Wash Wader Ringing Group

Friday 14th November

SD did recce on morning tide.
Snettisham North (06:30 – 07:30): 750–1000 Oystercatchers, 5000+ Knot and other grey waders.
Heacham Dam: Minimum 300 Oystercatchers and 1000 Knot which later joined Snettisham beach flock.
Heacham South (07:10): 50–75 Oystercatchers and ca. 50 Bar-tailed Godwit.

Team assembled from mid-afternoon onwards, most arriving in time for a meal prepared by M & DW. After a briefing session all those present by 20:30 went off to set nets on Snettisham ready for a dawn catch. A ridge on the beach at about the expected tide height caused some deliberation before net setting could commence. The decision was to set three small mesh nets on top of the ridge and two further small mesh nets plus the newly acquired long – 4 cannon – small mesh net further back on the beach.

All set and back at base for bed before midnight.

Saturday 15th November

Up 04:45 and in position well before light enough to see. As it became lighter realised something in the order of 750-1000 Oytercatchers and 10,000 Knot were on the beach but their position relative to the nets could not be seen. However, the flocks spread up on to and indeed behind the ridge meaning that the nets set there would not be useable. As the tide rose the birds were spooked by various things and gradually the number present, particularly of oystercatchers initially, diminished. The tide never reached the top of the ridge and hence did not push the flocks close enough to the nets set further back for them to be in range for catching. Near high tide a Peregrine pushed off virtually all remaining birds. A half-hearted attempt was made to twinkle 17 Oystercatchers before giving up. As well as the Oystercatchers and Knot seen in the initial gloom, 1500 Dunlin, 400 Sanderling and 150 Grey Plover were also present.

Recce information was:-
Heacham Dam (DW); Lots of dropping indicating frequent use but no birds seen to stay there on this tide.
Heacham South (DW); No birds.
Heacham far North (GA); 300 Sanderling present at first light stayed and were joined by 40 Turnstone and single figure numbers of a number of other species.

Having not disturbed the Snettisham beach much during the morning catching attempt decided it was worth going back but to also have equipment ready to go off to set at Heacham far North if a catch on Snettisham looked unlikely. This decision created a logistics problem as to when to set the nets if the team were also going to get some sleep after mist netting. Resolved this by splitting the team into three, one group setting mist nets, a larger group setting cannon nets and a third group cooking the afternoon meal.

Most people got some rest before the setting teams left at 14:00. Food was eaten as the teams returned from setting and tape lures set from 17:30. Rain which had made setting unpleasant during the afternoon stopped in good time and cloud prevented the full moon from having too much effect.

Finished and back at Base by 23:00.

Sunday 16th November

Up 05:00. Again, in position well before light enough to see. Worries that an early morning dog walker, present when the team arrived, might have removed the birds from the beach were dispelled when SD and RdF reported a large flock of Oystercatchers. Also as it became lighter they found a Knot flock also present. The nets had been set similarly to the previous day’s catching attempt with three small mesh nets in exactly the same place on the ridge and also nets a few yards further back behind the ridge in the shallow channel. This time these were two 4 cannon nets and set so they would catch birds actually on the ridge, rather than having to wait until the ridge was covered by the tide. Many of the Oystercatchers chose to leave fairly early in the proceedings and headed south. Birds were present in front of both sets of nets. The flock in front of the nets on the ridge was mostly dunlin (c1500) with approximately 50 oystercatchers and some grey plover but the hide party were having difficulties in determining exactly where these birds were in relation to the catching areas of these three nets as there was only one eight yard marker which had survived the previous night’s tide. The two nets further back behind the ridge appeared to have the bulk of the oystercatchers (now down to only perhaps 150) and all the knot (estimated as a minimum of 2000) directly in front of net but well down the beach. With grey waders a priority over Oystercatchers the further back nets looked the best option. This did give the dilemma as to whether to risk waiting for the tide to push the birds into the higher nets, tide was at this point lapping around the maximum extent markers and the majority of the grey waders were hugging the tide edge. Patience in the hide was not necessarily matched by basecamp (!) and in the end the suggestion came from basecamp that we should fire when a good number of knot were within 10 yards. In the event this was solved by a huge flock of Knot passing from south to north and, whilst it gave a few anxious moments wondering if it would pull our birds from the beach, more birds landed on the beach within range of the higher nets. The flock now extended from approximately 8 yards (the top of the oystercatcher flock) through to the maximum extent markers with the bulk of the knot from about 10 yards but still clearly a “satisfactory” catch within 10 yards of either net. The hide party felt that the net nearest the hide gave the better proportion of knot to oystercatchers so as soon as the situation settled the order was given to fire that net, resulting in a completely dry catch.

The net fired was the new long, four cannon small mesh net (which went out very well although the middle projectiles didn’t extend as far as the corner ones suggesting that more powder could be merited here), making extraction of the catch very easy. The other nets were then picked up and it was only then that it was realised that the previous evening’s tide had been high enough to wash over the nets on the ridge and had also affected one cannon on the unfired higher net, a consequence of setting before high tide the previous evening but resulting in a slightly smug feeling that this time fate worked in our favour.

Soon after ringing and processing started it started raining so improvised shelter was arranged, suspended from two cars. All birds processed and with a large team it was also possible set up another processing team to train some of the less experienced team members. One of the Knot had a Stavanger ring and all the other five with rings appear not to have been originally ringed at the Wash.

Back at base for porridge and bacon butties. As the rain had now stopped some equipment dried whilst the food was eaten but it was still necessary to festoon the storage shed with nets and hessian before leaving late afternoon.