On Holiday From Sheffield...

From Pete and Ann Wilson

In my previous post, I wrote about the sighting of a colour-ringed second year Common Gull ( 2CCL ), spotted by Pete and Ann Wilson, whilst visiting Ballycastle.  On Thursday 20th July, another email arrived from Pete and Ann, with photos of another three colour-ringed Common Gulls and they stated that they would be leaving Ballycastle on Saturday.  This prompted me to ask if they were on holiday here, to learn that they were on holiday and that they were from Sheffield in England.

Of the three Common Gulls, the only one that they were sure of was -  2BBC , whilst the codes on the other two rings looked a bit dodgy.  I quickly established that these two gulls were -  2ATV  and  2BNJ .  Both -  2ATV  and  2BBC  were colour-ringed as chicks when I began my Rathlin Island Common Gull Project back in 2017.

On Rathlin this summer,  2ATV  was recorded on two occasions at the Rue Point colony, the first of which was on the rather late date of the 11th June.  Having not been recorded earlier, this gull could well be a female and went un-noticed while sitting on eggs.  The BTO gave a distance of 9 kms / 5 miles (SSW) from Rue Point to Ballycastle Beach, but this figure is calculated using Latitudes and Longitudes, but the real distance is more like 6 kms / 4 miles (SSW).  The duration since being ringed, is now 6 years, 1 month and 3 days (PDF).

Common Gull  -   2ATV   -  Ballycastle Beach, Ballycastle, Co. Antrim  (20 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 17th June 2017, at Rue Point, Rathlin Island, Co. Antrim)

(Photo Courtesy of Pete & Ann Wilson)

The sighting of -  2BBC  was of special interest.  Originally ringed as a chick at the Arkill Bay colony in 2017, since reaching breeding age,  2BBC  now nests at the Doon Bay colony.  This summer, Rathlin residents - Ric Else and Hazel Watson recorded the return of -  2BBC  at the Doon Bay colony on the 19th March 2023, and despite several visits to all of the accessible colonies,  2BBC  was not seen again until now.  Two small colonies that I do not have access to, are the Portawillan and Port Castle sites further north near the East Lighthouse.  I'm left wondering if -  2BBC  has had a change of nest-site.  This could be a possibility if the gull has taken up with a new partner.  At least with this latest sighting, I now know -  2BBC  is still alive and well.  Now that the gull has left Rathlin Island, it may be on it's way to Dundrum in County Down, where it has been recorded wintering on two occasions.  The duration since being ringed, is now 6 years and 26 days (PDF).

Common Gull  -   2BBC   -  Ballycastle Beach, Ballycastle, Co. Antrim  (20 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 24th June 2017, at Arkill Bay, Rathlin Island, Co. Antrim)

(Photo Courtesy of Pete & Ann Wilson)

 2BNJ , was ringed as a chick at the Doon Bay colony in 2019.  It returned to the colony for the first time in 2021, and despite being recorded on four occasions in June of that year, I was fairly sure that it returned to prospect a nest-site for 2022.  In 2022, the gull definitely did nest, and was recorded on five occasions over the months of May and June.  This summer,  2BNJ  was recorded twice in May at the Doon Bay colony, but was not seen again after that.  I missed out on two visits to the Doon Bay colony in June, but that was due to very poor weather conditions, with heavy rain and even thunder and lightening.  With this latest sighting, the duration since being ringed, is now 4 years and 24 days (PDF).

Common Gull  -   2BNJ   Ballycastle Beach, Ballycastle, Co. Antrim  (20 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 26th June 2019, at Doon Bay, Rathlin Island, Co. Antrim) 

(Photo Courtesy of Pete & Ann Wilson)

My thanks goes to Pete and Ann for these ring sightings, along with the photos.  Apparently, they had a great time in Ballycastle, and really enjoyed meeting a lot of friendly people.  They said that they would definitely come back again for another holiday here, and if they do, I asked them to get in touch and we can meet up at some point.

