BTO - Ojectives of the BTO Ringing Scheme

The function of the BTO Ringing Scheme is to undertake research which contributes to conservation and to advancing scientific knowledge of birds. This work is based on data gathering through a network of mainly volunteer ringers. They undertake both specific projects and less specifically targeted work which contributes to BTO data-bases of ringings, recoveries, recaptures and measurements. The primary outputs of the scheme are scientific publications reporting the results of this work. A wide range of secondary publications ensures that volunteer ringers are informed of the results and makes the Scheme's findings widely available to conservation practitioners, policy makers and birdwatchers. The Ringing Scheme forms an integral part of the BTO's overall research programme and is an essential component of its Integrated Population Monitoring Programme.

The primary aim of the Ringing Scheme is to contribute to our understanding of population changes by monitoring the survival rates, productivity and dispersal of a wide range of species. Where appropriate bird numbers are monitored by standardised catching. Routine computerisation of incoming ringing, recapture and recovery data is essential for this work and the submission of data on disk is strongly encouraged. We aim to enhance the highly successful Constant Effort Sites Scheme and to develop further demographic monitoring projects. The Scheme will place increasing emphasis on the development of planned projects following specific study designs. Sample size requirements, and priorities for the gathering of the general ringing data that are required for demographic monitoring, will be developed. A programme of analytical work will be undertaken, focusing on work that is of high conservation priority. The in-house analytical expertise that is necessary to undertake such analyses will be maintained and enhanced.

The Ringing Scheme also makes an important contribution to knowledge of bird movements, particularly through analyses of ring recoveries, as can be seen in Atlas of Bird Migration for Birds of Britain and Ireland based on maps of ring recoveries. More detailed analyses of bird movements will be undertaken, particularly in relation to specific applied problems. Opportunities to develop planned studies of movements and migration will be sought but will have lower priority than demographic monitoring projects.

Most work on demography and movements will be undertaken in relation to applied issues although research concerned with basic science in these areas will also be undertaken where possible. The Ringing Scheme will also contribute to other aspects of basic science, particularly studies of life-history strategies, moult, condition and taxonomy. Volunteer ringers may be able to assist professional researchers undertaking work on behaviour, diet, parasitology, pollutants, population genetics, the physiology and behaviour of migration and radio/satellite tracking.

Ringing studies at specific sites that are likely to provide information that is of value to conservation bodies will be encouraged. Standardised long-term projects are likely to be most useful in this context. Ringers and groups are encouraged strongly to undertake their own studies and to publish their results in the journal of the Ringing Scheme, Ringing & Migration, or elsewhere. Professional researchers and volunteers are encouraged to undertake analyses of data from the BTO Ringing Scheme that complement the Trust's in-house research programme.

This strategy aims to increase the contribution which ringing makes to conservation science and ornithological research, recognising that the primary outputs of the scheme are scientific publications based on data gathered by volunteer ringers. The strategy envisages a greater involvement of ringers in planned projects that are designed to provide specific types of information. Clear advice on priority species and categories of birds (e.g. age-classes, seasons of ringing, breeding vs roosting) to be ringed and recaptured will be given to those ringing outside centrally organised projects.
The research programme will focus on two main topics, population dynamics and migration and movements. In addition research on life-histories, moult and condition should be conducted when opportunities allow.
The Ringing Scheme makes a vital contribution to studies of population dynamics by providing data on survival rates and productivity, and sometimes also on numbers. Population dynamics models based on such data can make an important contribution to understanding the causes of population declines. Thus ringing provides a key component of the BTO's Integrated Population Monitoring Programme.
Better demographic data can be collected through planned projects which have a specified study design and which concentrate on gathering mark-recapture data for survival estimation. The highly successful Constant Effort Sites (CES) Scheme will be maintained and enhanced. High priority projects for further development are demographic monitoring of farmland birds, ringing and retrapping adults for survival rate estimation (using species-specific techniques for a range of species and habitats), standardised wader ringing on estuaries and a seabird ringing programme (including both mass ringing for recoveries and the collection of mark-recapture data). Five other monitoring projects are also proposed.
Analyses of ringing and recovery data will continue to have an important role because they allow pre-breeding (e.g. first-year) survival to be estimated. It is essential that adequate samples of pulli, juveniles and adults attributable to known breeding populations are ringed.
Priorities for in-house analytical work should be given to work that is of high priority within the Trust's overall strategy, particularly studies of rapidly declining species of conservation interest (BOCC list/Biodiversity Action Plan). Emphasis will often fall on species and issues for which data can be integrated across schemes or across species. High priority projects are analyses of demographic data for declining species on the BOCC/Biodiversity Action Plan list, demographic analyses of estuarine wader populations and analyses of seabird demography.
The production of an Atlas of Bird Migration based on ring recoveries was a high priority up until its publication. This is a flagship publication for the Ringing Scheme and should rapidly become a key reference for conservationists, policy-makers, bird-watchers and ecologists.
More detailed analyses of existing ring recovery data should be undertaken, particularly in relation to specific applied questions. Studies of long-term changes in seabird movements and of partial migration are proposed.
Planned projects to investigate specific questions concerned with movements and migration should be developed. Standardised catching at migration sites, using methods similar to those of the recent ESF project, could be used to investigate habitat use, turnover rates and weight gain. The movement patterns of wintering thrushes could be investigated through a project involving both ringing and field observations. Further work on the ecology of Palaearctic-African migrants in Africa should be encouraged.
Detailed recording of data on condition and moult should focus on areas where standardised trapping is undertaken, providing information on the biological context at the time of capture. Analytical studies of the relationship between condition and survival should be undertaken, using recently developed mark-recapture techniques.
Computerisation of ringings, recaptures, measurements and recoveries is essential for most of the research which the Ringing Scheme plans to undertake. Ringers should therefore be strongly encouraged to submit data on disk.
The workforce of volunteer ringers is the scheme's key resource and should be valued, encouraged and inspired. Plenty of feedback needs to be provided, both of a general nature and to those participating in specific projects. Projects must be well organised and adequately resourced, including the necessary staffing for analysis and publication. Staff expertise in the statistical analysis of ringing data should be maintained and enhanced.
There are a number of research topics where individual ringers or groups could provide valuable assistance to professional researchers. These include work on taxonomy, diet, parasitology, pollutants, population genetics, satellite tracking and radio tracking.
Ring subsidies should be used to encourage participation in national ringing projects run by the BTO and to encourage computerisation. They should also be used to encourage the ringing of particular species or categories of birds, based on a list that is subject to periodic review. At the time of writing this strategy the following groups should be considered for subsidy: coastal waders, seabirds (except gulls), raptors and other top predators, declining species on the BOCC/Biodiversity Action Plan lists, adequate general ringing during the breeding season.
The report includes proposals for 15 projects involving new data gathering and 11 analytical projects . All these studies would be extremely worthwhile if resources became available. High priority is assigned to the CES and four new projects on standardised monitoring, and to analyses of the demography of declining species (BOCC/Biodiversity Action Plan lists), estuarine waders and seabirds.