Green Moon...

Antrim Marina - Monday 12th September 2022

Today's visit to Antrim Marina, is my seventh weekly visit during this autumn/winter season, and it was very dull but calm.  As the morning wore on, it became brighter with plenty of sunshine breaking through.  Around 40 Black-headed Gulls were present on my arrival, and numbers quickly increased to around the 100 mark.  That total remained about the same throughout my visit, though once again birds were clearly coming and going.

With the sneaky arrival of -  2CSR  during last week's visit, the total of colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls recorded at the Marina so far this winter, increased to 34 birds altogether.  For some reason, I had thought that I had already recorded -  2CSR  over previous weeks, so I made sure I took a photo when he appeared today at 11:50.

Black-headed Gull  -   2CSR   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (12 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Un-Sexed 2nd Winter Bird, on the 24th December 2017, at Antrim Marina)

Altogether, 24 colour-rings were read during today's visit, therefore, I had 10 absentees.   2FDK , was the first ring read at 09:13, and by 10:28, the ring of -  2AAN  was the 17th read in an hour and a quarter.  After that time, there were large gaps in arrivals, and my 24th and final ring read, was that of -  2FHC  at 12:34.  I departed at 1pm.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Monday 12th September 2022

2FDK	2AAA	2CJT	2CSB	2FFP	2FIF	2FFA	2ABN
2AAB	2FHJ	2AAK	2FFX	2FFF	2FHV	2ACV	2CTC
2AAN	2FIA	2CSR	2FIH	2FHX	2ABS	2ABL	2FHC

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gull Recorded at Antrim Marina This Autumn/Winter but Absent Today

2ABA	2BRA	2CSA	2CSK	2CSL	2CSX	2FFC	2FHA	2FHP	2FIJ

Once it had quietened down a bit later in the morning, I decided to have a go at catching a bird or two, as the gulls were clearly eager to get at the bread offerings.  A couple of juveniles could easily have been caught, but still sporting so much brown plumage, I decided not to catch them as they are still so young and could perish over the next few weeks.  Larger, older juveniles were more wary and kept their distance.  Some adults, as well as 2nd year birds, were a bit bolder, and I managed to catch one adult, the first to be ringed this winter -  2FIK .

With the addition of -  2FIK , I'll be on the lookout for 35 colour-rings next week, plus any further returnees.

Black-headed Gull  -   2FIK   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (12 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Un-Sexed Adult, during Today's Visit to Antrim Marina)

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

One adult Herring Gull was present on my arrival, this being the usual adult which was not here last week.  I know this bird well, as it readily comes close to me, but today for the first time, it took bread directly from my hand.  The second year Herring Gull which appeared here last week, actually walked right up to me as I was sitting in my car feeding Mallards by hand.  He chased them off, and then proceeded to take the bread from my hand.  I have 'G' sized metal rings at home, so I'll have to bring these with me on my next visits and hopefully will catch and ring this one.  It would be interesting to see how this bird develops, and how it gets on in the future.  A juvenile Herring Gull appeared at 10:32, and spent most of it's time 'crying out', so it was clearly hungry.  A second adult Herring Gull landed on the roof of the 'Gateway Centre' just before my departure.

An adult Lesser Black-backed Gull landed on one of the lampposts at 11:26, and an adult Common Gull landed on the short concrete jetty at 11:40.  No Common Gulls appeared here last week.  Last winter, a small Scottish-rung female Common Gull arrived back to Antrim Marina, on the earliest date ever recorded (16th August 2021).  This bird was ringed in Ayrshire, Scotland, as a chick in 2013, and was first recorded at Antrim Marina in February 2014.  Having returned to the Marina every year since, I'm eager to record its return once again.

40 Mallards had increased to around birds at a headcount made around 11:30am.  As usual, most legs were checked, but no rings spotted.

The Mute Swan family with their four cygnets, arrived in from Lough Neagh at 9:40am.  The landed on the small sandy beach, walked over the road to the slipway and then swam off upriver.  They reappeared at 11am onto the slipway.

A juvenile Rook at 10:30, and six Jackdaws were the only other species to be noted. 

