Antrim Marina - Wednesday 11th March 2026...

Antrim Marina - Wednesday 11th March 2026

With poor weather forecasted for Tuesday and Thursday this week, Wednesday was to be the best day for this week's weekly visit to Antrim Marina.  Due to a problem at home on Tuesday, I ended up cancelling the visit altogether.

Recently, I have mentioned our cat appears to be suffering from the feline version of old age dementia.  The result of this, someone needs to be at home at all times.  With three of us living in the house, the task is quite simple.  Lorraine's cat is called 'Rusty' for obvious reasons - mostly sort of orange above and white underneath.  With Lorraine at work on Tuesday, around 9am, Rusty wanted to go out into our back yard.  It rained all day on Tuesday, but Rusty went missing.  I went out the back several times and there was no sign of the cat.  In the car-port, there is a recycling box with a blanket on it, sheltered by my car.  Rusty would quite happily lay for hours at a time on it, but by 5pm, there was still no sign of him and it was still raining.

At 5:45pm, what appeared to be a giant black hedgehog appeared on the dining room window ledge - of course it was Rusty.  I went out and lifted him and set him down on a towel on the kitchen bench.  His fur was so wet, it looked like spikes and rubbing him down with another towel, he was plastered with what looked like a fine silt.  I then realised his right paw was injured.

A good feed and a drink of milk was quickly devoured, then I set him onto a covered kitchen chair where he started to lick himself clean.  As the evening wore on, his pawed swelled up and he could not put any pressure on it.  We decided that he had to be kept in that night, and I sorted out a 'cat litter' tray from the shed.

Come Wednesday morning, after a phone call to the vet, an appointment was made for 12:45.  On car duty for the run, my trip to the Marina was cancelled.  I received the call from Lorraine to collect them.  Lorraine was £167 lighter, no broken leg, a double dose of antibiotics and a pain killer - quite a costly visit.  As forecasted, Thursday was indeed on the wet side and with Lorraine back at work, the weekend was ruled out.

As I write (Monday 16th March), Rusty is now walking again, and is now spending a lot of time resting in the house.  We still have no idea what happened to him, but it seems as if he fell into a drain or something similar.  Rusty was a 'blow in' having settled with us five or six years ago.  The vet has aged him as 12 to 13 years old - no wonder he's showing signs of dementia - walking about without a clue what he wants to do.  Animals, sometimes they can be a pain in the a***.

I should get to the Marina tomorrow or on Wednesday. 

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Antrim Marina - Wednesday 4th March 2026...

Antrim Marina - Wednesday 4th March 2026

I arrived at the Marina at 11:19 this morning.  I had planned to leave at 3pm, but eventually departed at 3:45.  On arrival, it was cloudy but calm, and the temperature gauge in my car read 11ºC.  Soon afterwards, the skies cleared leaving with a nice sunny day, with the temperature climbing to 14ºC.  Seeing as the day had turned out well, lots of folk passed through and I ended up having loads of conversations and the time flew by.

Around 40 Black-headed Gulls were present and throughout the visit numbers fluctuated between 30 to 70 gulls.  Only 28 colour-ringed gulls have been recorded this winter, all having been ringed here so that their movements can be tracked.  I come up to read the colour-rings once a week, and for the past couple of months, the totals read have been on the low side.  Many have suddenly disappeared, including a few whose rings would normally be read on a regular basis.  I have it in mind, that some of these birds may well have been affected by several storms that we have experienced here in Northern Ireland this winter.  At some point, I will have to note the dates of those storms, and see if they correlate with the dates when some of the gulls were last seen.

Despite remaining until 3:45, only 11 colour-rings were read, the final one being the Icelandic breeding -  2FHV .  This has left me with another massive 17 absentees.  We are also at that time of the year when some gulls will be on the move towards their breeding sites.  One bird recorded today, was my second sighting this winter of -  2FJP .  Ringed here as an unsexed adult on the 3rd December 2023, it's re-sighting history has been patchy.  I reckon that the gull is a foreign breeding bird and possibly uses the Marina as a 'staging post' between it's wintering and breeding sites.  I really need more sightings to be sure for this bird.  My final sighting last winter was made on the 3rd March 2025, which closely matches today's sighting.  It is now 2 years, 3 months and 1 day since I ringed it here.

Black-headed Gull  -   2FJP   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (04 Mar 2026)

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

To record -  2FHV  today was very pleasing.  Although not recorded on a regular basis here each winter, I'm fairly sure it does winter in the Antrim area.  Quite often, the final sighting is made here in the early spring before the gull returns to Iceland.  It breeds close to the town of Akureyri on the northern coast of Iceland.  When last seen there, a five-yearly survey of breeding Common and Black-headed Gulls was being carried out.  An up to date sighting in Iceland would be welcomed.  It is now 4 years, 3 months and 24 days since -  2FHV  was ringed.

