Antrim Marina - (Sunday 7th January 2024)

Antrim Marina - Sunday 7th January 2024

This week's weekly visit to Antrim Marina, was a strange one for all sorts of reasons.  To begin with, I delayed my arrival time today, as an online weather map was showing fog in the Antrim area, which I had hoped would lift during the visit.  Plus, during my visit, the Lough Neagh Rescue Team were busy, and I had a few interesting ring re-sightings as well.

I arrived at 10:45 to find that the fog was a little thicker than I had hoped for, although conditions were very calm.  The temperature gauge in my car was reading 0°C, which lasted to around 1pm, before moving up to 2°C.  The fog never cleared, and actually became thicker around my departure at 2pm.

As I say, Lough Neagh Rescue were busy, with one boat checking the river which flows out into Lough Neagh.  Talking to Danny and Janet who are part of the shore crew working out of the office, the search was still ongoing for an Antrim man who has been missing since the 17th December 2023.  I was informed that a further two rescue boats were making their way over to Antrim from their base at Kinnego Marina, situated at the southern end of Lough Neagh.

The two boats arrived shortly afterwards, and all three crews went into the office for a quick cup of tea and to discuss what to do next.  The idea was to comb Lough Neagh with the boats three apart working long stretches of the Lough in search of the missing man.  After a lengthy wait, it was decided that the conditions were not going to improve, and at 12:20, the search was called off.

Despite all of the activity, there were plenty of Black-headed Gulls present from the start, which I estimated to be somewhere between 100 to 120 birds.  So far this winter a total of 34 colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls have been recorded, with 8 of those being birds ringed over the last couple of months.

Unlike recent weeks, ring sightings stretched over a long period, with the first being the year round resident -  2CJT  at 10:48.  My 4th sighting at 10:51, was that of the Icelandic bird -  2FHV .  A few weeks back, I made comment about the absence of this gull.  It had been recorded on most weekly visits since the beginning of August and disappeared after the 22nd October 2023.  Having looked back at it's previous winter records, I noted this bird has disappeared before and then reappears in January.  True to form, it has returned.  Really glad to see it back, and the gull should remain now until it heads back to northern Iceland in the spring.   2FHV  was ringed at Antrim Marina as an adult, on the 8th November 2021.  It has been spotted twice at Akureyri in northern Iceland, in June and July 2022.

My 11th sighting at 11:54, was that of -  2FIJ , making it's third appearance this winter.   2FIJ , is a bird that I strongly believe uses Antrim Marina as a 'staging post' to and from it's wintering site wherever that might be.  I caught and ringed this bird at the Marina in January 2022, with just one further winter sighting having been made in March 2022.  The following winter,  2FIJ  was recorded on just three occasions between the 8th August and 12th December 2022.  Having arrived back this winter, it was recorded on the 8th August and 4th September 2023, before disappearing until today.

Black-headed Gull  -   2FIJ   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (07 Jan 2024)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 10th January 2022, at Antrim Marina)

My 16th sighting at 12:20, was that of a bird that had me slightly worried about it's welfare.  Ringed as an adult in November 2019,  2FDK  is a gull that is regularly recorded throughout previous winters, except for this winter.  Up until today, the only sighting was made back on the 11th September 2023, with it's continued absence making me feel as if the gull had perished.  Goodness knows where it has been or what it has been up to, but I'm really glad to see that it is still with us.

My 23rd ring sighting at 1:19, had me running back to the car to grab my camera.   2FJK , is one of the 8 gulls to be caught and ringed this winter.  Once each gull has been ringed, I try to obtain photos of them as soon as possible, just in case they depart from the Marina.   2FJK , was the fourth of the 8 to be ringed - an adult ringed on the 3rd December 2023.  Since it was ringed, there has been no sightings until today - Snap!!!

Black-headed Gull  -   2FJK   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (07 Jan 2024)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 3rd December 2023, at Antrim Marina)

Altogether, 24 out of the 34 rings were read today, which left me with 10 absentees.  The metal-rung Icelandic Black-headed Gull -  543335 , which has been here since the 8th August 2023, was again spotted at 12:42.  I did make on half-hearted attempt to catch a gull or two, and missed out on catching -  543335  by about two inches.  It crept in between the legs of the swans and managed to grab a large piece of bread, narrowly avoiding my attempt to grab it.  I'm 'dying' to fit this one with a Darvic before it returns to Iceland in the spring.  Unfortunately, no further returnees were recorded today, which still leaves me with around half of last winter's colour-ringed gulls still missing.

