Some pictures I took recently

Isambard

gzoladz

Long tailed tit



Chiffchaff



Blue tit



Snipe

keps

About six weeks ago a couple of Egrets started arriving just across from where I live.. but then they just seemed to disappear. I wonder do they have territory issues with the dominant herons in the area?

Anyway delighted to say this fellow arrived again today... hope they stay:)

egret /url]

keps

Spotted this fella for a few brief seconds this morning... not at all sure what it is... possibly a chiffchaff?

Isambard

Pair of Shovellers, delightful to watch them feeding

Isambard

Canada Goose I think

keps

cormorant

OpenYourEyes

Light-bellied Brent Geese in Dublin yesterday. Great to watch, and their bravery when it comes to people etc I always find fascinating, expecially compared to the other geese we get. But having seen them at a number of sites yesterday, the amount of disturbance they get from dogs being let off the leash is frankly ridiculous. Even with me there obviously trying to get a few photos, people were happy to walk right by them (despite alternate paths nearby) and let the dog flush the whole flock. The owner never batted an eyelid. Not sure if these people were oblivious or just plain ignorant!

Light-bellied Brent Goose by Brian, on Flickr

Light-bellied Brent Geese by Brian, on Flickr

Light-bellied Brent Geese by Brian, on Flickr

pegasus1

IMG_8906
IMG_8902
IMG_8884

keps

A few pics
From along the Dodder- last few days

Can never tell between the Mistle and Song Thrush

thrush

cormorant

robin

dunnock

duck


Oh.. oops added later... almost forgot the riverside Nettles

nettles

Hotei

A lovely set of shots keps. I particularly like the Cormorant shot.
That's a Song Thrush.

keps

Hotei wrote: »

A lovely set of shots keps. I particularly like the Cormorant shot.
That's a Song Thrush.

Thanks Hotie.. yeah as the cormorant stands still for a while, was able to drop the shutter speed down to 1/125sec- which gives a nice sense of movement to the water:)
( Monopod and VR lens needed)

OpenYourEyes

There were thousands of gulls on Dollymount Strand last saturday, feeding on a wide range of marine invertebrates that had seemingly washed up because of the storms in previous days.

Mixed Gull Flock by Brian, on Flickr

That huge flock included this Common Gull, ringed as an adult on the Copeland Islands (Northern Ireland) back in 2010 - this was the first time it's been seen since!

Common Gull [2ACT] by Brian, on Flickr

gzoladz

OpenYourEyes wrote: »

But having seen them at a number of sites yesterday, the amount of disturbance they get from dogs being let off the leash is frankly ridiculous. Even with me there obviously trying to get a few photos, people were happy to walk right by them (despite alternate paths nearby) and let the dog flush the whole flock. The owner never batted an eyelid. Not sure if these people were oblivious or just plain ignorant!

Mixed of both I'd say...a few weeks ago I was talking about Bull Island to a colleague who owns a dog and he said it did not make sense to have the dog on the leash in a place like that. Only when I explained the reason behind it he understood, and said he hadn't realised that.

I actually didnt know the reason behind it either until I got involved in birdwatching about 8 years ago (I have never owned a dog, in case you are wondering if I was an offender myself!).

But I am sure there are many others that just don't care. It is human nature. Actually this same Sunday some birders in one of the reserves were talking about a bwi outing lead who has the habit of running across the field making noise to flush snipes during outings (I have actually observed this behaviour myself)!

I don't know if doing that has the same impact as having dogs off leash in roosting sites, but it feels similar type of disturbance to me.

I can guarantee, it is not ignorance in this case!

Hotei

I live close to the Curragh racecourse, and many people 'walk' their dogs there.
Most dogs are let off their leads and allowed run around at will. The problem is, there are areas set aside for ground nesting birds such as Meadow Pipit and Skylark, and dogs run wildly through these areas, probably trampling on eggs and young chicks. Golden Plover arrive every winter, and I've seen people deliberately encourage their dogs to race at the flock while the flock is on the ground. Early last year there was a man there with a Harris Hawk about to release the bird into the flock of Plover before he realised I had my camera pointing at him! Golden Plover are a Red listed species (right?), so I'm sure this would have been an offence? I think there's an element of ignorance in the general populace when it comes to wildlife, but there are those who don't give a fiddler's fart about it too!

fin12

Bird

keps

Only my second time seeing a mandarin duck on the Dodder in 8 months!
What a beautiful bird.


mandarin duck

keps

mandarin


egret

keps

dunnock


added later... on top of the apt block


heron

OpenYourEyes

A very enjoyable lunch hour today watching Waxwings feeding on fruits and hawking for insects.

Waxwing by Brian, on Flickr

fiacha

The two of us were enjoying a bit of late afternoon sun. They did not appreciate being woken from their nap

splish

Gall on Corylus avellana (Hazel) catkin caused by the mite Phyllocoptruta coryli. First Irish record.

Phyllocoptruta coryli by Ciarán Byrne, on Flickr

Phyllocoptruta coryli by Ciarán Byrne, on Flickr

New Home

I'm assuming this is a pest. This will probably sound stupid, but are you supposed to destroy the affected part, especially if it's the first record of it, to avoid widespread infestation? Genuine question.

splish

New Home wrote: »

I'm assuming this is a pest. This will probably sound stupid, but are you supposed to destroy the affected part, especially if it's the first record of it, to avoid widespread infestation? Genuine question.

No its not considered a pest. A gall is an abnormal growth produced by a plant or other host under the influence of another organism (in this case a mite). The gall provides food and shelter for the gall maker & is made from the host plant’s cells and tissues.

New Home

What I meant was, is that mite 'native' or is has it arrived from somewhere else? Could it be considered a threat?

splish

No its not considered a threat. I'm unsure whether its native or not but the main reason its the first Irish record is that so few people are out looking for & recording galls in Ireland. I've only recently started looking at them & have found 3 new species for Ireland all locally.

New Home

Cool, thanks for clarifying that.

keps

robin

ThunderCat

Photos I took of two different Robins in Co.Wexford earlier this week

OpenYourEyes

Some more Light-bellied Brent Geese shots from last weekend:


If you see a load of geese or swans doing this (heads all raised) it means they're alert and being disturbed - in this case a small child was running in their direction... :mad:
Light-bellied Brent Geese by Brian, on Flickr

..in this case most of the birds were happily feeding and this bird was just having a quick look around. They almost take it in turns doing this, keeping an eye out for trouble while giving others the chance to feed.
Light-bellied Brent Geese by Brian, on Flickr

Light-bellied Brent Geese by Brian, on Flickr