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Rockabill 2015

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    #32
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    We get over 2,000 pairs of Common Terns on Rockabill, with an average clutch size of 2-3 eggs. With that many eggs, there's plenty of variation. Read a bit about it, and see some examples, in our latest blog post:


    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/06/variety-is-spice-of-life.html


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    #33
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    Would the fact that the birds are laying eggs mean that there is enough fish for the birds this year?


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    #34
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    Would the fact that the birds are laying eggs mean that there is enough fish for the birds this year?

    I think them laying eggs only really tells you that there was enough fish for them up to the date the egg was laid - i.e. enough for courtship, egg production etc.

    It'll be interesting to see what happens when the chicks hatch, given that chick growth (and therefore productivity) was poor last year - but it's still very much a case of wait and see!


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    #35
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Our first chicks have hatched on Rockabill, and there are plenty more on the way this week. Unfortunately not all of them have made it..........


    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/06/two-sets-of-two-chicks-from-two-species.html


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    #36
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    The Black guillemot chicks look like little corncrake! Pity about the oystercatcher chick, hopefully the other chick will be a bit more "streetwise". You should make a video of the season's work (if it was possible), would be great to see. Would be a great educational tool in schools. Great work as ever OYE!


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    #37
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    The Black guillemot chicks look like little corncrake! Pity about the oystercatcher chick, hopefully the other chick will be a bit more "streetwise".

    ...unfortunately not! :(
    Capercaillie wrote: »
    You should make a video of the season's work (if it was possible), would be great to see. Would be a great educational tool in schools. Great work as ever OYE!


    Something along those lines is in the works alright, I'm looking forward to seeing it!


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    #38
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    ...unfortunately not! :(

    That's sad. When there was just the one oystercatcher breeding on the Rock you might develop a bit of an attachment to the pair of oystercathers and their chicks. When you have over a 1000 roseate pairs you would not have the same connection to an individual bird.


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    #39
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    First tern chicks today! Only another 7,000+ to come between now and August.....

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/06/new-arrivals-on-rockabill.html

    And we have some exciting news from our nest census, which we'll share later in the week!


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    #40
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    That's sad. When there was just the one oystercatcher breeding on the Rock you might develop a bit of an attachment to the pair of oystercathers and their chicks. When you have over a 1000 roseate pairs you would not have the same connection to an individual bird.


    Yeah you definitely get a sense of attachment for invididual chicks that you encounter on a daily basis - mostly tern chicks that you see in or near your study areas twice every day, but it was the same for the Oystercatcher chicks alright. Despite us both obviously being quite scientific/pragmatic when it comes to life and death in nature.


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    #41
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    First tern chicks today! Only another 7,000+ to come between now and August.....

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/06/new-arrivals-on-rockabill.html

    And we have some exciting news from our nest census, which we'll share later in the week!
    I'd say the roseate terns are probably up. Even though last years productivity was poor for the roseates, you can discount last years chicks since they will not be breeding this year anyway. The effect of last years poor productivity will not show in breeding pairs for a few years (however long it takes for roseates to reach breeding age).
    The summer of 2012 was terrible and productivity of common terns was low, roseates did ok since the chicks use the nest boxes(protection from bad weather). Given that it has to be roseate tern numbers that are up.
    Maybe I'm over analysing too much.:D


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    #42
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Based on ring-resightings last year, 3-5 year old adults made up the largest cohort of the population. Productivity for Roseates in 2009 was good, and 2011 was decent - other years have been average.


    That's not a yes or a no btw, just furnishing your comment with some figures! I'll say one thing for sure - it's not the Arctics! :D


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    #43
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    Based on ring-resightings last year, 3-5 year old adults made up the largest cohort of the population. Productivity for Roseates in 2009 was good, and 2011 was decent - other years have been average.


    That's not a yes or a no btw, just furnishing your comment with some figures! I'll say one thing for sure - it's not the Arctics! :D

    Poor arctics:( If the money was present BWI could put up a rope lattice on the bill to stop gulls landing and predating chicks/eggs.


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    #44
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    Poor arctics:( If the money was present BWI could put up a rope lattice on the bill to stop gulls landing and predating chicks/eggs.


    The Arctics on the Rock (c30 of them) are progressing a bit better than last year, so fingers crossed some will be successful there.


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    #45
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    We've broken the record for the number of Roseate Terns nesting on Rockabill - Europe's biggest colony just got a bit bigger!

