2007 Patch List Challenge - vote for best bird

Following a hectic year of patch-listing, who will win the coveted 'best find' prize? This year you can vote for your favourite celebrity birder and their best find - read on.......

 

Who's who and what did they find?

 

Reg Hollis - Everyone's favourite copper, Reg was a Collieston faithful all year, turning up a Red-rumped Swallow in April for his troubles.

Lord Hoffy - He's slogged round Lough Beg twice and found N Irn's 2nd ever Squacco and 3rd ever Great White Egret, the jammy get!

Roy Castle - Better known as a tap-dancing, trumpet-playing dead record breaker, "Royzah' has been working the Don for years. Not much in the way of broken records this year, with Long-tailed Skua his best effort.

UHT-2006 Spritely - A north Don man-machine, his upgrades failed him this year, and Pochard was his 'best' - a good bird on the Don, allegedly.

Fat Paul Scholes - He's fat, he's round, he's always on the ground at Girdleness. 'Scholsey' has been invaluable. 'In' on the recent Brunnich's, but not the finder, his best effort was close on its heels - a fine White-billed Diver off Girdle.

Jesus - Marooned on Cape Clear for the year for his sins, but we all have our crosses to bear. Possible contenders included another Fea's and a shore lark, but he's going with Red-rumped Swallow as his best.

Shakin' Stevens - Never out of the blocks all year, 'Shakey' managed a Squacco off-patch, but had to settle for Great Grey Shrike at the Folkestone cliffs as his best.

Paul McCartney - Everyone's favourite beatle, Paul has been ploughing a lonely furrow regularly at Galley Head all year, with lesser whitethroat his best patch find - a good, (well, all right) bird for ireland honest! 


Don't forget to cast yer vote on the right hand tool bar!!

vote-rigging

Having noticed that it was possible to rig votes on the previous poll, (thats how I got 3 votes!) I've redone the poll using non-cheatable means - Please cast yer votes for the 2007 best patch find!

greasy grebe ya bas

A galley tick this morning in the form of an immature great crested grebe on Kilkeran Lake (129) - a nice early Christmas present!

black reds

A  black redstart was flicking around near the cove at the bottom of Marsh Lane this afternoon, and what was presumably the same bird had made its way up to the sycamores at Shite Lane shortly afterwards. Another black redstart was seen in a garden in Clonakilty this morning.

gnd & kp

A great northern diver graced Kilkeran Lake mid-morning but was gone by lunch-time. Unfortunately I was off ticking kentish plover  in east Cork at the time, which was nice! Shame it turned out to have been confiscated from an illegal breeder in Germany - what are the chances??

 Photos: R Mundy

quiet enuff

Not much doing today. A 20 minute look at the sea this morning produced 2 late manx shearwaters, plus a black redstart nearby. Still no wildfowl of note on the lake.

Cork 3 - Osaka 0

Bad news for our japanese reader this morning as velvet scoter at Aghada (Irish tick), water pipit at Ballycotton (Cork tick) and 2 (count 'em) tree sparrows at Knockadoon (Cork tick) all fell. It just had to be done!

who said November was dead?

A fine coot graced Kilkeran Lake with its presence this morning, only my 3rd at Galley. Quiet otherwise.

leaving it late

Another morning seawatch off Galley produced 2 bonxies, 2 arctic skuas, 2 sooty shearwaters, 1 manx shearwater and a juvenile pomarine skua, which was badly needed for the year (128).

great shears at last!

A pretty good seawatch this morning, with 16 bonxies, 12 arctic skuas, 12 sooty shearwaters, 80 manx shearwaters, 150 kittiwakes and 2 great shearwaters (127) past Galley in 2.5 hours.

bramblefinch

Pretty quiet at Galley again today with 1 chiffchaff in Dirk and another at Shite Lane this afternoon, where a male brambling put in a brief appearance (126).  The greenish warbler was still at Dunnycove today.

dusky ya bas!

