A Year Total of 163

163. Lesser Scaup

There has been reports of the Lesser Scaup at the Clea Lakes near Killyleagh and on my third visit I finally caught up with it.However weather was not for photographing so you will have to make do with Derek's photo in previous post.

I was up in Donegal yesterday helping my father out with his new Imac and I decided to go and look further afield in Donegal than I had been before(44 Years) So i went to the Bloody Foreland in Northwest Donegal to aplace called Magheraroarty. It is a coastal village with a harbour where you take a boat to Tory Island (A good spot for autumn migrants). I parked in the car park in front of the harbour and started to take photos of a Rock Pipit which I noticed had been ringed

Well a year tally of 163 in Ireland which in my first year of taking birding more seriously as opposed to observing birds as and when you see them pleases me . Some of the photos I have posted this year have belonged to Derek Charles and he has reached in the 190's for Northern Ireland and in the 220's for Ireland as a whole. This gives me hope for this coming year that my listwill improve!!!!

This blog has kept me encouraged to improve and the fact that I have twenty to thirty visitors a day also. If you are one of my regular visitors I thank you and wish you a Happy New Year. I will be continuing in the New Year. I am contemplating making podcasts when I understand the technology to do so.

A Very Happy Christmas to all you Bloggers and Birders

162. Barnacle Goose

I was up in Donegal visiting my parents for our pre-christmas visit. So I was determined to see a Ring Necked Duck that had been seen on Loch Fern which is only half a mile from their house. The Lough itself is about a mile long and half a mile wide and only 9-10feet deep. The River Lennon runs into and out of it. In the past it has been very good for salmon, I even hooked one when fishing for trout as a teenager. I lost it after about ten minutes and have never hooked one since. Most years it has something of interest on it. The only drawback is that it isnt very easy to access. Well it was very grey and quite a strong wind and I couldnt even see one duck on the lough.

However when I was mentioning to Anthony McGeehan that I was heading upto Donegal he suggested I have a look at the New Lake in Dunfanaghy. Good Advice it proved to be. Dunfanaghy is seventeen miles from my parents and even though it was grey when I left by the time I was in Dunfanaghy it was a beautiful morning clear sky and bright morning sunshine. I parked alongside lake and was scanning the water for ducks; Mallard, Teal and Tufted and alot of Mute Swans. Then I noticed off to my right in a field alongside the lake a circular gathering of geese.
Barnacle Geese.Another tick for the year list. I had wondered earlier in the year whether I would see any or whether I might have to go over to Scotland to Caerlaverockto see them. I also spotted anothe duck which I suspect is a Tufted but could be a Scaup.

Am now back at home in Co. Down and instead of heading to church with in-laws I went out to Killard with the dog. It has to be the most miserable grey day for a Christmas day, so much so that I didnt even bother taking the camera. I saw a lovely Yellowhammer which would be the third this year and a first for me out at Killard. The Grey Plover wasnt at its usual spot and then as we were walking almost back to the car I saw three of them on a beach along with a Bar Tailed Godwit, a Curlew and some Oystercatchers but I think it was the Yellowhammer that made my day.

After the walk we opened our presents and surprise surprise I received some birding related presents. Firstly from my youngest son Charlie a cartoon picture he had drawn of me birdwatching which I was very chuffed with.I also received a very unexpected present from Jonny, the manager of the cafe I work out of. It is called 1000 facts on BIRDS I have been reading it ever since. I think in future I will post a new fact everytime I publish. I also received The Life of Birds 3DVD set by David Attenborough which I will have to find some time to watch. So all in all a pretty good Christmas.

A Great Northern Diver and a very long drive to see an Iceland Gull

161. Great Northern Diver

Last week because the weather was so poor I had not taken the dog out for a decent walk and I was feeling guilty. So I pulled on my Paramo waterproofs ( I only mention the brand because I think they are absolutely brilliant waterproof clothing.) and headed out into a gale force winds and rain. I decided to go to Killard where the wind was blowing so strong that it was quite difficult to walk into. Because it was raining I left my camera behind but took the binoculars. There was virtually no bird life at all apart from a few Mallard and Teal sitting on the water and even the Oystercatchers were inland sheltering from the wind. Well Pickle was like a spring that has been just released she shot off in every direction. She was chasing seaweed that was being blown about and didnt stop for the forty five minutes that I was out there. On the way back I looked at what I thought was a cormorant in the distance and much to my surprise found it was a Great Northern Diver a bird I have never seen in Northern Ireland. I used to see them on Martha's Vineyard and have once seen them in Scotland. This photo was taken on the Isle of Man by Peter Hadfield. He has a nice bird photography website Here The Isle of Man is only 29 miles away as the crow flies from Killard.