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From David Nixon & Suzanne Belshaw

I have given David Nixon and Suzanne Belshaw a joint heading, as both recorded two colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls on the same site and date, though at different times at Sprucefield Shopping centre in County Down.  No sooner had I responded to David's sightings, along with updated spreadsheets for both birds, when Suzanne's email arrived, thus having to update the spreadsheets again.  In the process, I added a third colour-ringed Black-headed Gull that Suzanne recorded during her visit to Sprucefield, along with a colour-ringed Common Gull recorded at Whiteabbey the day before.

Black-headed Gull -  2ACP , was ringed as an unsexed adult, on the 9th February 2013, being among the earliest to be ringed belonging to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland Project which began in 2012, ending in June 2018.  The gull has a long history of re-sightings in the Sprucefield / Lisburn area from Autumn through to early spring, but as yet, we do not know where this bird goes to breed.  The two latest sightings on the 25th July 2023, are the birds 36th and 37th sighting records altogether.  The duration since being ringed, is now 10 years, 5 months and 16 days.

Black-headed Gull  -   2ACP   -  Sprucefield Shopping Centre, Co. Down  (25 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 9th February 2013, at Sprucefield Shopping Centre)

(Photo Courtesy of David Nixon)

Black-headed Gull  -   2ACP  -  Sprucefield Shopping Centre, Co. Down  (25 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 9th February 2013, at Sprucefield Shopping Centre)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

The second Black-headed Gull to be spotted by both David and Suzanne, was that of a Scottish bird, though no stranger to Northern Ireland.  (White) 2BDN, was ringed as a chick, on the 3rd June 2018, at the Broad Law colony in the Moorfoot Hills, in the Borders Region of Scotland.  The first ever re-sighting was made by Suzanne, on the 23rd July 2019, here at Sprucefield Shopping Centre.

On the 2nd February 2020, I recorded (White) 2BDN at Whitehouse Lagoon on Belfast Lough.  The next sighting saw the gull back in Scotland, having been spotted on the 16th July 2021, by William Barber at Seton Burn in East Lothian.  This remains to be the only Scottish re-sighting so far.

On the 11th September 2021, (White) 2BDN was back in Belfast, when I spotted the gull on the Dargan Mudflats, just a short distance away from Whitehouse Lagoon.  An unexpected sighting was made by Suzanne on the 12th February 2022, when she recorded (White) 2BDN at Groomsport Harbour in County Down, which was the bird's final sighting until now.  Unlike most other wintering Black-headed Gulls, this particular individual seems to have no set wintering site.  The duration since being ringed, is now 5 years, 1 month and 22 days.  The distance from Broad Law to Sprucefield, is 239 kms / 148 miles (SW).

I notified the ringing co-ordinator - Tom Dougall about the latest sightings of (White) 2BDN, which he was really pleased to hear about.  Tom stated that no Black-headed Gull chicks were ringed at the Broad Law colony this summer, as 'Bird Flu' had decimated the colony, which was virtually deserted by the end of May.

Black-headed Gull  -  (White)  2BDN  -  Sprucefield Shopping Centre, Co. Down  (25 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 3rd June 2018, at Broad Law, Moorfoot Hills, Borders Region, Scotland)

(Photo Courtesy of David Nixon)

Black-headed Gull  -  (White)  2BDN  -  Sprucefield Shopping Centre, Co. Down  (25 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 3rd June 2018, at Broad Law, Moorfoot Hills, Borders Region, Scotland)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

The third Black-headed Gull spotted at Sprucefield Shopping Centre, was the bird that Suzanne was really hoping to record due to it's age and where it came from.

 250B , was ringed as a chick, on the 6th June 2008, at Lough Mask, Co. Mayo, Republic of Ireland.  The first sighting in Northern Ireland, was made on the 1st July 2013, when Adam McClure recorded the gull here at Sprucefield Shopping Centre.  Over the years, this bird has been recorded at Sprucefield on many occasions, and once paid a visit close to Suzanne's home in nearby Lisburn.  However,  250B  does not remain at Sprucefield all winter, and I am certain that Sprucefield is being used as a staging post, both in the autumn, and in the early spring, when no doubt the gull is on it's way back to County Mayo. So far, the actual wintering site remains a mystery.  Making a straight line on a map from Lough Mask, through Sprucefield and beyond, would possibly take this bird to Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland.

