Higher Numbers...

Antrim Marina - Monday 26th September 2022

Today was my 9th weekly visit to Antrim Marina during this autumn/winter season, and this visit was by far the best yet.  Overnight rain had cleared, leading to a dull but calm morning with the occasional shower of rain or drizzle.  As the morning wore on, the sun broke through, although the wind began to get stronger.  Driving from Ballymena to Antrim, I thought the conditions would see an increase in gull numbers at the Marina, and this was the case.

On my way to Antrim, I had to pop into a local shop, and arrived at Antrim Marina at 9:15am.  Around 70 Black-headed Gulls were scattered all over the place, and the first ring read, was that of -  2FDK  at 9:20.  An hour later, at 10:19, the ring of -  2AAN , was the 20th to be read.  By this time, Black-headed Gull numbers had risen to at least the 120 mark, which was probably the highest total so far over recent weeks.  After midday, numbers began to drop off a little, with around 80 to 90 birds remaining by the time I departed just before 1pm.

On my arrival, I was on the lookout for 35 colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls, which included -  2FIK , which was caught and ringed here two weeks ago.   2FIK  was absent last week, but was my fourth sighting today.  No new returnees were recorded, and having just failed to catch one or two new birds, my total for next weeks visit remains at 35.  When I catch gulls, I prefer them to be on the ground.  It is possible to catch them in the air by throwing up bits of bread, but I fear of the being damaged when plucked out of the sky, so I shy away from that idea.  By the time of my departure at around 1pm, 28 colour-rings had been read altogether,

After today's visit, I have decided that the year round resident -  2ABK  has now perished, otherwise it should have recorded by now, especially considering I began my weekly visits at the beginning of August.  My last sighting of -  2ABK , was on the 28th May 2022, while making random summer visits to Antrim Marina.   2ABK , was ringed at Antrim Marina by Adam McClure, as an adult female, on the 23rd January 2013.  Over the years, the gull has been recorded here on 348 occasions, and the duration when last seen back in May, was 9 years, 4 months and 5 days since being ringed.  The only time that -  2ABK  strayed away from Antrim Marina, was on the 17th March 2020, when Suzanne Belshaw photographed the gull at Kinnego Marina, on the southern shore of Lough Neagh.

Glancing over my Antrim Marina Spreadsheet, I now have concerns for another bird -  2CSJ .  I caught and ringed this gull as a second winter bird, on the 17th December 2017.  In the years since being ringed, -  2CSJ  has always been recorded during the months of August and September, but so far, there has been no sign of the bird.  I will not write this one off just yet, though my last sighting of the gull was on the 28th February 2022.  In the past, -  2CSJ , has been recorded during the months of April through to July, which suggests that the gull is a resident and possibly breeds on the nearby former 'Torpedo Platform'.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Monday 26th September 2022

2FDK	2FHX	2CJT	2FIK	2FIA	2ACV	2FIF	2FFF	2CTC	2FFX
2FHJ	2CSB	2ABL	2FHV	2FHP	2AAK	2FIH	2AAB	2FFA	2AAN
2FHA	2AAA	2ABN	2CSR	2CSA	2BRA	2ABA	2ABS

Among today's absentees are -  2CSK  &  2CSL .  Both were recorded on my first weekly visit (2nd August 2022), for this autumn/winter season, but have not appeared here since.  Having said that, I did record -  2CSK  on the 19th August, in the car park of Antrim's Junction One Shopping Centre, whilst -  2CSL  was spotted at Antrim's KFC car park, on the 8th September.  I wonder if these two have decided to avoid Antrim Marina on a regular basis, but they will reappear at some stage.

Another gull that I know is in Antrim Town at present, is -  2ANS .  Having been ringed at Antrim Marina in November 2015, I last recorded it at the Marina in November 2019.  In March 2020, I fell in with -  2ANS  at Glynn on Larne Lough, which suggests that it may be breeding on the RSPB's Blue Circle Island nearby.  That had been the last I saw of the gull, until recently, when I discovered it at the Castle Way car park in the centre of Antrim Town (14th & 28th August, and 8th September).  I'm keeping my fingers crossed, that -  2ANS  will put in an appearance at the Marina sometime this winter.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded This Autumn/Winter but Absent Today.

