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Wexford birding (1 Viewer)

Hiya,

29th October

Lingstown, Tacumshin Lake (15:00-17:30)

A quick spin down in the evening to try again for the Bittern but no luck. Again it was quite misty & windy. Walked out into the area of reeds out from the car park but only managed to flush some Snipe, Mallard, Grey Heron & Little Egrets. A 1cy male & a "near-adult" female Hen Harrier were seen hunting over the reedbed. 12 Little Egrets & 2 Grey Herons were seen flying into roost at the stand of conifers in the NW corner of Lingstown. Several Water Rail heard also.

Also, pics of the Blue-winged Teal recently shot on the North Slob can be found here

http://www.wexfordnaturalists.com/gaggle_pop.php?id_gagal=1685&id_gag=44

http://www.wexfordnaturalists.com/gaggle_pop.php?id_gagal=1686&id_gag=44

All the best,
Niall
 
Hiya,

8th November: Niall T. Keogh & Noel Keogh

Wexford Wildfowl Reserve, North Slob:
A shoot was held on the slob yesterday so most of the duck had cleared out or were showing distantly at the far end of the channels. Plenty of Greenland White-fronted Geese & Light-bellied Brent Geese in. The GWFronts look like they have had a good breeding season bucking recent downward trends whilst the LBBrents seem to be down in numbers of young reared this year compared to the past two years which have been very productive for them. At the Pat Walsh Hide; 2 Scaup, a Kestrel, a female-type Merlin, 4-5 Goldcrests, an Otter, a Pygmy Shrew and squealing Water Rail were the best. 2 Spotted Redshank and a Kingfisher were on the sea wall at the Pump House outflow. Out from the Observation Tower there was; an adult female Hen Harrier, big numbers of Golden Plover, Lapwing & Black-tailed Godwits (being harassed by the Merlin), some Little Egrets, Greenshank, Snipe, Tree Sparrows, Irish Hare & good numbers of Goldeneye & Great Crested Grebes in Wexford Harbour.

Tacumshin Lake:
On the way to Tac from the North Slob we got a text from Killian to say that himself & Pat Lonergan had just found a 1cy male Ring-necked Duck in the Forgotten Corner! Soon enough we were on site watching it, showing well with 104 Tufted Duck, 2 Pochard & a Scaup. A good sized Aythya flock for Tac, probably due to the fact that the lake is currently full to the brim with water. Hard to check the rest of the duck seeing as they are all on the far side which is accessible only with waders. There was c.380 Whooper Swans on the lake, with very few 1cy birds in amongst them. The 1cy Glossy Ibis is still at the east end, showing well and a Red Admiral was seen at the High Car Park. Returning to Lingstown this evening, there was again no further sign of the Bittern, but a female & a 1cy male Hen Harrier, a Kestrel, a female-type Merlin, lots a squealing Water Rail & 26 Little Egrets heading to roost were all seen.

Lady's Island Lake:
The 1cy Long-tailed Duck & 22 Pochard were at Sgarbheen.

Churchtown:
Decided to have a quick look around here in the late afternoon before going to check Lingstown seeing as the wind had died down. All seemed pretty quiet with a Kestrel, some Bullfinches and a Red Admiral being the best until a Chiffchaff was seen flitting into the willow stand. Following up on it revealed there to be a small bit of activity in the willows beside the "Game Sanctuary" sign where a Goldcrest, 2 collybita Chiffchaffs & a Siberian Chiffchaff were found feeding in a loose group where we watched them from 14:30 to 15:45. The Sibe Chiffer ticked all the boxes for a typical tristis on plumage features. Unfortunately it didn't call but I'm confident that if t was to it would sound like one!!! The collybita Chiffers were quite vocal and one was seen side by side with the Sibe Chiffer, the two couldn't look more different. Here's to the split!

