[va-bird] great story

From: Zelig88@xxxxxxx
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Date: Fri, 19 Apr 2002 08:14:42 EDT

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For those of you that haven't seen this - passed on to me by my
brother...Rich Rieger

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Oldest bird clocks 5 million miles

LONDON, England --One of the world's oldest living wild birds is marking its
golden jubilee by preparing to breed again.

The Manx shearwater -- a far-flying gull-like seabird -- was probably born
in 1952 and is thought to have clocked up about five million miles in the
air.

First ringed by ornithologists in 1957, the bird's journeys were made while
migrating between Britain and South America.

It was re-discovered on April 4 this year in a colony of several thousand
others on Bardsey, an island off the Lleyn peninsula in north Wales.

The shearwater had just returned from its South American wintering grounds
and was preparing to breed when it was netted, as part of the British Trust
for Ornithology (BTO) national bird-ringing scheme.

Graham Appleton, the BTO's fund-raising manager, told CNN it was the fourth
time the bird had been netted and released -- the other occasions being May
22, 1957, July 8, 1961 and April 16, 1977.

Appleton told CNN: "Not only is this bird considerably older than you would
expect, it is still breeding.

"As long as they are still going, they produce young. Birds don't really
have old age!"

He said the estimated huge mileage it has covered is down to it living much
of its life on the wing -- shearwaters are extremely economical fliers,
gliding on wind currents rather than flapping continuously.

"It comes to land only during the breeding season, when it seeks out an
island where it can dig a burrow," he said.

"It will stay at the colony until the end of the summer and will then head
out back to sea where it travels around southern Atlantic, until next
spring."

He said that given its known age and its winter migration cycle which takes
in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, it is estimated that the bird has
travelled 500,000 miles, or the equivalent of a return trip to the Moon.

Taking feeding flights into account, it has probably covered a total of five
million miles.

British bird expert Chris Mead told Reuters: "The only way you can tell a
bird's age is by ringing it, and we know about all the other birds, so we
can say it is the oldest.

"It would not be uncommon to find birds aged between 15 or 20 years in a
colony of shearwaters, but 50 years is absolutely remarkable," he said.

Manx shearwaters, whose scientific name is Puffinus puffinus, are shy of the
mainland where danger lurks in the form of predators like stoats, rats and
birds of prey, the RSPB said.

The Manx shearwater has a black back and wings with a white belly and at
about 14 inches long it is slightly larger than a pigeon.

The oldest wild bird ever found was a royal albatross that nested in New
Zealand and was named Grandma, the Times said. The bird was at least 53
years old when it went missing.

The previous oldest known wild bird in Britain was also a Manx shearwater,
recorded in 1996 in Northern Ireland aged 41.

According to the Guinness Book of Animal Records, the highest ever reported
age of a bird is an unconfirmed 82 years for a male Siberian white crane
called Wolf which died at the International Crane Centre in Wisconsin, U.S.,
in 1988.

Experts are convinced that there are more venerable individuals still to be
identified. Some, particularly in the parrot family, are thought to have
hatched at the end of the 19th century.






Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/04/18/britain.bird/index.html ;


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Oldest bird clocks 5 million miles
  
  
 LONDON, England --One of the world's oldest living wild b=
irds is marking its golden jubilee by preparing to breed again.

The Manx shearwater -- a far-flying gull-like seabird -- w=
as probably born in 1952 and is thought to have clocked up about five millio=
n miles in the air.

First ringed by ornithologists in 1957, the bird's journey=
s were made while migrating between Britain and South America.

It was re-discovered on April 4 this year in a colony of s=
everal thousand others on Bardsey, an island off the Lleyn peninsula in nort=
h Wales.

The shearwater had just returned from its South American w=
intering grounds and was preparing to breed when it was netted, as part of t=
he British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) national bird-ringing scheme.<=
/P>

Graham Appleton, the BTO's fund-raising manager, told CNN=20=
it was the fourth time the bird had been netted and released -- the other oc=
casions being May 22, 1957, July 8, 1961 and April 16, 1977.

Appleton told CNN: "Not only is this bird considerabl=
y older than you would expect, it is still breeding.


"As long as they are still going, they produce young.=
Birds don't really have old age!"


He said the estimated huge mileage it has covered is down=20=
to it living much of its life on the wing -- shearwaters are extremely econo=
mical fliers, gliding on wind currents rather than flapping continuously.</F=
ONT>

"It comes to land only during the breeding season, wh=
en it seeks out an island where it can dig a burrow," he said.


"It will stay at the colony until the end of the summ=
er and will then head out back to sea where it travels around southern Atlan=
tic, until next spring."

He said that given its known age and its winter migration=20=
cycle which takes in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, it is estimated that the=
bird has travelled 500,000 miles, or the equivalent of a return trip to the=
Moon.

Taking feeding flights into account, it has probably cover=
ed a total of five million miles.


British bird expert Chris Mead told Reuters: "The onl=
y way you can tell a bird's age is by ringing it, and we know about all the=20=
other birds, so we can say it is the oldest.

"It would not be uncommon to find birds aged between=20=
15 or 20 years in a colony of shearwaters, but 50 years is absolutely remark=
able," he said.

Manx shearwaters, whose scientific name is Puffinus puffin=
us, are shy of the mainland where danger lurks in the form of predators like=
stoats, rats and birds of prey, the RSPB said.

The Manx shearwater has a black back and wings with a whit=
e belly and at about 14 inches long it is slightly larger than a pigeon.</FO=
NT>

The oldest wild bird ever found was a royal albatross that=
nested in New Zealand and was named Grandma, the Times said. The bird was a=
t least 53 years old when it went missing.

The previous oldest known wild bird in Britain was also a=20=
Manx shearwater, recorded in 1996 in Northern Ireland aged 41.

According to the Guinness Book of Animal Records, the high=
est ever reported age of a bird is an unconfirmed 82 years for a male Siberi=
an white crane called Wolf which died at the International Crane Centre in W=
isconsin, U.S., in 1988.

Experts are convinced that there are more venerable indivi=
duals still to be identified. Some, particularly in the parrot family, are t=
hought to have hatched at the end of the 19th century.

 


  
  
   
  


  
 Find this article at: 
 <A HREF=3D"http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/04/18/bri=
tain.bird/index.html" TARGET=3D"_blank">http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe=
/04/18/britain.bird/index.html</A>  
   


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[va-bird] great story

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