2CSK	2CSL	2CSX	2FFC	2FFP	2FHC	2FIJ

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

The usual Mute Swan pair with their four cygnets were present throughout the morning.  They were absent during last Monday's visit, though a female with five cygnets came ashore onto the small sandy beach.  Although the female easily came to my hand to feed on bread, those cygnets were not used to people as the continually hissed on approach.  No sign of this family today.

Around 20 Mallards were present on my arrival, and numbers quickly built up to around 80 birds.  As normal, most legs were checked but still no rings among them.

No sign of the resident Herring Gull today, but a juvenile that has been here over recent weeks, was present throughout my visit.  One adult Common Gull was also present throughout the visit, and a second adult appeared at 10:55.  Still no sign of the Scottish metal-rung Common Gull, which appears here each winter.  This one arrived back early last autumn/winter, appearing on the 16th August 2021, and was last seen here on the 3rd January 2022.

Jackdaw numbers remain low, with just six birds seen today.  Two Hooded Crows which appeared late on this morning were obviously new arrivals, as both were very wary of people.  One of the two showed traces of white in it's plumage, instead of being completely black and grey.

Hooded Crow  -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (26 Sep 2022)

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From Suzanne Belshaw

Another batch of colour-ring sightings have arrived with me from Suzanne Belshaw.  These are dealt with in date order, and include two really nice Black-headed Gull re-sightings.

On the 17th September 2022, Suzanne was in the southerly depths of County Down, when she came across a juvenile Herring Gull enjoying some peanuts on the Mourne Esplanade at Kilkeel.  Having reported her sighting to Mark Fitzpatrick on the Isle of Man, Mark replied with the birds details.   G89:M , was ringed as a chick, on the 10th July 2022, on the Calf of Man.  Suzanne's sighting was a first for this young gull, coming 2 months and 7 days after being ringed.  The official distance from the BTO recovery, was given as 79 kms / 49 miles (W).  Our thanks to Mark for his quick reply.

Juvenile Herring Gull  -   G89:M   -  Mourne Esplanade, Kilkeel, Co. Down  (17 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 10th July 2022, on the Calf of Man, Isle of Man)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

On the 20th September, Suzanne visited the former Belfast Waterworks in Cliftonville, Belfast.  Here she came across a Norwegian Black-headed Gull, with one photo having been taken as the bird flew off.  The code read - J7L8, and this became the birds third sighting in Northern Ireland, with all three sightings having now been made at the Waterworks.

 J7L8 , was ringed as an adult male, on the 12th April 2017, at Lake Engervannet, south-east of the Norwegian Capital of Oslo.  The birds first seven sightings were all made in the Oslo area between March 2018 to June 2019.  One the 11th October 2019, Paul McCullough recorded the first sighting here at the Waterworks.  The gull was reported back in Oslo in May 2020 and in September 2020, Suzanne recorded her first sighting of the bird having returned to the waterworks for a second time.

From June 2021, through to April 2022, the gull was seen in the Oslo area on three occasions, and this sighting by Suzanne completes the birds re-sighting history.   J7L8 , may have wintered here in 2021/2022, but 'Covid Restrictions', may have seen the bird being overlooked.  The duration since being ringed, is now 5 years, 5 months and 8 days, and the distance from Lake Engervannet to Belfast Waterworks, is 1,148 kms / 713 miles (WSW).

Black-headed Gull  -   J7L8   -  Former Belfast Waterworks, Cliftonville, Belfast  (20 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Adult Male, on the 12th April 2017, at Lake Engervannet, Oslo, Norway)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

Whilst at the waterworks, a colour-ringed Greylag Goose - (White) 024, was recorded for the seventh time since being ringed on the site, as an adult female on the 25th March 2019.  All seven sightings have been made at the waterworks and the duration since being ringed is now 3 years, 5 months and 26 days.  Suzanne knew that some of these Greylags which have been colour-ringed at the Waterworks, have not had their ringing histories resolved, as we do not know the metal-numbers for the birds.  Just in case (White) 024 was one of those birds, Suzanne also captured it's metal number -  5215206 .

However, the two outstanding Greylags, are (White) 016 & (White) 017.

Greylag Goose  -  (White)  024  -  Former Belfast Waterworks, Cliftonville, Belfast  (20 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Adult Female, on the 25th March 2019, at Belfast Waterworks)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

Suzanne visited Hillsborough Park Lake in County Down on the 23rd September 2022, no doubt looking for ringed gulls.  None were spotted, but a resident Mute Swan was recorded for the 7th time.   NLB , was ringed at Hillsborough Lake, as an adult male, on the 2nd March 2019.  The duration since being ringed, is now 3 years, 6 months and 21 days.  A whole year has been added to it's duration, as it was last recorded here on the 24th September 2021.

