Bird Ringing

Bird ringing is the most time consuming activity at the bird observatory, starting after midsummer and continuing for the remainder of the season until the end of September. When the weather is favourable, ringing takes place every morning from sunrise to noon.

The ringing is standardised which means that the same number of mist nets are used at the same sites year after year. Through this standardisation it is possible to compare different years and analyse changes in the bird populations.

Moult in adult birds

Started in 1968 rather tentatively, a study of the moulting adult birds caught in Kvismaren began; this is when birds are replacing feathers completely after nesting. As of 1973, almost all the specimens caught in this category are investigated according to their moult. This take place on a special form; a schematic diagram of the wing and tail.
To date, over 10 000 moult cards have been completed.

Ortolan bunting

This species have been surveyed at irregular intervals since 1968. Nowadays, they’re almost extinct in southern Sweden as a breeder and there are only 10 or so singing males in Kvismaren. In the beginning of 2010 we started a project to determine how they are to be preserved as a breeding species. In Kvismaren work is ongoing to verifying the nesting outcome when active measures are taken by land owners and land left fallow by the edges of fields. In the spring these areas are not planted and therefore presumably protecting the breeding habitat of the Ortolan’s.