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County Down - Thursday 8th September 2022

For a change in scenery, I decided to take myself off to County Down today, to work the western shores of Strangford Lough.  I left home in time, that I would arrive after a long drive to coincide with the tide beginning to go out.  Kilclief Bay, was my first stop when I got down that far, and my timing was perfect.  A small number of gulls and Sandwich Terns were scoped, as well as fairly numerous Dunlins, but no rings.  Driving from Kilclief Bay towards Millquater Bay, a large number of gulls could be seen on rocks and a small beach.  Parking on the grass verge, I scoped from a very long distance, and noticed a Black-headed Gull sporting a Darvic Ring.  To my delight, there was also a large number of Common Gulls there too (but none were ringed).

Grabbing my camera and telescope, I needed to cut down on the distance to have any chance of capturing the code on the Black-headed Gull.  Some gulls took to the air, and I was not even anywhere close to them.  Obviously, they were not that used to people being about.  Keeping as low as possible, I got close to the shore and began scoping again.  It took a few minutes, but I relocated my Black-headed Gull again, though it was still quite distant.  Zooming in, I just about manged to capture the code -  2AXT .

I could not place the code, though I knew it belonged to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland project.  On returning home and checking the code on my spreadsheet, I was delighted to see that this bird had been recorded before, and was a bit special.

 2AXT , had been ringed as a chick, on the 8th June 2016, at Inch Island in County Donegal.  Sightings of Black-headed Gulls from the Inch Island colony are extremely rare, as can be read in my account of - 2BCC in my previous post (read).

The first ever re-sighting of -  2AXT , was made by me, on the 4th November 2018 at Millquarter Bay, just up the road from where I recorded the bird today.  A year later, on the 6th November 2019, Graham McElwaine also recorded -  2AXT  at Millquarter Bay.  Today's sighting, takes the duration to 6 years and 3 months since being ringed, and the distance from Inch Island, is 150 kms / 93 miles (SE).

Black-headed Gull  -   2AXT   -  Millquarter Bay, Strangford Lough, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 8th June 2016, at Inch Island, Co. Donegal, Republic of Ireland)

Driving on to nearby Millquarter Bay, it is very easy to scope the gulls from the car, and within a minute from parking, I spotted my first Darvic - a juvenile Herring Gull -  J76:D .  Back at home, I sent an email to Graham Prole, who is the ringing coordinator for the Irish Midlands Ringing Group.  Nearly all of the gulls ringed by them are ringed in or around the City of Dublin.  Graham replied with the birds ringing details.

 J76:D , was ringed as a chick, on the 14th June 2022, on the roof of the GPO building in the City of Dublin.  This was the first re-sighting since the gull was ringed, the duration being just 2 months and 25 days.  I submitted my sighting to the BTO, and the official distance was given as 118 kms / 73 miles (NNE).

Juvenile Herring Gull  -   J76:D   -  Millquarter Bay, Strangford Lough, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 14th June 2022, on the roof of the GPO Building in the City of Dublin)

I continued to scope through the gulls on the beach of Millquarter Bay, and soon spotted a second Darvic on another Herring Gull -  J22:M .  Back at home, I ran the code through my spreadsheet, to find that this was now the second sighting for this young gull.   J22:M , was ringed as a chick, on the 26th June 2021, on the Calf of Man, Isle of Man.  The first re-sighting was made by David Nixon, on the 6th April 2022, at the South Inner Bay at Dundrum in County Down.  The high tide roost on the South Inner Bay, is popular for both gulls and waders, and is easily scoped from the roadside.

We are not having much joy with the ringing coordinator for the Isle of Man (Mark Fitzpatrick), so he is obviously quite busy working with gulls on the Observatory Island of the Calf of Man.  I submitted my sighting to the BTO, and the distance was given as being 56 kms / 34 miles (WNW) from the Calf of Man.  The duration since being ringed, is now 1 year, 2 months and 13 days.

Juvenile Herring Gull  -   J22:M   -  Millquarter Bay, Strangford Lough, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 26th June 2021, on the Calf of Man, Isle of Man)

Continuing to scope through the gulls, I spotted a Black-headed Gull with green on its leg, but was unsure at first whether it was a ring or seaweed.  The bird promptly submerged itself in a pool of water, so I had to wait for it to get up again.  Once it got up, it was a Green Darvic, and I managed to take one photo when all of the gulls took flight.  Looking to see what the problem was, a man with two spaniels were approaching the birds.  Looking at my photo - I was sure that this was a Norwegian bird rung -  JCH7 .

