County Louth (formerly Dundalk Bay) local patch. (2 Viewers)

[squidge]

Looked for the Avocets today at Lurgangreen but no joy.

On another note I received an email today from the bird ringers who ringed the black tailed godwit I saw at Lurgangreen. The bird was ringed as a chick in northern Iceland in 2012. Nice to get feedback on whereabouts the bird came from.

Regards Gerard.

 

[Peter Phillips]

Lurgangreen hide key available

The key for the hide is now available to borrow at the Coachmans Inn on the Dundalk to Dublin road. The Inn is located a couple of hundred metres from the turn down to the hide. There is a small deposit required to ensure the key is returned. They have an excellent selection of cafe type food available.
The door to the hide is still prone to jamming and there is a metal bar under the bottom container (at the back) to help open it.

 

[yew]

I saw my first swallow on sunday evening flying lowish over my garden which is rather late for this year I thought.

 

[Peter Phillips]

Hide news

A quick visit to the hide this morning produced 2 second Callander year Little Gulls in the channel. A Spotted Flycatcher on the fence and in the conifers at the hide entrance was my first at Lurgangreen. on the way home I had 2 Swifts over Dromiskin.

I finally broke the hundred species mark for my lurgangreen 2014 patch birding challenge.

101 species. 120 points.

 

[Peter Phillips]

Barnacle Geese

2 Barnacle Geese and 1 little Gull at Lurgangreen this evening ( thanks Gerry)!

102 species: 121 points

 

[breffni]

Swifts this morning at Greenore - first arrivals there. The black guillemot pop at giles quay appears to have collapsed - from 16 to 3 pairs so far, unless more birds show up....

We will be erecting the fence at Baltray on Saturday so anyone wishing to volunteer please check ou the louth nature trust web site, email me [email protected] or just show up Saturday morning.

 

[nialltkeogh]

Louth Nature Trust website appears to be out of action Breffni.

Any time in particular for the fence installation to take place? I can let folk know about it via BirdWatch Ireland Facebook/Twitter accounts.

Niall

 

[squidge]

Swifts this morning at Greenore - first arrivals there. The black guillemot pop at giles quay appears to have collapsed - from 16 to 3 pairs so far, unless more birds show up....

We will be erecting the fence at Baltray on Saturday so anyone wishing to volunteer please check ou the louth nature trust web site, email me [email protected] or just show up Saturday morning.

I've a wedding on Saturday but will volunteer to do some wardening this year. I presume there is a book on site with time slots.

Regards Gerard.

 

[yew]

I saw 2 swifts over my garden monday evening, decided I would like to see them in broad daylight. Indeed I was correct as today I saw 2 definite swifts constantly back and forth over Meadow whilst walking to B&Q. I saw 7 Buzzards soaring together, couldnt believe my eyes at first until I was dizzy from looking upwards counting them as so lovely. I saw 2 swallows over garden and couple swallows in Omeath on sunday. I saw 3 male black caps and 2 bullfinches flying back and forth across Pound road from woods into ivy clumps and field at back of Technical school. Plenty of song thrushes to be heard evenings and plenty of Mistle thrush to be seen in Dominic street chapel park as usual. I saw a nest in hollow in tree in woods with small plain white egg in it from close on road which I thought very unusual but barn owl perhaps ...

 

[HH75]

Stock Doves nest in holes and will use holes in trees commonly. That's more likely than a tree-nesting Barn Owl, though those have been recorded rarely in Ireland, admittedly.

 

[yew]

Thanks and stock doves sound more likely as plenty about the woods. The nest was a bit slapdash and slanted and could easily see the egg from the road below but still high up. Wherever I was reading just mentioned kingfishers and barn owls for white egg, a neighbour who walks dogs late evenings says he can hear owls passing woods.

 

[squidge]

Have a family party of siskins on my feeders. I suspect they bred quite near to my house as I've had both the male and female siskins at my feeders everyday. Normally they would have disappeared by the middle of spring.

