Boring...

What a weekend!!!  Having checked out the County Antrim Coast from Cushendall to Belfast over Saturday and Sunday, not a single ringed bird was spotted.  Well, not exactly, as I did spot a metal-rung Common Gull at Carnlough Beach, though I stood no chance of reading that ring.

Monday's visit to Antrim Marina, was a poor one as well.  All in all, this was a very frustrating weekend.  The tides were not really in my favour, so hopefully with this weekends tides being more favourable, a few rings will be recorded.

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Antrim Marina - Monday 14th November 2022

On leaving my home in Ballymena, it was teeming down with rain which cleared as I approached the town of Antrim.  Due to heavy traffic, it took me 20 minutes to reach the Marina from Antrim's Junction One Shopping Centre, arriving at 9:15.  Just 8 Black-headed Gulls were present, which included two colour-ringed birds -  2FHX  and  2FIF .

The morning remained cloudy and calm, and it was really mild for this time of the year.  I was on the lookout for 41 colour-ringed Black-headed Gull which have been recorded here so far this winter, and included three birds caught and ringed over recent weeks.

As the morning wore on, it became evident that this was going to be another poor visit, as Black-headed Gull numbers just about reached the 60 mark altogether.  Only 23 colour-ringed birds were recorded, meaning I had 18 absentees, and no new returnees were recorded.  My attempts to catch one or two more gulls for ringing resulted in a complete failure.  Before this, a Chinese gent had arrived to feed the ducks with a shopping bag full of bread, but seeing as there were so few ducks about, the gulls had more than their fair share.

This was easily one of the most boring visits that I have ever made to Antrim Marina, and I was really glad to have several passers by stopping for a chat about what I was doing.  This helped to fill in the time, and these people parted with a better knowledge of the gulls and their movements.

I really do need a change in the weather, a few frosty nights should help in bringing the gulls back to the Marina.  On reflection, gull numbers here have seemingly dropped off by a long way since the building of the Gateway Centre.

Just as I was about to leave at 1pm, more Black-headed Gulls began to arrive, but I still had to head home to grab a couple of hours kip, before starting my evening shift at work.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Monday 14th November 2022

2FHX	2FIF	2AAK	2FFF	2FFA	2FFX	2CJT	2BRA
2FHA	2ABL	2CTC	2FHJ	2FIL	2FIN	2FDJ	2CSR
2FFC	2AAA	2AAN	2ACV	2FDK	2CSA	2FHP

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

2AAB	2ABA	2ABN	2ABS	2CSB	2CSK	2CSL	2CSX	2FDX
2FFL	2FFP	2FFT	2FHC	2FHV	2FIA	2FIH	2FIJ	2FIK

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

The first thing that I noticed on parking beside the slipway, was that there were no Mallards.  By the time that I departed at 1pm, only 12 Mallards were present - so what is going on with the ducks?  At this time of the year, numbers should be reaching the 100 mark.  I thought last Monday's total of 20 birds was poor, but it was even worse today.

Barring 8 Black-headed Gulls, a juvenile Herring Gull and the Mute Swan family, with just three of the four cygnets present, the Marina was eerily quite.  The fourth cygnet eventually arrived at 10:15 from upriver to join the rest of the family.

The resident adult Herring Gull appeared at 10:21, and immediately found a dead fish on the small sandy beach to feed on.  Shortly afterwards, Council Wardens arrived to clear up the debris lying strewn across the beach, and they found a total of three dead fish.  One is understandable, but three!!!

By coincidence, mid morning saw the arrival of the Fisheries Protection Agency, along with a man from the NIEA (Northern Ireland Environment Agency), and they went out onto Lough Neagh in a small 'Rib'.  When they later arrived back to the Marina, I learnt that they were taking water samples to be examined.  They too, were surprised to learn of the three dead fish, which they collected to be examined as well.

A juvenile Common Gull arrived at 9:55, and remained for about an hour.  A second adult Herring Gull appeared at 10:39, followed by two adult Common Gulls around 11am.  Neither Common Gull was ringed, so I'm still awaiting the small Scottish-rung bird.

A juvenile Great-Crested Grebe, was spotted fishing close to the slipway at 10:05, at which point, I realised I had forgot to bring my camera.  A Kingfisher was spotted zooming along in front of the Marina on three occasions.

A pair of Hooded Crows appeared briefly, and just four Jackdaws were noted.  Jackdaw numbers are really low as compared to previous winters.  A male Pied Wagtail, was the only other species to be recorded otherwise.

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From Suzanne Belshaw

Suzanne Belshaw has been in touch concerning her latest Black-headed Gull re-sightings.  The first of the three was made in Lisburn, Co. Antrim, where she spotted -  2ACP  on the 6th October 2022.   2ACP , was amongst the first Black-headed Gulls to be ringed belonging to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland Black-headed Gull Study, which I now respond to.

