The BDI is holding an Open Day for bird ringing on Saturday, 31 August 2024. We are hosted by the Grotto Bay Private Nature Reserve. The reserve has an area of 385 ha, and the vegetation consists of Strandveld and Sandveld. It is about 60 km north of Cape Town, turning off the R27. We meet at the Conservation Centre within the reserve.
One of our previous bird ringing visits to Grotto Bay has a blog describing the event. This Cape White-eye was ringed then. The privilege of being a ringer is the opportunity to see birds up close, and to see the detailed structure of the white feathers around the eye that give this species its name. There is a description of the value of bird ringing here.
There is lots of space, so ringers are welcome to bring their own nets and ringing equipment. Afterwards we will make a total list of all birds ringed, and produce a blog for the event, as for the earlier one. If you have ideas for topics talks or other demonstrations, please send an email to les@thebdi.org.
The reserve is not open to the public, so you will not just be able to arrive on the morning of the event! You will gently be turned away with 100% certainty! If you plan to attend, please send an email to les@thebdi.org before Tuesday 27 August.
Please include in the email, the registration of the vehicle you will travel in, plus ID number and cell phone number. Total numbers are limited. We will soon put details here of of the earliest time to arrive if you are planning to put up mistnets.
We originally planned this for Saturday, 24 August. Now (21 August) the weather for this coming Saturday looks unsuitable for bird ringing. But the long term forecast for 31 August is looking far better, not only for that day, but also for the days before and after.
There is a list of all the upcoming BDI events here.
