Some recent rare gulls at Blennerville

 

Adult Kumlien's Gull, Blennerville, 15th April 2024 (David O'Connor).

Adult Ring-billed Gull, Blennerville, 17th April 2024 (David O'Connor).

2nd summer (3rd calendar-year) Ring-billed Gull, Blennerville, 25th April 2024 (David O'Connor).

Black-throated Diver and Iceland Gull

Black-throated Diver, Ballinskelligs, 5th March 2024 (David O'Connor).

Black-throated Diver, Ballinskelligs, 5th March 2024 (David O'Connor).

Iceland Gull, Reenard, 5th March 2024 (David O'Connor).

Now 3 Waxwings at Derrymore East

 

Waxwing, Derrymore East, 18th January 2024 (Cait O'Neill).

Waxwing, Derrymore East, 18th January 2024 (Cait O'Neill).

The 'flock' of Waxwings at Derrymore East has grown by one today...

Male White-winged (and Surf and Velvet) Scoter at Inch

(You can click the bottom right icon of the video to see it full-screen)

Male White-winged Scoter, Inch, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Male White-winged Scoter with 2 immature/female Velvet Scoters, Inch, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Male White-winged Scoter with 2 immature/female Velvet Scoters, Inch, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Male White-winged Scoter, Inch, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

 

  Male and female Surf Scoters, Inch, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

2 Waxwings at Derrymore East

 

Waxwing, Derrymore East, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Waxwings, Derrymore East, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Waxwing, Derrymore East, 17th January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Up close with a Great Northern Diver

 One, sometimes two, Great Northern Divers have been sheltering from the almost constant atrocious weather on the freshwater canal by Blennerville Bridge, Tralee, since before Christmas. Still there today.

Juvenile Great Northern Diver, Blennerville, 3rd January 2024 (Michael O'Clery).

Scoter-tastic day

There were four species of Scoter available to see in Kerry today, the male White-winged Scoter seen again off Kilcummin, with three Velvet Scoters there too, along with another five at Inch beach. In addition, a male and female Surf Scoter were also close inshore at Inch beach this morning. Numbers of Common Scoter in Kerry are impressive this winter after a couple of lean winters, with perhaps 1500 now in Brandon Bay, and another 2000 off Inch, unfortunately often very far off Inch. As well as those two main flocks, there are higher than usual numbers accumulating in the Sandy Bay / Rough Point area this winter, with about 300 present today.

Velvet Scoters, Inch, 1st December 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Velvet Scoters, Inch, 1st December 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Velvet Scoters, Inch, 1st December 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Male and female Surf Scoters, Inch, 1st December 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Throughout the eastern end of Dingle Bay today there were thousands of birds, actively feeding on some unseen fish, while a hundred or more Common Dolphins, 3 or more Minke Whales and 30 or so Bottlenose Dolphins (and several trawlers) ploughed through the 'bait balls'. 

Bird totals included 2 Surf Scoter (adult male and female), 5 Velvet Scoter (one adult male, 4 female/immature), along with 1500 Common Scoter, 1 Little Auk, some 3000+ Razorbills and 500 Guillemots. Another extraordinary count was of a minimum of 450 Red-throated Divers, surely one of the largest counts ever made in Ireland? By contrast, there was 'only' 60 Great Northern Divers and strangely, not even a sniff of a Black-throated Diver. They really are rare in Kerry. Some 3000 gulls were chasing the fish right across the bay, mostly Herring and Common Gulls, but nothing rare could be found in amongst those, not even a Mediterranean Gull. Kittiwakes were perhaps noticeable by their absence. 1 Slavonian Grebe and 1 Great Crested Grebe (pretty rare in this part of Kerry) were also off the main beach at Inch.

Red-throated Divers, Inch, 1st December 2023 (Michael O'Clery). There were small groups of Red-throated Diver scattered throughout the Bay, and for many kilometres offshore and, every now and then, groups would arrive and plunge straight into a melee of gulls, auks and Gannets, chasing whatever fish shoals were gathering in the bay. Unusual behaviour.

Mixed flock, chasing 'bait balls', Inch, 1st December 2023 (Michael O'Clery). Numerous gulls, Gannet, auks, shags and Cormorants were all piling in as soon as  a 'bait ball' appeared, though these often only lasted a couple of minutes. Birds would then disperse, and the process would be repeated nearby.

Glaucous Gull at Kilcummin

 Possibly the same bird as seen on nearby Lough Gill two days ago. There's a dead Common Dolphin on the beach at Kilcummin, which might well be the object of interest for this big bruiser of a gull.

First-winter Glaucous Gull, Kilcummin, Brandon Bay, 29th November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

First-winter Glaucous Gull, Kilcummin, Brandon Bay, 29th November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

First-winter Glaucous Gull, Kilcummin, Brandon Bay, 29th November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Spoonbill, Long-tailed Duck and Eider

 Although seemingly absent last winter, it seems our longest staying/ returning rarity has made it back once more!

Adult Spoonbill, Cromane, 21st November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Adult Spoonbill, Cromane, 21st November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Juvenile Long-tailed Duck, Cromane, 21st November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Juvenile Eider, Scraggane, near Castlegregory, 21st November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Juvenile Eider, Scraggane, near Castlegregory, 21st November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Juvenile Eider, Scraggane, near Castlegregory, 21st November 2023 (Michael O'Clery).

Sinensis Cormorant at Black Rock

 

Sinensis Cormorant, Black Rock, 2nd November 2023 (David O'Connor).

Sinensis Cormorant, Black Rock, 2nd November 2023 (David O'Connor).