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Tipperary/Offaly Birding (1 Viewer)

Will Wood Warbler ever make it to Offaly?

Anyone think Wood Warbler may ever make an appearance in Offaly (if it hasn't already - can't find any record though)? Surely Charleville Wood could be a likely location... Does anyone bird it regularly?
 
I've had a look/listen once or twice along the drive-way up to the castle in the past. Didn't come across any but thats not not to say they could turn up there in some years or other parts of Charleville (big spot). No records of the species for the county as far as I recall.

Dermot
 
Where did you hear about the Garden Warbler Offalybirder? The song is one I still struggle with when it comes to Blackcap. There's a decent population up on the shoreline of Lough Ree.
 
Reference to 'Water Pipit' in Offaly

I've read a reference to a report, supposedly in a 1909 British Birds, of a 'Water Pipit' in 'King's Co.'. Does anyone have access to the 1909 volume of BB (Vol 2) that could check it out? I don't think it is regarded as having occured in Offaly.
 
BB Vol 2

I've read a reference to a report, supposedly in a 1909 British Birds, of a 'Water Pipit' in 'King's Co.'. Does anyone have access to the 1909 volume of BB (Vol 2) that could check it out? I don't think it is regarded as having occured in Offaly.

Below is the only reference I found in BB Vol 2 to 'King's County'. Early Vols didn't run Jan - Dec so if you have some more on the reference I'll have another look.

WATER-PIPIT.-—A specimen shot by the late Canon Tristram
on Rockabill, eo. Dublin, in June. 1861, has hitherto been
unrecorded. This, the first and only Irish specimen, is now
in the Dublin Museum.
HONEY-BUZZARD.—One was shot in King's County, on
September 28th, 1903.


The above is taken from a letter by WJ Williams providing some supplemental records not mentioned in Ussher & Warren. The Water Pipit from Rockabill immediately precedes the Offaly Honey Buzzard in the text. Possibly a cause for confusion when reference was being originally quoted?
 
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Thanks very much dfd. You could be right regarding confusion. The original reference is from A Geographical Bibliography of British Ornithology (1920), and can be found here:
http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7585686

It simply states, under King's County:
1909. Witherby, H.F. Irish Birds - Water Pipit. (Brit. Birds, II.)

I presume the reference is to the journal British Birds since Witherby's own Practical Handbook to British Birds (2 vols) was only published between 1919 and 1924?

Anyway, thanks again
 
Yep, just checked the Co. Dublin listing and the same reference to Water Pipit appears there. Perhaps the King's Co. reference was merely drawing attention to the Honey Buzzard record. :t:
 
I'm trying to compile as complete and up-to-date species list for Co. Offaly as I can. Can anyone add to the list below, especially from the East of the county? Any Hawfinch or Rose-coloured Starling reports lurking around? ;)
Not a bad list for an inland, land-locked county!

In particular, does anyone know anything on the following, which don't seem to feaure in the IRBC reports?:
A report in 2006 of a Great Grey Shrike from Gorteen Wood on the Laois/Offaly border
A report in 2008 of a juvenile White-tailed Eagle at Boora.

  1. Mute Swan
  2. Bewick's Swan
  3. Whooper Swan
  4. Bean Goose
  5. Pink-footed Goose
  6. Greylag Goose
  7. White-fronted Goose
  8. Snow Goose
  9. Canada Goose
  10. Barnacle Goose
  11. Shelduck
  12. Ruddy Shelduck
  13. Wigeon
  14. American Wigeon
  15. Gadwall
  16. Teal
  17. Green-winged Teal
  18. Mallard
  19. Pintail
  20. Garganey
  21. Blue-winged Teal
  22. Shoveler
  23. Pochard
  24. Ferruginous Duck
  25. Tufted Duck
  26. Scaup
  27. Long-tailed Duck
  28. Goldeneye
  29. Smew
  30. Red-breasted Merganser
  31. Goosander
  32. Red Grouse
  33. Grey Partridge
  34. Quail
  35. Pheasant
  36. Red-throated Diver
  37. Great Northern Diver
  38. Little Grebe
  39. Great Crested Grebe
  40. Leach's Petrel
  41. Gannet
  42. Cormorant
  43. Shag
  44. Bittern
  45. Night Heron
  46. Little Egret
  47. Great Egret
  48. Grey Heron
  49. Glossy Ibis
  50. Honey Buzzard
  51. Red Kite
  52. Marsh Harrier
  53. Hen Harrier
  54. Goshawk
  55. Sparrowhawk
  56. Buzzard
  57. Golden Eagle
  58. Osprey
  59. Kestrel
  60. Merlin
  61. Hobby
  62. Peregrine Falcon
  63. Water Rail
  64. Spotted Crake
  65. Little Crake
  66. Corncrake
  67. Moorhen
  68. Coot
  69. Crane
  70. Oystercatcher
  71. Black-winged Stilt
  72. Ringed Plover
  73. Killdeer
  74. Dotterel
  75. American Golden Plover
  76. Golden Plover
  77. Grey Plover
  78. Sociable Plover
  79. Lapwing
  80. Knot
  81. Sanderling
  82. Little Stint
  83. Temminck's Stint
  84. Pectoral Sandpiper
  85. Curlew Sandpiper
  86. Dunlin
  87. Ruff
  88. Jack Snipe
  89. Snipe
  90. Woodcock
  91. Black-tailed Godwit
  92. Bar-tailed Godwit
  93. Whimbrel
  94. Curlew
  95. Common Sandpiper
  96. Green Sandpiper
  97. Spotted Redshank
  98. Greenshank
  99. Lesser Yellowlegs
  100. Wood Sandpiper
  101. Redshank
  102. Turnstone
  103. Red-necked Phalarope
  104. Grey Phalarope
  105. Arctic Skua
  106. Long-tailed Skua
  107. Kittiwake
  108. Black-headed Gull
  109. Little Gull
  110. Common Gull
  111. Lesser Black-backed Gull
  112. Herring Gull
  113. Glaucaus Gull
  114. Great Black-backed Gull
  115. Sandwich Tern
  116. Common Tern
  117. Arctic Tern
  118. Little Auk
  119. Pallas's Sandgrouse
  120. Rock Dove
  121. Stock Dove
  122. Woodpigeon
  123. Collared Dove
  124. Turtle Dove
  125. Cuckoo
  126. Barn Owl
  127. Long-eared Owl
  128. Short-eared Owl
  129. Nightjar
  130. Swift
  131. Kingfisher
  132. Bee-eater
  133. Hoopoe
  134. Great Spotted Woodpecker
  135. Woodlark
  136. Skylark
  137. Sand Martin
  138. Swallow
  139. House Martin
  140. Meadow Pipit
  141. Grey Wagtail
  142. Pied Wagtail
  143. Waxwing
  144. Dipper
  145. Wren
  146. Dunnock
  147. Robin
  148. Black Redstart
  149. Whinchat
  150. Stonechat
  151. Wheatear
  152. Ring Ouzel
  153. Blackbird
  154. Fieldfare
  155. Song Thrush
  156. Redwing
  157. Mistle Thrush
  158. American Robin
  159. Grasshopper Warbler
  160. Sedge Warbler
  161. Blackcap
  162. Garden Warbler
  163. Whitethroat
  164. Chiffchaff
  165. Willow Warbler
  166. Goldcrest
  167. Spotted Flycatcher
  168. Long-tailed Tit
  169. Blue Tit
  170. Great Tit
  171. Coal Tit
  172. Treecreeper
  173. Jay
  174. Magpie
  175. Jackdaw
  176. Rook
  177. Hooded Crow
  178. Raven
  179. Starling
  180. House Sparrow
  181. Tree Sparrow
  182. Chaffinch
  183. Brambling
  184. Greenfinch
  185. Goldfinch
  186. Siskin
  187. Linnet
  188. Twite
  189. Redpoll
  190. Crossbill
  191. Bullfinch
  192. Lapland Bunting
  193. Snow Bunting
  194. Yellowhammer
  195. Reed Bunting
  196. Corn Bunting
 
