Day 281 - Respect-Worthy Ruffs

My favourite sign on the way into Weybourne

Hey everyone today's Day 281 and I've got a bird that I saw in Norfolk recently. Yesterday I told you everything I saw there which, I have to admit, was much more than I had ever realised. That's why I love to do those posts. When you see them over a long period of time, you don't think it's much, but when you put it down 'on paper', you see how much you actually saw. I forgot to put in this picture which is my favourite sign I see when I'm down there.

Ruff (Philomachus Pugnare)

But anyway, in yesterday's post, I said that I saw some Ruffs. This is true and they are what I am going to be covering today. But before I do, there's a little story about the first Ruff that I ever saw. It was at Titchwell and I was just in the Island hide when there was some people talking about Ruffs and that there was one just outside the 'window' and when my Dad pointed it out, I saw that it only had one leg. Now, usually when this happens they are just resting, but this one actually only had one leg but it soldiered on and it looked like It was at least 2 or 3 years old.

So, here are the facts:

A Ruffled Ruff!

• They only really Winter in some very specific places such as South-Eastern Ireland and South England.

• They are only resident in Western Norfolk but not many do. There are much more that Winter as I shall explain below.

• There are only, at most, 11 breeding Females in the whole of the UK but as I said there are more that Winter here, about 850 birds.

Pair of Ruffs

• Because of this, they are a Red Status. The true reason is because of a recent population decline.

• Their Scientific name (Philomachus Pugnare) means pugnacious to fight. I'm guessing that that means that they want to fight or are very good fighters.

• They are 25cm long with a 53cm wingspan. Males weigh a hefty 180g and Females a good 110g.

Ruff on a different day

• They start breeding 2 years and usually live for 4 years. The oldest was 9 years and 25 days old.

• The Female's ring size is a relatively large C while the Male is a larger D.

Here are some links to some more information:

RSPB - Ruffs

BTO Birdfacts - Ruffs

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.