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Tam
Sex: Male
Hatch date: 19 May 2019
Release date: 17 Jun 2019
Release site: Lady Fen, WWT Welney
Latest sighting: WWT Welney, Jun 2021
Guardian: The Word Garden

Photo credit: WWT

The beginning of his story...
Tam was collected as an egg from the RSPB Nene Washes in April 2019.
Back to the wild...
Tam was released with his two siblings - Worley and Hickathrift - and 18 other headstarted birds at Lady Fen, WWT Welney on 17 June 2019, the first release of that year.
And his story continues...
May 2020. Tam is spotted back at the Ouse Washes at WWT Welney.
June 2020. Tam is spotted in another area of the Ouse Washes, at RSPB Ouse Washes nature reserve, and is then spotted at Hondschoote in France.
April 2021. Tam is again in France, this time in Brittany.
April to June 2021. Tam breeds at WWT Welney.
How was he named?
Tam was named in honour of the Scottish soldiers brought to the Fens as prisoners of war in the 17th century. These soldiers built the New Bedford River (forming the Ouse Washes) and many of the other drainage works that created the modern landscape of the Fens. Tam is a main character in a story written by Jean Rees-Lyons (The Word Garden) as part of the Origins Project, remembering and celebrating the Scottish soldiers.