Saturday 2 July 2022

Another night was spent ringing Manx Shearwaters, this time in Nant Valley, where we ringed 76 new birds and processed 65 retraps. We came across a few fairly old individuals with 'FC' rings on them, meaning they were ringed before the turn of the century. One bird we found was ringed as an adult in 1991, making it at least 31 years old!

An old manxie! © Ollie King

Back at the Obs during the day, the invertebrate highlight was seeing some Black Ants guarding aphids that were feeding on brambles. Ants and aphids have a mutualistic relationship, where the ants 'farm' the aphids by providing them with protection from predators, allowing the aphids to feed freely on plants. The aphids then secrete honeydew, which the ants feed on! 

Ants tending their aphids © Ollie King

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