Antrim Marina - (Monday 22nd January 2024)

Antrim Marina - Monday 22nd January 2024

I got up on Sunday morning (21st January), and it was already wet and windy ahead of the approaching storm Isha which was soon to hit Northern Ireland.  Rather than going to Antrim Marina, where my weekly visit could be cut short by worsening weather, I decided to go on the following day.

Isha hit us with some of the strongest winds I haven't witnessed since possibly back in the 80's.  Monday morning was still quite windy when I left home in Ballymena to make my way up to Antrim.  At the same time, storm Jocelyn was following on the heels of Isha, though wind speeds were not be to so severe.  With an estimated time of arrival at Antrim Marina being around 10am, as I drove down the Avenue towards the Marina, I discovered that the road was closed.  A fully mature Beech tree in the grounds of Massereene Golf Club to the left of the Avenue, had fallen across the road.  Workmen were already in attendance, to cut up the tree and clear the road.

It wasn't until 11:25, that I was able to pass the workmen, with one lane now passable.  It was already very windy, with heavy cloud cover, and the temperature read 6°C.  Driving through the barrier into the car park, around 60 Black-headed Gulls were resting on the car park beside the small wooden jetty, and they were 'rocked' about whilst facing into the wind.

With the return of the Swedish -  2FDL  during my previous visit, I was on the lookout for 35 colour-rings today, which included 8 gulls that had been caught and ringed this winter.  The first ring to be read at 11:31, was that of -  2FIK , and an hour later at 12:34, the 18th and final ring read for the day was -  2CTA .  By 1:30, conditions became so bad, I decided to call it a day.  Heavy, 'squally' rain was now falling and it was so dark, I could hardly read rings.  By now, most of the gulls had left anyway, with between 15 to 20 birds remaining.

I would be fairly sure, that, had the weather been slightly calmer, and with more time to read rings, my total would have been far higher.  The Icelandic Black-headed Gull -  543335 , was spotted again at 11:35.  Despite the weather conditions, several people still arrived to feed the birds with both bread and grain, and my single attempt to catch one or two new birds ended in failure - too well fed.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Monday 22nd January 2022

2FIK	2BRA	2FFA	2FHC	2AAB	2FDJ	2ABN	2CJT	2FIF
2FIL	2FJA	2FJH	2FJT	2ACV	2CSK	2AAN	2FJJ	2CTA

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

2AFD	2BRD	2CSR	2FDK	2FDL	2FFT	2FFX	2FHT	2FHV
2FIA	2FIJ	2FIP	2FJF	2FJK	2FJL	2FJN	2FJP

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

12 (White) Mute Swans, plus one of the older cygnets, were all out of the water resting around the slipway.  All legs were checked, with no rings spotted.  One further adult bird arrived from upriver at 12:42.

The adult male Herring Gull was present throughout my visit, and the female from previous weeks appeared alongside him at 11:50.  A 3rd calendar year Herring Gull arrived at 1:06, and rested on top of the yellow 'navigation pole'.

One adult Common Gull was also present throughout my visit, resting in among the Black-headed Gulls.  A further two adults arrived at 12:22, and none of the three birds were ringed.

The adult Moorhen was once again present and on a couple of occasions, was seen eating a 'healthy' diet of swan poo.  The juvenile which arrived here a couple of weeks back, appeared around 11:50.

3 Hooded Crows, 4 Jackdaws and a male Pied Wagtail, were the only other species noted during today's visit.

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