On Saturday I had a very long day as I went to work at 2.00am finished at about five am and then drove home picked up my wife and then drove all the way to Dingle in Co. Kerry all in all about 325 miles. I parked on the Harbour front and went and met my parents and sister for lunch in a local pub. We were down there to celebrate a seventieth birthday of a family friend, who had no idea that a surprise party was being held for her.After lunch I went back out to the harbour and started to photograph a Rook and Jackdaw which were close by.
Then a very large spanish trawler came into the harbour surrounded by hundreds of gulls. I have been told with Gull identification to look out for the all white ones first. There were three. I am not very good at gulls but I reckoned they were Iceland Gulls
After taking the photos we headed to our guesthouse "Gormans Clifftop Guesthouse" which I would highly recommend. It is fabulously situated overlooking a bay. Its breakfast room cum restaurant has stunning views well worth waking upto. When I was having breakfast there was a stonechat just outside the window. On sunday we headed back to Northern Ireland and I stopped off for one last time at the harbour and took some more photos mainly herring gulls. I was trying flight shots. Not easy and the only one I really liked was this one

The American Ducks are visiting and I finally reach my target of 160 for the year.

160. Ring Billed Gull

At last a new bird for my list,a Ring Billed Gull,it is an American gull an increasingly frequent visitor from North America. Reports suggest that about 20-40 birds winter in UK. Occurs most regularly at coastal sites such as estuaries but also inland at gull roosts. It has been eight weeks and a day since I last saw a new bird for my list. Reaching 160 has made me really happy as it was my target for the year.Half way through the year I began to wonder whether I would ever make it! So now my aim is 165 by the end of the year.

I went down to the Whitehouse Lagoon on the outskirts of Belfast a well known haunt for gulls and waders this morning. I had been down yesterday and saw the Ring Billed Gull for the briefest of moments and by the time I got my camera from the car I could not find it again.So I was glad to find it again today and get a record shot. There was another birder down there Mike Meidlinger who thought he might have a Caspian Gull as well. Im not that good at gulls so wouldnt have known whether there was one or not. I did then go over to the RSPB hide on the other side of the lough where a juvenile Glaucous gull was found by Joe Lamont.

Talking of things American we have a few visiting ducks from America at the moment. The Barrow's Goldeneye (Bucephala islandica) at the River Quoile a few miles from where I live is a medium-sized sea duck of the genus Bucephala, the goldeneyes.
Adults are similar in appearance to the Common Goldeneye. Adult males have a dark head with a purplish gloss and a white crescent at the front of the face. Adult females have a yellow bill.
Their breeding habitat is wooded lakes and ponds primarily in northwestern North America but also in scattered locations in eastern Canada and Iceland. They nest in cavities in trees, also in burrows or protected sites on the ground.
They are migratory and most winter in protected coastal waters or open inland waters. These diving birds forage underwater. They eat aquatic insects, crustaceans and pond vegetation. It is an extremely rare vagrant to western Europe.

We also have the Green Winged Tealat the Belfast Harbour Reserve. The Green-winged Teal (GWT, Anas carolinensis) is a common and widespread duck which breeds in the northern areas of North America except on the Aleutian Islands. It was considered conspecific with the Common Teal for some time, and the issue is still being reviewed by the AOU [1]; based on this the IUCN and BirdLife International (BirdLife International, 2004) do not accept it as a separate species at present. However, nearly all other authorities consider it distinct nowadays, based on behavioral (Laurie-Ahlberg & McKinney 1979), morphological (Livezey, 1991), and molecular (Johnson & Sorenson 1999) evidence (discussed by Sangster et al., 2002). You can see the difference in the photo below.

This dabbling duck is strongly migratory and winters far south of its breeding range. It is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and will form large flocks. In flight, the fast, twisting flocks resemble waders.
This is the smallest North American dabbling duck. The breeding male has grey flanks and back, with a yellow rear end and a white-edged green speculum, obvious in flight or at rest. It has a chestnut head with a green eye patch. It is distinguished from drake Common Teal (the Eurasian relative of this bird) by a vertical white stripe on side of breast, the lack of both a horizontal white scapular stripe and the lack of thin buff lines on its head.
The females are light brown, with plumage much like a female Mallard. They can be distinguished from most ducks on size and shape, and the speculum. Separation from female Common Teal is problematic.
In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake looks more like the female.
It is a common duck of sheltered wetlands, such as taiga bogs, and usually feeds by dabbling for plant food or grazing. It nests on the ground, near water and under cover. While its conservation status is not evaluated by IUCN at present due to non-recognition of the taxon, it is plentiful enough to make it a species of Least Concern if it were; it is far more plentiful than the Common Teal (Carboneras, 1992). It can be seen in vast numbers in the Marismas Nacionales of western Mexico, a main wintering area.
This is a noisy species. The male has a clear whistle, whereas the female has a feeble "quack".