Back at home, I searched for the code on my spreadsheet, and found a match.  Back on the 6th November 2019, Graham McElwaine had recorded -  JCH7  on this very same beach, and at that time it was a first re-sighting since being ringed..

 JCH7 , had been ringed as chick, on the 11th June 2016, on Langåra Island, situated around 18 kms / 11 miles (SW) from Oslo.  After Graham's sighting in 2019, the bird went unrecorded until April 2021, when recorded back in Norway.  A series of sightings in Norway early in 2022, culminated with the gull found at a breeding colony on Fyrsteilene Island, around 6 kms (N) from it was originally ringed as a chick.  Black-headed Gulls often return to the same wintering sites, so this bird may have been overlooked during the winters of 2020 & 2021.

The duration since being ringed, is now 6 years, 2 months and 28 days, and the distance from Langåra Island to Millquarter Bay, is 1143 kms / 710 miles (SW).

Black-headed Gull  -   JCH7   -  Millquarter Bay, Strangford Lough, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 11th June 2016, on Langåra Island, near Oslo, Norway)

Moving on, I checked the beach at Ballyhornan and then proceeded to Ardglass Harbour, where I fell in with several colour-ringed gulls.

The first to be spotted, was a juvenile Herring Gull -  G47:M , which was no doubt ringed this summer.  An Isle of Man bird, I reported it to Mark Fitzpatrick, who has not replied as yet.  My sighting will likely be a first for this bird, and this one is the first to be recorded in Northern Ireland with the ring beginning with the letter ' G '.

Juvenile Herring Gull  -   G47:M   -  Ardglass Harbour, Ardglass, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Waiting for the Ringing Details)

Next up, was a second year Great Black-backed Gull -  U10:M , and this was it's fourth sighting here at Ardglass Harbour.   U10:M , was ringed as a chick, on the 8th July 2021, on the Calf of Man, Isle of Man.  The first re-sighting was made on the 8th December 2021, after the young gull headed south to Rush Harbour in County Dublin.

On the 8th of April 2022, Graham McElwaine recorded the gull at Ardglass Harbour, which was followed by two other sightings at the harbour made by Declan Clarke, on the 5th & 23rd June 2022.  This latest sighting, takes the duration to 1 year and 2 months since being ringed, and Ardglass Harbour lies 57 kms / 35 miles (WNW) from the Calf of Man.

2nd Calendar Year Great Black-backed Gull  -   U10:M   -  Ardglass Harbour, Ardglass, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 8th July 2021, on the Calf of Man, Isle of Man)

My next sighting was another 2nd calendar year Great Black-backed Gull -  U29:M .  It was ringed as a chick, on the 17th June 2021, on Kitterland Island - a small island situated between mainland Isle of Man and the Calf of Man.

It was first re-sighted on the 21st September 2021, at Kentraugh on the Isle of Man mainland.  It's next sighting was made by Graham McElwaine on the 8th April 2022, here at Ardglass Harbour.  My sighting today, is the 3rd for this bird, and comes 1 year, 2 months and 22 days after being ringed.  The distance from Kitterland Island, is 57 kms / 35 miles (WNW).

2nd Calendar Year Great Black-backed Gull  -   U29:M   -  Ardglass Harbour, Ardglass, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 17th June 2021, on Kitterland Island, Isle of Man)

The only Black Darvic of the day, was that of a Herring Gull -  T9WY .  This 3rd year Herring Gull was ringed as a chick, on the 30th June 2020, on the Calf of Man.  On the 12th October 2020, it was spotted at Dunmore East in County Waterford, having travelled 256 kms / 158 miles (SW) from the Calf of Man.

The gull then went un-recorded until the 10th April 2022, when Declan Clarke spotted the gull here at Ardglass Harbour.  On the 31st July 2022, John Smyth reported the gull, having landed on his fishing boat just off the coast of Coney Island, which is situated close to Ardglass.  My sighting today, takes the duration to 2 years, 2 months and 9 days since being ringed, as the distance from the Calf of Man, is 57 kms / 35 miles (WNW).

3rd Calendar Year Herring Gull  -   T9WY   -  Ardglass Harbour, Ardglass, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 30th June 2020, on the Calf of Man, Isle of Man)

Yet another 2nd calendar year Great Black-backed Gull was spotted, which will be a first re-sighting in Northern Ireland, as it was not on my spreadsheet.  I reported -  U40:M  to Mark Fitzpatrick, but as mentioned above, there has still been no reply.  By arrangement with Mark, all sightings of Isle of Man gulls spotted in Northern Ireland, are submitted by myself, as I have all of the locations entered on my BTO DemOn Ringing Account, which saves Mark time, as he does not have to create the locations on his Account.