A wet and windy day and me being marooned in Cork city turned rather fortunate when news of a dusky warbler at Ballycotton broke - a cracker it was too, although once again I suspect our japanese reader would disagree!  Back at Galley, a quick check of "marsh lane" this evening for yesterday's firecrest produced two of 'em - marvellous!! (125).

greenish still there

The greenish warbler was still at Dunnycove this morning, in sycamores.  Galley was quiet today, with 4 swallows at Long Strand the only sighting of note.

greenish at dunnycove

Quiet again at Galley this morning with a 2nd winter mediterranean gull at Long Strand, 1 swallow and a merlin at Galley and 1 chiffchaff, 3 redwing and a blackcap in Dirk.  News of a greenish warbler nearby at Dunnycove late afternoon provided a welcome distraction - cracking views!

soggy reed

A couple of chiffchaffs were knocking about Shite Lane, with 4 goldcrests this morning. Finally caught up with the reed warbler in Dirk Bay this afternoon, but there was nothing else there (124).  Two ruff, 2 little stints and 1 curlew sandpiper were still at White's Marsh this afternoon.

another new ybw

An afternoon slog round the patch yielded another new yellow browed warbler at Shite Lane but little else mig-wise. Brief morning and evening seawatches produced 2 bonxies and a sooty shearwater.

back to mizen

Quiet again at Galley this morning with just the reed warbler still in Dirk Bay (dipped again!) Headed back to Mizen mid morning for great but brief views of the blyth's reed warbler there (eventually!) A cracking bird too, not that our japanese reader will be interested!. Also had yellow browed warbler and red breasted flycatcher there.

another load of tits

Not much doing at Galley this am, with just a late sedge warbler and the same blackcap at Shite Lane.  Dirk had a reed warbler and a couple of chiffchaffs, as well as a party of 5 long-tailed tits moving though, while I was dipping on the reed (123).

new ybw

A new yellow browed warbler was in the sycamores at Shite Lane this morning, with 1 chiffchaff, 1 spotted flycatcher and 1 blackcap also knocking about there.

2 more year ticks

A redwing and a spotted flycatcher at Shite Lane this morning were new for the year (122), with 1 female blackcap and 2 chiffchaffs also there, while 2 more chiffchaffs were in Dirk Bay.

buff bellied pipit ya bas!

Just had to head to Lissagriffin (Mizen Head) this morning for great views of one of 2 buff-bellied pipits there. A cracking bird it was too - see here for images & footage, courtesy of HH.  Galley was quiet with a single chiffchaff at Shite Lane this evening.

new yellow browed in

Galley's second yellow browed warbler of the autumn was at the bottom of the lane to Bealacoon Cove this morning, with a un-nailed redstart sp. around the farm at Shite Lane.  All this while I was poaching on Cape Clear where I finally ticked garden warbler for Ireland, my first for approximately 8 years! Also caught up with yellow browed warbler and red breasted flycatcher there.

sharpy again

A quick check of Galley this morning revealed nothing much new, with just the lesser whitethroat at Shite Lane and 3 fin whales blowing c. 3 miles south of Galley light.  Headed back to Ballycotton for more views of the sharp-tailed sandpiper in better light - brilliant views of a cracking bird! A few little stints, curlew sandpipers and ruff were also present.

 

This afternoon a curlew sandpiper was at Clonakilty, while 3 little stints and 4 ruff were on White's Marsh.  Back at Galley, a pied flycatcher was new in, as was a coot gracing Kilkeran Lake with its presence, and a fly-over buzzard there was also a welcome year tick (120).  Three curlew sandpipers were at Rosscarbery.

out of the blue

The usual wander about Galley this morning produced little except for a sedge warbler and a few redpolls and chaffinchs until I returned to Shite Lane where a lesser whitethroat appeared (first since 2004!) followed closely by a yellow browed warbler (117).

 

Just happened to be heading to Ballycotton this evening when news broke of a juvenile sharp-tailed sandpiper there (also 4 species of american wader present there today!). Had great views of it, and had enough time to nail the newly found pectoral sandpiper before dusk. More than a wee bit lucky!

tits oot!

Had a brief seawatch this morning and had 1 sooty shearwater and 1 bonxie, but there was no visible influx of migs elsewhere today.