 250B , has been recorded back in County Mayo on just 5 occasions - June 2009, June 2010, June 2017 and twice in May 2019.  The distance from Lough Mask to Sprucefield, is 232 kms / 144 miles (ENE), and the duration since being ringed, is now a nice 15 years, 1 month and 19 days.  The total number of re-sightings on my spreadsheet for  250B , is now 34.

Black-headed Gull  -   250B   -  Sprucefield Shopping Centre, Co. Down  (25 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 6th June 2008, at Lough Mask, Co. Mayo, Republic of Ireland)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

The colour-ringed Common Gull recorded by Suzanne on the 24th July 2023, was -  2AIP , which was spotted at it's regular wintering site on the Whiteabbey Shore on Belfast Lough.   2AIP , belongs to Shane Wolsey's former Common Gull project on Big Copeland Island, and was ringed as a chick there on the 11th June 2012.  All 26 sightings of -  2AIP , have been made here on the Whiteabbey Shore.  The distance from Big Copeland Island to Whiteabbey, is 23 kms / 14 miles (W), and the duration since being ringed, is now 11 years, 1 month and 13 days (PDF).

The Blue Darvics used by Shane deteriorate very quickly, which is something I have to contend with, having inherited the rings from Shane when I began my own Common Gull colour-ringing project on Rathlin Island.  Despite this, using a camera with a long reach, the indentation of the letters used can still be read.  Another pointer, when identifying -  2AIP , is that the code reads top down, instead of bottom up like on most other gulls.

Common Gull  -   2AIP   -  Whiteabbey Shore, Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim  (24 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 11th June 2012, at Big Copeland Island, The Copeland Islands, Co. Down)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

My thanks goes to both David and Suzanne for their sighting reports, along with the photos.  As always, these are always much appreciated.

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Common Gull - 2CCL...

From Pete and Ann Wilson

A recent email from Pete and Ann Wilson, was of great interest to me.  On the 16th July, they were visiting Ballycastle on the north coast of County Antrim, when they spotted a colour-ringed Common Gull.  Taking a photo, the code on the ring read -  2CCL .

 2CCL , was ringed as a chick, on the 14th June 2022, at the Arkill Bay colony on nearby Rathlin Island and this was that bird's first resighting.   2022, saw a record number of 84 Common Gull chicks being colour-ringed on Rathlin Island.  From that batch of 84,  2CCL  is only the third to be spotted this year.  The other two are -  2CCT  recorded on Kinnegar Beach on Belfast Lough on the 9th April 2023, and -  2CFH , spotted on the 20th June 2023 at Rue Point on Rathlin Island.  It is rare for 2nd calendar year birds to return to the island, as most surviving birds normally return in their 3rd year to prospect nest sites for when they reach breeding age in their 4th year.

At a rough estimate, around two thirds of chicks fail to survive through their first winter, therefore, there should be around 28 surviving birds from the batch of 84 colour-ringed in 2022.

Ballycastle is just 10 kms / 6 miles (SSW) from Arkill Bay, and though not a spectacular distance, it is great to know of a survivor.  The duration since being ringed, is now 1 year, 1 month and 2 days.

My thanks goes to Pete and Ann for their sighting record, and for allowing me to post the sighting along with their photo.

Common Gull  -   2CCL   -  Ballycastle, Co. Antrim  (16 Jul 2023)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 14th June 2022, at Arkill Bay, Rathlin Island, Co. Antrim)

(Photo Courtesy of Pete and Ann Wilson)

The 2023 breeding for the Common Gulls on Rathlin has been very poor, compared to the record breaking 2022 season.  All of the colonies saw a slight reduction in nesting pairs, except for the small rocky islet on Ushet Lough.  Around hatching time, there appeared to be many nest failures, and island resident Ric Else and myself suggested that the extended period of heat and dry weather may have been a factor.  Being on the southern edge of their range, Common Gulls can easily cope with cooler, wetter conditions.