In correspondence with Graham Prole in Dublin, only two of their colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls have returned to their wintering sites around the City - and I thought I was doing badly!!

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Sunday 7th January 2024

2CJT	2FJT	2FJA	2FHV	2FJH	2FHC	2FJP	2FFA
2FJJ	2BRA	2FIJ	2FIL	2FFX	2AAN	2FDJ	2FDK
2FJN	2CSK	2FIP	2FIF	2CSR	2FJF	2FJK	2AAB

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

2ABN	2ACV	2AFD	2BRD	2CTA
2FFT	2FHT	2FIA	2FIK	2FJL

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

Normally in this section, I would begin with the Mute Swans, as there has been plenty around over recent weeks.  Although the Black-headed Gulls kept me on my toes today, it was the number of Common Gulls about that really caught my attention.  A total of 12 Common Gulls were already on site when I arrived.  With lots of people arriving to feed the ducks, the constant screams of the Commons could be heard as they chased after the Black-headed Gulls to try and force them to drop their bread.

At midday, I tried to count the Common Gulls with a lot of difficulty, as many kept on moving about.  At the time, a man with presumably his three sons were feeding the swans bread on the small sandy beach.  As well as counting the gulls through my binoculars, I was also checking legs in case the small metal-rung Scottish female was present.  I reckoned, that at least 15 Common Gulls were present, when at 12:02, I spotted one with a White Darvic on the end of the long wooden jetty.  I rushed back to my car to grab my camera, but when I returned to the beach, my gull was gone.

With all of the gulls flying all over the place chasing the Black-headed's, I desperately tried to relocate my target just in case it would depart from the Marina.  Eventually, I found it standing on top of the boat moored to the long wooden jetty and managed to get a few photos.  On looking at the code - (White) JE956, I knew the bird was from Norway, as their colour-rings on both Common and Black-headed Gulls begin with the letter 'J'.

On returning home, I made a search of the code on my 'Main Ring Reading Spreadsheet', and found a match.  (White) JE956, was ringed as a juvenile male, on the 24th September 2018, in the Nedre Leirfoss area, close to Bratberg Kraftverk Power Station, Trondheim, Norway.  The first re-sighting was recorded here in Northern Ireland, on the 16th December 2022, when spotted at Lurgan Park Lake in Co. Armagh, by Suzanne Belshaw.  The next two sightings occurred in June 2023, when the gull was recorded back in the area where it had originally been ringed.

The distance from Nedre Leirfoss to Antrim Marina, is 1,347 kms / 836 miles (SW), and the duration since being ringed, is now 5 years, 3 months and 14 days.

Common Gull  -  (White)  JE956  -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (07 Jan 2024)

(Ringed as a Juvenile Male, on the 24th September 2018, at Nedre Leirfoss, Trondheim, Norway)

With most of the gulls settled around 1:30, I made another count, with a total of 17 adults and 1 juvenile present.  The juvenile arrived at 10:56, and remained throughout my visit.  At this point, there was no sign of the Norwegian bird, and with all legs checked, there is still no sign this winter of the Scottish metal-rung bird.  I cannot recollect totals for past winters, but to have a total of 18 and the Norwegian making 19, this could well be a record number for the Marina.  I really like Common Gulls, and looking through the birds that were here today, there was much variation in sizes, head, neck and leg colouration.

The resident adult male Herring Gull was present throughout the visit, and once again, there was no sign of the female that arrived here a few weeks ago.  A juvenile Herring Gull made a brief appearance at 1:24.

A count of the Mute Swans after my arrival, gave a total of 19 (White) swans, and five cygnets.  Four of these are presumably the ones reared upriver, whilst the smaller browner cygnet is likely to be one of two which first appeared here along with a juvenile Whooper Swan.  The metal-rung -  Z78580 , was recorded again at 11:44.  No more swans arrived during the visit.

Around 25 Mallards were counted on my arrival, with numbers more or less remaining constant during my visit.  I do not have a clue as to what is going on with the Mallards.  Numbers at this time of the winter should be in the region of 100 birds.

The adult Moorhen which first appeared a few weeks ago, arrived at 11:15 today, and the juvenile which appeared here recently, was spotted at 12:45.

A male Pied Wagtail was seen on several occasions, and 4 Jackdaws completed today's list of other species at the Marina.

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