Juvenile Baird's Sandpiper, Derrymore, 18th September 2016 (M.O'Clery).
Juvenile Baird's Sandpiper, Derrymore, 18th September 2016 (M.O'Clery).
Derrymore, as they say, can be 'a feckin' hoor of a place' to bird. It's a long, long walk out, and there's no guarantee that the usual high tide roost site will have many - or any - birds present. On those occasions when little or nothing is to be seen, the return 'walk of shame' can seem endless. Nevertheless, sometimes, just sometimes, it can produce really exciting birding. This evening was one of those times, with two Baird's Sandpipers present among the hundreds of Dunlin and Ringed Plover. With close to 40 records of Baird's for the county, this is the first time that two have been seen at the same site at the same time in Kerry.
There's an entertaining write-up of a 2011 birding visit to Kerry from the Punkbirder team which includes the finding of two Semipalmated Sandpipers at this site on this page HERE. Well worth a read.
