In mid July I went on an organised birding/wildlife trip to southern Ireland. Now that the Forum has settled down a bit I thought it was time to produce a report. So here goes.
It was a two centre holiday with three days based near Wicklow and then the remainder of the time based at Wexford. This area is known as the sunny south-east and on this occasion it lived up to it's billing with glorious weather for the whole week.
This was the lovely country hotel we stayed at Rathnew just north of Wicklow. It is reputedly the oldest coaching inn in Ireland and has been in the same family for over 200 years.
As the local letterbox showed it seems that all traces of British colonialism have not been entirely eliminated. At least it had been painted green. LOL
House Martins nesting in the courtyard of the hotel.
We explored various locations in the Wicklow mountains in search of birds like Dippers without much success so had to be content with some flowers. This Bog Cotton (Cotton Grass) looked a bit like a snowfield. Apparently, it was the most prolific seen for some years.
Quite pretty close up
Also came across a Sundew growing in the boggy acid soil.
About the most exiting thing we came across was this re-enactment of a Viking invasion on Glendalough which was being filmed ror a TV series. LOL
In truth I found the birding in and around Wicklow a bit disappointing. I think it was just too hot and most of the smaller birds were hiding. We heard quite a lot of birds like warblers and buntings singing but they were difficult to see. We did come across this Spotted Flycatcher though which I was pleased about as I haven't seen one for years.
It appeared to have taken over a House Martins nest.
Before leaving the Wicklow area we visited a guy who had created series of small lakes specifically to attract dragonflies along with flower meadows for butterflies, moths and other insect life. There were large Emperor Dragonflies whizzing around - fairly new to Ireland I understand - but the only dragonfly I managed to photograph was this one, which I think is a Four-spotted Chaser.
The night before he'd set out moth traps and he showed us some of the moths he'd trapped. Here's just a few that I managed to photograph.
Large Emerald
Elephant Hawk Moth
Garden Tiger
And two whose names I've forgotten. This one which looks like a twig but believe it or not is a moth.
And this one which was almost invisibible against the granite wall.
If anyone can give me the names of these last two please feel free.
I'm going to leave it there before you get too bored. I'll add to the thread later with the stuff we found around Wexford where the birding got a bit more interesting.
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Tony
My Flickr Photostream
Unknown said:Keeping us hanging on for the Puffins eh(-:).
Yep, you've got me sussed, Bob, but before that a few others.
Some glossy green Shags
An alert Guillemot
Meadow Pipits were everywhere not just on the island but all over this part of Southern Ireland. Here's just one.
Didn't see many Rock Pipits except this one.
And now for everyone's favourite the Puffins. They don't have large colonies on the island but the boatman was saying this was a good year with over a hundred pairs nesting.
In the water
On the cliffs
And a few close-ups
The white blobs in the background of some of these pictures was the sun glinting off the sea. How inconsiderate of it when you are trying to take photos. LOL
One final thing. Our guide said that the Essex Skipper butterfly had reached Southern Ireland only in the last couple of years (climate change?). We went to a place he knew of where there were quite a few flying around. I managed to get one half decent shot. I had to take his word for it that it was an Essex. How on earth do you distinguish it from a Small Skipper?
I've been to lots of places in Europe birdwatching but amazingly this was my first trip to Ireland. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The people were friendy, the food was good and the sun shone for the whole week.
Thanks for looking.
Hi-
the Gannet looks like a 4th summer according to the 'ID birds the Seymouraves way' book.
S
ps- they didnt take you to Tacumshin for possible American waders?
For advice about Birding, Identification,field guides, binoculars, scopes, tripods, etc - put 'Birding Tips' into the search box
More great shots. Like the sneaky Guillemot in the massed Puffin pic. I am also a fan of the 'snowflakes' and don't think they spoil the images at all - I think they're beautiful.
Re the skippers, here's the most reliable way to tell them apart:
You really need to see them from this angle rather than from above, as the black bit on Essex is mostly on the underside of the antenna tip. There are other differences but they're more subtle. Male Essex has a shorter scent brand than male Small. The ground colour of the wings is (to my eyes at least) more yellowy in Essex, more orangey in Small. Essex tends to have a narrower dark edge to the inner forewing.
ETA - probably the most important differences between them are ecological. Essex overwinters in the egg stage, Small as a caterpillar. This means Essex is likely to survive better if there is winter flooding. Essex is also a better disperser than Small. A lone small 'golden' skipper found away from usual skipper haunts is more likely to be an Essex than a Small.
My blog: http://mazzaswildside.blogspot.co.uk/
My Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/photos/124028194@N04/
Unknown said:How on earth do you distinguish it from a Small Skipper?
Unknown said:By its accent?
But it wasn't wearing white stilettos. LOL
Thanks for your nice comments, Bob
seymouraves said: the Gannet looks like a 4th summer according to the 'ID birds the Seymouraves way' book. S ps- they didnt take you to Tacumshin for possible American waders?
Do I detect a plug there, S.
Yes, we did go to Tacumshin. This year because of the dry weather everything was miles away. We did see a flock of 200+ Curlews but much too far for photos. There were also Black-tailed Godwits there and on Lady's Island lake some still in summer plumage. Quite distant though. We did have the privilege of meeting Killian Mullarney though who had driven his car out on the marshes ( that tells you how dry it was) - what a charming guy. Other waders were in very small numbers.
aiki said:You really need to see them from this angle rather than from above, as the black bit on Essex is mostly on the underside of the antenna tip.
Thanks for that, aiki. Your knowledge continues to astound me, especially the ecological information.
I got this very poor photo from underneath - I couldn't get the camera to focus through the grass. It does appear to show black tips on the underside of the antenna. Would you agree?
Yes, I'd be pretty happy to call it Essex from that. And AFAIK Small doesn't occur in Ireland. Wonder how the Essexes got there - under their own steam or assisted? Essex Skippers were accidentally introduced to North America about 100 years ago (probably via eggs transported in hay) and have taken the continent by storm - they're now one of the most common species there and are NOT very popular!
More fab shots!
Some fantastic shots there, TJ. Sounds as though you more than made up for the disappointment of the first few days. Love the emerald moth and the seabirds especially - living in Manchester we don't see too many of either!
(Kudos as always to aiki for the fascinating info)
R.
God loved the birds and invented trees. Man loved the birds and invented cages - Jacques Deval
Photos on Flickr
Thanks Roy, glad you liked them. Don't see too many seabirds where I live (Berkshire) either so it's always good to see them.