It was ringed as an unsexed adult, on the 9th February 2013, in the car park of Sprucefield Shopping Centre, situated 2 kms / 1 mile away from Suzanne's sighting in Lisburn.  This latest sighting, is now the 33rd record for the gull, having been spotted either at Sprucefield or in Lisburn during the autumn and winter months.  Since being ringed, it has been recorded at least once every winter.  The duration now stands at 9 years, 8 months and 28 days.  I wonder where this bird breeds during the summer months.

Black-headed Gull  -   2ACP   -  Lisburn, Co. Antrim  (06 Nov 2022)

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

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

On the 8th November, Suzanne visited the lake at Lurgan Park in County Armagh, where she recorded two Black-headed Gulls, both of which were re-sightings.  The first, a metal-rung bird -  EZ02451 , was ringed as a chick, on the 20th June 2017, at the Elvanfoot colony in South Lanarkshire, Scotland.

This latest sighting, is the 13th overall since the gull was ringed, with 12 of these having been made by Suzanne here at Lurgan Park.  The location of one sighting is unknown, as I found the record on the BTO's DemOn Ringing Database, though I'm fairly certain that this was also at Lurgan Park and the date was given as the 13th October 2017.

The first ever sighting since being ringed, was made on the 7th September 2017, when the then juvenile was spotted by Suzanne.  The gull has been recorded at Lurgan Park at least once every winter since 2017, with it's last sighting before today, having been made on the 12th January 2022.

The duration since being ringed, is now 5 years, 4 months and 19 days, and the distance from Elvanfoot, is 202 kms / 125 miles (WSW).  Normally, the Clyde Ringing Group, would colour-ring their Black-headed Gulls at the Elvanfoot colony (Red Darvics), but I can remember an email conversation that I had with Iain Livingstone, that, on that particular day, they ran out of colour-rings, as there were far more chicks around than had been expected, and this was why -  EZ02451  was given a metal ring only.

Black-headed Gull  -   EZ02451   -  Lurgan Park Lake, Lurgan, Co. Armagh  (08 Nov 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 20th June 2017, at Elvanfoot, South Lanarkshire, Scotland)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

The second Black-headed Gull -  2FCK , is a juvenile that would have been ringed as a chick in June 2022.  Suzanne fell in with the youngster on the 26th October 2022, and reported her sighting to Ben Dolan from the West Midlands Ringing Group.  Ben redirected Suzanne to report her sighting via their new online database.  Suzanne did so, with the results being a trifle vague.  The first line, that would normally give the ringing details, gave sighting 07-06-2022, Marsh Lane, Meriden, also the code -  2FCK .  It did not state whether the bird was ringed as a chick, nor was a metal-number given.

On a personal note, I have had problem's with these type of online reporting systems, especially the lack of a metal number.  One ringing coordinator said I should use the colour-code as an index on my spreadsheets, but the problem here is with the code.  Several ringing projects will use the same combination of numbers and letters, the only difference being the colour of the ring.  For example, here in Northern Ireland, I have three - 2BBC's -  2BBC  on a Black-headed Gull,  2BBC  on a Common Gull and  2BBC  also on another Common Gull.  If it weren't for the metal numbers, the records for each of the BBC's would end up getting mixed amongst each other.  This shows how important it is to obtain the metal number in order to keep each birds history together as individuals.  Even the BTO regards the metal number as being more important than the colour-rings used.

With this latest sighting of -  2FCK , Suzanne was left with the dilemma as what to do with this sighting.  I decided to submit the sighting directly to the BTO in the hope that they could generate a recovery by the colour-marks only.  Unfortunately, they were not able to find a match on their system, which means that the ringing details have not been submitted or submitted without the colour-marks.  In turn, they sent an email to Ben Dolan, to supply me with the bird's ringing details and ring number.  I have not heard from Ben as yet, but I have a feeling that he will redirect me to their website, which is pointless.

I am assuming that -  2FCK  was ringed as a chick, on the 7th June 2022, today's sighting would therefore take the duration to 5 months and 1 day.  I went onto Google Maps to work out the distance, which is around 382 kms / 237 miles (NW).

Suzanne, also brought to my attention, the sighting of another colour-ringed Black-headed Gull which was recently spotted at Lurgan Park Lake.  This bird, rung -  2HCJ , was spotted on the West Midlands Ringing Group Twitter account by Suzanne, and was posted on the 14th October 2022.  I sent an email to the finder - Ronan Owens, requesting any details that he had received for his sighting, but Ronan has not replied.

My thanks goes to Suzanne once again for these latest sightings along with the photos.

