Cymorth i’r BTO dros y Nadolig Help BTO this Christmas

Nadolig yma, mae sawl ffordd o wneud rhoi anrhegion yn haws a hefyd i gefnogi gwaith y BTO. Mae pecyn anrheg arolwg yr ardd  mewn blwch cyflwyno ac yn siŵr o blesio eich hoff wyliwr adar yr ardd.

Am gyfnod bur, mae anrheg aelodaeth BTO yn rhoi par o ysbienddrych Opticron Vega am ddim, a fydd yn cefnogi ein gwaith tan Ionawr 2013. Os ydach wedi mwynhau dilyn ein Cogau, gallwch gefnogi'r prosiect yma wrth roi pecyn anrheg y Gog, sydd yn cynnwys nawdd i un o’n Cogau ac anrheg. 

Diolch am eich cefnogaeth

This Christmas there are several ways in which you can make present-finding easier and help support our work too. A Garden BirdWatch gift pack comes in a lovely presentation box and is bound to please your favourite garden bird enthusiast. For a limited time only, BTO gift membership comes with a free pair of Opticron Vega Binoculars and will help support our work right through until January 2013. If you've enjoyed following our Cuckoos you can support this project by giving a Cuckoo gift pack which includes sponsorship of one of our Cuckoos and a gift. 

Thank you for your support

John Lloyd Honorary Wales Officer

It was a great pleasure to hear that John Lloyd our Honorary Wales Officer was recognised for his sterling voluntary work on Tuesday 9^th November. Below is John receiving his award from Graham Benfield OBE, the Chief Executive of the Welsh Council for Voluntary Action. I am aware that the BTO is only a small part of John’s volunteering, so on behalf of us all well done.

Mi oedd yn bleser clywed for John Lloyd ein swyddog anrhydeddus dros Gymru, wedi cael ei gydnabod am ei holl waith gwirfoddol. Uwch ben mae llun o John yn derbyn ei wobr gan Graham Benfied, prif weithredwr y WCVA, ar  nos Fawrth 9fed o Dachwedd . Rwyf yn wybodus fod John yn gwneud llawer o waith gwirfoddol  nid i BTO yn unig. Mae rhaid llongyfarchiadau John ar ein rhan i gyd.

Llangors Ringing Group

The Llangorse Ringing Group organised a successful winter bird fair/ringing demo on Sunday 20^th November, with a grant provided by the Powys Environmental Partnership.  Promotion was very local to the “Llangorse catchment” only.  There were displays about Garden Birdwatch, foods and feeding, bird & moth identification, ringing and the proposed new bird hide for the Lake.  Organisations attending included the BTO, RSPB, Brecknock Wildlife Trust, the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority and PC Thomas (Wildlife Liaison Officer). 

Present and former Group members gathered for a 30^th Anniversary bbq” by Jeremy Richards

The Ringing Group was formed in 1978 and have, to date, ringed some 58,000 birds of 102 species - all but a few hundred at the Lake itself.  Our rarest bird was Wales’ first Paddyfield Warbler, caught on 11 Sept 2004, whilst tape luring Blackcap.

As well as the usual ringing activities of Constant Effortringing (one of the longest running sites in the UK), nest box monitoring and training, the group have run many specific projects.  A concerted effort to catch migrant Aquatic Warblers using the area in August, has resulted in just 6 birds, but these represent about one third of all Welsh ringed Aquatic Warblers in the past decade.  The Lake is the most important inland site in Wales for this increasingly rare migrant, on its passage from Polish breeding grounds to West Africa.

The reed beds at Llangors support one of Wales’ largest populations of Reed Warblers, which have been subject to several research projects: migration fuelling, impact of capture and handling, and Cuckoo brood parasitism.  Cuckoos at Llangors (and across the rest of Wales) do not parasite Reed Warblers as they do elsewhere in Britain, making the population an ideal candidate for studying host/cuckoo interactions.

For Further details about the group and their activities, contact group secretary Jerry Lewis at

Jerrylewis@momouthshire.gov.uk

Cynnig Aelodaeth Iolo membership Offer

Mae Iolo Williams wedi cynnig diwrnod o wylio adar yn ei gwmni fel gwobr mewn raffl i pob aelod newydd sydd yn ymuno o Gymru. Ymunwch rhwng nawr a diwedd Medi 2012 a chewch gyfle i ennill diwrnod hefo’r dyn i hyn. Ymunwch heddiw  i gael eich gwobr aelodaeth ac i gael eich cofrestru yn y raffl.