Black-headed Gull  -   2FHV   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (04 Mar 2026)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 8th November 2021, at Antrim Marina)

Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Wednesday 4th March 2026

2ABN	2FKA	2AAN	2FJP	2CSK	2FIL
2FIF	2CJT	2CSR	2FJT	2FHV

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

2ACV	2AFD	2BRA	2BRD	2CTA	2FDL	2FDK	2FFA	2FFN
2FFT	2FFX	2FJA	2FJF	2FJK	2FJN	2FJV	2FJX

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

Driving towards my usual parking spot, a large number of Mute Swans had gathered around the slipway.  A count gave 14 adults and a single cygnet.  It only took a couple of minutes to establish that the resident pair were present (female ringed -  X4707 ) and the cygnet belongs to them (the final one of six).

A second cygnet arrived on it's own from upriver at 11:40.  This one is slightly younger than the cygnet belonging to the resident pair, having appeared here a couple of months back, when it arrived without parents after one of our worst storms.  Initially, it did not take too well being close to people, but now it will take bread from your hand, though still slightly cautious.

The overall total of adults increased to 16 birds with two further arrivals at 1:21 and 1:59, both swimming in from the direction of Lough Neagh.  If I can remember right, the record high for adult Mute Swans recorded here this winter was 16, so that record was equalled today.  I'm fairly sure that all legs were checked for rings, but the resident female was the only one.  

Just for an update,  X4707  was ringed on the 5th April 2024 (as an adult male!!!!!), at Bartins Bay situated 31 kms / 13 miles (SW) from Antrim Marina.  She first appeared at Antrim Marina on the 21st May 2024 along with her partner.  On the 23rd June 2024, she was on her own, and I believe that her partner was found to have died.  She then disappeared for a while, and returned by the 26th August 2024 with a new mate.  Remaining at the Marina throughout the 2024/2025 winter, when the breeding season came around, the evicted the resident pair, and took over the nesting site slightly upriver from the Marina.  On the 22nd June 2025, I was about to depart after one of my random summer visits, when the pair arrived with 6 very young chicks.  It is now 1 year, 10 months and 27 days since -  X4707  was ringed.

Not a good day for Common Gulls.  A juvenile was present on my arrival, but it had departed by 11:45.  I have been hoping for at least one more sighting of two metal-rung Common Gulls - one Scottish and the other from Finland before they return to their nesting sites.  Although I have recorded the Scottish bird on a few occasions this winter, I've only had a single sighting of the Finnish bird which was ringed 30 years and 4 months ago as a juvenile in September 1995.  If this bird does not appear again, I shall keep my fingers crossed for next winter.

Two adult Common Gulls finally appeared at 2:24, though both were not ringed.

The resident male Herring Gull arrived at 12:05, followed by a third calendar year bird at 12:17, which I reckon was his chick from 2024.  It was chased briefly by the male, before he started calling out very loud.  The reason, his partner had arrived at 12:19.  It has been a while now since I last recorded her here.  Once together, there was no separating them, and a little courting was noticed.

The Resident Pair of Herring Gulls at Antrim Marina  (04 Mar 2024)

(Male on Left - Female on Right)

A pair of Lesser Black-backed Gulls arrived at 1:16.  They stood on top of the lampposts waiting to raid the other gulls when bread was on the menu.

The Robin was seen again working through the bushes beside the 'Gateway Centre'.  For a second week in a row, two pairs of Jackdaws made repeated visits.  Brief visits were made by two Rooks and a single Hooded Crow.

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Antrim Marina - Tuesday 24th February 2026...

Antrim Marina - Tuesday 24th February 2026

A slightly earlier weekly visit to Antrim Marina this week.  I would prefer to get back to Sunday or Monday visits, but as mentioned, somebody needs to be home to watch over an ageing cat.  I arrived on the stroke of 11am, leaving at 2:45pm.  Weatherwise, it was cloudy with a light breeze.  The temperature gauge in my car read 12ºC.

Studying a wintering population of Black-headed Gulls on a weekly basis, I am about to enter the final month, having started at the beginning of August.  Some of the gulls are colour-ringed so that their movements can be monitored.  A total of 28 colour-ringed gulls from my study have been recorded this winter, with at least six having failed to return.

The 28th bird that I recorded was the Latvian breeding -  2AFD .  This gull normally returns in late October, but it finally appeared at the Marina on the 28th January 2026.  Over recent years, its visits to the Marina are quite rare, though it was often found at the car park at Castle Way in the centre of the town of Antrim.  This winter, I had checked the car park on a few occasions, but most times there were no gulls in sight.  Despite the late sighting this winter, I reckon that -  2AFD  did return around it's normal date.  My 10th and final sighting today at 2:23, happened to be my second sighting this winter of -  2AFD .

 2AFD , was ringed as an adult male in February 2014, and has been recorded on 8 occasions around the Latvian capital of Riga (2015, 2016, 2022 and 2023).  In July 2023, a surprise sighting came in from Cromer Beach in Norfolk, England, where it seems, that this gull is 'staging' in England before returning to Antrim for the winter.  With today's sighting,  2AFD  has now passed the 12 year mark since being ringed - 12 years, 0 months and 12 days.