There is also a female Lesser Scaup (Photo courtesy Derek Charles) at the Clea Lakes Killyleagh which as the crow flies is probably only about three miles away from me or thirteen by car :-( The Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) is a small diving duck.
Adults are 38-45 cm long, with a blue bill and yellow eyes. Adult males have a dark head with a purple sheen, a black breast, a light grey back, a black tail and white underparts. Adult females have a white band at the base of the bill and a brown head and body. They are smaller than the Greater Scaup.
Their breeding habitat is marsh ponds in Alaska and western Canada. They nest in a sheltered location on the ground near water.
There can be difficulties for inexperienced birdwatchers in distinguishing the Greater and Lesser Scaup. The differently colored sheen on the head is unreliable because light conditions vary, and these birds are often far from the shoreline.
The Lesser Scaup is best identified on its much smaller size, different head shape with a peaked hind crown, and a white wing bar that is visible only on the secondaries (it extends onto the primaries in Greater). The drake also shows vermiculations on the back. In North America, a large scaup flock will often have both species present.
Lesser Scaup migrate in flocks and winter in lakes, rivers and sheltered coastal waters along the west coast of North America, the southern United States and northern South America. They are more likely to be found on freshwater than Greater Scaup. These birds move south late in the fall and return in early spring.They are a rare but apparently increasing vagrant to western Europe, where the identification also needs to exclude similar looking hybrids.

I now have to try and find it to get me on my way to 165!!

Ringed Black Tailed Godwits

Still no new birds for my list :-(



I have to say that one of my favourite birds is the Black Tailed Godwit and I am very fortunate that at the RSPB Belfast Harbour Reserve there is generally a reasonable number to be seen at any one time. One of the things that fascinate me is that some have been colour ringed.

Operation Godwit is an association of people studying the Icelandic black-tailed godwit Limosa limosa islandica.The Icelandic Black-tailed godwit Limosa limosa islandica is one of the three subspecies of the Black tailed godwit. This subspecies breeds almost exclusively in Iceland and winters in W. Europe. The main wintering countries are Ireland, Britain, France and the Netherlands but an unknown proportion of the population winters further south in Spain, Portugal and perhaps in Morocco.The spring migration of the Godwit to Iceland is from mid April to early May. Before scattering onto the breeding grounds the birds stage for a few days on mudflats and freshwater sites around Iceland and peak numbers on individual sites are usually found from 20th April-5 May. These sites can hold up to 30% of the entire population at the same time and are thus extremely important.

The Godwit breeds in different types of wet marshes and mesic grasslands in lowland areas around Iceland. After arrival on the breeding grounds, the birds set up their territories and fatten up for 2-3 weeks before the onset of incubation in late May. Peak hatching is in mid to late June. Unsuccessful breeders start showing up on the wintering grounds already in the first days of July. Most chicks fledge in July and successful adults leave Iceland around that time, with the last adults usually having left before mid August. The now fledged chicks have to undertake the first migration on their own. Most juveniles leave Iceland in August but a few remain until September.

On the wintering grounds the birds tend to use mudflats and wet grasslands near the coast, where they feed on invertebrates such as worms and molluscs. Many of the birds move between areas throughout the winter and some use up to 4 different countries. In late January and February, birds in the southern part of the range start moving gradually northwards in preparation for the migration to Iceland in April.

Operation Godwit's aim is to study the migration strategies of the subspecies throughout its range. This is done by carrying out fieldwork in different countries and by following movements of individually colour-ringed birds.A Juvenile ringed bird HereThey rely on observers such as myself in sending sightings of the ringed birds and in exchange they send out their known life histories.

Here are some known facts about their work:

-Currently, ca. 2% of the total population is individually colour-ringed.

-Over 8000 sightings of colour-ringed godwits are on file.
My Lovely Sketch by Alan Dalton

-Over 90% of adult godwits ringed in Iceland are seen in other countries.

-Around 20% of unfledged godwit chicks ringed in Iceland are seen in other countries.

-Almost 25% of godwits ringed on the wintering grounds are seen in Iceland every year.



Here is the latest reply I have received re five different birds that Ive seen.
Hi Craig

Many thanks for the sightings.