Impressive list for the Faithful alright - Sociable Plover & American Robin; both very nice indeed. Surprised RN Duck not there yet. Will have a scout through some older references over next few days and see if I can find anything.
 
Hi Offalybirder (sorry but do you have a real name??)

Stephen Heery did up a list for County Offaly about 2 years back but I don't have it to hand. Its looks like you have just about everything there though and I can't see any obvious omissions. Med Gull would surely be an addition to the list in the near future one would imagine.
As for Ring-necked Duck it's easy to see why there aren't any records so far. Offaly has few lakes (Pallas, Charleville and Raheen, first two rarely have any diving duck). One should turn up at Boora, probably more likely in the Spring with the returning Tufties. Be careful of hybrids though as Pat Brennan had one on Pat Reddans about 2 years back. I've also had hybrids in Donegal and West Galway.
I'm originally from Offaly myself and Boora was my local patch during the mid 90's to early 00's. It a great spot for birds of prey, breeding waders and wintering Whoopers but it can get fairly depressing at say the least if you're looking for rares. Best birds I ever found in the county in over ten years were Temminck's Stint, 3-4 Green-winged Teal, Snow Bunting, Short-eared Owl and that's probably the height of it. I've missed all the good birds at Boora in recent years - Crane, Red-necked Phal, Hobby, etc.

Dermot
 
Forgot to mention I had a look for the GG Shrike at the time but didn't see anything at apart from a Red Grouse up on the hill. I think the guy who saw it was working for Coillte (it was in clear fell forestry which sounds perfect for the species). He had seen them in Spain on holidays (Southern Greys that is) so I'd don't have many doubts over the id. However I don't know if the record has been submitted/accepted which is the important thing if its to be added to the county list.
Northern Grey Shrike would be greatly appreciated by alot of birders here as it's been a long time since there was a twitchable one in Ireland.

D
 
Thanks Dermot. Yes, I have Stephen Heery's list. There are a few records from Ussher and Warren that don't appear on it - Golden Eagle, Ring Ouzel, Long-tailed Skua, Little Gull, Woodlark, Shag. And the 1983 American Robin record in Edenderry. It also, of course, doesn't include post-2005 records - American Wigeon, Long-tailed Duck, Great Northern Diver, Red-necked Phalarope, Grey Phalarope, Garden Warbler, Tree Sparrow, Lapland Bunting. Thought there might be a few others knocking about - especialy from the east of he county.

Michael
 
Going to be visiting the family near Cloughjordan next week and hoping to investigate any good local spots. Anyone got any suggestions?

Thanks,
Graham
 
Hi Everyone.

Im living here 7 years now,and in the past two weeks,for the first time ever in my garden..Blackcaps....Siskins....Male and Female Bullfinch.And yesterday the Redpolls arrived....

For the past week i have witnessed the Starlings Roosting for the evening,what a site to see and all in and around my garden.
 
Directions for Crane

Take the R400 6km south of Rhode. Go through a staggered crossroads with the R402 Edenderry to Tullamore roads (petrol station here on the right). Continue south towards Portarlington. 1 - 2km along this road there is a small Bord na Mona works on the left with parking beside it. Park here and follow railway line running behind the works. Bird spends most of its time out on the open cutaway bog here. Half a dozen Whoopers and Mutes on the flooded sections of bog. It loosely associates with these.

Dermot
 

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