Only 20 Common Gull chicks were colour-ringed this summer.  Another ringer is operating on the island, and once I began finding chicks that were already metal-rung, I stopped ringing altogether.  My problem was time.  When ringing in colonies, time is of the essence, as some of the gulls are still on eggs or small chicks and pending on the weather conditions, these birds need to get back on their nests as soon as possible.  I could have still colour-ringed the metal-rung chicks, but every metal ring would have to be recorded before a colour-ring is fitted, thus greatly reducing the time spent at each colony.  By rights, I needed a second person with me to write down the details which would speed up the process.  I'm hoping that the other ringer and myself can be better coordinated in 2024.

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One Leads to Others...

 

From Simon Piro

Whilst on holiday in the Latvian capital of Riga, the sightings of an Antrim Marina Black-headed Gull, triggered a series of interesting emails between German native Simon Piro and myself.  On the 30th June 2023, Simon spotted -  2AFD  at the Central Market in Riga, and then on the following day (1st July), Simon spotted -  2AFD  for a second time at the nearby Central Station (Photo Below).  After emailing me concerning the sightings, this led to information on two other Black-headed Gulls -  2ANX  and  2FFC , which have been included in this post.

 2AFD  belongs to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland Black-headed Gull Study which began in 2012 and ended in June 2018, and I now respond to sightings of Adam's gulls.  As an adult male,  2AFD  was caught and colour-ringed at Antrim Marina on the 12th February 2014.  By this time, I had already began my own project at Antrim Marina, studying the wintering population of Black-headed Gulls at Antrim Marina to run alongside Adam's Study.  Gulls ringed by Adam at the Marina formed the basis of my study, and after retraining as a ringer, I also began colour-ringing wintering Black-headed Gulls at the Marina to add to my study.

 2AFD , has over the years, accumulated a long series of sightings, both wintering in Antrim Town, and also in and around Riga itself, with Simon's latest reports being the 53rd and 54th sighting records altogether.  In the early years after being ringed,  2AFD  would have been frequently recorded at Antrim Marina, but in recent years, can now be found at the Castle Way car park in the centre of Antrim Town.  Last winter, after several attempts to record the return of -  2AFD  for another winter, I finally got him on Christmas Day at the Castle Way car park.  After this sighting, my car broke down on my way to Belfast, and I was left without a car until February, having to purchase a new car.

Back to Simon's sightings in Riga, Simon stated that there is a fish market at the Central Market, with the gulls benefitting from the scrapes.  Black-headed Gulls in the area nest on rooftops, so it could well be the nesting area for  2AFD .  The official distance given by the BTO, is 1,911 kms / 1,187 miles (E) from Antrim Marina to Riga.

Simon also added two photos of -  2AFD .  Hopefully, if all goes well,  2AFD  will make it back to Antrim to spend another winter here.  As the resighting history shows, this bird usually arrives back in November.

At this point, I was going to add a PDF File showing the full ringing and re-sighting history for -  2AFD , but the gull was spotted again 10 days later (read Andrew Hale below).

Black-headed Gull  -   2AFD   -  Central Station, Riga, Latvia  (01 July 2023)

(Ringed as an Adult Male, on the 12th February 2014, at Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim)

(Photo Courtesy of Simon Piro)

Having mentioned that -  2AFD  belonged to Adam's former Northern Ireland BHG Study, Simon said he had reported some time ago about the re-trap of another of Adam's colour-ringed gulls but no reply was ever received.  On searching through my main Ring Reading Spreadsheet, I came across a May 2017 re-trap of -  2ANX  made by Simon and presumed this had been the bird concerned.  I then sent a spreadsheet copy of the history for -  2ANX .  At this point, the final sighting of -  2ANX , had occurred on the 9th February 2018, when recorded at Carrickfergus Harbour by Paul McCullough, and I assumed the gull had died enroute back to Germany, as it was not seen here again.