Here is the history of these birds:

YN-WO was ringed as a female in Iceland.

11.06.05
Krossanesborgir
14.04.06
RSPB harbour lagoon reserve in Belfast, N Ireland
10.11.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, Co. Anrim, N Ireland

GO-LO was ringed in SW Iceland.
22.07.02
Keldur, Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
23.07.02
Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
24.07.02
Vallá, Kjalarnesi, SW Iceland
02.11.02
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
17.11.02
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
23.10.03
Réserve Naturelle du Marais d'Yves, Charente-Maritime, W France
19.11.03
Réserve Naturelle du Marais d'Yves, Charente-Maritime, W France
18.01.04
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
18.04.04
Vogalækur, Mýrar, W Iceland
19.04.04
Vogalækur, Mýrar, W Iceland
21.02.05
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
06.11.05
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
12.11.05
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
12.01.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
14.04.06
RSPB harbour lagoon reserve in Belfast, N Ireland
10.11.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, Co. Anrim, N Ireland

GO-RX was ringed as a male in E Iceland.

27.04.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
29.04.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
30.04.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
30.04.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
30.04.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
30.04.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
01.05.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
01.05.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
02.05.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
03.05.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
04.05.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
05.05.03
Álftafjörður, E Iceland
03.08.03
Boyne Estuary, Co. Meath, E Ireland
13.09.03
Boyne Estuary, Co. Meath, E Ireland
28.09.03
Boyne Estuary, Co. Meath, E Ireland
12.10.03
Boyne Estuary, Co. Meath, E Ireland
24.03.04
Ouderkerk, Noord Holland, W Netherlands
30.03.04
Ouderkerk, Noord Holland, W Netherlands
18.03.05
Klemskerke, Belgium
03.05.05
Egilstaðanes, Egilsstaðir, E Iceland
02.10.05
Cadiz, Andalucia, S Spain
26.02.06
Cadiz, Andalucia, S Spain
10.11.06
Belfast Harbour, Belfast Co. Antrim, N Ireland

RG-YR was ringed last july in NW Iceland.

03.07.06
Reykholar
NWIce
24.09.06
Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, W Scotland
10.11.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, Co. Anrim, N Ireland

OR-RR was ringed as a female in N Iceland.


11.07.02
off Road 74 Efra Haganes
03.09.02
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
10.09.02
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
12.11.02
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
11.10.03
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
11.03.04
Leidschendam, Zuid Holland, W Netherlands
27.03.04
Leidschendam, Zuid Holland, W Netherlands
23.04.04
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
16.01.05
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
21.02.05
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
12.01.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
12.02.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
04.03.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
16.03.06
Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim, N Ireland
14.04.06
RSPB harbour lagoon reserve in Belfast, N Ireland
23.04.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
22.10.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, N Ireland
10.11.06
Belfast harbour, Belfast, Co. Anrim, N Ireland




Thanks again and all the best,
Sigga Beta

A nice surprise gift of a Peregrine sketch.

No new birds for the list

A few posts ago I mentioned Alan Dalton an Irish Birder living in Sweden and his Bird Art and how I had been given a sketch of some Black Tailed Godwits well it arrived and he had very kindly added another picture which was of a Peregrine. Thank you Alan. Once I get my sister Tyrella to frame it I can add it to my slowly growing collection of Peregrine Falcons. I bought one about ten years ago by a Mr Straughan a Belfast artist (Of whom I can find no further information) which I think is lovely and Tyrella gave me another by Andrew Stock who has been The President of the Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA) since 2004. Tyrella does some of his picture framing from her studio attached to her B and B

Well the only bird photos from the last couple of days that I have taken are of a Greenshank and a Snipe. The light has been grey all the time and it has been raining alot recently so I have been shooting at high ISO. The snipe is fairly small in the frame but I was amazed at the length of his wings!!

Birding Marthas Vineyard

No new birds!!

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I have just finished reading Bird News ( Vagrants and Visitors on a Peculiar Island ) by E. Vernon Laux in which he documents a birding year in the life of Martha's Vineyard. You may well wonder what this has to do with birding in Northern Ireland. Well I lived on the Vineyard on and off from 1984 to 1989 and having read this book I now look back with some regret that I didn't take more interest in the birds at the time. There were a few birds that I do remember Cardinals, Blue Jays, the Sanderlings on the beach running away only a few feet in front of you. However the bird that I particularly remember more than any other was the abundance of Osprey's. I had probably only seen one or two in my life at that time. Then I pitched up on the Vineyard and they were everywhere during the breeding season.I marvelled at their prowess of catching fish in Sengekontacket Pond. I used to do two jobs at the time. One was working in Edgartown in a couple of restaurants "Martha's Restaurant on Main street and L'Etoile at the Charlotte Inn on South Summer Street. The other job was industrial cleaning which enabled me to see places all over the Island where the general tourist wouldnt see. Some of the houses where I used to clean would have nesting poles for the Ospreys on their land.