All the best,
Niall
 
A visit to Wexford on 27th with Dennis Weir produced the Slobs Black Brant, a Slavonian Grebe off the harbour wall,two Hen Harriers and a Marsh Harrier at Tacumshin. The sheep number of wildfowl around the various spots was very impressive.

derek
 
Hiya,

17th January 2010: Niall T. Keogh & Noel Keogh

Tacumshin Lake:
The water level were extremely high, probably the highest I can recall since first visiting the site in 1995! The majority of the Wigeon & waders seemed to have cleared out, still decent numbers of Gadwall, Pintail & Teal present, mostly in the flooded areas of The Patches or in The Forgotten Corner. A classic drake Green-winged Teal showed very well in The Forgotten Corner where c.100 Tufted Duck, 3 Pochard, 3 Scaup & a Goldeneye were also present. 21 Bewick's Swans (three 2nd cal-years) were over by The Patches whilst an adult Peregrine, adult Mediterranean Gull, 5 Little Egrets, a Kestrel, 60+ Whooper Swans, 4 Greenland White-fronted Geese and 3 roosting Hen Harriers (adult male & two ringtails) were also seen.

Lady's Island Lake:

c.125 Pochard, c.55 Tufted Duck, a ringtail Hen Harrier & 2 Little Egrets.

Wexford Wildfowl Reserve:
Relatively quiet with 2 Peregrines and a Little Egret being the only birds of note on the reserve. 3 Great Northern Divers were in Wexford Harbour.

All the best,
Niall
 
Hiya,

31st January:

Nice view of a tagged Red Kite on the N11, just north of Arklow Rugby Club (Co. Wicklow) at 10:10 on the way down today.

The adult Black Brant and a ringtail Hen Harrier were seen from the Observation Tower, Wexford Wildfowl Reserve.

Pretty quiet birdwise, but pride and place of the day went to a breaching Humpback Whale & 4 Fin Whales off Baginbun Head!

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!! B :)

All the best,
Niall
 
Ah b*****x - was at Hook head this weekend! I was going to bring some small kids down to Baginbun beach on Sunday morning but it was too cold.
Paul
 
Some news from yesterday:

-Glossy Ibis still at Tacumshin, giving good views in the flooded reedbed below the East End car park. Also present were Marsh Harrier and many ducks, swans and waders.

-1 Fin Whale off Baginbun Head and possibly the Humpback as well. Strong easterly wind was making observation quite difficult and only spouts were seen. The Fin Whale was about 1Km offshore, while the other whale was about 1.5 to 2Km away (3 spouts in quick succession, not as straight as Fin). Good numbers of Gannets, Fulmars and a few Red-throated Divers present.
 
Holy shmokes!

Wexford is having a very good run at the moment!!!

Tacumshin Lake:
- Baikal Teal
- Green-winged Teal
- Long-billed Dowitcher
- Glossy Ibis
- 2 Marsh Harriers

Lady's Island Lake:
- Red-necked Grebe
- Black-throated Diver
- 2 Long-tailed Ducks

Wexford Wildfowl Reserve:
- Black Brant

Rosslare Backstrand/South Slob:
- Ruddy Shelduck

Bannow Bay:
- 2 Goosanders

Hook Head
- Humpback & 3 Fin Whales

Going to be down in The Forgotten Corner first thing tomorrow morning hoping to get this Baikal!

All the best,
Niall
 
Hi all,

21st February: Niall T. Keogh, Noel Keogh & Eanna O'Flynn

Tacumshin Lake:
Got down to The Forgotten Corner for just after 07:30 to find the lake stuffed with birds. The weather & light were absolutely perfect too. At about 08:15 I picked up the drake Baikal Teal roughly in the middle of the lake looking towards the sluice from Stoney Point. After spending a good deal of time asleep, the flock took off and we got some nice views of it in flight and then on the deck after the bird relocated. A cracking lifer! :t:

Apart from popping over to Lady's Island & Rostoonstown during the afternoon (where we saw absolutely nothing), we spent the day on Tackers and racked up the drake Green-winged Teal, the long-staying Glossy Ibis, a male Ruff, 18 Bewick's Swans, an adult summer Mediterranean Gull, a Buzzard, an adult male & 3 ringtail Hen Harriers, a Short-eared Owl, c.30 Little Egrets, c.80 Greylag Geese, c.200 Whooper Swans & 20 Greenland White-fronted Geese.