Also have two family parties of house sparrows at my feeders and I'll have a family of starlings quite soon as the young chicks heads are poking out of my swift boxes. Sadly no swifts though. I do hope that the chicks can get out as the hole is quite narrow and the feathering on the parents back is all gone due to rubbing when going in and out. I'll keep an eye on it.

Regards Gerard.

 

[breffni]

Louth Nature Trust website appears to be out of action Breffni.

Any time in particular for the fence installation to take place? I can let folk know about it via BirdWatch Ireland Facebook/Twitter accounts.

Niall

Hi Niall

We got a good turnout in the end and 90% of work now complete - we had a nightmare getting out of the expensive makeaneasywebsite.com which should be renamed makeaneasywebsitethatsimpossibletogetoutof.com - anyway its up and running now...max count so far 170 birds...

 

[breffni]

Thanks and stock doves sound more likely as plenty about the woods. The nest was a bit slapdash and slanted and could easily see the egg from the road below but still high up. Wherever I was reading just mentioned kingfishers and barn owls for white egg, a neighbour who walks dogs late evenings says he can hear owls passing woods.

long eared owl has small whit eggs and nests in hole in tree, often ignoring human activity nearby (I had one where the nest could be clearly seen from the kitchen window of a busy farm) - look under the tree for owl pellets....

 

[breffni]

About 10 showed up for the dawn chorus at Ghan house - interestingly not a single robin in the grounds! The blackcaps are doing well....

Might do an evening outing to mullaghattin - any woodcock?

Had calling cuckoos on Friday at cooley pt and drumgooley area...

 

[Hugh Delaney]

long eared owl has small whit eggs and nests in hole in tree, often ignoring human activity nearby (I had one where the nest could be clearly seen from the kitchen window of a busy farm) - look under the tree for owl pellets....

Breffni, surely you mean Barn Owl? I've never heard of a hole/cavity nesting LEO, they typically use an old stick nest (Crow, Magpie etc), and will readily use a nesting 'basket' if provided in the absence of other options,

Hugh

 

[yew]

I think I need to describe it better which might help .... it was in tree along the ditch with about three branches close together or crossing all curved in a way which created a neat hollow in branches but it was not actually a hollow in the trunk of tree. Sorry if I caused confusion and it was the weirdest nest I have ever seen as you could not miss seeing the small white egg walking past as tree was hanging out over the road even. Sitting on that curve or hollow was a slapdash nest even slanted to give perfect viewing of one small white egg. It is not a quiet place to walk as constantly people, even some cars, school kids walk up and down this narrow road at edge of woods. I saw it several times passing.

 

[yew]

I saw about 7 or 8 juvenile starlings together and one sparrow juvenile today for first time this year. Photos are taken in the rain from patio door. I noticed this few weeks an adult starling is screaming a racket on fence for at least 30 minutes if I go near the bottom of garden. He even stopped the cat moving in his tracks as so cross. Im not sure if there is a nest high up in ivy in Ash tree but think it certainly is somewhere nearby.

 

[breffni]

Breffni, surely you mean Barn Owl? I've never heard of a hole/cavity nesting LEO, they typically use an old stick nest (Crow, Magpie etc), and will readily use a nesting 'basket' if provided in the absence of other options,

Hugh

Cheers Hugh - I should have said that they can nest in tree holes:

Long-eared Owls nest almost exclusively in old stick nests of crows, magpies, ravens, hawks, or herons. They nest rarely in rock crevices, tree cavities, or on open ground.
http://www.owlpages.com/owls.php?genus=Asio&species=otus

a barn owl would be great! very rare around here...

 

[breffni]

We need volunteers at Baltray little tern protection scheme - rooks have predated the first nest and given the relatively large population and size of the enclosure, its tough for just one or two people to keep them off - please call the site hotline - 086 2434874 - for updates see www.louthnaturetrust.org

Very pleased to have caught up with the grangebellew glossy ibis - appears to be a non-breeding adult so may well stay all summer....