West Donegal (1 Viewer)

rdspalm · Oct 9, 2010

Well Choughed Today!

We were at Derrybeg on domestic business and noticed a flock of 22 Chough at Magheragallon. The trusty Nikon was on the back seat so grabbed a few photos from the car.

Went on to Magheraroarty looking for Lapland Bunting. Saw RB Merganser, Eider, White Wagtail, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Gt Black Backed Gull, Meadow Pipit. Too windy.

Travelled on to New Lake, Dunfanaghy. Mute Swan in large numbers (50+) Wigeon, Mallard, Teal, but much too windy to see though a scope. Looked in at Inch Lake on the road home. Low water with not much of interest yet. No Whooper or Brent yet.

Richard.

rdspalm · Nov 4, 2010

Inch Lake

Plenty of Whoopers at Inch, mostly in the fields around Burt. Hope to get out again at the weekend.

Richard

rdspalm · Jan 3, 2011

Mountcharles & St John's Point

Had a good day birding at Mountcharles & St John's Point today. Very cold but still conditions.

The highlights were:
Yellow Legged Gull (at Mountcharles)
Great Northern Divers
Red Throated Diver
Kestrel
Stonechat
Great Crested Grebe
Little Grebe
Red Breasted Merganser
Brent Goose
Black Guillemot

rdspalm · Jan 9, 2011

Grounded This Weekend

I did not manage to get out to Inch this weekend. with a layer of ice covering my park and the prospect of Inch Lake being frozen solid again I'm afraid I did not venture forth. I really must get out and get some last minute photos for the NIOC bird photography competition. Not a chance this year!!!

manka · Feb 13, 2011

Driving home from the cinema lastnight shortly after 1am when i saw a white ghost hovering just beyond a hedgerow not 5mins from home..Only my second sighting of a barnowl..!!Quite rare in these parts..!!

Chis34 · Mar 21, 2011

Tramore/Sheskinmore
Just a brief visit over the holiday.
Couple of groups of Greenland white-fronted geese. First of about 12/14 grazing near the lake and a second in flight heading towards the lake of 35+
No Brent on the estuary that I could see during a couple of walks which is surprising as there has been in the past at this time. However there were 5 Brent on the main beach at tramore. Apart from this the usual. A few meadow pipits starting to gather and the sound of larks in the air. Oystercatchers and sanderling at the waterline with usual array of gulls. Did disturb whooper swans on a couple of occasions on the small ponds in the dunes (pairs) and there were 12 on Kiltooris. No sign of ringed plover on the beach. Hopefully back soon for an update.

manka · May 12, 2011

white stork

Got a bit of a suprise yesterday morning while visiting my parents house around 10am..I seen a large bird swooping over the playing fields of Bridgend national school..It looked like a huge gull. untill i seen the long neck..To cut a long story short,i ran for the binoculers that are always in my vechile..!! On arrival at the school i found the bird perching on a lampost preening itself..It flew dowm into a garden where i got some photos.

I contacted the wildlife officer' and we both agreed that it moust have been blown off course with the easterly winds..Then we noticed the bird had a ring on it..Not the usual BTO ring..We then concluded it was a possible esapee from a collection..A few phone calls and we found out that it had been seen in gweedore Co Donegal and in castlerock in NI recently..I will try and post some photos with this.!!

rdspalm · Jul 17, 2011

Derrybeg Summer

Just back from a week in Derrybeg. Birdlife surprisingly sparse.
Common Sandpiper
Lapwing
Wheatear
Bullfinch at Ards Forest Park
Cough
Sandwich Tern
Curlew
Rock Bunting

Hoping for better next month.

Richard

Dermot Breen · Jul 18, 2011

I wouldn't consider a first for Ireland too bad at all - Rock Bunting

Dermot

rdspalm · Jul 18, 2011

Correction

Sorry Dermot,

Lapse of thought. It was a Rock Pipit not a Rock Bunting! (I did photograph Rock Bunting in Extremadura in April. Must have been thinking of that holiday when I added 46 lifers.

Cheers,

Richard

andy.h · Jul 26, 2011

Quick visit to family last weekend and a walk across from little bay at Carrackfinn resulted in hearing corncrake there for the first time in many years. At least three calling on Saturday evening. visiting fisherman reporting seeing one in open near the flat rocks.

Great to hear and record them, pity I didn't see them!!

birdsgalway · Jul 28, 2011

Andy.H

Would great to pass this information on to BirdWatch Ireland.
Contact details
http://www.birdwatchireland.ie/Ourwork/SurveysProjects/Corncrakes/tabid/192/Default.aspx

andy.h · Jul 30, 2011

Happy to do so. Thanks for the link.