 

Wandered down Dirk Bay again this afternoon for the 2nd time today (had nowt first time) so it was quite a surprise to find a brace of coal tits there - showing down to 10 feet no less (115). The first at Galley since 2 in the same trees in 2005 - actually, there's so much cover in Dirk there's a fair chance its the same birds! That hermit thrush from '98 is probably still in there too!

another grape lover

The second grey plover in a week flew over Galley this morning, calling away. Still nothing much else though, although the winds have finally gone south east this afternoon - not for very long though. Still a few chiffchaffs and at least 2 wheatears knocking about.  The lesser yellowlegs was seen again at the Red Benches in Clonakilty today.

hammer time

Bird of the day was a yellowhammer belting around this morning - there's only 1 or 2 a year at Galley (114). MIg numbers had dropped a bit, with a few chiffchaffs, 2 wheatears and a female/imm blackcap. An adult yellow-legged gull was at Red Strand this morning.

grape lover

A grey plover over Long Strand first thing this morning was a patch tick and welcome addition for the year (113).  On the mig front, there was a bit more action, with c.10 chiffchaffs, 2 wheatears and a male blackcap.

see ya bye house martins

Not many more migs in this morning, with 4 chiffchaffs at Shite Lane, a redpoll over and a wheatear knocking about, while a flock of 22 house martins were watched heading south for the winter.  The two arctic terns were still at Kilkeran Lake, with a dunlin and 3 greenshank also there.

flat calm morning

Nice and calm this morning and a few things booting around.  At least 10 siskins were new for the year (112), with 14 golden plovers over, a collared dove by Shite Lane, a singing chiffchaff and 3 wheatears.  Two of yesterday's 3 arctic terns were still over Kilkeran Lake this morning.

sunday seawatch

A seawatch from 9 till 2 produced 2 great shearwaters, 1 sooty shearwater, 1 sabine's gull, 1 grey phalarope and 1 pomarine skua. The lesser yellowlegs was at the red benches in Clonakilty this morning. I gave up on migs at Galley this afternoon and hit Mizen for a barred warbler instead, which was nice.

no biggies

Despite some decent migs at Mizen Head today, there seemed to be little doing at Galley this evening, with just 1 chiffchaff and an autumnal collared dove around Shite Lane.

brent

An exciting start (well, relatively) to the morning seawatch when 5 brent geese headed east. Little else doing though, despite a reasonable wind, with only 3 common scoter and 1 puffin west, plus slightly better numbers of manx shearwaters.

sooty on the starboard bow (thats just the one)

A tedious seawatch this evening produced 1 sooty shearwater and c. 50 manx shearwaters in 30 minutes (thats not even 1 manx every 30 seconds!) Long Strand had 27 sanderling this morning.

vis mig again

Pretty quiet on the mig front today with only 1 willow warbler, a singing chiffchaff and a redpoll over at Shite Lane (111).

away day

Headed to Ballycotton this afternoon and got great views of the juvenile spotted sandpiper (eventually!), which was nice. Even nicer was that it puts me irish list 1 ahead of our japanese reader, (and 4 ahead in cork terms!) Happy days!

year tick!

A kingfisher at Long Strand this evening was a welcome patch year tick, and only my third at Galley (110).

dolphin at sunset

A pair of tufted duck were on the lake this morning, with a black-tailed godwit and a greenshank also there.  This evening 4 bottlenose dolphins were feeding and jumping around off Long Strand, showing well.

ooo migrants

A wee fall of willow warblers at Galley this morning, with at least 15 in Dirk Bay and another half dozen around Shite Lane.

a bit ruff

A ruff was feeding on the edge of Kilkeran Lake this morning, and it was viewable from the patch (109).

northerlies

An evening seawatch produced 2 balearic shearwaters, milling around with several hundred feeding manx shearwaters, 1 arctic skua, 1 bonxie, 1 minke whale and 4 common dolphins. A swift was at Long Strand this evening, and 2 turnstones and a dunlin were on the beach.

duck-tastic!

A tufted duck was hidden in amongst 125 mallard on Kilkeran Lake this morning, which makes it 108 for the patch year list.

sw again

An evening seawatch produced 1 cory's shearwater, 6 sooty shearwaters, 12 storm petrels, 4 puffins and a turnstone.

a wader day

Kilkeran Lake was unusually alive with waders today with 1 turnstone, 3 dunlin, 3 common sandpipers, 2 greenshank, 1 knot (107) and 1 green sandpiper, while 15 black-tailed godwits and a ruff flew over later (sadly I was outside the patch for the ruff and green sand - ouch!)

another cory's

South-westerlies arrived this afternoon but not that much to show for them. A 3 hour watch off Galley  this evening produced 1 cory's shearwater, 2 balearic shearwaters, 11 sooty shearwaters, 1 bonxie, 22 puffins, 6 storm petrels and 20 golden plover.  Four black-tailed godwits were still at Kilkeran Lake this morning.

