Bird ringing or bird banding is a technique used in the study of wild birds, by attaching a small, individually numbered, metal or plastic tag to their legs or wings, so that various aspects of the bird's life can be studied by the measurements taken during the capture, such as molt, fat content, age, sex, wing and tail. An added bonus is the occasional ability to re-find a the same individual later. This recapture or recovery of the bird can provide information that includes migration, longevity, mortality, population studies, territoriality, feeding behaviour, and other aspects that are studied by ornithologists.
Read more about Bird Ringing: Terminology and Techniques, History, Some Results
Famous quotes containing the words bird and/or ringing:
“Some say that ever ‘gainst that season comes
Wherein our Saviour’s birth is celebrated,
The bird of dawning singeth all night long:
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad,
The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike,
No fairy tale nor witch hath power to charm,
So hallow’d and so gracious is the time.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Much have I seen and known—cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, governments,
Myself not least, but honored of them all—
And drunk delight of battle with my peers,
Far on the ringing plains of windy Troy.
I am a part of all that I have met;”
—Alfred Tennyson (1809–1892)