Black-headed Gull  -   2AFD   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (24 Feb 2026)

(Ringed as an Adult Male, on the 12th February 2014, at Antrim Marina)

Around 60 Black-headed Gulls were present on my arrival and those numbers remained more or less the same throughout my visit.  Again, judging by the ringed birds present, there must have been a good turnover of gulls coming and going.  A handful from time to time rested on the roof of the 'Gateway Centre' which was not useful.

As mentioned above, just 10 rings were read, which left me with 18 absentees.  One gull which landed on the Long Wooden Jetty had a really dirty ring.  I had to zoom right in with my camera to try and obtain the code which turned out to be -  2FJT .  

I always need to be sure, just in case the gull belonged to another project.  Polish ringing groups usually used Yellow & White Darvics on their Black-headed Gulls, but in recent years they have started using Blue Darvics.  Their colour-rings start with the letter 'T', whereas British colour-rings begin with the number '2'.

Black-headed Gull  -   2FJT   -  Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim  (24 Feb 2026)

(Ringed as an Unsexed Adult, on the 10th December 2023, at Antrim Marina)

While I was at the Marina, Danny who is a volunteer for the Lough Neagh Rescue Team arrived.  He said that on Sunday, there was easily over 100 Black-headed Gulls present.  After weeks of poor visits where numbers have continuously been on the low side, am I missing something?  It is true that weekends see higher numbers of people visiting, and therefore, more feeds for the ducks.  There would be a higher number of parents with small children, no doubt trying to tire them out, as well as interacting with wildlife.  Perhaps the gulls set their watches to go off on Sundays.

Derek Polley was in contact with me reporting two Black-tailed Godwit sightings, which I then submitted to the BTO.  Derek is a volunteer for the RSPB and does most Thursdays at the Window on Wildlife Reserve in Belfast.  Derek went on to say that Black-headed Gulls has started to arrive in numbers as they nest on the nesting platforms.  At present, around 200 have arrived, and efforts are being made to reduce the numbers nesting on the platforms.  Extra sticks have been added on Platform One, whereas, a tarpaulin is covering Platform Two.  Ideally, the RSPB just want Terns to nest on these Platforms, but they not return until late March and early April, by which time the gulls have selected their patch to build nests.

Another point which Derek mentioned, was a complaint by the nearby Belfast City Airport.  They fear that there are far too many Black-headed Gulls nesting on the RSPB WoW Reserve.  You can understand their view, as no Black-headed Gulls nested in the area until the reserve was created.  At the same time, Black-headed Gulls also need a bit of help as overall numbers have dropped considerably in recent years mainly due to 'Bird Flu'.

Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Tuesday 24th February 2026

2FJA	2CJT	2AAN	2FIL	2FKA	2ABN	2CSR	2BRA	2FJT	2AFD

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

2ACV	2BRD	2CSK	2CTA	2FDL	2FDK	2FFA	2FFN	2FFT
2FFX	2FHV	2FIF	2FJF	2FJK	2FJN	2FJP	2FJV	2FJX

Other Birds at Antrim Marina

A large number of Mute Swans were noted as I drove over to my parking spot.  Many were feeding on a pile of oat flakes that someone had thrown down on a fairly clean part of the car park (good thinking - staying clear of droppings).  A count gave me a total of 14 adults and 1 cygnet.  I soon identified the resident pair (female ringed -  X4707 ) to which the cygnet belongs to.  At 11:40, a second cygnet arrived on it's own from upriver.  I soon realised that it was the younger cygnet which has been absent recently (so it was not the bird found dead upriver).  This youngster first appeared without parents just after a storm a couple of months back.  It has tamed down a good bit since it first appeared, as you can walk right up to it now.  A further two adults arrived from Lough Neagh at 11:56 taking the total to 16.  I'm sure that this a high or equal high for the winter, as I cannot mind of 17 or 18.  Most if not all legs were checked, but -  X4707  was the only ring among them.

Around 30 Mallards were present throughout the visit, and as usual most legs were checked.

One adult and one juvenile Common Gull were present on my arrival.  A count at 12:15, gave 4 adults, and none of these were ringed.  I'm still hoping for at least one further sighting of the metal-rung Scottish and Finnish birds before they leave for their breeding sites.

While at the Marina, I had noticed a few small flocks of Lesser Black-backed Gulls flying over indicating their return from southern Europe and north Africa, with one landing at the Marina at 11:24.  It stayed for around half and hour.

The resident male Herring Gull arrived at 11:39, and his chich from last summer appeared at 1:15pm.  It has been several weeks since his mother was last seen.

The adult Moorhen was spotted on the Low Wooden Jetty at 1:41, and as usual, it was eating the gull droppings.

Wow, two pairs of Jackdaws made repeated visits, as was the case of the male Pied Wagtail.  Likely to be the same pair of Hooded Crows made two visits, whilst 3 Rooks arrived together to have a drink of water on the slipway.

I noticed a Robin working its way through the bushes beside the 'Gateway Centre'.  If memory serves me right, this may well be a first for me here.

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