The Long-billed Dowitcher was seen briefly that morning by Denis O'Sullivan but despite spending a good deal of time searching for it throughout the day we failed to relocate it.

See ya,
Niall
 
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Hi, Advice required please. I am confined to a wheelchair and am a real Newbie at bird watching although I can drive my own car. I keep reading about places like Lady's Island, Tacumshin Lake and the Forgotten Corner. Can anyone tell me which are or are not suitable for the wheelchair and which are the most likely places that I will bump into experienced birders who will be happy to pass on some of their knowledge. Thank you. John
 
Hi, Advice required please. I am confined to a wheelchair and am a real Newbie at bird watching although I can drive my own car. I keep reading about places like Lady's Island, Tacumshin Lake and the Forgotten Corner. Can anyone tell me which are or are not suitable for the wheelchair and which are the most likely places that I will bump into experienced birders who will be happy to pass on some of their knowledge. Thank you. John

Hi,

Unfortunately Ireland doesn't have quite the same facilities as would be available in (for example) the UK. A couple sites that may of interest:

(1) Ladies Island: Take signposted turn from main Wexford-Rosslare Road. In the village park on the grassy car park in front of the ruined castle. The islands have migrant waders and breeding terns/gulls in spring/summer. On the lake itself GC Grebe, Little Grebe, various Ducks. You can drive the dirt track around the island and scan the islands and lake.

(2) Carnsore Point: Some interesting seawatching from the car park.

(3) Tacumshin: The east end car park would not be ideal, but you should be able to get views of the East End Pond (Gadwall, Garganey, Little Gull). The west end car park is probably best for viewing the main lake.

(4) North Slob: Several accessible hides.

(5) The Raven NNR: Several good tracks. Good for Crossbills, Red Squirrel and various Seals at the Pont (4-5 Kms one way). In winter, this is a good place to see the Greenland White-fronts. The sea off White Hole has Slavonian Grebes in winter and Spring.

Eric Dempseys Where to Watch Guide would be quite helpful IMO.

Hope this helps :eat:
 
Hiya,

25th April:

Churchtown:

Got the male Woodchat Shrike at 0715, showing well near the willow stand, feeding on bumblebees and beetles. Heard it singing too.

Lady's Island Lake:
Some nice Common Terns, Black-headed Gulls & Great-crested Grebes displaying at Sgarbheen where some Blackwits, a summer plumaged Greenshank, a pair of Med Gulls & 30 Whimbrel were also present.

Great Saltee
(Niall T. Keogh, Noel Keogh, Keiran Grace, Tom Shevlin, Jimmy Dowdall & Joe Adamson).

Fairly quiet, with most of yesterdays migrants apparently having moved on.
20+ phylloscs
5 Grasshopper Warblers
2 Whitethroats
3 Blackcaps
plenty of Sedge Warblers
c.50 Swallows
a few House Martins
2 Wheatears
a Starling (scarce on the island)
a Snipe
a Water Rail
2 Greylag Geese
a Merlin
Puffins, Choughs, Peregrine, all the usual seabirds etc etc.

A fantastic light phase adult Pomarine Skua flew east from the boat back to Kilmore Quay at 1145.

Tacumshin Lake:
4-5 Reed Warblers & 2 Whitethroats were singing at Lingstown. c.35 Large Red Damselflies were also present here. A male Ruff was in the Forgotten Corner. Lots of Golden Plover, Blackwits, Turnstones, some Barwits, 25 Whimbrel etc. 2 drake Garganey on the east end pond, a Swift and a singing Grasshopper Warbler at Sigginstown Island.

Churchtown/Nethertown/Carnsore:
The Woodchat had relocated to the wind farm at Nethertown but despite extensive searching around the area we failed relocate it. Plenty of Common Terns & Manx Shearwaters off Carnsore. Lots of Turnstones, Blackwits & 50 Whimbrel at Nethertown. Up to 10 Mediterranean Gulls feeding in ploughed fields around the area.

A great day out with lots of migs about & 10 year ticks. A constant passage of Swallows, House Martins & Whimbrel overhead in small numbers at all locations throughout the day.

All the best,
Niall
 

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