Mute Swan  -   NLB   -  Hillsborough Park Lake, Hillsborough, Co. Down  (23 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as an Adult Male, on the 2nd March 2019, at Hillsborough Park Lake)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

The sighting of Black-headed Gull -  2CNB , is my favourite of the bunch.  This is the birds 6th sighting since being ringed, but what makes this one stands out, are the varying locations where it has been spotted.

 2CNB , was ringed as a chick, on the 16th June 2017, at the RSPB's Blue Circle Island Nature Reserve on Larne Lough in County Antrim, and belongs to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland Project.  The first re-sighting, was made by me, on the 23rd November 2017, when I came across the then juvenile at Sandy Bay in Larne, just 4 kms to the north from Blue Circle Island.

Juvenile Black-headed Gull  -   2CNB   -  Sandy Bay, Larne, Co. Antrim  (23 Nov 2017)

Suzanne copied me into an email to Adam McClure, having spotted -  2CNB , at Ballyholme Beach in County Down on the 19th May 2018, and I also recorded the bird at Ballyholme Beach, on the 17th February 2019.  By the 7th April 2019,  2CNB  unexpectedly turned up on the north coast of County Antrim, where I photographed it on the beach at Ballycastle.  By the 15th September 2019, the gull had moved back south into County Down, where this time I located it on the beach at Groomsport Harbour.

Since 2019,  2CNB  had gone unrecorded until now, when on the 24th September 2020, the gull was spotted by Suzanne at the Bloomfield McDonalds Fast Food Outlet in Bangor, County Down.  This is really a super re-sighting, and it now adds a further three years to the gulls duration, which is now 5 years, 3 months and 9 days since being ringed.  The distance from Blue Circle Island, is a mere 20 kms / 12 miles (SSE), but to drive between the two sites, would seem to take forever, as you would have to go through Belfast.  Suzanne often checks out fast food outlets looking for ringed gulls, as these act as 'magnets' when the birds are looking for an easy meal.

Black-headed Gull  -   2CNB   -  McDonalds Fast Food Outlet, Bloomfield, Bangor, Co. Down  (24 Sep 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 16th June 2017, at RSPB Blue Circle Island NR, Larne Lough, Co. Antrim)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

Suzanne's latest sighting of Black-headed Gull -  250B , is historical, as this is the first ever September sighting of the bird, and not only that, the whole month has just about passed by.   250B , was ringed as a chick, on the 6th June 2008, at Lough Mask in County Mayo, in the Republic of Ireland.

Here in Northern Ireland, it was first recorded by Adam McClure, in a car park at the Sprucefield Shopping Centre in County Down, on the 1st July 2013.  The gull has been recorded at Sprucefield at least once every year since 2013, and it has been established that -  250B  is using the shopping centre as a staging post to it's wintering site, which is as yet unknown.  All sightings have been made in the months of July and August, but until now, none in September.

Suzanne's sighting on the 25th September 2022, was surprise, surprise, made in the City of Lisburn in County Antrim, just 2 kms or so away from Sprucefield.  I have always entertained the idea, that -  250B  could spend the winter in Scotland, as a straight line from Lough Mask, through Sprucefield, would take the gull into Dumfries & Galloway.  Could this latest sighting in Lisburn, suggest it is wintering not so far away, hopefully in time we will find out.

The BTO gave the distance from Lough Mask to Lisburn, as 233 kms / 144 miles (ENE), and the duration since being ringed, is now a nice 14 years, 3 months and 19 days.

Black-headed Gull  -   250B   -  Lisburn, Co. Antrim  (25 Sep 2022)

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

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

A second Black-headed Gull spotted in Lisburn, was -  2ACP .   2ACP , was one of the earliest ringed birds belonging to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland project.  It was ringed as an un-sexed adult on the 9th February 2013, at the Sprucefield Shopping Centre car park roughly 2 kms from where it was seen on the 25th September 2022.  This was the birds 32nd sighting report, with all sightings having been made either at Sprucefield or in Lisburn.  The duration since being ringed, is now 9 years, 7 months and 16 days.

Black-headed Gull  -   2ACP   -  Lisburn, Co. Antrim  (25 Sep 2022)

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

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

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