Iolo Williams has offered a day of birdwatching with him as a raffle prize for new members joining from Wales. Join between now and the end of September 2012 and have the opportunity to have a days birdwatching with the man himself. Join today to get your membership offer and to be entered in the raffle.

http://www.bto.org/support-us/join

Cynhadledd Gwylio Adar yr Ardd Garden Birdwatch Conference

Mi roedd cynhadledd  Gwylio Adar yr Ardd a chynnal ym mhrifysgol Caerdydd dros y penwythnos yn llwyddiant mawr. Mi ddoth dros 100 o bobol i wrando ar raglen ddiddorol iawn yn ganol bwyntio ar fywyd gwyllt ein gerddi.

The Garden Birdwatch conference held at Cardiff University over the weekend was a great success. Over 100 people attended and enjoyed a very interesting programme about our garden wildlife. 

Mi gath pawb gyfle i gyfarfod a Mick Bailey a Amanda Skull ein llysgenhadon Adar yr Ardd.

Everybody had an opportunity to meet Mick Bailey and Amanda Skull our Garden Birdwatch Ambassadors

Am fwy o wybodaeth am Wylio Adar yr Ardd, neu i gysylltu hefo Amanda a Mick cliciwch yma

For more information about garden Birdwatch, or to contact Amanda or Mick click here.

Cynhadledd 2011 WOS/BTO/RSPB 2011 Conference

Mwy o fanylion              Further details

Rhaglen a ffurflen cofrestri           Programme and booking form

Ynys Mon Tony and Karin White Anglesey

Mae Tony a Karin White wedi bod yn gynyrchiolwyr rhanbarthol dros Ynys Môn ers 2002, pan gymerwyd y swydd drosodd oddi wrth Jim Clark oedd wedi rhoi ymdrech gadarn i’r swydd ers rhai blynyddoedd. Maer ddau yn adnabyddus yn gylchoedd adarydda Gogledd Cymru.

Mae Karin yn gweithio yn orsaf bŵer Wylfa, mae hi a Tony wedi bod yn gweithio ardal Cemlyn gerllaw fel “patch” lleol ers blynyddoedd. Mae gan yr orsaf bŵer wobr flynyddol lle mae'r gweithwyr yn enwebu cyfaill am ei ymdrech i'r gymuned leol. Heblaw adnabod yr unigolyn mae Wylfa hefyd yn rhoi cyfraniad i’r corf mae’r sawl yn rhoi ei amser i, yn yr achos yma apêl BTO Cymru. Mae'r cyfraniad yma wedi helpu sefydlu swyddfa i BTO Cymru yn y Brif Ysgol Bangor. Rydym yn diolch I Magnox Cyf ac i Karin a Tony.

Yn gynharach eleni darganfwyd fod y Bran Coesgoch yn nythu ar y safle a trefnwyd i brosiect Cross a Stratford ar y Fran Coesgoch cael mynediad er mwyn modrwyo’r cywion. I rai sydd wedi ceisio cael mynediad i mewn i safle fel Wylfa, roedd hyn ddim yn hawdd. Ond dyma’r nyth mwyaf diogel yng Nghymru.

Mae Tony a Karin fel bob cynyrchiolwr rhanbarthol yn prysur ddarfod gwaith enfawr yr Atlas, ac yn gobeithio bydd rhai o’r gwirfoddolwyr yr Atlas, rŵan maent wedi cael blas, yn mynd yn ei blaenau i wneud sgwâr arolwg o adar bridio (BBS) y flwyddyn nesaf

                        Karin White, Tony White, Nick Gore Magnox north, Geoff Gibbs, assistant Honorary Wales Officer

Tony and Karin White have been regional reps for Anglesey since 2002, when they took over the role from Jim Clark who had done such sterling work in the role for many years. Both are well known in North Wales Birding circles.

Karin works at the Wylfa power station, and she and Tony work the area around nearby Cemlyn as their local patch. The power stations have annual awards where co-workers are nominated for work in the local community. As well recognising the individual, Wylfa also give a donation to the organisation that person gives their time to, in this case the BTO Cymru appeal. This contribution has helped with the establishment of the BTO Cymru office at Bangor University. We would like to thank both Magnox and Tony and Karin.

Earlier this year a pair of Choughs were found breeding on the Wylfa site, and arrangements were made for the Cross and Stratford Chough project to have access to ring the birds. For those of you who have ever tried to gain access into a nuclear facility, so small feat, so possibly the most secure nest in Wales

Tony and Karin like all RR’s are busy finishing off the huge task that is the Atlas, and are hoping that some of the new Atlas volunteers have now developed a taste for fieldwork and will be moving on to BBS next year

Cynhadledd Gwylio Adar yr Add Garden Birdwatch Conference

Rhaglen a ffurflen bwcio 

Programme and booking form

WeBS

Cwrs adnabod adar yr hydref. Autumn migrant identification course

Fydd Dave Anning rheolwr rhanbarthol Meirionydd yn rhedeg cwrs adnabod adar ymfudol yr hydref, gyda phrifysgol Aberystwyth dros benwythnos 30ain Medi I 2il Hydref.  Yn cael i gynnal yn y “Centre for Alternative Technology” Machynlleth.

