Major and nicely captured too. You're very fortunate to have four pairs nearby.
Matt
Posted by John Robinson on April 15, 2009 at 3:28 PM
Lovely shot. And I agree about the ring. I think we know a fair bit about barn owls by now.
That ring overlap wants reporting to the BTO. You can see its wrong. I did on some Pied Fly ringing with the same problem and it was sorted. Its fairly easy to find the ringer I think. That is one of the best demonstrated examples I have seen.Cheers
John
Posted by Craig Jones on April 15, 2009 at 3:51 PM
Nice image major of one of my favorite birds, the ring has damaged the leg , you need to report it major so the can replace it, otherwise a beautiful image
Posted by Anthony House on April 15, 2009 at 4:32 PM
Beautiful work Major, I've seen quite a few with marks on their legs due to the rings. Not sure why they ring them in the first place as we all know why they're in decline, habitat loss
Don't really want to get into a debate with people about ringing, but they do provide a map of where birds are from and go to, however this ring has clearly been put on incorrectly, ideally as it is a female and I guess will use one of the sites on the airfield, she needs to be caught up when she is sitting in the box and have the ring removed, the BTO will be able to tell who the ringer is by the number on it, and IMO if he/she has allowed a ring like that to go, they should not be doing it!
On another note Major, as you know I was up your way last week, and on my evening drive around the lanes where I have always seen Barn Owls before, this time a blank, in fact my whole week I didnt see one Owl, have you noticed a decline in the area?? (obviously not the airfield if you have four pairs)
Now the image ...................... Very nice Major, up to your normal high standard, other than the sore looking leg, she looks in wonderfull condition.
Regards
Rob
Posted by Major Gilbert on April 15, 2009 at 5:52 PM
Thanks for you replys everybody.
Rob I cant say I have seen a decline but we always seem to get a mad month where they are extremly active and then suddenly they become very unpredictable and follow no pattern what so ever.
Its typical for customers to come into my tyre depot and say "there are a lot of Barn Owls about at the moment" Its usually no more than normal its just the fact that they are seeing them more in the daylight hours.
At certain times of the year you can nearly set your watch by them but then it all goes out of the window.
They dont appear to be short of food at the minute and as you say Rob this one looks quite fit. As for four pairs well they don't all arrive together and bearing in mind the area we are talking about is pretty large.
Oops sorry Major, missed that bit, note to self - learn to read properly
Phil
Posted by Major Gilbert on April 16, 2009 at 4:41 AM
Reply from local Barn Owl ringer who I sent image to last night.
Hi Major
Have looked at the photo:
1 the ring looks as though it can freely rotate
2 not convinced that the leg has been damaged
3 the marking on the leg looks more like staining of the feathers, perhaps due to blood from a kill
4 the bird when perching appears to have full use of its foot and so therefore also its potential grip on a prey item
have traced 2 birds that have ring numbers ending 779 ringed by us unless it was ringed by somebody else with another ring series
bird 1 GC07779 ringed 07/07/2005 at Crabbe Castle Turkey Unit, 3 years nine months and 9 days old
bird 2 GC32779 ringed 07/07/2007 at Duck End Farm, 2 years nine months and 9 days old
So as you can see both birds are not newly ringed but have survived for some time.
Thanks for drawing my attention to this and we do share your concerns, as a ringer I always worry that my actions might cause a problem but do take the utmost precaution to try and ensure that they do not.
Great shot Major, I like the way the bulr makes the bird stand out, as for the ringing don't get me started, sore point with me as well as the barn owls leg!!!!!!!
Thanks for posting the reply from the ringer. That ring has not been closed correctly, end of. That will leave an edge to rub on the leg and cause what is shown in your image. Yes she has use of the leg, but what happens if it gets infected? as I said, she needs catching when she is sitting in a box and having the ring either removed or put back on properly !!
Regards
Rob
Posted by Paul Ashton on April 16, 2009 at 7:56 AM
Absolutely beautiful image Major. Wonderful detail and tonality. A great pleasure to view.
Secondly, I would contact the BTO Ringing unit (email address on web site, http://www.bto.org/ringing/index.htm). Show them the photo and the response from the ringer as it definately looks as if it's not been closed properly. The least he should be offering to do is look out for the bird when doing their ringing activites this year and check the ring if it's re-trapped.