the year ticks keep coming

Quiet on the seawatching front this morning, although 1 balearic shearwater, 7 bottlenose dolphins and fin whales were seen.  A sub-adult yellow-legged gull was at Red Strand this morning and 6 black-tailed godwits were feeding at Kilkeran Lake, a vital addition to the patch year list (106) (cheers, H!)

cory's for the year

A quiet seawatch this morning was livened up by a cory's shearwater for the year (105). Also seen were 4 sooty shearwaters, 3 storm petrels, 1 arctic skua, 3 puffins, 20 common scoters and 2 fin whales c. 3 miles south of Galley, which was nice.

dugbirds a-go-go

A two hour seawatch this morning produced 7 sooty shearwaters, 1 bonxie, 10 common terns, 2 arctic terns, 18 puffins, 1 black guillemot and 11 common scoter.

 

A one hour seawatch this afternoon resulted in 6 more sooty shearwaters, 1 balearic shearwater, 2 storm petrels and 6 puffins, while a two hour watch this evening yielded 1 pomarine skua, 1 bonxie, 6 sooty shearwaters, 12 storm petrels and 27 puffins.

 

An adult mediterranean gull was at Long Strand this afternoon.

arctics

A feeding flock of c.500 manx shearwaters was off Galley this evening, with plenty of terns too, including at least 10 arctic terns, which were new for the year (104). 1 common tern was in with c.45 sandwich terns at Long Strand this evening.

one that got away

A large raptor seen 1 mile south of Galley heading west this morning was possibly an osprey but was too distant to nail.  This evening 1 sanderling, 1 dunlin and 4 ringed plover were on Long Strand (103).

a year tick at last!

Finally connected with a balearic shearwater off Galley this afternoon (101), with good numbers of manx shearwaters, 1 storm petrel and a black guillemot also seen, and 1 sooty shearwater there this morning.  Two common sandpipers were at Long Strand this evening.

satday sightings

One great shearwater, 2 balearic shearwaters, 3 pomarine skuas and 10 sooty shearwaters reported past Galley today.

a few bits

Several observers were seawatching off Galley today, however totals were limited; 2 pomarine skuas, 4 sooty shearwaters, 4 balearic shearwaters, 5 bonxies, 14 arctic terns and 1 common scoter.

quieter evening

A bit less action this evening with 4 cory's shearwaters, 1 sooty shearwater, 1 balearic shearwater and 1 pomarine skua past Galley.

big shears at Galley

A better seawatch this morning, with 7 cory's shearwaters, 8 great shearwaters, 10 sooty shearwaters, 2 bonxies and 6 storm petrels in 5 hours.  Another 5 cory's shearwaters, 2 great shearwaters and 7 sooty shearwaters were seen this evening.

lots of shearwaters

There was a feeding flock of approx. 3,000 manx shearwaters off Galley this evening, with 2 balearic shearwaters, 1 sooty shearwater and 5 storm petrels.

a cory's at last!

A two and a half hour seawatch off Galley this evening produced 1 cory's shearwater, 1 bonxie, 37 storm petrels and over 50 puffins.

nothing but bonxies

4 bonxies off Galley in an hour this evening was the best of it, with plenty manx shearwaters passing too, but nothing with them.

a bit of movement

A seawatch off Galley this evening produced 3 sooty shearwaters, 5 puffins, 40 storm petrels and a pomarine skua.

ton up at last!

Two common sandpipers at Kilkeran Lake this evening brought up the 100 for the year.  Large numbers of manx shearwaters were feeding off Long Strand, and 7 mistle thrushes were also at Long Strand tonight.

more dugbirds

Very windy this afternoon, however still not much passing Galley - a few puffins and 3 sooty shearwaters was about it.

the dugbirds will be back soon

An impromptu late evening seawatch produced good numbers of manx shearwaters, 2 storm petrels and a sooty shearwater (99).

more skuas

Squally showers produced just 5 bonxies and 2 arctic skuas this morning, along with 1 storm petrel, 2 tysties and 2 sandwich terns, all heading west.

bit disappointing

Unfortunately the weather didn't quite live up to the forecast and it was quiet off Galley this morning, with just a few bonxies, 2 arctic skuas, several storm petrels and 10 common scoter (98).

the seawatching starts here....