Am fwy o fanylion cysylltwch hefo Prifysgol Aberystwyth ar 01970 621580, neu pah15@aber.ac.uk  neu ymwelwch a www.aber.ac.uk/sell

                                                                                             llun Kelvin Jones

Dave Anning the regional rep for Meirionydd will be running a course on identifying migrating birds during the Autumn. It will be held at the Centre for Alternative Technology, Machynlleth during the weekend of 20^th September to 2^nd October.

For further details contact Abertystwyth University on 01978 621580 or pah15@aber.ac.uk, or visit www.aber.ac.uk/sell

7268858

Ar 3ydd Fawrth darganfuwyd gan ffotograffydd Cwtiad y Traeth yn gwisgo modrwy ger Trwyn Horton, Rhyl. Er sawl cais mi oedd yn amhosib cael llun da o’r fodrwy, ond mi welwyd fod wedi dod o Norwy. 

Ar fore Sadwrn 20fed Fawrth aeth grŵp modrwyo SCAN yno a dalwyd yr aderyn, a darllen y fodrwy. Mae manylion y cofnod newydd gyrraedd yn ôl. Cafwyd yr aderyn i fodrwyo fel aderyn wedi geni'r flwyddyn yna yn Naerland, Rogland, Norwy ar y 7fed Medi 2002. Yr amser ers iddo gael i fodrwyo yn 3117 o ddiwrnodau, a phellter o 819 km, ond y gwir dros y blynyddoedd mae wedi teithio llawer mwy na hyn.

                                                                                                                                            Llun Pete Wood



View Untitled in a larger map

On the 3^rd March a keen bird photographer in North Wales spotted a Norweigian Ringed Turnstone at Hortons Nose, near Rhyl. Despite his best efforts it proved impossible to obtain the full number off the ring to verify it’s origin.

 On the morning of Saturday 20^th March the SCAN wader ringing group arrived early and subsequently caught the bird. They have just had the original ringing details back from Norway. It was ringed as a current year hatched bird on the 7^th September 2002, at Naerland, Rogland, Norway. A grand total of 3117 days since it was ringed and a distance of 819 km as the Turnstone flies, of course the reality could be it has done an awful lot more mileage in the intervening years. 

Longevity Record

Wythnos yma cyhuddo'r Uned Modrwyo cofnodion  modrwyo 2010 ar y we.

Data diddorol iawn, ond braf gweld fod Telor Helyg o Gymru wedi torri'r cofnod  hirhoedledd i'r rhywogaeth yma. Cafwyd 1Z5079 i ddal a modrwyo yng Nghlocaenog gan Ian Spence 25ain o Orffennaf 1999, fel ceiliog y flwyddyn, a chafwyd i ail ddal yn Hilton of Fern, Tayside, yr Alban, ar 13eg Gorffennaf 2010.

Mae hyn yn gwneud yr aderyn yma yn 10 mlwydd, 11 mis a 18 diwrnod oed y hynaf erioed i’r rhywogaeth yma. Lle mae wedi bod am y holl flynyddoedd , a faint o filltiroedd mae wedi teithio yn ôl ac ymlaen i’r Africa.

 http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/ringing/publications/online-ringing-reports

This week the ringing unit published the online Ringing Reports for 2010.

All fascinating data, and a Welsh Willow Warbler has broken the previous longevity record for the species. 1Z5079 was caught and ringed in the Clocaenog forest by Ian Spence on the 25th July 1999. It was aged and sexed as a Juvenile male. Surprise surprise on the 13th July 2010 it was re caught at Hilton of Fern, in Tayside.

This makes the bird at least 10 years, 11 months and 18 days old, setting a new longevity record for the species. I wonder where it has been in the intervening years, and the mileage it has clocked up with it’s annual migration to and from Africa.

John Lloyd,

John Lloyd, Swyddog Anrhydeddus Cymru

Mae John Lloyd wedi bod yn aelod a gwirfoddolwr i’r BTO ers dros ddeugain mlynedd. Mae wedi bod yn swyddog rhanbarthol i ddyw sir, Caerfyrddin am gyfnod bur, a Brycheiniog. Mi oedd yn aelod o’r pwyllgor rhanbarthol ac ar gyngor y BTO o 2005-09. Er creu swyddfa BTO Cymru mae John dal i fod yn Swyddog Anrhydeddus Cymru. Ffarmwr cig o ogledd ddwyrain sir Gaerfyrddin yw John, ac felly mae yn gweld y ddwy ochr ir ddadl rhwng cadwraeth a ffermio. Mae ei farm ar hyn yn mynd i gynhyrfu pobol ar y ddwy ochor o’r ddadl, ac felly fyddwn ddim yn ail dechrau'r sgwrs.

