County Galway Birding (local patch) (1 Viewer)

[Samuel Progin]

Hello,
My name is Samuel and i'm a young (20) swiss birdwatcher for 2 month in Galway (in a school to improve my english).

I went Tuesday (29.07) morning in Nimmo's Pier and the Claddagh (South Park) and i saw:

Sandwich Tern: 6
Ringed Plover: 37
Redschank: 19
Curlew: 12
Barwit: 3
Common Tern: 10
Little Stint: 1
Dunlin: 2
Turnstone: 2
Common Sandpiper: 11

And also yesterday evening (01.08) in the same place:

Meditteranean Gull: 2 ad.
Barwit: 11
Ringed Plover: 34
Dunlin: 1
Turnstone: ~15
Redshank: 5

I'm looking for a Ringed-billed Gull... It's possible to see this species in summer? Where is the best place for this species?

thanks for your answers...

best regards

Samuel Progin

 

[birdsgalway]

Samuel
Welcome to Galway hope you enjoy your stay.

Ring-billed Gull has been seen all week at the Slipway and in the playing fields at Nimmo's Pier. The best time is high tide when the gulls roost in the playing fields if their is no disturbance:C. When the tide is midway will come to bread at the slip way.

County List
166 Little Stint Samuel Progin

Thanks for posting your totals with an exceptional high count for Common Sandpipers.

 

[Samuel Progin]

Hello Tom,

Thank you very much for your answer!

The 11 Common Sandpipers were in one group near the causeway at 6.30 a.m. but the group left 15 min. later.

I was looking for the Ring-billed Gull this afternoon at 16 p.m. with high tide but there were a lot of people in the playing field and in Nimmo's Pier i only saw Black-Headed Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Great Black-Backed Gull and Common Gull (Larus canus, sorry but i'm not sure about the english name of this one...).

Is the Meditteranean Gull a regular bird here in Galway? I was surprised to found this species here...

See you maybe on the ground one of this day...

Best regards

Samuel

 

[Dermot Breen]

Slyne Head & Louisburgh

Hi all

I was out the Slyne Head direction for the first time today for a recce for the Autumn. There was a huge feeding flock of Manx Shearwaters off Bunowen Pier. Unfortunately they were at least 2km out due to the offshore islands but I reckon there were around 2000 birds out there (btw. also around 1000 Manxies feeding off Aughrus Point during the week also, also miles out). Just too far out to pick out anything among them. Hard to swallow that a Fae's Petrel passed by that general area only on Monday. The beaches and machair were very quite, hardly any waders noted. THe only spot that held any were the two muddy bays near Ballyconneely - Crompaun Bay and Ballyconneely Bay. I had a flock of 3 Dunlin, 17 Sanderling, 6 Ringed Plover and 2 Greenshank at the former site. Also female "hepatic" Cuckoo at Bunowen Beg. There is alot of machair on the south and north side of the Slyne peninsula itself which could make it difficult to pick anything like a BB Sand or AGP which must turn up most autumns in Galway (Aonghus has had 2 AGP's in the area though in recent years). Some decent garden out there, one noteworthy one near Truska.

I was at a site yesterday that looks alot more promising. Unfortunately its not in Galway:-( The 10km stretch of coastline south of Louisburgh, Co. Mayo looks very interesting. It consists of some great sandy & pebble beachs, rocky shore with washed up seaweed, machair and five medium sized lagoons. I recorded 150+ Ringed Plover, 50+ Sanderling (including a colour ringed bird, possibly ringed in Netherlands), 40 Dunlin, 1 Whimbrel, 2 Common Sandpipers, 110 Lapwing, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, juv male Peregrine, 2 Whooper Swans, decent numbers of gulls including one of Eoin MeGreals ringed Common Gulls and 20 Sandwich Terns. It looks very promising for Nearctic waders. I thinks its had Pectoral, Buff-breasted, Semi-p Sandpipers, Spoonbills and even Red-necked Phalaropes in the past.

Dermot

 

[birdsgalway]

Spent a couple of hours at Rusheen on Saturday morning and a galloping eejit of a dog cover ever corner of the bay at least three times. Hence the photos of our other winged friends all taken in the Little Woods. The best was a summer plumaged Knot, at least 150 Redshank with Greenshank, Ringed Plover and Dunlin.

At Nimmo's today the Ring-billed Gull was at the Slipway. Though I had the Little Stint but was only a small Dunlin:eek!:. Two Wheatear were flitting up and down the Rocks at Claddagh Beach.