As someone involved in Barn owl conservation I know that ringing is an import activity that does help in tracking the increase in their numbers. However the birds welfare is more important than the ring itself.
Finally just to counter Tony's comment, Barn owl numbers are actually on the way up due to the hard work of a lot of volunteers over the past 25 years.
Cheers
Gavin
Posted by Major Gilbert on April 16, 2009 at 8:15 AM
Have already sent an image to BTO Gavin and am awaiting a response. Thank you.
I would be very interested in what the BTO have to say.
Gavin Law said "As someone involved in Barn owl conservation I know that ringing is an import activity that does help in tracking the increase in their numbers. However the birds welfare is more important than the ring itself.
Finally just to counter Tony's comment, Barn owl numbers are actually on the way up due to the hard work of a lot of volunteers over the past 25 years"
Me too Gavin, agree 100%
Regards
Rob
Posted by Anthony House on April 16, 2009 at 12:43 PM
That maybe so in certain areas but not all, we all know what Barn Owls need, nesting sites and fields of rough grass which are still disappearing at alarming rates.. I'm not disputing the hard work people have put in to help these beautiful birds but is the ringing still necessary, I think not. This is not just a view from a selfish photographer, I've spent a lot of my free time building and erecting Barn Owl boxes in my local area of Beds and Bucks but I still have to travel to Norfolk to photograph one.......
Whilst in maybe true that Barn owls are still scare in some areas, numbers have increased significantly on a national basis since Colin Shawyer carried out the last national survey between 1982-85. Ringing is one of the many tools used to help gain a better understanding of birds and their movements so that we can help conserve and protect those at risk.
Of course the key with Barn owls is the habitat if a local area is to sustain a population of Barn owls. You can put up as many boxes as you like but if the right habitat is not there for the short-tailed field vole then it's unlikely that boxes will be used, by Barn owls at least.
Don't forget that generally Barn owls are nocturnal hunters so just because you don't see them in the daytime doesn't mean that they aren't in the area. Of the local breeding pairs that I watch it's rare for me to see them before any decent photography light has long gone.
For various reasons some Barn owls do hunt in the day time and I think that is probably more the case in the east of the country. Indeed I was over in Norfolk a couple of weeks back and saw a male Barn owl hunting in bright sunshine at 10 in the morning.
Having said all the above, in no way am I defending a case of potential bad ringing which maybe the case of the owl in Major's photo.
Discussion
22 replies1/1600 @ f7.1
ISO: 1250.
Ex Comp 0 EV.
WB: Auto.
AF Area Mode: Dynamic 21 point.
Taken yesterday evening on the airfield.
There are at least four pairs of Barn Owl that frequent the airfield at anyone time.
To my knowledge there is only one unringed bird.
I am somewhat annoyed by this perticular ring as if you look carefully there is a long sore/scar running vertically down the birds leg and I may be wrong but I thought these awful looking rings should have no overlap but a butted joint. This is not the first Barn Owl I have photographed that has had this type of wound or abrassion to the leg. What is the continuing purpose of this on such a bird I ask myself.
Cropped to the vertical and gausian blur added to the BG.
Major.
Very nice Major! Nice old post and the background blur has worked a treat. Agree about the ring, annoying and arguably no longer necessary.
Lewis.
Matt
That ring overlap wants reporting to the BTO. You can see its wrong. I did on some Pied Fly ringing with the same problem and it was sorted. Its fairly easy to find the ringer I think. That is one of the best demonstrated examples I have seen.Cheers
John
Nice work.
Tony
A fine portrait..
Don't really want to get into a debate with people about ringing, but they do provide a map of where birds are from and go to, however this ring has clearly been put on incorrectly, ideally as it is a female and I guess will use one of the sites on the airfield, she needs to be caught up when she is sitting in the box and have the ring removed, the BTO will be able to tell who the ringer is by the number on it, and IMO if he/she has allowed a ring like that to go, they should not be doing it!