Things picked up on the seawtching front this evening, with 1 pomarine skua, 1 bonxie, 1 sooty shearwater, 4 arctic skuas and 2 common terns past Galley.  The latter 2 were both patch year ticks (97).  Elsewhere, 1 stock dove flew over Long Strand this afternoon (especially for our japanese reader!), and the reed warbler was still singing at Kilkeran Lake.

wee seawatch

A wee seawatch this evening produced 1 arctic skua, 1 bonxie, 15 storm petrels and 5 puffins.  There was no sign of the reed warbler at Kilkeran Lake this afternoon, though conditions weren't great.

still no cigar

Finally caught up with the singing reed warbler at Kilkeran Lake this evening, but it wasn't singing loud enough to be heard from the patch.  Basking sharks are still being seen in good numbers, with up to 17 seen between Mill Cove and Long Strand on Tuesday.

close but no cigar

A reed warbler singing just outside the patch this evening could be a test of my honesty should the autumn not produce one (not that I've heard this one yet!). Another basking shark was off Long Strand this evening.

bank holiday baskers

Three basking sharks were loafing about off Galley this evening, with good numbers of manx shearwaters around. Not much else doing in flat calm conditions but 1 storm petrel was new for the year (95), and a puffin flew west too.

a mig at last!

A female marsh harrier made a brief appearance over Long Strand this afternoon, heading east with a hooded crow in attendance (94). Only the second swift of the year was hawking over Long Strand this evening.

stocktaking

A brace of stock doves over Long Strand this lunchtime were a welcome year tick (93), especially as I can now stop looking at wood pigeons in hope!

whiskered tern ya bas!

Great views of a cracking whiskered tern at Lough Beg this morning. News broke late last night but thankfully it hung around today - a great way to draw level with our japanese reader, and of course only the fifth Cork record too!

Galley was quiet again this morning with just a few wheatears around and a swift over Long Strand (92).

sedgies

A good few singing sedge warblers this morning around the lake (91), but little else doing.  The male black redstart was still around, Galley's 3rd collared dove of the spring was knocking about Shite Lane, and there were a couple more whitethroats in. The Long Strand whimbrel flock had dropped to 10.

black red

A cracking male black redstart was the best of it this morning at Galley, with a whitethroat in Dirk Bay also new for the year (90). It was still quiet mig-wise, with 2 wheatears the only other migs. Two shelduck flew over and a flock of 32 whimbrel at Long Strand contained 2 summer plumage bar-tailed godwits, which was nice.

sneaky seawatch

Good numbers of manx shearwaters heading west off Galley this evening, with 2 bonxies and 7 puffins new for the year (88). On the mig front, just 4 wheatears were knocking about.

jack yer snipe

Flushed a jack snipe during the morning thrash round Galley (86), which was a patch tick, but sadly there was little else doing apart from 10 wheatears and 3 house martins.

globbies

A wander round Galley this afternoon produced 2 collared doves  and a wheatear at Shite Lane, however this was rather overshadowed by news of SIX glossy ibis over Farranfore (Kerry) this morning! Ah, well, at least collared dove was a year tick! (85).

more about

A bit more mig action this morning at Galley, with 2 willow warblers, 1 chiffchaff, 1 wheatear, 2 sand martins, 3 house martins and a female blackcap. The latter two species were new for the year, as was a sandwich tern on Kilkeran Lake mid-morning - where have they been? (84).

another mig

The slow spring continued today with 2 sand martins at Long Strand (81), and a singing willow warbler there too.

more migs

A brace of willow warblers this morning at Galley (80), but no sign of any other migs. Up to 20 red-throated divers and 5 great northern divers were loafing offshore.

a swallow at last!

Finally year-ticked swallow on the patch, when 1 flew over Long Strand late afternoon (79).

more ears

Spurred on by yesterday's results I twitched the patch from btown and scored a mighty 4 wheatears of my very own (78). A seawatch off Galley produced 3 common scoters and 2 great northern divers.

1st ear of de year

A wheatear this morning on the way to the lighthouse was the first sign of spring migration for a while.