Peter Phillips · Aug 3, 2011

Tory Island 2nd August

I took a day trip to Tory yesterday.

Fairy quiet. 42 species in total.No migrants of note. 3 Sedge Warblers in the reed beds either side of West and East Towns are probably breeding there. Also a Tufted Duck with 2 chicks on the lake near the Lighthouse. Lots of juvenile Wheatears around. Highlights were few and far between with a Corncrake sunning itself on a wall in West Town and a Barnacle Goose on the lake.

I got talking to Anton Meehan who said the goose has been there all winter and has an injured wing. He also had a Waxwing, for a day last november, feeding in his garden on a small contoneaster bush in. It left when it had eated what few berries where available. Also interesting- he said a Buzzard wintered on the island. His neighbour up at the east end had a female corncrake with 8 small chicks at his front door on monday.

Boat trip

Fulmar 7
Manx Shearwater 41
Gannet 50
Shag 8
Turnstone 1
Kittiwake 7
'Commic Tern' 31
Puffin 9
Black Guillemot 2
Guillemot 1
Razorbill 2

Tory Island

Grey Heron 2
Mute Swan 2
Barnacle Goose 1
Mallard 15
Tufted Duck 3
Corncrake 1
Oystercatcher 50
Ringed Plover 50
Lapwing 1
Dunlin 1
Redshank 1
Curlew 2
Snipe 1
Common Gull 2
Herring Gull 70
Lesser black backed Gull 7
Great black backed Gull 10
Rock/Feral Pigeon 10
Swallow 80
Meadow Pipit 10
Rock Pipit 40
Pied Wagtail 5
Wren 8
Wheatear 50
Sedge Warbler 3
Chough 4
Hooded Crow 3
Starling 240
Tree Sparrow 30
Reed Bunting 1

Peter Phillips · Aug 10, 2011

Very quiet today just 38 species. 2 Storm Petrels and a Great Skua were about the best. Antos brother had a large bird of prey briefly during the week being mobbed by gulls he thought might be an eagle sp. Lots more Sedge Warblers in the various reed beds.

Boat trip

Fulmar 4
Manx Shearwater 4
Gannet 25
Shag 20
Cormorant 1
Kittiwake 8
Common Tern 2
Black Guillemot 1

Tory Island

Grey Heron 2
Mute Swan 2
Barnacle Goose 1
Mallard 18
Moorhen 1
Oystercatcher 70
Ringed Plover 20
Lapwing 18
Dunlin 3
Redshank 3
Curlew 1
Snipe 3
Common Gull 2
Herring Gull 60
Lesser black backed Gull 2
Great black backed Gull 10
Rock/Feral Pigeon 2
Swallow 40
Meadow Pipit 10
Rock Pipit 30
Pied Wagtail 1
Wren 16
Wheatear 30
Sedge Warbler 8
Chough 2
Raven 1
Starling 50
Tree Sparrow 8
Reed Bunting 1

Peter Phillips · Sep 15, 2011

55 Species.The boat had been canceled for the last 3 days after the big storm. Big waves on the way over, the highlights a Leach's Petrel just 30 feet from the boat at eye level for about a minute. On Tory all the birds were in the west near the lake 30 Lapland Bunting 5 American Waders and a confiding Grey Phalarope were the highlights The best day so far.

Boat trip

Leach's Pertel 1
Storm Petrel 8
Fulmar 50 (1 Blue Fulmar)
Manx Shearwater 8
Sooty Shearwater 1
Gannet 300 (mainly juvs)
Shag 20
Kittiwake 55
Common Tern 2
Arctic Tern 30
Sandwich Tern 1
Arctic Skua 1
Great Skua 35
Black Guillemot 2
Puffin 1

Tory Island

Grey Heron 2
Mute Swan 2
Barnacle Goose 1
Mallard 30
Teal 2
Oystercatcher 20
Ringed Plover 30
Lapwing 40
Dunlin 15
Redshank 5
Curlew 2
Snipe 11
Ruff 2
Curlew Sandpiper 2
Black-tailed Godwit 1
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Buff breasted Sandpiper 4
Grey Phalarope 1
Kestrel 1
Common Gull 1
Herring Gull 70
Lesser black backed Gull 1
Great black backed Gull 10
Rock/Feral Pigeon 8
Swallow 6
Meadow Pipit 40
Rock Pipit 30
Pied Wagtail 6
White Wagtail 25
Wren 12
Wheatear 25
Sedge Warbler 1
Chough 3
Raven 4
Starling 200
Tree Sparrow 6
Linnet 3
Goldfinch 1
Lapland Bunting 30

I also had an Osprey on the way up near Sion Mills County Tyrone

Peter Phillips · Sep 28, 2011

Tory Island 27th September 2011

No boat at Bunbeg this morning. I travelled to Magheroarty-no boat there either! I rang the skipper and he told me that because of a low tide there would be no boat untill 10.30 am and it would be returning at 3.00pm, giving me just a little over 3 hours birding on the island. I spent a productive hour near the pier with a Tree Pipit the best along with a Whimbrel, 4 White Wagtails and 4 Black-tailed Godwits.

