Toby Moran Mylett
@tobymoranmylett.bsky.social
he/him. ornithologist/bird ringer/academic/writer/arty-type. opinions=mine (regrettably).
Pinned
hey bluesky. haven't a clue how to use this site, frankly, but I know it'll be better than musk-ville, so here goes nothing. I'm an ornithologist and writer based in the UK. expect photos of geese and musings on contemporary playwriting; maybe more, maybe less. thanks x
The results are in!
This year, I've spent a lot of time ringing wildfowl for my county-wide study. As a result, during summer '25 alone, 100 waterbirds have been ringed/controlled across Buckinghamshire.
Totals:
CANGO: 42 new, 1 retrap
GREGO: 16 new
MALLA: 29 new
MUTSW: 9 new, 3 controls
This year, I've spent a lot of time ringing wildfowl for my county-wide study. As a result, during summer '25 alone, 100 waterbirds have been ringed/controlled across Buckinghamshire.
Totals:
CANGO: 42 new, 1 retrap
GREGO: 16 new
MALLA: 29 new
MUTSW: 9 new, 3 controls
November 7, 2025 at 12:01 AM
The results are in!
This year, I've spent a lot of time ringing wildfowl for my county-wide study. As a result, during summer '25 alone, 100 waterbirds have been ringed/controlled across Buckinghamshire.
Totals:
CANGO: 42 new, 1 retrap
GREGO: 16 new
MALLA: 29 new
MUTSW: 9 new, 3 controls
This year, I've spent a lot of time ringing wildfowl for my county-wide study. As a result, during summer '25 alone, 100 waterbirds have been ringed/controlled across Buckinghamshire.
Totals:
CANGO: 42 new, 1 retrap
GREGO: 16 new
MALLA: 29 new
MUTSW: 9 new, 3 controls
It's been a pretty poor year for Barn Owls here in the South-East, but it was excellent to find this ringed female on one of my recent box visits with the @borgowl.bsky.social crew.
September 5, 2025 at 4:51 PM
It's been a pretty poor year for Barn Owls here in the South-East, but it was excellent to find this ringed female on one of my recent box visits with the @borgowl.bsky.social crew.
Only just recovered (from lack of sleep) after an awesome week's ringing on @skokholmisland.bsky.social, targeting Manx Shearwater but also doing some dazzling and passerine trapping when conditions allowed. There's a reason they call it 'Dream Island'!
September 5, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Only just recovered (from lack of sleep) after an awesome week's ringing on @skokholmisland.bsky.social, targeting Manx Shearwater but also doing some dazzling and passerine trapping when conditions allowed. There's a reason they call it 'Dream Island'!
A pretty good ornithological day - Canada Goose ringing first thing, a wildfowl survey mid morning, nest box checks mid afternoon then ring reading more geese before sunset. Via a cuppa, of course.
July 18, 2025 at 9:30 PM
A pretty good ornithological day - Canada Goose ringing first thing, a wildfowl survey mid morning, nest box checks mid afternoon then ring reading more geese before sunset. Via a cuppa, of course.
Last week I visited one of my best sites for Greylag, which are very localised birds here in Bucks. Current ringing totals for the site so far in summer '25 stand at 20 birds caught: 7 Mallard, 6 Canada Goose (1 retrap), 7 Greylag. #birdringing #ukbirding #birdbanding
July 5, 2025 at 9:12 AM
Last week I visited one of my best sites for Greylag, which are very localised birds here in Bucks. Current ringing totals for the site so far in summer '25 stand at 20 birds caught: 7 Mallard, 6 Canada Goose (1 retrap), 7 Greylag. #birdringing #ukbirding #birdbanding
Quality over quantity this morning while ringing at Lowndes Park - few birds on site, but several Chesham ringing firsts: Canada Goose pulli, Mallard pulli and Greylag Goose (a difficult species to catch here in the Chilterns). Big thanks to @mangobirdy.bsky.social for scribing and taking photos!
July 5, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Quality over quantity this morning while ringing at Lowndes Park - few birds on site, but several Chesham ringing firsts: Canada Goose pulli, Mallard pulli and Greylag Goose (a difficult species to catch here in the Chilterns). Big thanks to @mangobirdy.bsky.social for scribing and taking photos!
