Bird ringing course, Cousin Island, Seychelles, 18-23 September 2011
Riaz Aumeeruddy of Nature Seychelles invited me to provide a bird ringing training course on Cousin Island, Seychelles, from 18-23 September 2011. The training involved mist-netting of seabirds and land birds. A total of 478 birds was caught (including recaptures).
The participants were Annesa Rath, Dorothy Jeannie, Jessica Moumou, Jakawan Hoareau, Mary Ledlie, and Riaz Aumeeruddy. They were all awarded certificates at the end of the course. Birds caught are listed in a table below, after some photos of birds caught.
Extracting birds |
Ringing |
Ringing |
Ringing in the field |
The Seychelles Magpie Robin: special project of Nature Seychelles
Jessica retrieving a chick from a nest box |
Ringing the single chick |
Several adults were recaptured in mist-nets |
All adults are colour ringed |
Lesser Noddy – most ringed species on the course
This species is easy to catch! A mistnet, even in the open, will catch this species. They are also easy to extract from the nest and easy to handle – the bill is not too powerful as they catch small fish.
Lesser Noddies nest in trees all over the island |
Easy to catch |
Lesser Noddy in the hand |
Lesser Noddy in the hand |
Seychelles Fody – second most ringed species
This species is the sparrow of the Seychelles, and is endemic to several small islands in the Seychelles. The species occurs throughout the island, and is very tame around the staff houses.
Several recaptures were made of birds ringed by PhD student L Vega in 2002, making these birds at least 9 years old – see here.
One nest of the Seychelles Fody was found – see the PHOWN record here. See a video clip of the antics of a pair collecting nest material – here
In the past two fodies occurred on the island: the Seychelles Fody, and the introduced Red Fody – the latter now only occasionally visits Cousin Island.
Many males, and some females, have some white primary coverts.
Adult male, full breeding plumage |
Male with some white primary coverts |
Adult female |
Some females have white primary coverts |
Juvenile – does not have white primary coverts |
Juvenile |
Seychelles Warbler , Seychelles Warbler Research Group
This species is easy to identify – any brown bird on Cousin with 3 colour rings is a warbler!
Martijn Hammers and Sjouke Anne Kingma from the Netherlands, and Dave Wright from the UK
Seychelles Warbler recapture |
Seychelles Warbler, unringed |
Martijn, Sjouke, Dave |
Sjouke with the nets and poles of the warbler team |
Some other birds that were caught:
Common Noddy, larger than Lesser Noddy, two with French rings recaptured (one from 2005) |
Bridled Tern |
White-tailed Tropicbird |
Fairy Tern |
Wedge-tailed Shearwater, one trapped itself in tree, ringed and released |
Tropical Shearwater – flew onto our veranda at night where we could pick it up and ring it |
Barred Dove – introduced species |
Madagascar/Seychelles Turtle Dove – hybrid of two subspecies |
Seychelles Sunbird male |
Seychelles Sunbird female |
Life on Cousin Island:
One of the staff houses |
Launching the boat |
Seychelles Skink eating Day Gecko |
View of Cousin Island from top of the hill – Praslin Island is in the background |
Species totals ringed on Cousin, 18-23 September 2011
English | Latin | SAFRING no. | Ringed | Retrapped |
Tropical (Audubon’s) Shearwater | Puffinus lherminieri bailloni | 28 | 1 | 0 |
Wedge-tailed Shearwater | Puffinus pacificus | 180 | 1 | 0 |
Lesser Noddy | Anous tenuirostris | 939 | 282 | 3 |
Common Noddy | Anous stolidus | 303 | 35 | 2 |
White-tailed Tropicbird | Phaethon lepturus | 40 | 12 | 1 |
Fairy Tern | Gygis alba | 302 | 18 | 1 |
Bridled Tern | Sterna anaethetus | 936 | 3 | 0 |
Seychelles Magpie Robin | Copsychus sechellarum | 1175 | 1 * | 2 |
Seychelles Warbler | Acrocephalus sechellensis | 1176 | 0 | 1 |
[Seychelles] Turtle Dove | Streptopelia picturata | 1074 | 9 | 2 |
Zebra (Barred ground) Dove | Geopelia striata | 1173 | 6 | 1 |
Seychelles Sunbird | Nectarinia [Cinnyris] dussumieri | 1177 | 7 | 0 |
Seychelles Fody | Foudia sechellarum | 1178 | 61 | 29 |
Totals | 436 | 42 |
* 1 Seychelles Magpie Robin chick was ringed
Acknowledgements
Nature Seychelles is thanked for funding my visit.
Riaz Aumeeruddy, Nature Seychelles, is thanked for organising all the logistics of my visit.
The warbler team (Martijn, Sjouke, Dave) is thanked for their help.