The trip over took an hour because of the wind and a juv Black Tern made up for the lack of quantity of birds. The island was very quiet with just a single Chiffchaff up east. 9 Lapland bunting washing in a puddle outside the cafe gave great views.

No sign of the 2 Common Rosefinch reported during the previous week and Anton Meenans brother was telling me about the Wood Warbler that was feeding in his potato patch with the sparrows for a few days. He has since cleared the patch so his garden was quiet.

The King of Tory reported a "Yellow-browed Warbler from Russia seen by some birdwatcher over the weekend"
I recieved plenty of twitter texts during the day about Barred Warbler in Galway, Ortolan Bunting in Clare and Rough-legged Buzzard in Mayo. It was obvious the birds were 'falling, out west'.

The boat trip back was quiet but a Grey Phalarope on the water just of the boat was a nice surprise. The gardens at Bloody Foreland were quiet.

All in all a good day.

Boat trip

Gannet 40
Shag 300
Grey Phalarope 1
Kittiwake 4
Black Tern 1
Puffin 2

Tory Island

Mute Swan 2
Barnacle Goose 1
Mallard 30
Oystercatcher 20
Ringed Plover 8
Lapwing 20
Dunlin 1
Redshank 4
Curlew 1
Snipe 8
Turnstone 12
Kestrel 1
Herring Gull 70
Lesser black backed Gull 1
Great black backed Gull 10
Rock/Feral Pigeon 20
Meadow Pipit 50
Rock Pipit 30
Pied Wagtail 4
White Wagtail 2
Wren 4
Wheatear 4
Chiffchaff 1
Chough 3
Hooded Crow 5
Starling 200
Tree Sparrow 4
Reed Bunting 1
Lapland Bunting 9

Peter Phillips · Oct 24, 2011

Off to Tory Island tomorrow. No sign of the Ovenbird or Brown Shrike in Western Scotland today . Hopefully there both on Tory tomorrow!

Peter Phillips · Oct 26, 2011

Tory 25th October

A great day today. 51 species.Highlights on the boat was a flock of Barnacle Geese flying in off the sea and 4 Pomarine Skuas harassing the local Kittiwakes near the island.Plenty of grounded migrants 450 thrushes and over 60 warblers including 4 Yellow browed Warblers and a Willow Warbler (looked a bit eastern

Blackcap were everywhere up to a dozen in one bush and a Black Redstart in west town was nice. An American Golden Plover at the lake was a tick!

Anton Meenan had up to 5 Snow Bunting last week and an owl (probably Short eared Owl at the east end. The buzzard has been seen regularly.

Boat trip

Gannet 12
Shag 170
Cormorant 3
Pomarine Skua 4
Kittiwake 70
Arctic Tern 1
Razorbill 3
Black Guillemot 4
Guillemot 5
Barnacle Goose 18
Great Northern Diver 10
Herring Gull 5

Tory Island

Mute Swan 2
Barnacle Goose 1
Mallard 60
Teal 2
Shoveler 1
Tufted Duck 3
Oystercatcher 50
Ringed Plover 15
American Golden Plover 1
Lapwing 40
Dunlin 5
Redshank 15
Curlew 7
Snipe 8
Turnstone 110
Purple Sandpiper 2
Kestrel 1
Buzzard 1
Herring Gull 110
Great black backed Gull 5
Rock/Feral Pigeon 40
Meadow Pipit 20
Rock Pipit 30
Pied Wagtail 5
Wren 14
Wheatear 3
Black Redstart 1
Chiffchaff 10
Willow Warbler 1
Blackcap 46
Yellow browed Warbler 4
Song Thrush 15
Blackbird 20
Fieldfare 75
Redwing 350
Chough 3
Hooded Crow 5
Raven 3
Starling 200
Tree Sparrow 14

murso87 · Oct 27, 2011

Just back from a nice walk round Inisowen Head,saw Ravens, Buzzards, a Reed Bunting, Perregine Falcon, Rock and Meadow Pipits,Fulmars, Great Black-Backed Gull, Gannets,and Snow Buntings.

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