Cracking day down in Walthamstow for the annual goose-roundup. Big thanks as always to @whiteleggdan.bsky.social and Phil Belman for organising. Great to finally ring a Barnacle Goose, too! #birdringing #ukbirding #londonbirds
July 4, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Cracking day down in Walthamstow for the annual goose-roundup. Big thanks as always to @whiteleggdan.bsky.social and Phil Belman for organising. Great to finally ring a Barnacle Goose, too! #birdringing #ukbirding #londonbirds
Ringed some more Mallard this morning including 2 females, which are far harder to catch than drakes (here in Bucks, at least). The deep purple-blue of a Mallard's speculum is easily one of the most astonishing examples of 'common' British bird plumage.
#birdringing #birdbanding #ukbirding
#birdringing #birdbanding #ukbirding
July 3, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Ringed some more Mallard this morning including 2 females, which are far harder to catch than drakes (here in Bucks, at least). The deep purple-blue of a Mallard's speculum is easily one of the most astonishing examples of 'common' British bird plumage.
#birdringing #birdbanding #ukbirding
#birdringing #birdbanding #ukbirding
Wildfowl ringing season started nicely again the other morning with some hand-caught Mallard. #birdringing #birdbanding
June 21, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Wildfowl ringing season started nicely again the other morning with some hand-caught Mallard. #birdringing #birdbanding
During the last 2 months I've been all over the south east getting more ringing experience with species I've had fewer opportunities to work with. A great way to learn more, meet new folks and catch up with others!
May 17, 2025 at 12:32 PM
During the last 2 months I've been all over the south east getting more ringing experience with species I've had fewer opportunities to work with. A great way to learn more, meet new folks and catch up with others!
utterly scandalous and frankly quite terrifying
A gobsmacking story. Water companies let toxic waste disposers, for cash, dump their loads into sewage farms. The sewage sludge is then spread, untested, on farmland, potentially poisoning vast areas, entire ecosystems and the people (you and me) eating the food.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
What’s in the millions of tonnes of sludge sprayed on to farmland? The answer won’t make you happy | George Monbiot
Thanks to breathtaking negligence, the liquid fertiliser used to help grow our food bubbles with a lethal cocktail of toxins, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
March 21, 2025 at 12:48 PM
utterly scandalous and frankly quite terrifying
Lovely morning at Lowndes Park hand-catching/re-sighting wildfowl for my ringing study. I was only expecting Canada Geese, but (after months of evading me on site) I also caught a stonking male Mallard. I'm recording max tarsus of Mallard atm as I've noticed some variability between local birds.
March 9, 2025 at 11:48 AM
Lovely morning at Lowndes Park hand-catching/re-sighting wildfowl for my ringing study. I was only expecting Canada Geese, but (after months of evading me on site) I also caught a stonking male Mallard. I'm recording max tarsus of Mallard atm as I've noticed some variability between local birds.
Sunday was a good re-sighting day, travelling around the county keeping tabs on my ringed wildfowl (and seeing some other birds, too!). #birding #ornithology #birdringing
March 5, 2025 at 6:37 PM
Sunday was a good re-sighting day, travelling around the county keeping tabs on my ringed wildfowl (and seeing some other birds, too!). #birding #ornithology #birdringing
Shobrooke Park: #birds #birding m Wigeon [site-1st], m Tufted Duck, the usual 2 Domestic Mallard drakes, 3 Nuthatch incl pr, Green Woodpecker, 2 Goldcrest incl 1 singing, c3 singing Chaffinch, singing Linnet, Song Thrush, 2 lingering Black-headed Gull, 4 Herring Gull 3ad imm, nest-building Rooks.
March 1, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Lowndes Park: #birds 1st post about my beloved local patch... this pm, singing Blackbird and Great Tit and 6 Robin. Single 'sneering' Greenfinch on 22nd and 23rd. Returning intersex Mallard on 23rd. 'Scruff', probably the oldest of the geese in my ringing study, is doing okay.
February 25, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Lowndes Park: #birds 1st post about my beloved local patch... this pm, singing Blackbird and Great Tit and 6 Robin. Single 'sneering' Greenfinch on 22nd and 23rd. Returning intersex Mallard on 23rd. 'Scruff', probably the oldest of the geese in my ringing study, is doing okay.