They also had what I regard as probably one of the best regional newspapers in the world "The Vineyard Gazette". It has world class photography and there was also a column called Bird News which was a weekly update of Birding News and information by a number of different authors. I would love to see more local papers here in Northern Ireland have a similar column. I am thinking about going there next summer with the children in August.

Vernon Laux the author of the above book found a Red Footed Falcon on the Island. This was a major find as there had never been one seen before in either North or South America. I even remember reading about it in the Daily Telegraph.

I have been to the hide at Belfast Lough a few times in the last week and the weather for photography has been pretty appalling but I did get a few shots of the birds and animals that are causing quite alot of disturbance at the moment. Anthony (The RSPB Warden) reckons there are a couple of Sparrowhawks that are making a nuisance of themselves as well as the regular visits by the Peregrines. This fox was very wary and when it appeared the nearby moorhens sped off in all directions.

Some very nice Birthday presents and a few more bird photos.

No New Birds

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First of all I disliked the google ad at the top of the blog so have removed it. Its not a great money earner anyway. So far I have earned £46.43 over eight months and as far as I can work out you dont get paid until you reach £50. I think it looks better to the eye when one opens the blog up without it.

Well for my birthday I have been given two birdy items. The first from my sister Tyrella was an infrared nestbox kit from Eco-Watch. Now the question is where to put the nestbox so that I can see live images on my TV. Well i've got at least six months to decide before the breeding season starts all over again! I hope that she got herself one to put up outside her lovely wee Bed and Breakfast in Scotland. She has crossbills that frequent her garden, a bird I have yet to see , as well as Red Squirrels that come to her bird feeders .

My second present which has yet to arrive is a sketch of some Black Tailed Godwits by Alan Dalton, an Irish birder living in Sweden. He is a very talented bird artist. You can see some of his work on Birdforum under the monniker Buzzard12 here. I am slowly building up a collection of Bird sketches, paintings and prints.

Well yesterday I was out with the camera again and here are a few images. The first a bird I find very difficult to photograph as they never sit still and are also very small. The Goldcrest.

The next four photos are birds that are in my garden. Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Chaffinch and Bluetit.


In the afternoon I went out to Killard National Nature reserve just as the sun was setting and I found the Grey Plover out on the rocks with much to my surprise another one. So hopefully they will both stay the winter.

The VERY messy Grey Wagtail, a few Bird Photos and out at Killard again.

No New Birds

Its already the 8th of November and I have not posted anything for nearly 10 days. My excuse is that it was my 44th birthday last week and Im still recovering. Not quite true!!

Well the Grey Wagtail I have mentioned in the past is still attacking the door mirrors of our car. It must be nearly a month now that this has been going on. It starts at first light and continues until the sun is almost setting. When not attacking the mirrors it is walking all over the car leaving very muddy footprints. and it poohs absolutely everywhere. I am not very good at washing cars and tend to leave it for six months or so however I couldnt drive this in its present state!!

My feeders are very popular at the moment and there are so many goldfinch and greenfinch coming that it seems to attract other birds such as the sparrowhawk again A blackcap was also seen in the hedge in front of the house. I was told today by Anthony McGeehan that this would have been a migrating bird from probably Eastern Europe. The Blackcaps that breed here in May will have long gone back to the Mediterranean or North or West Africa. I have also had a few Coal Tits to the feeders. They tend to dive in and then fly away to a safe perch nearby to eat the sunflower hearts rather than hang around. I caught this one in the split second it arrived at the top of the feeder

I have also started trying to catch birds in flight. My first image is of a bluetit. It is underexposed and taken on a very grey day and is out of focus but it shows the opacity of its wings at full extension and for all its faults as an image I quite like it.

A couple of evenings ago I went out to Killard (One of my most favourite spots in the world) I took a few photos of Bar Tailed Godwits flying by
and also tried for some shots of a grey plover but when I lay down I noticed this juvenile ringed plover which was marginally nearer and in wonderful evening light.

While I was there I also took this image of a Stonechat . I posted it on the Nature Photographers Network (UK Forum) here This is one of the forums that I would visit on an almost daily basis as quite often has superb images. Anyway one of the forum members has done some post processing in Photoshop which I dont have and has made it into an absolutely lovely image.
Than you Sean.

Eve Happy Birthday!