Good for you Paddy and welcome to the forum, I think that you will find it very interesting.Hi all,
First post on this forum. MargaretM prompted me to join. While wardening at Baltray today saw a gannet diving off the coast and a whimbrel passed right over the the hut.
Paddy
They are easy enough to find in the right places (the "hidden creek" at ballymascanlon estuary is one - also likely there are green sandpipers at this time fo the year).
I had a garden warbler in the mature beeches at the nuremore hotel on wednesday - passed within about six feet of my nose!
I never saw so many beautiful Yellow Wagtails and Grey Wagtails in my life as in a river in Knock gardens shown in third picture. I still love to watch them at the lower shore in Omeath but a long time since I saw so so many of them. We just saw a flash of yellow in fourth picture and think it was a Yellowhammer maybe that came down from doing exquisite singing in a very high tree but distant picture cropped up. There were dozens of the tiniest lovliest little bird imaginable especially in the evenings and think they were some kind of Garden Warblers but not sure and the last picure is best picture I could get as they moved so quickly like butterflies. We could see a white chest, greeny yellow and little grey somewhere too on them. I had two similar very small birds in my own garden last week which definitely were not Wrens and think some sort of Warbler too as of pointed beaks. There were Song Thrushes everywhere and I never saw so many lovely Swallows in my life. I have to say it is becoming a bird havern with the beautifully cared for gardens. And plenty of Jackdaws also and some other birds I was not sure at all about too.
Let me have a crack!! Grey Wagtail (1), juv Pied Wagtail(3) Female or juv Greenfinch(4) and I think (from its long legs and posture) its a young Robin(5)
sounds lovely Dolce!
yellowhammers have a rather unlovely song which goes something like a-little-bit-of-bread-and-no-cheeeeeeeeeese which they sing for hours from the same perch...
willow warblers or chiffchaffs are more likely than garden warblers, which are very rare in ireland...