1st chiffs since 1st jan

At least 3 chiffchaffs were singing around Galley today, although only 1 was officially "on the patch" - no sign of any other migs yet though.  The lesser yellowlegs and a 1st w iceland gull were still at Rosscarbery this afternoon.

manxies

A merlin and a 1st winter iceland gull were at Galley this morning, with 2 manx shearwaters gleaned for the year in a five minute seawatch (77).

first seawatch of the year

One black guillemot, 22 manx shearwaters and 3 common scoters were seen off Galley this morning, on the first official seawatch of the year!

flogging a dead horse

Found a dead horse on the patch today but I don't suppose that will get me too many points in the patch challenge! The wintering whimbrel was still in Dirk Bay, and 2 great northern divers were offshore there.

first manxie

The long-staying lesser yellowlegs was again at Rosscarbery today, with an iceland gull also there. The first manx shearwater of the year was also seen off Galley this morning.

bufflehead

Just happened to be in the area (ish) of Lough Atedaun in County Clare this lunchtime and went to see the female Bufflehead there. Got good views though it was a bit distant and very active, diving nearly all the time. Still, puts me just 1 behind carmo for the emerald isle!

iceland gull at Long Strand

A 1st winter iceland gull flew past the house this lunchtime and settled on the beach briefly - a good one for the patch year list (76).

not much doing

Two whimbrel were in Dirk Bay this afternoon and 7 turnstones were at Long Strand.  A brief sighting of a water rail running across the road near Shite Lane was my first one seen at Galley, and 3 moorhen were on Kilkeran Lake.

iceland gulls are in

A quick visit to Unionhall this afternoon was rewarded by good views of 5 iceland gulls - 1 2nd winter and 4 1st winters were on the shore.

fieldfares

A flock of 20 fieldfares in the fields above Kilkeran Lake this morning were just visible from the house, so made it on to the patch year list.  A flyover golden plover tonight was also new for the year (75).

brent

A flyover brent goose at Long Strand this lunchtime was a welcome addition to the patch year list (73).

2 glaucs

An adult glaucous gull was at Red Strand this morning, with 2 lesser black-backed gulls which were just visible from Dirk Bay (72).  A 2nd winter glaucous gull flew past Long Strand this afternoon.

eejit

A little egret at Long Strand today was the first for the year (71).

ringo

A ringed plover at Long Strand this evening was the first one there for the year (70).

halfway!

Two red-throated divers and a shelduck at Long Strand this morning were new for the year, as was a squealing water rail there this evening (69).

lesser legs seen again

The lesser yellowlegs was seen again at Rosscarbery today - first time its been seen this year, as far as I am aware.

back in front

A wander around Dirk Bay this afternoon produced a drake pheasant and 7 turnstones for the year (66), as well as the overwintering whimbrel and 2 great northern divers.

mute records

A brace of mute swans on Kilkeran Lake this lunchtime were new for the year (64).

lapwings!

Two lapwings sheltering on the banks of Kilkeran Lake this afternoon were a good addition to the patch year list (63) - only saw 6 of 'em last year!

glauc

A 1st winter glaucous gull at Long Strand late afternoon was a valuable year tick, while a great northern diver and several fulmars off Galley this afternoon were also new for the year (62).

the great island bird race

Today was the annual great island bird race and 9.00 am saw 5 teams set out from Kennedy Pier in Cobh for the race.  It was an excellent day weatherwise but hard work finding birds. Having won outright 2 years ago, and tied in first place last year we were up for the treble but with our usual 4th team mate swanning around in Sri Lanka and our second fiddle golden plover expert overseas in Japan we were always going to struggle.  Indeed so it turned out as we could only struggle to tie in 3rd on 88, with the 4th place team on 85. A sterling effort by HH and his team came in second with 91 but it was the usual suspects (DOS, PD & PM) who ran out the winners with a whopping 94. feckers - we'll get 'em next year!

 

Good birds were quite thin on the ground though most teams managed both glaucous, iceland and ring-billed gulls.  Bird of the day was a fine tree sparrow, a great find by 1 team and a good county record.

 

slowing up

Just 2 patch year ticks today; sparrowhawk and skylark which makes 59.

a few more

Managed to add teal, guillemot, razorbill, kittiwake, snipe, linnet and reed bunting today, moving the total onto 57.

braving the elements

Bit wet and windy this afternoon but managed mistle thrush, rock pipit, grey wagtail and chough for the year despite the weather (50).  A bar-tailed godwit was also at Long Strand again this afternoon.

only 364 birding days left!

Gleaned a few more species today, the best of which were a 1st winter mediterranean gull on Kilkeran Lake, a peregrine over Long Strand and a female merlin at Shite Lane.  Patch year list now on 46.

happy new year challenge

A stumble around Galley this afternoon produced 1 bar-tailed godwit, 1 chiffchaff, 1 whimbrel but bird of the day was a black guillemot in Dirk, which I missed at Galley last year. Year list total by the end of the day was 36.