Samuel
Mediterranean Gulls are possible breeding in Galway yet to be confirmed. We get 3 or 4 every year.
One thing you should do is send you sightings to Chris Peppiatt at BirdWatch Galway to this link
http://www.birdwatchgalway.org/sightings.htm

Dermot
Looking forward to further updates from you new stomping grounds. Could you explain "hepatic"

 

[Dermot Breen]

Hi Tom

By hepatic I mean the brown phase version of a female/juvenile Cuckoo. Didn't know what it was when I first saw it.
Forgot to mention I also had a juvenile Med Gull at Rinvyle Point on Wednesday. So they're probably breeding somewhere else in Galway or maybe even Mayo.

Where did you get the Brown Hairstreaks Tom? Its one I've never seen.

Dermot

 

[Dermot Breen]

Ringed Sanderling

Thought this may be of interest to ye out there. Got results back about the ringed Sanderling. Very prompt reply from Jeroen Reneerkens, University of Groningen, The Netherlands. The bird was ringed in Iceland about 30 miles West of Reykjavik on 19th May 2007, seen in same area for another 5 days. It was later seen in Brittany, France on 22nd September of the same year, back at the same location in Iceland from 18th to 25nd May 2008 and finally at Gortnagarryan Strand, Mayo last Saturday. So presumably this bird was on passage from Iceland down south to France or even further afield? As part of this program more than a thousand birds have been ringed between Greenland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Ghana and Mauritania so keep yer eyes peeled!

Dermot

 

[birchall]

On doggy matters:
Just for the record, Olive and I, on principle, always clean up after our dogs in public areas. Our car’s glove compartment and our backpacks hold a plentiful supply of “poopy scoops”, available free of charge from Galway Corpo and Co. Co. It’s galling that so few dog owners avail of this free service. Galling too that the people laying down byelaws telling dog owners what to do with dog pooh are still dumping the human stuff, largely untreated, into our rivers, lakes and seas. One set of rules for dogs, a completely different set for humans. A real case of do what I say, not as I do. No wonder (but still unacceptable) that most dog owners treat these laws with contempt. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

On pooh in general:
Judging from the response to my earlier post on the matter, I seem to have raised the stirring of it to an art form.

Now back to bird matters:

Since my last report from Lough Inch, the five cygnets that survived so well all spring and summer were down to four when we returned from hols 2 weeks ago. Following some odd behaviour last Friday they are now down to three.

On Friday we noticed that one cygnet had separated or been driven away from the family group. It appeared uninjured and swam and preened itself as normal, though it did seem to spend a disproportionately large amount of time standing in shallow water preening. It generally maintained a distance of approx 100 metres from the group.

Scans of Lough Inch with binocs on Sat, Sun and this morning found the family group (2 adult mute and 3 cygnets) but no sign of the loner.

Any explanations for the separation behaviour?
Would the adults drive away an aberrant or ill or possibly diseased juvenile to safeguard the rest of the family? Or would some instinct drive an ill swan to go off and quietly die on its own?

At Lough Inch today:

2 adult mute and 3 cygnets
Colony of common gulls
About 30 lapwings
17 golden plover
Mallard
Little Grebe
Heron

 

[birdsgalway]

Brendan never doubt you. When are we going to see a few pics from the 5100.

Dermot the Brown Hairstreaks was a first for me. I seen it about 20 yards along the path after climbing the gate at the hide in Rusheen.

It makes reporting ringed birds all the more worth while when you get feed back from the ringer.

County List
167 Roseate Tern

Nice surprise today at Rusheen during low tide about 4pm 2 Roseate Terns in with a flock of 75 Sandwich and 8 Comic Terns. They had metal rings on both legs and could be assumed to come from the colony in Wexford. A few video grabs of the Roseate Terns, a ringed Black-headed gull (238E)from the ringing scheme in Mayo and the Mediterranean Gull at Nimmo's today no sign of the Ring-billed Gull.

 

[birdsgalway]

Link to photo of Fea's Petrel taken by John Brittian
West of Slyne Head, flying past a Shark fishing boat. 1st record for County Galway
http://www.irishbirding.com/birds/web?task=Display&sighting_id=4089

 

[Samuel Progin]

Hello guys,

This morning in Nimmo's and Claddagh between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m.:

Ring-billed Gull: 1 ad. in the playing field at 7.30 (a first for me)
Meditteranean Gull: 2 (ad. + juv.)
Sandwich Tern: 4
Curlew: 4
Sanderling: 1
Turnstone: min. 36
Ringed Plover: 2
Meadow Pipit: 2
Wheateat: 1
and common birds...

