West Midlands Ringing Group

The West Midlands Ringing Group (WMRG) is an ornithological bird ringing group based in the West Midlands region of England. Its members are ringers licensed by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), the UK body that administers bird ringing and coordinates the national ringing scheme. The group operates ringing sites across the West Midlands, Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire, giving it a footprint that extends well beyond the West Midlands metropolitan county into several neighbouring counties of the English Midlands and the Marches. Bird ringing is the practice of fitting a small, uniquely numbered metal or colour ring to a wild bird's leg so that individuals can be identified if they are recaptured or found again. WMRG describes its purpose in conservation terms: ringing is essential if we are to learn how long birds live and when and where they move, questions that are vital for bird conservation. The data gathered by licensed ringers feeds into the long-running national datasets used to monitor survival, movement and population change in wild birds. The group is organised around a graded permit system typical of UK ringing groups. Its published team list includes trainers, A-permit, C-permit and T-permit holders, plus associates. Named trainers are Ben Dolan and Paul Hopwood. A-permit holders listed are Jim Stewart and Kev Whiston; C-permit holders are Keith Clowes, Martin George, Paul Smith, Bryan Rampton, Hannah Stone, Ed Betteridge and Ross Johns; T-permit holders are Matilda Dolan, Morgan Hughes, Dominic Salisbury, Flora Szucs, Alex Beath and Clare Mulvey; and associates are John Hunt, Dennis Leonard, Roy Ingley, Leigh Yates, Carl Hiles and Steve Bradley. The group also notes that it uses Ecotone mist nets, a widely used brand of mist net for catching and safely extracting birds for ringing. As a volunteer-led ornithological group rather than a commercial enterprise, WMRG does not sell products; its public-facing activity centres on fieldwork, training and public communication about ringing and bird conservation. It maintains a website at westmidlandsringinggroup.co.uk and invites enquiries through a contact channel on that site. It is recorded in Wikidata as an ornithological group in England.

The West Midlands Ringing Group is a regional bird ringing group in England. Bird ringing in Britain has been coordinated nationally since the early twentieth century, and the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) administers the ringing scheme under licence from the relevant statutory conservation bodies. Within that national framework, local ringing groups such as WMRG organise fieldwork, training and record-keeping at a regional level. WMRG's published identity is that of a BTO-licensed ringing group with sites across the West Midlands, Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire. This places it in the English Midlands and the Marches, covering a mix of urban, suburban, farmland, woodland and wetland habitats. The group's stated rationale for ringing is conservation-oriented: ringing birds is essential if we are to learn about how long birds live and when and where they move, questions that are vital for bird conservation. Like other UK ringing groups, WMRG is structured around the BTO permit system. Ringers progress from trainee to C permit, then A permit, with T (trainer) permits held by experienced ringers authorised to train others. The group's public team list names trainers Ben Dolan and Paul Hopwood; A-permit holders Jim Stewart and Kev Whiston; C-permit holders Keith Clowes, Martin George, Paul Smith, Bryan Rampton, Hannah Stone, Ed Betteridge and Ross Johns; T-permit holders Matilda Dolan, Morgan Hughes, Dominic Salisbury, Flora Szucs, Alex Beath and Clare Mulvey; and associates John Hunt, Dennis Leonard, Roy Ingley, Leigh Yates, Carl Hiles and Steve Bradley. The presence of multiple trainers and T-permit holders indicates an active training pipeline within the group. Operationally, the group states that it uses Ecotone mist nets. Mist netting is the standard method for catching small birds for ringing; birds are extracted, ringed, measured and released. The resulting records are submitted to the BTO and contribute to national analyses of survival, dispersal and migration. WMRG maintains a website at westmidlandsringinggroup.co.uk, where it presents its team, explains why it rings birds, and provides a contact route for enquiries. It is recorded in Wikidata as an ornithological group in England. As a volunteer-led group, it does not have publicly reported commercial operations, ownership or listing status.

A volunteer, BTO-licensed bird ringing and ornithological research group serving the West Midlands and neighbouring counties.

1. 1WMRG | West Midlands Ringing Group | West Midlands | Englandwestmidlandsringinggroup.co.uk
2. 2West Midlands Ringing Group - Wikidatawikidata.org