A few generous donations and a bit of funding here and there it was time to have a new trap heligoland trap build.
Heligoland traps are a simple but very effective way of trapping birds for ringing. The trap is essentially a large funnel, the birds enter the widest part of the trap (the front), as they make their way deeper into the trap it narrows until they enter the back (the catching area). To capture the bird a ringer will approach from the mouth of the trap and make their way to the catching area, when they get there they must then open the doors to the catching box for the bird to go in. This is achieved by activating flaps on the catching box with a piece of string. The back of the catching box is made with a soft clear plastic so the birds see this as an escape route when it is essentially a dead end. When the bird enters the box the ringer can then close the door behind it and retrieve the bird for ringing.
Hammer's, crowbars, a few choice words (not repeatable) and the old trap was down now leaving a large heligoland trap hole in the garden. With a space now cleared for the new trap to go up we awaited the arrival of the team on volunteers that were going to build the contraption.
Vast quantities of of wood, wire and post concrete arrive
With a fantastic group of workers constructing the trap, things were taking shape in no time at all
The beginnings of the catching end of the trap
Lunchtime yoga sessions from some of the workers
The final touches of wire mesh to complete the trap
A lot of wood, mesh, saws, hammers, staples, amazing weather hard work and dedication later and the trap was complete, !!!FANTASTIC JOB GUYS!!!
Our first rare bird to stumble into the new trap was this gorgeous yellow-browed warbler, lets hope for many more!