I'll probably go to Rusheen tomorrow afternoon to try to see Roseate Tern, but i don't know exactly where is this place... It is far from Nimmo's?

bye
Samuel

 

[Peter Phillips]

no sign of the loner.

Any explanations for the separation behaviour?
Would the adults drive away an aberrant or ill or possibly diseased juvenile to safeguard the rest of the family? Or would some instinct drive an ill swan to go off and quietly die on its own?

Hi Brendan, looked healthy one day gone the next ....sounds like a predator took the bird. I dont think that because the chick decided to stay away from the family group that it was ill..it may have just been showing some early independence ...but just a bit too early..natural selection at its best!

 

[birchall]

Peter,
Thanks. Often the simplest explanations are the most plausible. I must have been a big predator, though. Visually the cygnets are between 1/3rd to half the size of the adults -a handful (or mouthful) for any predator.

 

[birdsgalway]

Samuel
Rusheen Bay is approx 3 miles from Nimmo's Pier on the Spiddal Road R336. Look for the sign for the Rusheen Sailboard center it is a small slip road to the left (red line on map)opposite the right turn for Knocknacarra. Two or three hundred metres the road turns left to the sail board centre keep right (straight) and go through the open gate with white piers. This is a private road. About 500 metres down this track there is a narrow gate on the left with the IWC bird watch sign on the wall. Climb over this gate a walk about another 300 metres (broken red line on map)and two stone hides are there. Rusheen can be viewed from Silver Strand, Gentian Hill and Rusheen Park. Hope this helps.

 

[Samuel Progin]

Thank you Tom,

I was in Rusheen this afternoon (05.08) between 4 and 5 p.m. but the group of Sandwich Tern was to far and it was impossible for me to identify the other species only with binoculars (i don't have my telescope with me in Galway unfortunately) but i saw good number of waders like redschank, greenschank, barwit, curlew, lapwing and minimum one common tern.

bye

 

[Brosnabirder]

Four summer plumaged (ish) Knot at Lough Rusheen today. Also all the usual suspects. One Whimbrel too

 

[birdsgalway]

Finally caught up with the Juvenile Mediterranean Gull at Nimmo's on Wednesday thanks to Michael Davis.
2 Wheatear at Mutton Island Causeway.

Checking through recent sightings update on Birdwatch Galway two more to the County List
168 Garganey, Mount Ross, Lough Corrib, Neil Sharkey & Paul Hillis.
169 Spotted Redshank, Kilcaimin, Michael Davis.

 

[Dermot Breen]

Hi all

I had another colour ringed Sanderling yesterday evening this time in Omey Island with 100 Sanderling, 20 Dunlin and 50 Ringed Plovers. It was ringed in Iceland 20th May of this year. No other sightings.
13 Greenshank, 35 Ringed Plover and 5 Dunlin in Streamstown Bay also near Clifden.
Big feeding flock of Kittiwakes and Manxies off Rossadilisk, looking towards Inishbofin on Wed evening. One sub-adult small skua prob Arctic and 2 flyby Common Scoter also. Good numbers of Ringed Plover, Sanderling and Dunlin inside in the esturary also.

Dermot

 

[Dermot Breen]

Ringed Knot in Rusheen today

In amongst the four Knot at Rusheen today I noticed that one was ringed. It had a red ring over the right knee and a yellow flag over the left knee. I'm farily sure the code on the flag was CTX. If anyone else manages to see it, it would be good to confirm the code. Going from the CR Birding site it was ringed in Northern Norway at some stage, awaiting more details.
50+ Dunlin and similar number of Ringed Plovers, 100+ Redshank, a few Greenshank and 6 "commic" Terns in with the Sandwich. I also had a small calirid that was either a small Sanderling or who knows what else. It was too distant and disappeared shortly afterward. Plenty of Manxies offshore with a single Stormie going through.
Brown Hairstreak also on BWI side of bay just over the gate on bramble giving brilliant views despite earlier bad conditions. Thanks again Tom for the text.

Dermot

 

[birdsgalway]

Just to add to Dermot's round up of Rusheen the Little Egret flew in about 4.30pm. Brown Hairstreak only thing obliging in the photographic end.