Glossy Ibis Influx (Jan 2018)

keps

Online edition of today's Irish Times


https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/rare-african-birds-ditch-the-sun-in-favour-of-irish-boglands-1.3363034

New Home

Wow. WOW!!!!!

OwlEye

http://www.irishbirding.com/birds/web

They seem to have been around for a while. I think I read somewhere that ring ID's on some of them are from Hungary.

Edit: Link not working, search Glossy Ibis

WildIreland

keps wrote: »

Online edition of today's Irish Times


https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/rare-african-birds-ditch-the-sun-in-favour-of-irish-boglands-1.3363034

1. Not that rare (this is a regular occurrence -- we routinely have small groups overwintering, and the number of sightings seems to be growing year-on-year).
2. Probably not African (glossy ibis is the most widely distributed ibis species in the world -- occurring in scattered populations across southern Europe, Africa, The Americas, Asia and Australasia -- the birds we see here in Ireland are more likely to be European than African)
3. Not sure how accurate it is to assume they arrive in Ireland year-after-year because they are "blown off course". More likely they arrive under their own steam as young birds disperse post-fledging -- which explains why we see a general upward trend as the southern European population expands, and get a bigger influx of birds after a successful breeding season.

Apart from that... top marks to The Irish Times for effective and accurate wildlife reporting!

recedite

If they are from central/eastern Europe their summertime habitats would be frozen solid now. It could be that some are migrating westwards instead of south, for the winter.
I wonder if this was always a route, or is it a newish migration route opening up? Possibly North Africa isn't as bird friendly as it used to be.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

recedite wrote: »

If they are from central/eastern Europe their summertime habitats would be frozen solid now. It could be that some are migrating westwards instead of south, for the winter.
I wonder if this was always a route, or is it a newish migration route opening up? Possibly North Africa isn't as bird friendly as it used to be.

These birds are thought to be from Hungary. Previous vagrants have been from that area too. They usually migrate west/southwest to France, Spain and Portugal. You'll often get birds driven off course and such 'lost' birds have often ended up in Ireland as accidentals. It's not a migration route and they were never destined for North Africa nor Ireland.

This is not really news. We get a few scattered around the country every year. There was one in Antrim yesterday.

Capercaillie

Glossy ibis has expanding population centered in Coto Donana marshes (Spain). Ringed birds spotted in Ireland are from that location.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Capercaillie wrote: »

Glossy ibis has expanding population centered in Coto Donana marshes (Spain). Ringed birds spotted in Ireland are from that location.

Thanks. An NPWS guy told me Hungary today but that may have been one of the other ones around at the moment.

recedite

Capercaillie wrote: »

Glossy ibis has expanding population centered in Coto Donana marshes (Spain). Ringed birds spotted in Ireland are from that location.

I'm not sure you can say a migrating bird is "centred" in any one place. If they were migrating between Ireland and Spain, you'd expect them to be in Spain now.
If they were Spanish/Hungarian birds they would also be in Spain now. But if they had switched to being Irish/Hungarian they would be here. Maybe Spain is getting too hot.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

recedite wrote: »

I'm not sure you can say a migrating bird is "centred" in any one place. If they were migrating between Ireland and Spain, you'd expect them to be in Spain now.
If they were Spanish/Hungarian birds they would also be in Spain now. But if they had switched to being Irish/Hungarian they would be here. Maybe Spain is getting too hot.

The population in the Coto Donana marshes is expanding to a range centred there. That population range is centred there. I'm not sure what you find unusual in that. These are in no way Irish birds. They are just birds that got lost. It's a common occurrence with birds that move about. They didn't choose to be here and these individual birds will most probably never return here.

recedite

I'm saying that migrating birds normally have 2 homes, a summer home and a winter home. We might think of swallows as being Irish birds that fly south for the winter. But equally they could be considered as African birds that fly north for the summer.

If these Ibis normally stayed all the year round in Spain, but then some moved to Ireland to stay here all year, then that would be an expansion of the Spanish bird's range.
If both Ireland and Spain are being used as a winter range, the summer range could still be Hungary or thereabouts, which would be frozen solid about now. The question would then be why did they go to ireland this winter instead of Spain. And maybe they were simply "lost" but I doubt it. More likely there are always a few birds exploring new possibilities (possibly while being semi-lost !)

