Antrim Marina - Tuesday 4th November 2025...

Antrim Marina - Tuesday 4th November 2025

This post is a wee bit late in being published, but a few problems at home needed sorting out first.  Disaster of all disasters - my mobile phone fell out of my pocket in my back garden shattering the screen.  With the cost of a replacement screen running at roughly half the cost of a new mobile, the latter was the best option.  Having purchased a new mobile, I then had the laborious task of downloading all of my favourite apps which also needed my login details to be added.  If that wasn't bad enough, the washing machine packed-up, leading to another new appliance.

My weekly visit to Antrim Marina on Tuesday 4th November was also a disaster.  This surely had to be the worst weekly visit for a very, very long time.  Arriving at 11am, it was calm and sunny, with the temperature gauge in my car reading 15ºC.

Studying a wintering population of Black-headed Gulls, just 31 were present as I parked my car beside the small concrete jetty.  Little did I know at that time, overall numbers never surpassed that original count.  Throughout the visit, an unknown number of gulls were perched on the roof of the 'Gateway Centre', which did not help when trying to read Black-headed Gulls with colour-coded rings.

So far this winter, 23 colour-coded rings have been recorded.  From 11am through to 12:31, 15 of those rings were read leaving me with 8 absentees.  I had intended to stay until 3pm, but, with no further rings read for two hours, I called it quits at 2:30.  No new returnees were recorded, which is worrying.  Is the mild weather a factor for the delay, or something more sinister such as 'Bird Flu'.  In the Northern Ireland News of late, 'Bird Flu' was confirmed on a chicken farm and separately in a flock of turkeys, leading to the destruction of both.

The metal-rung Icelandic Black-headed Gull -  543335  appeared at 11:51.  This bird which was ringed in July 2023, returned for the third winter running, on the 24th August 2025.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Tuesday 4th November 2025

2CSK	2FJA	2FFA	2CJT	2FJN	2FJT	2CSR	2FIF
2BRA	2AAN	2FKA	2FIL	2ACV	2FFX	2FJX

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

2ABN	2BRD	2FDK	2FFT	2FHV	2FJF	2FJK	2FJV

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

Just 19 Mallards were present on my arrival and by 1pm, not a single duck was present.  A couple were seen on the river near the breakwater leading into Lough Neagh.

Just two adult Mute Swans were on the slipway on my arrival.  A further two adults arrived independently from Lough Neagh, at 1:14 & 1:50pm.  For a second week running, there was no sign of the resident female and her six cygnets.  None of today's swans were ringed.

The resident male Herring Gull was present throughout my visit.  I noticed that he has a slight injury to his right leg and was limping slightly.  His juvenile youngster arrived at 12:22, with mother arriving at 13:24.

Two adult Common Gulls were present at first with one soon departing.  The distinctive remaining bird was seen several times as he came and went.  Not a good day for Common Gulls either.

An adult Moorhen made a brief appearance on the long wooden jetty.  Watching it, this bird was eating the more 'meatier' bits of the gulls droppings.  I had seen this behaviour a few years back, and at that time thought it was a 'one off'.  Perhaps this is more common than I thought.  It is not a really good habit, considering the possibility of 'Bird Flu' in the area.

Two pairs of Jackdaws were frequent visitors, but no sign of the new 'speckled' bird seen last week.  Most times when the Jackdaws arrive, the check the bowl of the pellet dispenser just in case.

As stated above, this was definitely not a very good visit.  Even my camera is getting bored!!!

As I publish this on Monday 10th November, the forecast for tomorrow is to be poor, so it looks like being a Wednesday visit this week

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