 2ANX , was ringed with a metal-only, as a chick in Germany back in 2008.  It's first ever sighting in Northern Ireland, was at Carrickfergus Harbour, when someone unknown to me had managed to read the ring number in November 2013.  The second sighting was made by myself at Carrickfergus Harbour in December 2015, having also read the metal number.  Prior to, and post breeding season,  2ANX  has been spotted in Poland, before returning to it's natal colony at Böhmke Island.  In January 2016, Adam managed to catch the gull and added the colour-ring -  2ANX , after which time sightings here became more routine.

Simon's report to Adam, actually added one further sighting.   2ANX  had made it back to Germany in the summer of 2018, and was caught by Simon on a nest containing three eggs.  This now became the last sighting, so its now looks likely that the gull died after the breeding season ended.  Simon says they routinely use a metal detector on Böhmke Island post breeding season to find metal rings of gulls that have died.  The distance from Carrickfergus Harbour to Böhmke Island, is 1,285 kms / 798 miles (E).

The full ringing and resighting history for  2ANX   can be read here (PDF).

Simon also sent a photo of himself with  2ANX  after it was captured on the 13th May 2018.

Simon Piro with Black-headed Gull -  2ANX    (13 May 2018)

(Photo Courtesy of Simon Piro)

On learning about my study of wintering Black-headed Gulls at Antrim Marina, Simon checked recent ring sightings made in Germany, and assumed that I knew of the demise of -  2FFC  via the BTO.  As yet, I have not received a recovery from the BTO, but luckily Simon gave details in his email.   2FFC  was found dead at Germany's largest Black-headed Gull breeding colony at Riether Werder on the 14th May 2023.  Around 100 adult Black-headed Gulls were found dead on Riether Werder, and after being tested, these birds had succumbed to Avian Bird Flu, including -  2FFC .

I caught and ringed -  2FFC , as an unsexed adult at Antrim Marina on the 30th November 2020.  During the summers of 2021 and 2022, there were no breeding season reports, with the gull arriving back at Antrim Marina, on the 4th October 2021 and 2nd August 2022.  With -  2FFC  being found dead, it would be safe to assume that it bred at Riether Werder in both 2021 and 2022.  The distance from Antrim Marina to Riether Werder, is 1,335 kms / 829 miles (E).

The full ringing and resighting history for  2FFC , can be read here (PDF).

I have added a photo of -  2FFC  taken on the 10th October 2022 at Antrim Marina.  This is one bird that is not going to return to Antrim Marina this winter - I wonder how many more will fail to return.

Black-headed Gull  -   2FFC   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (10 Oct 2022)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 30th November 2020, at Antrim Marina)

My special thanks goes to Simon Piro, for all of these ring sightings, and for the photos.  Just to think, that the sighting of one gull, went on to trigger info on two others.  This was a really nice bonus, which is very much appreciated.

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From Andrew Hale

Ten days after Simon Piro's sighting of Black-headed Gull -  2AFD  in Riga, an email arrived from Andrew Hale.  At 18:55 on the evening of the 11th July,  2AFD  was spotted on Cromer Beach on the north Norfolk coast in England.  This is a really interesting sighting which leaves me wondering.  If -  2AFD  was making it's way back to Antrim for another winter, why has it flown so far south from Latvia?

After receiving the official recovery from the BTO, the distance from Antrim Marina to Cromer is 534 kms / 331 miles (ESE).  Usually,  2AFD  arrives back into Antrim in November which is a fairly late date when compared to other returnees.  Could it be possible that -  2AFD  is stopping off somewhere else before completing his journey back to Antrim?  

My thanks goes to Andrew for this very interesting sighting.  The full ringing and re-sighting history for -  2AFD , can be read here (PDF).

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