2nd Calendar Year Great Black-backed Gull  -   U40:M   -  Ardglass Harbour, Ardglass, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Waiting for the Ringing Details)

My final ring sighting of the day, was a fourth 2nd calendar year Great Black-backed Gull -  U25:M .  It is not on my spreadsheet, so will be yet another first re-sighting in Northern Ireland.  I have also reported this one to Mark.  I'll wait for another couple of days, and if I still get no reply, I will submit these new gull sightings to the BTO by their colour-codes only, and keep my fingers crossed, that the ringing details have already been submitted.

2nd Calendar Year Great Black-backed Gull  -   U25:M   -  Ardglass Harbour, Ardglass, Co. Down  (08 Sep 2022)

(Waiting for the Ringing Details)

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Antrim Coast - Friday 9th September 2022

With only a couple of hours to spare, I worked the east County Antrim coast from Glenarm, moving northwards to Cushendall.  My main aim, was to check whether or not, an Icelandic rung Oystercatcher had returned to Carnlough Beach.  A fair number of gulls and waders were checked for rings, but the only one to be found was that of my Oystercatcher.

Ringed Orange over Orange on the left leg, and White (AA), on the right leg, this is now the seventh winter running that I have recorded - OO-W(AA), here on Carnlough Beach.  The bird was ringed as an unsexed breeding adult, on the 10th May 2016, in the Brautarholt area in south-west Iceland, and was last seen there feeding chicks on the 30th June 2016.  My first sighting at Carnlough, was made on the 10th August 2016.

The duration since being ringed, is now 6 years, 3 months and 30 days, and the distance from Brautarholt to Carnlough, is 1,356 kms / 842 miles (SE).  It was good to record another returnee.  Boddi, the ringing coordinator for the Icelandic Waders sent me a PDF File, but stressed that all of this summers sightings have not been passed down to him, so the file may not be up to date.

Oystercatcher  -  OO-W(AA)  -  Carnlough Beach, Carnlough, Co. Antrim  (09 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Un-Sexed Breeding Adult, on the 10th May 2016, at Brautarholt, SW Iceland)

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Kilroot to Dargan Mudflats - Saturday 10th September 2022

Having recorded a Norwegian Black-headed Gull at Millquarter Bay, on the 8th September, I decided to try my luck at finding another one which winter's around Carrickfergus on the County Antrim coast.  I first encountered the gull in the winter of 2020, and it returned again last winter.  It frequents the ponds at Carrickfergus Leisure Centre, but I have also recorded it on the shore at Kilroot Power Station just to the north of Carrickfergus.  I checked both sites, but unfortunately there was no sign of it.  I took a look at the 'Live' Norwegian Ringing Database, but this bird was not recorded in Norway during the past summer.

The shore at Kilroot Power Station, was my first stop today, timing my arrival with the tide starting to recede.  I needed to be settled on top of the sea wall, so as not to disturb the gulls when they arrived in as the tide was going out.  By keeping myself as small as possible, the birds are quite happy with me being there.  Just the one colour-ring was spotted, and that was my third sighting of Herring Gull -  A:H58 .

 A:H58 , was ringed as a chick, on the 12th July 2018, on Lady Isle Nature Reserve, an island just off the coast of Troon, in Ayrshire, Scotland.  My first ever re-sighting of this bird, was made on the 29th November 2020, when I first visited this shore in front of the power station.  My second sighting occurred last winter, having spotted it here again on the 3rd October 2021.  David Grant, stated that my sightings are the only one's for this gull so far.  The duration since being ringed, is 4 years, 1 month and 29 days.  Kilroot is situated 111 kms / 68 miles (SW) from Lady Isle.

Herring Gull  -    A:H58    -  Kilroot Power Station (Shore), Belfast Lough, Co. Antrim  (10 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 12th July 2018, on Lady Isle Island, Ayrshire, Scotland)

Carrickfergus Leisure Centre, was my next stop in search of the Norwegian Black-headed Gull.  The only ring recorded was that of Black-headed Gull -  2CPS .   2CPS , belongs to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland Project, and was ringed as a chick, on the 16th June 2017, on Blue Circle Island on Larne Lough, Co. Antrim.

