The Group's activities
The RMRG was established in 1961 to ring and study birds at Rye Meads. Some three to five thousand birds are ringed annually, including large numbers of warblers. Recoveries of birds ringed at Rye Meads have contributed significantly to our understanding of the migration of British birds, and several scientific papers on bird populations and morphology have been based on RMRG data, which now covers over 190,000 birds of 138 species.
The Group's general activities
The RMRG is run entirely by volunteers, and operates mainly at weekends. Although we are subject to the supervision of the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), we are entirely self-financing.
Our activities are various: besides ringing, and general observations and recording of the birds of the site, the Group manages the habitat to a formal long-term Management Plan, with regular cutting and clearing; maintains tern rafts on the lagoons, hous
Scientific activities
The Group's scientific activities include:
- The general ringing of full-grown birds trapped with "mist nets" and duck traps, and the ringing of pulli (nestlings). Each full-grown bird caught or retrapped is taken to a fully equipped ringing laboratory, where it is examined to identify its age and sex, where possible, and biometric measurements are taken. This data has been collected since the Group's formation in 1961, and is available for analysis. Not only Group members but also third parties have used this information to develop scientific papers on many aspects of bird migration and morphology.
- Every nest found is recorded in detail for the BTO's Nest Records Scheme - we have completed to date over 10,000 Nest Record Cards for 70 species.
- The Group has also contributed since 1993 to the BTO's Constant Effort Sites programme, whereby consistent and regular bird trapping over a number of years at sites like this all over the country can yield information on national population trends.
Training new ringers
One final, and important, activity which the Group undertakes is in the training of new bird ringers. All ringers are licensed by the Government under a scheme administered by the BTO, and to reach the necessary degree of competence to ring unsupervised takes a long and painstaking apprenticeship. The Group has several qualified Trainers and supports a number of trainee ringers at any one time. We also run an annual residential course of a week for trainee ringers from other areas looking to broaden their experience.
If you are interested in training to become a ringer, please see our Contacts page.
If you are already a trainee or a 'rusty' ringer, and you are interested in a place on our next training course, click here for details.