On another note Major, as you know I was up your way last week, and on my evening drive around the lanes where I have always seen Barn Owls before, this time a blank, in fact my whole week I didnt see one Owl, have you noticed a decline in the area?? (obviously not the airfield if you have four pairs)
Now the image
Regards
Rob
Rob I cant say I have seen a decline but we always seem to get a mad month where they are extremly active and then suddenly they become very unpredictable and follow no pattern what so ever.
Its typical for customers to come into my tyre depot and say "there are a lot of Barn Owls about at the moment" Its usually no more than normal its just the fact that they are seeing them more in the daylight hours.
At certain times of the year you can nearly set your watch by them but then it all goes out of the window.
They dont appear to be short of food at the minute and as you say Rob this one looks quite fit. As for four pairs well they don't all arrive together and bearing in mind the area we are talking about is pretty large.
Major.
Major.
Thanks for the reply.
Well, I'm back up there twice in May, so be lucky, hopefully !!!
Regards
Rob
Major.
Phil
Hi Major
Have looked at the photo:
1 the ring looks as though it can freely rotate
2 not convinced that the leg has been damaged
3 the marking on the leg looks more like staining of the feathers, perhaps due to blood from a kill
4 the bird when perching appears to have full use of its foot and so therefore also its potential grip on a prey item
have traced 2 birds that have ring numbers ending 779 ringed by us unless it was ringed by somebody else with another ring series
bird 1 GC07779 ringed 07/07/2005 at Crabbe Castle Turkey Unit, 3 years nine months and 9 days old
bird 2 GC32779 ringed 07/07/2007 at Duck End Farm, 2 years nine months and 9 days old
So as you can see both birds are not newly ringed but have survived for some time.
Thanks for drawing my attention to this and we do share your concerns, as a ringer I always worry that my actions might cause a problem but do take the utmost precaution to try and ensure that they do not.
best wishes
John
Cheers
Brian
Thanks for posting the reply from the ringer. That ring has not been closed correctly, end of. That will leave an edge to rub on the leg and cause what is shown in your image. Yes she has use of the leg, but what happens if it gets infected? as I said, she needs catching when she is sitting in a box and having the ring either removed or put back on properly !!
Regards
Rob
Firstly nice photo.
Secondly, I would contact the BTO Ringing unit (email address on web site, http://www.bto.org/ringing/index.htm). Show them the photo and the response from the ringer as it definately looks as if it's not been closed properly. The least he should be offering to do is look out for the bird when doing their ringing activites this year and check the ring if it's re-trapped.
As someone involved in Barn owl conservation I know that ringing is an import activity that does help in tracking the increase in their numbers. However the birds welfare is more important than the ring itself.
Finally just to counter Tony's comment, Barn owl numbers are actually on the way up due to the hard work of a lot of volunteers over the past 25 years.
Cheers
Gavin
Major.
I would be very interested in what the BTO have to say.
Gavin Law said "As someone involved in Barn owl conservation I know that ringing is an import activity that does help in tracking the increase in their numbers. However the birds welfare is more important than the ring itself.
Finally just to counter Tony's comment, Barn owl numbers are actually on the way up due to the hard work of a lot of volunteers over the past 25 years"
Me too Gavin, agree 100%
Regards
Rob
Tony
Whilst in maybe true that Barn owls are still scare in some areas, numbers have increased significantly on a national basis since Colin Shawyer carried out the last national survey between 1982-85. Ringing is one of the many tools used to help gain a better understanding of birds and their movements so that we can help conserve and protect those at risk.
Of course the key with Barn owls is the habitat if a local area is to sustain a population of Barn owls. You can put up as many boxes as you like but if the right habitat is not there for the short-tailed field vole then it's unlikely that boxes will be used, by Barn owls at least.
Don't forget that generally Barn owls are nocturnal hunters so just because you don't see them in the daytime doesn't mean that they aren't in the area. Of the local breeding pairs that I watch it's rare for me to see them before any decent photography light has long gone.
For various reasons some Barn owls do hunt in the day time and I think that is probably more the case in the east of the country. Indeed I was over in Norfolk a couple of weeks back and saw a male Barn owl hunting in bright sunshine at 10 in the morning.
Having said all the above, in no way am I defending a case of potential bad ringing which maybe the case of the owl in Major's photo.
Gavin