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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

County Louth (formerly Dundalk Bay) local patch. (9 Viewers)

Thank you Dolce and Peter for your kind comments.
I-WeBS Count this morning. The pair of Shoveler are still in Beaulieu. No sign of the Snow Buntings at Baltray Beach. Still 4 Black Guillimot at Clogherhead. Lots of Scoter far out at sea at Baltray Beach.
 

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The eye of the storm

Nice shots Margaret.

I went out for my usual jaunt today, but decided to do the route, back to front, starting at Salterstown and ending at Clogher Head, so as I could try for the Long tailed Ducks and Black throated Diver before the weather turned.

I need not have worried about the weather as Louth appeared to be in the eye of the storm today with glorious blue skies, surrounded on all sides with thick dark clouds.

Almost all the diving birds were asleep after the rough night.I had
4 Long tailed Duck (3 males and a female)at Salterstown (thanks Margaret), and at the end of the lane at Dunany about a hundred metres out the Black throated Diver was preening away(thanks Enda and PK).

The waves were lapping over the wall at Cruisetown, so no gulls there. A couple of hundred large gulls at Port Oriel (Clogher Head), the best among them was a 1st Winter Iceland Gull.



118 Long tailed Duck

119 Black throated Diver
 
Peter Phillips said:
Almost all the diving birds were asleep after the rough night.I had
4 Long tailed Duck (3 males and a female)at Salterstown (thanks Margaret), and at the end of the lane at Dunany about a hundred metres out the Black throated Diver was preening away(thanks Enda and PK).
Click to expand...
Went to Dunany this evening but no luck with the BT Diver.
 
I went out for a shortened trip this morning on account of the rain (the sun came out when I arrived home).

Salterstown was quiet with just a few divers grebes scotor and mergansers. One distant Long tailed Duck was the best.

Hermitage was very quiet (skipped Dunany).

At Cruisetown there were a hundred or so large gulls including the 3 first winter Iceland Gulls and a couple of Lesser black backed Gulls. There were very few Black headed Gull or Common Gulls. I am assuming with all the plowing going on at the moment that feeding is good inland at the moment (I had several hundred Black headed and Common Gulls near Dunleer last week.

I forgot to mention there were about 200 Linnet at Dunany yesterday.
 
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In response to a PM that someone sent me: bt diver is black-throated diver also known as black throated loon (eg in the collins). They are hard to seperate from great northern divers. The three main id points are
1. they are a bit smaller and in the company of GNDs this can be a clue
2. they should show a white cresent shaped flash towards the rear at the waterline, however in choppy sea this can be obscured
3. most importatnly they lack a partial black collar around the neck and this with a "full" chest, gives them a sort of hooded cobra look

red throated divers are quite different in that they hold their bill up, are smaller and always greyer in colour...personally i have only once seen a definate bt diver in louth, though many possible candidates - others may have something to add to this...
 
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breffni said:
In response to a PM that someone sent me: bt diver is black-throated diver also known as black throated loon (eg in the collins). They are hard to seperate from great northern divers. The three main id points are
1. they are a bit smaller and in the company of GNDs this can be a clue
2. they should show a white cresent shaped flash towards the rear at the waterline, however in choppy sea this can be obscured
3. most importatnly they lack a partial black collar around the neck and this with a "full" chest, gives them a sort of hooded cobra look

red throated divers are quite different in that they hold their bill up, are smaller and always greyer in colour...personally i have only once seen a definate bt diver in louth, though many possible candidates - others may have something to add to this...
Click to expand...

That sounds about right!

Attached a picture of Stormy Dunany Point yesterday and one of the Iceland Gulls today.
 

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The Bird Forum got a mention on LMFM this morning re a comment made here some time ago about the need to manage and protect wooded areas in Dundalk. This follows on from the felling of trees and a wall in the Ramparts area of the town recently which may impact on breeding Kingfishers and other wildlife.
 
