Continuous Recording of Bird Nesting Visits using Radioactive Tagging

Abstract

IN view of the successful application of radioactive tagging in entomology in Central Africa, I have investigated the potentiality of the method as a tagging technique in ornithology. Because the detection range of small amounts of radioactive material is only of the order of feet, the method requires the close proximity of the labelled bird and the radiation detector. It was decided to use the method to obtain data on the bird's nesting visits, and the tests not only demonstrated the potentiality of the method but also provided useful data on behaviour. A search of the literature revealed that Barbour¹ made similar studies on the prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster). Barbour used cobalt-60 as the radioactive tagging material, and the signal from the radiation detector was recorded on a tape recorder. Griffin² has given a thorough discussion on the maximum permissible dose rate to be used for tagging animals under natural conditions, and mentions, without going into detail, an experiment on the semi-palmated plover Charadrius semipalmatus.