Anyway I see they have been at the Birdwatch Ireland East Coast Reserve in Newcastle for a few days now, so I might take a gander down there tomorrow to have a look. Also a slight chance of that WTSE cruising up the coast from Wexford to have a look/taste of them too :pac:
http://www.irishbirding.com/birds/web

WildIreland

Ulmus wrote: »

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5202777/Greenfinches-disappearing-gardens.html

I think the greenfinch is in trouble. 60% decline in 10 years.

It's certainly a worrying trend. I routinely have a flock of 30-40 greenfinch in my garden over the winter... this winter so far I've seen two.

I know that's not necessarily related to the disease... my local population may have suffered an entirely different fate... or simply moved on to somewhere more appealing... but trichomoniasis was first noticed here in Ireland in 2005, according to Birdwatch Ireland, with outbreaks in late summer and autumn during subsequent years.

Greenfinch and chaffinch seem most at risk, but the disease has also been documented in other garden bird species including house-sparrow, dunnock, great tit and siskin.

The best way to keep the disease in check in your garden is through following the common-sense hygiene practices outlined towards the end of the Birdwatch Ireland article linked above.

WildIreland

recedite wrote: »

I'm saying that migrating birds normally have 2 homes, a summer home and a winter home. We might think of swallows as being Irish birds that fly south for the winter. But equally they could be considered as African birds that fly north for the summer.

Not really, no.

As a general rule, just like us, birds are considered to be "from" where they are born/hatched. So Irish swallow's are still Irish swallows, even if they overwinter in Africa -- but the black-tailed godwits that spend the winter feeding on Irish estuaries are Icelandic birds (mostly, with the occasional interloper), and will return back "home" to Iceland when it's time to breed.

Same goes for the ibis.

recedite

WildIreland wrote: »

Not really, no.

So where do you think these Ibis that are currently in Ireland will be located next summer?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

recedite wrote: »

So where do you think these Ibis that are currently in Ireland will be located next summer?

Most probably back where they came from, with a chance that they'll head that general direction and settle in a suitable area en route. They certainly will not be here.

recedite

Skye Sticky Fish wrote: »

Most probably back where they came from..

Where?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

recedite wrote: »

Where?

Depends on the birds we have several here at the moment from Spain and Hungary at least.

I'm not sure where you're going with this.

recedite

Skye Sticky Fish wrote: »

Spain and Hungary

I've never been to Coto Donana but as I understand it, the place dries out in summer and most of the birds there fly north.
If these guys were to spend the winter in Ireland and the summer there, then they would be defying all conventional logic.

I'm saying what I'm said earlier. If its a migration, its an east-west migration and they will go towards Hungary for the summer.

Alternatively it could be the start of a resident species extending its range north, like when the first of the Little Egrets decided to overwinter here.

WildIreland

recedite wrote: »

So where do you think these Ibis that are currently in Ireland will be located next summer?

It's most likely they'll be back on their breeding grounds... wherever they came from originally (Spain, Hungary or wherever else). There is always the chance, if they encounter favourable habitat and conditions, that a pair may stop and attempt to breed somewhere suitable en-route -- or even stay here and attempt to breed (there was an unsuccessful breeding attempt in the UK in 2014, but no recorded breeding activity here in Ireland as yet).

Speculation is rife that glossy ibis may breed in Ireland eventually -- but at the moment we're just seeing a slowly increasing winter influx as numbers increase at their European breeding sites.

WildIreland

recedite wrote: »

I've never been to Coto Donana but as I understand it, the place dries out in summer and most of the birds there fly north.
If these guys were to spend the winter in Ireland and the summer there, then they would be defying all conventional logic.

I'm saying what I'm said earlier. If its a migration, its an east-west migration and they will go towards Hungary for the summer.

Alternatively it could be the start of a resident species extending its range north, like when the first of the Little Egrets decided to overwinter here.

The breeding site at Cota Doñana is part of a river delta wetland system protected as part of The Parque Nacional de Doñana. It is one of Europe's most important wetland reserves and normally would not dry out in summer.

Abnormal drought conditions through the end of the breeding season have been shown to increase the probability of dispersal in glossy ibis, which brings with it the possibility of these birds encountering and colonising new breeding areas. That possibly is why we see more birds some years than others... but so far none have decided to stick around.

OpenYourEyes

Mod Note: Glossy Ibis discussion moved from 'Nature in the News' thread

recedite

I did get to see them; 3 birds just near the car park, wheelchair accessible even! Surprised how tame they appeared to be, or at least they are not particularly bothered by having humans in close proximity. They were feasting on earthworms which tend to congregate in the higher/drier places when the water table rises. Maybe they will become "the new curlew". I could imagine them becoming a lot more common in future.