Bird ringing is one of the very important projects of the ADU at the University of Cape town where every one can take part in and play a valuable role to the success of the project and help to conserve our valuable bird population. We depend upon you, members of the public to help to make this project an even greater success and to tell their children and friends about bird ringing and what should be done wen finding bird with rings on.

Bird ringing is a scientific method for identifying birds individually and the term always implies the use of metal leg-rings, stamped or engraved with a serial number and the address of a recognized ringing organization. The numbered rings make it possible to recognize each bird individually if it is found dead (a recovery) or recaught (a retrap) at a later date. The term "ringing" is currently used in Britain, Europe and Africa, while "banding" is used in the Americas, Canada, Australia and most Asian countries.

Modern bird ringing began in 1899 when Han Christian Mortensen of Denmark ringed 164 Starlings with numbered and addressed rings. Part of Mortensen's success was due to the availability of aluminium which first came onto the market at a reasonable price at that time. Because of its lightness and durability, aluminium was the ideal metal for manufacturing bird rings and it is still used today, although harder and longer-lasting alloys have been developed.

South African bird ringing began in 1948 when the Southern African Ornithological Society (SAOS) today known as BirdLife Southern Africa stated issuing rings with the "INFORM ZOO PRETORIA" address. The SAOS continued to administer bird ringing until 1971. During these 23 years, the organization of the ringing scheme was largely voluntary, and its effectiveness and efficiency was affected by shortage of funds.

Nevertheless 500 000 birds were ringed and some valuable studies, especially that on the European Swallow (Hirundo rustica) were carried out. In 1972 the Southern African Ringing Unit (SAFRING) was established on the campus of the University of Cape Town and took over from the SAOS ringing scheme. SAFRING is financed by the Nature Conservation Departments and BirdLife South Africa. SAFRING operates under the auspice of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), which as trustee for financing the Unit, on advice of a committee on which the sponsors are represented. SAFRING administers bird ringing activities in Southern Africa and is the sole source of bird rings in the region and supplies the specialized equipment required by bird ringers. The main functions of SAFRING are to process recoveries of ringed birds and to serve as the repository for all bird ringing information collected in Southern Africa. Today rings are issued with "INFORM SAFRING, UNIVERSITY CAPE TOWN" address and a unique number for each ring.

The task of ringing is performed by amateurs and professionals holding special permits, issued by Provincial Nature Conservation Departments. Permits are only issued after a ringer has been trained in the technique for some time, so that he or she can safely catch, handle and release, birds without injuring them. One does not need to be a professional biologist to become a bird ringer. The amateurs come from all walks of life and are inspired by the desire to learn more about the birds they watch.

Once the bird has been released from the net or trap the correct size of ring is fitted to the leg (tarsus) with specially designed pliers. Great care is taken to ensure that the ring is neither too loose nor too tight. The ring number, species, Roberts number, age, sex, date, and locality are recorded as well as measurements like the wing, tail, head and tarsus and state of moult of a bird. The information is sent to SAFRING who keeps record of all birds ringed in Southern Africa.

Ringing birds enables us to learn about bird movements in order to identify and conserve important breeding sites, migration routes and wintering grounds. Every summer wading birds such as Curlew Sandpipers, Sanderlings and Knots migrate to Southern Africa to avoid the harsh northern winter. Ringing and allied studies have shown that up to 50 000 migrant waders may congregate at Langebaan lagoon on the Cape West coast. This information shows how important international co-operation is to the conservation of migrant birds. There is little point in protecting the birds at one end of their range if the habitat at the other is denied to them through development or pollution. Ringing enable us to determine the effects of man's modification of the environment upon birds through studies of dispersal.

We may learn more about the time a bird takes to fly from its summer breeding ground to its winter home in Southern Africa or we may find out more about the route it flies. Although bird ringing was originally intended as a tool for finding out about bird migration it has wider application nowadays. Since it enables a bird to be uniquely marked, it enables us to discover many facts about birds such as how long it lives, how many mates it has, and to determine the survival rates of birds to establish the populations change (population dynamics) of each species and its mortality rates at different seasons and ages. Ringing also helps to determine the most likely cause of death in birds, at what age it first bred, how far they disperse from their nest after they have fledged and how far they fly to feed each day.

Thousands of these birds have been ringed in an attempt to learn more about their movements, how rapidly they breed and when and where they breed. It is hoped that this information will assist in the development of effective control methods. A great deal of work was carried out on ducks and recovery information helped to determine hunting license numbers and allowances.

When a bird is found with a ring inscribed "INFORM SAFRING, UNIVERSITY CAPE TOWN" the finder reports the recovery to SAFRING where the recovery information is matched with the original ringing information punched into the computer at SAFRING. The computer calculates the time elapsed between ringing and recovery and the distance and direction the bird flew from the ringing locality, the date of ringing, sex and age of the bird when ringed and the names and addresses of both ringer and fonder. This printout is then sent to the ringer and the finder.

Only a small proportion of the thousands of birds ringed each year are ever found again. For birds hunted by man the recovery rate may be as high as 20% while for small birds it can be as low as 0,025%. For this reason it is important that thousands of birds be ringed each year and that more ringers be trained in bird ringing. The more birds ringed the greater the success of this project will be. Every recovery is valuable; the success of ringing operations depend largely on the co-operation of the public in reporting any ringed bird. Hunters should always look at the legs of the game birds they shoot, since many of these birds carry rings. Dead birds along our highways and roads and birds washed up on the seashore may have rings on them. Birds killed by cats, dogs or young boys or for what reason what so ever may have rings on. Fisherman sometimes catch ringed birds in their nets and on their lines. Rings can also be found in owl pellets and dung of mammals that prey on birds.

1. Your name and address.
2. All numbers and letters on the ring.
3. The date you found the ring.
4. The place you found the ring (distance and direction from the nearest town or railway).
5. How you found the ring (on a bird found dead, shot or caught in some other way).
6. If there are color rings state which legs they are on (e.g. white over red ring on left leg and metal ring on right leg)
7. Place in an envelope and send to: SAFRING, University of Cape Town, RONDEBOSCH, 7700.

What do you do if you find a live ringed bird? DO NOT TRY TO REMOVE THE RING!! as you may injure the bird but carefully read the number, write it down and release the bird. We may learn more about where it goes or how long it lives. If the bird is injured e.g. it flew into a window or has broken its leg or wing, take it to WINGES IN NEED or to your nearest rehabilitation Center.

Many bird species travel great distances and ignore international frontiers. About 80 species migrate to Southern Africa from the northern hemisphere. Many of these birds will carry rings put on by ringers in Britain, Europe, and the Soviet Union. If you should find such a ringed bird report it directly to SAFRING who will obtain its history from ringing schemes overseas and pass the information to the finder.