Juvenile Black-headed Gull  -   2FCK   -  Lurgan Park Lake, Lurgan, Co. Armagh  (08 Nov 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 7th June 2022, at Marsh Lane Nature Reserve, West Midlands, England)

(Photo Courtesy of Suzanne Belshaw)

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From Lindsay Hodges

On Wednesday 16th November 2022, I received an email from Lindsay Hodges concerning his sighting of a colour-ringed Black-headed Gull -  2CLV , at Luke's Point in Ballyholme, Co. Down.  Initially, Lindsay reported the sighting to my Ringing Trainer - Richard Donaghey, who knew that I responded to sightings of these BHGs belonging to Adam McClure's former Northern Ireland Study.  Also in the email, was the sighting of a Polish Black-headed Gull, also recorded at Luke's Point a few days earlier.

The Polish bird -  TRX9 , was spotted on the 10th November by Lindsay, but is no stranger to Luke's Point.  Ringed as a chick, on the 5th June 2019, on Lake Rynskie near Ryn in north-east Poland,  TRX9  was first recorded in Northern Ireland last winter, having been recorded at Luke's Point on the 12th September 2021 by a John O'Boyle.  A further three sightings were reported by George Gordon (x2) and Anthony McGeehan in October and December 2021, and in February 2022.  The final sighting of the 2021/2022 winter, was made by Suzanne Belshaw on the 17th March 2022, with the gull remaining at Luke's Point.

At that time, I wondered if - TRX9  would return for a second winter, and the gull duly arrived back to Ballyholme on the 19th July 2022, when recorded by David Bellamy & Robert Fisher.  The next two sightings before this latest sighting by Lindsay, was made by Suzanne Belshaw on the 6th August 2022, and by myself, on the 28th August 2022.

The duration since being ringed, is now 3 years, 5 months and 5 days, and the distance from Ptasia Wyspa Island to Luke's Point, is 1,760 kms / 1,093 miles (W), as given in the BTO Recoveries.  Before being recorded in Northern Ireland, the gull's first re-sighting was made on the 4th August 2019, when the then juvenile was spotted at Ringstone Edge Reservoir in West Yorkshire, England.

Black-headed Gull  -   TRX9   -  Luke's Point, Ballyholme, Co. Down  (10 Nov 2022)

(Ringed as a Chick, on the 5th June 2019, at Ptasia Wyspa Island, Lake Rynskie, Ryn, Poland)

(Photo Courtesy of Lindsay Hodges)

Lindsay's sighting of Black-headed Gull -  2CLV  at Luke's Point (15th November 2022), was warmly welcomed, as this was now the 8th sighting record overall since being ringed.   2CLV , was ringed as a chick, on the 16th June 2017, at the RSPB's Blue Circle Island Reserve on Larne Lough, Co. Antrim.  The then juvenile's first re-sighting was made by Cameron Moore on the 28th August 2017, in the coastal town of Whitehead in County Antrim, 10 kms / 6 miles (SE) from Larne Lough.

The gull then went unrecorded until the 27th February 2019, when it was spotted here at Luke's Point by Suzanne Belshaw.  There were no sightings in 2020, and then in January 2021, George Gordon recorded -  2CLV  at Luke's Point on the 4th & 7th.

A breeding season sighting was reported by Peregrine enthusiast - Jim Wells, having spotted the gull at Bangor Harbour in County Down, on the 16th June 2021.  This left me wondering - where was this gull nesting, as the nearest breeding colonies that I know of, would be at Groomsport Harbour, Big Copeland Island, the RSPB's WoW Reserve in Belfast or WWT Castle Espie Wetland Centre, all rather distant, except for Groomsport Harbour.  In the past, I have seen a Black-headed Gull on the island at Groomsport Harbour on a couple of occasions, but was unable to capture the code on the Orange Darvic, due to the distance from the shore.  Could this possibly be -  2CLV ?

Before this latest sighting by Lindsay, George Gordon recorded two further sightings at Luke' Point, on the 3rd October 2021 and on the 17th February 2022.  Overall, there are really few sightings altogether, which suggests that -  2CLV  is wintering in the Ballyholme area, but infrequently visits Luke's Point.  The duration since being ringed, is now 5 years, 4 months and 30 days, and the distance from Larne Lough, is 19 kms / 11 miles (SE).

My thanks goes to Lindsay for these sighting reports, and for his permission to add these to my blog along with the photos.  I informed Lindsay of another Black-headed Gull to watch out for at Luke's Point, this one being -  2ABT , which has a good re-sighting record.

Black-headed Gull  -   2CLV   -  Luke's Point, Ballyholme, Co. Down  (15 Nov 2022)

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

(Photo Courtesy of Lindsay Hodges)

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