Colour-ringed Sanderling

Lade - 1100hrs - cold, grey, drizzle, n 4 - Another shocking day with a bitter wind out of the north in half light. We struggled around the local patch in a fine drizzle, where predictably there were no signs of spring. On the beach I spent some time trying to determine the exact combination of colour rings and flags on the legs of a Sanderling, not an easy task on a bird that is always on the go. Eventually, I think I nailed it and sent the results off to the BTO. Formerly colour ringed Sanderlings on the bay have originated from a Dutch team, and one bird I reported a few years ago in the spring had
wintered in Mauritania, on the north-west coast of Africa, and summered in the Siberian Arctic.
The weather was so grim this afternoon that I stayed in and baked some cakes for forthcoming bird tours.