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/06/rockabill-roseate-record-broken-and-we.html


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    #46
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    We've had a hectic few weeks on Rockabill, but the numbers from our recent nest census are in - we've had a record year for two of our five species!!

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/07/the-numbers-are-ingreat-news.html


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    #47
    Del.Monte
    Registered Users Posts: 12,363 ✭✭✭✭Del.Monte


    It's been a record year for the Little Terns at Kilcoole too - 275 chicks at the latest count!

    http://littleternconservation.blogspot.ie

    ****



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    #48
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    Del.Monte wrote: »
    It's been a record year for the Little Terns at Kilcoole too - 275 chicks at the latest count!

    http://littleternconservation.blogspot.ie
    Good numbers down in Wexford as well I believe. Baltray Colony doing badly due to heavy predation by crows. Most of the terns probably relocated to Kilcoole.


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    #49
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Record years for Roseates at Ladys Island in Wexford, and Coquet Island in England too - hopefully the weather/tides etc all stay ok and productivity for the season is good.


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    #50
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    A few facts (and a lot of pictures!) of our Black Guillemots:

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/07/the-dark-side-of-rockabill-tystie.html


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    #51
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    This is nestcam footage, taken under NPWS license, of adult Terns feeding a chick - anyone care to point out whats unusual about it?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvhD52XgP-E


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    #52
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Also, here's an Irish Times article on the good work being done to look after the Terns in Dublin Port - always great to see efforts being made to allow nature and industry to thrive side-by-side. It can only be of benefit to the people of Dublin and really adds to the character of a city/area in my opinion.


    One good tern: birds bed down in Dublin Port Company’s new nests

    "A pontoon in the River Liffey that gives the birds a safe nesting site is the kind of project that Dublin Bay Biosphere could excel at"


    http://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/one-good-tern-birds-bed-down-in-dublin-port-company-s-new-nests-1.2288400#.Vaoq4nszfNF.twitter


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    #53
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    This is nestcam footage, taken under NPWS license, of adult Terns feeding a chick - anyone care to point out whats unusual about it?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvhD52XgP-E

    ?


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    #54
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    ?


    Roseate Tern nestbox, Roseate Tern chick, but two adult Common Terns! Occasionally a stray egg gets taken into a neighbouring clutch, so a Common Tern might take eggs from another Common Tern nest, or might possibly take a Roseate Tern in with their clutch, but its very unusual for a pair of Common Terns to move into a nestbox to look after a Roseate Tern egg/chick!


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    #55
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    Roseate Tern nestbox, Roseate Tern chick, but two adult Common Terns! Occasionally a stray egg gets taken into a neighbouring clutch, so a Common Tern might take eggs from another Common Tern nest, or might possibly take a Roseate Tern in with their clutch, but its very unusual for a pair of Common Terns to move into a nestbox to look after a Roseate Tern egg/chick!

    I never copped that. That's amazing. I wonder will that roseate tern chick grow up imprinted on Common terns? Will not breed if he/she is.


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    #56
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Capercaillie wrote: »
    I never copped that. That's amazing. I wonder will that roseate tern chick grow up imprinted on Common terns? Will not breed if he/she is.


    Hard to know, but we reckon it will mate as normal. We've ringed it, so hopefully someone sees it in a few years!


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    #57
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Our latest blog concerns a predator not that common on Rockabill - a Kestrel! It stayed for 4 or 5 days, and lets just say that particular individual won't be bothering the Terns again.......

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/07/a-kestrel-visits-rockabill-and-tables.html


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    #58
    DellyBelly
    Registered Users Posts: 2,898 ✭✭✭DellyBelly


    Fantastic blog post


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    #59
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Our latest blog post is about the bird species we've recorded on Rockabill since May - definitely one of the better years for the bird list!

    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/08/rockabill-species-list-2015-and-mystery.html


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    #60
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    Another blog update, this time about all of the non-seabird marine biodiversity we see on and around Rockabill:


    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/08/plenty-to-see-in-irish-sea.html


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    #61
    Capercaillie
    Registered Users Posts: 1,732 ✭✭✭Capercaillie


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    Another blog update, this time about all of the non-seabird marine biodiversity we see on and around Rockabill:


    http://rockabillterns.blogspot.ie/2015/08/plenty-to-see-in-irish-sea.html

    Stinky minkes. Hard to get a decent view of them!!!!!


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