MargaretM said:
The Bird Forum got a mention on LMFM this morning re a comment made here some time ago about the need to manage and protect wooded areas in Dundalk. This follows on from the felling of trees and a wall in the Ramparts area of the town recently which may impact on breeding Kingfishers and other wildlife.
Click to expand...

You have to be careful what you say...you never know who might be watching!
 
Hi,
Realise these are Dublin Herons but just thought to ask on your very active site for comments on the 'diving' antics of these Herons. I have not seen this previously and was amazed at the depths they reached seeking 'tit-bits'. Two of them were diving from four or five feet and most of their body was submerged.
Regards,
Joe
 

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Apparently the herons at the docks at dundalk enjoy the odd rat. I have variously heard that they drown them first, toss them up and swollow them whole!
 
Folks I urgently need photos of the area along the ramparts river where the trees were cut down. Before and during preferably. I met the developer today anhd he is keen to restore the riverbank area. The cleared area will soon be a 5 story apartment building... Also kingfishers nested there in the last 5 years (2003 anyway) - does anyone know the exact nest site that was used - developer will cover cost of artificial nest hole.
 
j curtis said:
Hi,
Realise these are Dublin Herons but just thought to ask on your very active site for comments on the 'diving' antics of these Herons. I have not seen this previously and was amazed at the depths they reached seeking 'tit-bits'. Two of them were diving from four or five feet and most of their body was submerged.
Regards,
Joe
Click to expand...

Haven't seen Herons going so far under the water, but I did see photos of one swallowing a rabbit!! Not a pretty sight. So I wouldn't be surprised what antics we might see them getting up to Joe. Excellent photos by the way.
 
Hi,
Thanks for the comments Margaret & Breffni. BTW there was 29 Herons (at least) came to the feast that I could count. Both the sealions & penguims attracted a fair following. Amazing to stand 6 feet from a wild heron when you consider how hard it is to get near one on the Boyne.
Regards,
Joe
 
Hi all,
Here is a report I got back on a colour ringed Black-tailed Godwit I saw on the Little Brosna Callows a while back. If you look down the list you'll see a report from Dundalk Bay on 05-04-05. Did anyone on here report it by any chance? Its a long shot I know


GR-OX was ringed in SW Iceland. Top line is the day of ringing. Details below.



27.04.02
Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
Faxafloi

28.04.02
Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
Faxafloi

29.04.02
Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
Faxafloi

30.04.02
Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
Faxafloi

01.05.02
Grafarvogur, Reykjavík, SW Iceland
Faxafloi

08.10.02
Réserve Naturelle du Marais d'Yves, Charente-Maritime, W France
W Fra

28.11.02
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

01.03.03
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

14.05.03
Kílhraun, Árnessýsla, S Iceland
S Low

02.12.03
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

08.01.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

15.01.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

19.01.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

23.01.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

07.02.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

07.02.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

05.03.04
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

19.04.04
Loch Beg, Londonderry, N Ireland
N Ire

20.01.05
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

15.03.05
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

05.04.05
Dundalk Bay, Co. Louth, E Ireland
E Ire

11.08.05
Alde estuary, Suffolk, E England
E Eng

12.03.06
Bowling Green Marsh, Exe Estuary, SW England
SW Eng

30.03.06
Exe Estuary, Devon, SW England
SW Eng

01.03.08
Ashton´s callow, Little Borsna callows, Offaly, C Ireland
C Ire
 
j curtis said:
Hi,
Realise these are Dublin Herons but just thought to ask on your very active site for comments on the 'diving' antics of these Herons. I have not seen this previously and was amazed at the depths they reached seeking 'tit-bits'. Two of them were diving from four or five feet and most of their body was submerged.
Regards,
Joe
Click to expand...

Yes one or two frequently dive (or flop)into the sealion pool (6 feet deep)as well in search of food. I have never seen this behaviour outside the zoo.
 
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