Ei hof arolwg BTO yn y cynllun Cofnodi Nythod, ac mae wedi cyflwyno dros 6000 o gardiau, ac mae ganddo uchelgais i fynd yn ôl i’r cynllun, a bosib i wylio adar mond er mwyn mwynhad.

John Lloyd, Honorary Wales Officer

John Lloyd has been a BTO member and surveyor for forty years. He has been RR for two Welsh counties- Carmarthenshire (briefly) and Brecknock and was chairman of the Regional Network Committee and on the BTO’s council from 2005-9. He remains the Honorary Wales Officer with the formation of the BTO Cymru Office. He is a livestock farmer in North East Carmarthenshire and thus can see both sides of the conservation versus farming debate. His views on this are liable to upset others on both sides of the debate so are best not repeated!

His favourite BTO survey is the Nest Record Scheme, to which he has submitted over 6000 cards and he has an unfulfilled ambition to return to just this scheme! And perhaps to return to casual birding for enjoyment! 

Norweigian Hawfinch

A startling fact alluded to by Jerry Lewis during his talk at the WOS/BTO conference on woodland birds, was that there were more records for Barred Warblers ringed in the UK than Hawfinches. Jerry perfected a technique for catching Hawfinches in the Forest of Dean and challenged more ringers to study this difficult woodland species. David Smith has been studying Hawfinch in the Dolgellau area for a number of years, and this spring he and Tony Cross teamed up to try and further their knowledge of the birds locally. Incredibly a total of 128 birds were caught and ringed between March and May 2011, far more than the local population was expected to be. On 6th April an adult male was caught bearing a Norwegian ring!!.

photo Tony Cross

It had originally been ringed as an adult male at Mandal, Norway on the 15th April 2010, so had travelled a distance of 925 km in a time span of 356 days. Amazingly this is not the first Norwegian-ringed bird caught in Wales, Jerry Lewis also controlled a bird from Norway in 2010,which might suggest that Scandinavian birds are regular winter visitors.

Tony has been individually colour-ringing the birds and already reports are being received of ringed birds with chicks in gardens. There would appear to be a lot more to be learnt about the elusive Hawfinch in Wales.

View hawfinches in a larger map

Lansio BTO Cymru

Diwrnod cyffrous i adar Cymru yn sioe Frenhinol Cymru, pan lansiwyd swyddfa BTO Cymru.

Dywedodd Dr Andy Clements, Prif Weithredwr y BTO, yn y lansiad “ Mae cael y BTO yng Nghymru yn gyfle bendigedig I Gymru ai adar a bywyd gwyllt, a hefyd i bobol Cymru sydd yn gwerthfawrogi ein hetifeddiaeth naturiol. Rydyn yn bwriadu adeiladu ar waith ein gwirfoddolwyr sydd wedi bod yn gweithio mor galed ar Atlas y BTO, a rhoi cyfeiriad i adarydda ein gwirfoddolwyr yng Nghymru, I gael ateb , pam mae rhywogaethau fel y Gnocell werdd ar Tinwen yn dinistrio, pan mae Adar y to yn cynyddu yng Nghymru ond yn dinistrio ym mhob nam arall. Rydyn eisiau ein gwyddoniaeth annibynnol fod yn rhan o benderfyniadau ac i fod yn fynnon o wybodaeth i bawb yng Nghymru.”

llun gan Ellen Walford

John Lloyd Honorary Wales Officer, Dr. Rachel Taylor, Ieuan Evans Membership and Volunteering,

Dr Andy Clements CEO BTO, Morgan Parry Chair CCW, Kelvin Jones Development Officer Wales,

Alison Colebrook Enviroment Wales, Dr Geoff Gibbs Ass. Wales Officer

BTO Cymru launched

An exciting day for Welsh birds at the Royal Welsh show, when the BTO’s welsh office was launched.

Speaking at the launch of BTO Cymru, Dr Andy Clements, BTO Director, said, "BTO in Wales is a real opportunity for Wales' birds and wildlife, and for the people of Wales who appreciate such a great wildlife heritage. We aim to build on recent volunteer effort from the BTO Atlas, and to channel energies of growing volunteer numbers in Wales to answer questions about declines in birds such as Green Woodpecker and Wheatear, while understanding why House Sparrow in Wales bucks the trend of decline elsewhere in the UK. We want our impartial science to count in decisions and to be a source of knowledge for everyone in Wales"