Reposted by Toby Moran Mylett
British Antarctic Survey
From the new Private Eye, out now.
From the new Private Eye, out now.
February 21, 2025 at 12:03 PM
British Antarctic Survey
From the new Private Eye, out now.
From the new Private Eye, out now.
Beautiful re-sighting trip yesterday in Aylesbury. A good number of colour-ringed Mute Swan recorded. #birdringing #ornithology #birdbanding #birds
February 18, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Beautiful re-sighting trip yesterday in Aylesbury. A good number of colour-ringed Mute Swan recorded. #birdringing #ornithology #birdbanding #birds
Cracking ringing day today. Started off with mist netting some Blue and Great Tits, then checked on 3 of my wildfowl sites ahead of upcoming visits. Blessedly, despite the spread in other parts of the UK, I've found no signs of bird flu - long may this continue.
#birdringing #birds #ornithology
#birdringing #birds #ornithology
February 16, 2025 at 6:07 PM
Cracking ringing day today. Started off with mist netting some Blue and Great Tits, then checked on 3 of my wildfowl sites ahead of upcoming visits. Blessedly, despite the spread in other parts of the UK, I've found no signs of bird flu - long may this continue.
#birdringing #birds #ornithology
#birdringing #birds #ornithology
today: read a review for a production of Caryl Churchill's 'What if if only' which complained that - within the play - not enough happens. I despair. #playwriting
February 15, 2025 at 7:25 PM
today: read a review for a production of Caryl Churchill's 'What if if only' which complained that - within the play - not enough happens. I despair. #playwriting
a lot of my summer ringing work is for @borgowl.bsky.social - a fantastic local organisation. owl season is always great fun - working with landowners, monitoring barnies county-wide, and driving round in a classic defender. not much could be better!
We've moved from Twitter! Here's a few photos of our most recent work.
February 15, 2025 at 2:17 PM
a lot of my summer ringing work is for @borgowl.bsky.social - a fantastic local organisation. owl season is always great fun - working with landowners, monitoring barnies county-wide, and driving round in a classic defender. not much could be better!
Reposted by Toby Moran Mylett
⚠️ A reminder to please report all sightings of dead birds for possible testing for Avian Influenza. In England, Wales & Scotland, contact Defra, in Northern Ireland contact @daera-ni.gov.uk & in Republic of Ireland gov.ie. Please ALSO report them to @birdtrack.bsky.social. Thank you. #UKBirding
February 14, 2025 at 3:54 PM
⚠️ A reminder to please report all sightings of dead birds for possible testing for Avian Influenza. In England, Wales & Scotland, contact Defra, in Northern Ireland contact @daera-ni.gov.uk & in Republic of Ireland gov.ie. Please ALSO report them to @birdtrack.bsky.social. Thank you. #UKBirding
*insert Northern Exposure theme tune here*
February 13, 2025 at 10:34 PM
*insert Northern Exposure theme tune here*
awesome recovery!
Recovery: Fieldfare caught during a thermal survey @OverburyEnt Worcester on 29/01/2025, was originally ringed 197km away in Bryncroes, Gwynedd, Wales on 06/11/2024. This is the 3rd Fieldfare caught whilst Thermal dazzling, with recoveries from Finland, Staffordshire & Wales.
February 6, 2025 at 7:19 PM
awesome recovery!
aside from all the birds I also help with local cat re-homing schemes - here's some recent friends... #adoptdontshop #housecats #cats
February 5, 2025 at 5:24 PM
aside from all the birds I also help with local cat re-homing schemes - here's some recent friends... #adoptdontshop #housecats #cats
haven't put anything about my writing here yet, so... Jan25 saw the longest ever run of one of my plays - a fragmented & quite silly piece named Missing Lane Markers on the A47. 2 4 star reviews. very meaningful after 10+ years of writing nonsense and hoping some of it finds reality. #playwriting
February 4, 2025 at 5:23 PM
haven't put anything about my writing here yet, so... Jan25 saw the longest ever run of one of my plays - a fragmented & quite silly piece named Missing Lane Markers on the A47. 2 4 star reviews. very meaningful after 10+ years of writing nonsense and hoping some of it finds reality. #playwriting