Local twitching

With Galley really not being very good lately, despite regular checking for bee-eaters and orioles and the like, its fortunate that some good stuff has been turning up close by.

Out of the blue a couple of nights ago news broke of a fine drake blue-winged teal at the Cul-de-Sac pool, near Clonakilty. Wowzers. An Irish tick no less. And it was too - took me about 10 mins to get there and we had it skulking in the reeds round the back going to roost - Excellent! Nearly got an amazeballs phone-scoped shot of it, but my phone spazzed out at the crucial minute so here's a snap of a coaster that we have in the house that has been goading me for years - on my list at last tho!

OML ya bas!

And I even managed to pick out the male green-winged teal new in at nearby Clogheen Marsh on the way home, before it got totally dark. Marvellous.

And then more twitchy fun in the form of a black-winged stilt at White's Marsh yesterday (still there today). Which was nice...

Hopefully it'll behave like the last one & relocate to Kilkeran Lake, thus securing me a much needed patch breakback on almost everyone!

A twitch to Mizen Head

Finally got a chance to go for the two black ducks down near Barleycove on Mizen Head today, and was glad I made the effort! The two were sat on a flooded pool by the side of the road opposite the Barleycove Caravan Park, near Cockles Strand, looking very pleased with themselves!

Even though they were pretty close, I still managed to balls up the following record shots, but note the white underwing and lack of any rings on at least one leg! Fortunately one of the shots is almost in focus! Almost!

Look at the underwing on that!

Unringed (on one leg anyway!)

Couldn't get them both with their heads up at once! 

And then they went to sleep, no doubt still wrecked from their tough Atlantic crossing, so we left them to it!

let the twitching begin....

Eventually had to go and see the juvenile little blue heron at Letterfrack so left the house at 3.50 am, and was back by 15.00. It was a good bird too, well worth the trip! Image © carmo