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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Andrew Whitehouse" data-source="post: 301422" data-attributes="member: 3550">Hi Larry,A lot of the Choughs in Islay have been colour-ringed over the years as part of various studies.  They're probably one of the most intensively studied populations of birds in the UK and it's actually quite hard to find individuals that aren't ringed!As for the Canada Geese, I think the bird in the photo has been identified by some as a Richardson's Canada (hutchinsii).  Most of the Canadas that turn up in Islay are at the smaller end of the spectrum, although there are some that approximate to the medium-sized Lesser Canadas (parvipes).  It seems to me (and others) that it's rather hard to assign vagrants to any particular form, particularly given the clinal nature of Canada Geese and the increasing frequency of integrades between forms.  I think the current BOU position is characteristically cautious, in this case probably justified.</blockquote>