A bit of a long shot - but when looking for cattle egrets you never know....!

The message below about great bustards was received by all BTO Regional Atlas coordinators back in the winter. It was from Bill Quantrill (BTO RR Wiltshire).

So, if they are moving around - could Pembs even get one sometime? If you just happen to see one elsewhere in the UK whilst on your travels, details are below of who to report sightings to!

"I have been asked by the Great Bustard Group (the UK-registered charity who are managing the Great Bustard re-introduction programme on Salisbury Plain) to request everybody involved in Atlas fieldwork to ensure that any sightings of Great Bustards are reported to the Group. The first release of birds under the programme took place in 2004 and there have been further releases in each year since then.

Many of you will probably be aware that last year, thanks to the re-introduction programme, Great Bustards nested in Britain for the first time in 175 years (sadly, but not unexpectedly given the youth of the birds involved, the two eggs that had been laid turned out to be infertile). The bustards disperse in winter and individuals have been reported from Somerset, Gloucestershire and Dorset, as well as from further afield, for instance in France.

But there have been long periods when nobody knew where the birds were; the intensive fieldwork for the atlas should enable some of the gaps to be filled. The birds are wing-tagged, and each tag has two identification elements - the colour which indicates the year in which the bird was released (orange=2004, yellow=2005, green=2006, purple=2007) and a number which identifies the individual bird.I would be grateful if you could ask all your volunteers to look out for Great Bustards and report any sightings to sightings@... or by telephone to Al Dawes on 07817 971 327. When we get to the stage of validating records could you please check that any Great Bustard sightings that appear in the records have been reported to the Great Bustard Group.More information about the programme, including details of how to support the programme by becoming members of the Group, can be found on the Group's website www.greatbustard.com"