Today's sighting, is the 14th for this gull, with all sightings having been made here at the Leisure Centre.  Since being ringed in 2017, it has been recorded at least once every winter since.  The duration since being ringed, is 5 years, 2 months and 25 days, and the distance from Blue Circle Island, is just 12 kms / 7 miles (S).

I then drove to Rhanbouy Park in Carrickfergus to check on the gulls on the shore, though despite loads of gulls of varying species, no rings were spotted.  This was the same situation on the shore at Whiteabbey and at Whitehouse Lagoon, which was not helped, as the tide was now well out.

The mudflats at Dargan on Belfast Lough, presented me with three ring sightings.  On my arrival, two other birdwatchers were sitting with their telescopes, so goodness knows what they thought when I took out my camera to take a few photos.  Having scoped my first ringed bird, I zoomed into a Black-tailed Godwit with Blue over Black on the left leg, and an Orange Darvic with two Black rings on the right leg - BN-O(=) - (N represents the colour Black (Niger)).

BN-O(=), belongs to a catch of 24 Godwits, that were caught and ringed at the nearby RSPB's Window on Wildlife Reserve, on the 21st April 2021.  Today's sighting is my second for this bird, having spotted it here on the mudflats, on the 5th September 2021.  The duration since being ringed, is now 1 year, 4 months and 20 days.

Black-tailed Godwit  -  BN-O(=)  -  Dargan Mudflats, Belfast Lough  (10 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Adult Male, on the 21st April 2021, at the RSPB's Window on Wildlife Reserve, Belfast)

My next ring sighting was that of a Black-headed Gull bearing a White Darvic.  This bird was extremely distant, and I had a lot of problems trying to obtain an eligible photo of the code.  The best I got, seemed to show (White) 2717, but by my standards, I could not accept this.  The gull eventually flew off, and as I watched it, the bird landed close to the waterline among other Black-headed Gulls.

It took a long time, but I relocated the bird, and this time I was able to obtain better photos, though the gull was still a long way off.  I was correct on the first encounter, the ring did read - (White) 2717.  I thought that this was a new sighting, for me it was, but on running the code through my spreadsheet, this bird was recorded in Belfast before.

That sighting was made by Suzanne Belshaw, when she came across the gull at the former Belfast Waterworks, on the 22nd June 2022.  At that time, the sighting was reported to Brian Burke, as I knew the bird belonged to the Lough Ree Gull Project in County Longford in the Republic of Ireland.  (White) 2717, had been ringed as a chick, on the 18th June 2021, on Kings Island, Lough Ree.  Suzanne's sighting was the first for this bird.  Today's sighting here at Dargan, takes the duration to 1 year, 2 months and 23 days since being ringed, and the distance from Lough Ree, is 182 kms / 113 miles (NE).

Black-headed Gull  -  (White)  2717  -  Dargan Mudflats, Belfast Lough  (10 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 18th June 2021, on Kings Island, Lough Ree, Co. Longford, Republic of Ireland)

My third ring sighting was that of a Redshank.  On the left leg, the bird had a White Darvic with the letters - NCX, and on the right leg, a plain yellow ring - W(NCX)-Y.  I knew straight away, who this bird belongs to, but, as with other sightings of his colour-ringed birds, any feedback is rarer than observing a 'Green Moon'.  Not only does he ignore the emails sent to him, worst still, ringing details are not usually submitted to the BTO, which in turn, means, they cannot furnish ringing recoveries.

Recently, I recorded two of his colour-ringed Oystercatchers on the Myroe Levels, and on my DemOn Ringing Account, another Redshank - W(HCA)-Y, spotted on two occasions by Suzanne Belshaw (9th November 2021 & 1st February 2022), remains unresolved.  This is a poor state of affairs - why colour-ring birds if observers fail to get any feedback!!  It's high time, that the BTO should suspend the ringing permits for a period of time.  Perhaps, such ringers will pay more attention to their activities and the circumstances involved.  Although I'm a ringer myself, when I'm out ring reading, I am just another member of the public, who's ring sightings need to be addressed.

Redshank  -  W(NCX) - Y  -  Dargan Mudflats, Belfast Lough  (10 Sep 2022)

(Waiting for the Ringing Details)

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