tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88499247975799324042024-03-14T03:17:52.635+00:00Northern Ireland Black-headed Gull StudyUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger224125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-90781862562207518682018-02-08T07:31:00.002+00:002018-02-08T07:31:55.984+00:00Finding out more about Hoodies<br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In an attempt
to find out more about Hooded Crows (love them or hate them......we don’t know
a lot about their movements and even less about their population demography)
David Jardine has been colour-ringing nestlings on Colonsay in the southern
Hebrides and will be interested in any sightings from Ireland.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Previous work
with metal rings has shown that birds do disperse from the island; a nestling
ringed on Colonsay in May 2013, was found at Bunnahabhain, Islay the following
February. Last summer another Hoodie, ringed as a nestling on Colonsay
on 22 May 2007, was caught in a crow trap on 25 May 2017. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The current longevity
record for a Hooded Crow is of a bird shot at Lockerbie, Dumfries &
Galloway which had been ringed in Opland, Norway six years, four months and
three day previously. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">David would be delighted to hear of any sightings of
Hooded Crows with yellow colour-rings seen in Ireland (he can be contacted at <a href="mailto:dcjardine@btinternet.com">dcjardine@btinternet.com</a>). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-73288736365621019042018-01-19T16:31:00.001+00:002018-01-19T19:56:34.522+00:00Mediterranean Gull - Yellow 2XJ9<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mediterranean Gulls have been breeding in Ireland since at least 1995, with the first confirmed breeding record being at Blue Circle Island, Larne Lough. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Since 2015, as well as ringing young Black-headed Gulls, we have been colour-ringing young Med Gulls during our visits to Blue Circle Island. A total of seven young Med Gulls have colour-ringed over the three years since.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We have only received a re-sighting of one of the seven birds so far, but it has been spotted a number of times since.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><b>2XJ9</b></span> was ringed by me on Blue Circle Island at the end of June 2016.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CPt8oLWa9h8/WmJM-cQpY_I/AAAAAAAADUw/yMQmZMsTmcIx1Kra3LdQ5uKBjWp1wlIIgCLcBGAs/s1600/P1010280.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CPt8oLWa9h8/WmJM-cQpY_I/AAAAAAAADUw/yMQmZMsTmcIx1Kra3LdQ5uKBjWp1wlIIgCLcBGAs/s640/P1010280.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">2XJ9 being ringed in June 2016</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was then photographed by Neal Warnock at Glenarm, about 12 miles up the Antrim Coast from Larne Lough. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHhURxYXEH8/WmIcOV_KonI/AAAAAAAADUA/1C5XqR9EFscmf7hIT-byST-pVaz7cTiuwCLcBGAs/s1600/Med%2BGull%2Bat%2BGlenarm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="1024" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHhURxYXEH8/WmIcOV_KonI/AAAAAAAADUA/1C5XqR9EFscmf7hIT-byST-pVaz7cTiuwCLcBGAs/s640/Med%2BGull%2Bat%2BGlenarm.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><b>2XJ9</b></span> at Glenarm, August 2016<br />Photo by Neal Warnock</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The bird was not reported again until September last year when it was re-sighted twice in ten days by the same observer at two sites on Loch Ryan. We got word last week that 2XJ9 is still overwintering in Scotland, as the same observer recorded it again, this time at a site just north of Stoneykirk.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Blue - Ringing location<br />Yellow - Re-sighting locations</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We have added a page to the blog, which features photographs of Mediterranean Gulls (ringed and not) which have been recorded here in Northern Ireland. Please check it out by clicking <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/p/mediterranean-gulls.html">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to Neal and Brian for reporting their sightings and to Sean for co-ordinating Med Gull colour-ringing in Britain and Ireland.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-65867278789229891002018-01-02T11:33:00.003+00:002018-01-02T11:33:53.778+00:00Carrion Crow - White AL<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Just before Christmas we visited Edinburgh Zoo for the day to celebrate our animal-mad wee boy's 6th birthday.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Among the exotic and exciting animals, my attention was drawn to a Carrion Crow which was kicking around beside Penguin Rock and was sporting a white colour-ring.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, I didn't have my binoculars with me but thankfully it was obviously used to people and I got close enough to allow me to read the code - "AL".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The bird flew up onto the roof of the coffee shop and I managed to get a couple of photos with my phone.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p528rvQZlqg/Wkttgwi7YCI/AAAAAAAADSE/Jgbh8FJYbRsfrZvAk_VzWBu793cElXGFQCLcBGAs/s1600/20171216_102619.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p528rvQZlqg/Wkttgwi7YCI/AAAAAAAADSE/Jgbh8FJYbRsfrZvAk_VzWBu793cElXGFQCLcBGAs/s640/20171216_102619.jpg" width="384" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I checked the cr-birding website, but the only project I could find which matched was based in Belgium and I assumed there must be someone closer than that colour-ringing crows, so I asked via Facebook.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An email address was passed on and I contacted Dr Rachael Miller at University of Cambridge, who replied to tell me that she ringed <b style="background-color: white;">AL</b> as a sub-adult male in May 2011. This was one of 65 crows ringed in Edinburgh Zoo as part of behavioral studies she was supervising at the time, where they compared wild crow behaviour in birds in Edinburgh with those in Vienna, and several other urban zoo-using crows.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Despite not having moved very far in 6.5 years, it's still fascinating to hear what other researchers are studying and why.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Many thanks to Rachael for the information.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">P.S. We also managed to see the pandas!</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RI4vwrc2-mc/WkttcbnLZmI/AAAAAAAADR8/JMTFRmSQHc8oKgcNT2D9IA7KUQtmyvN-gCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG-20171216-WA0027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1328" data-original-width="747" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RI4vwrc2-mc/WkttcbnLZmI/AAAAAAAADR8/JMTFRmSQHc8oKgcNT2D9IA7KUQtmyvN-gCLcBGAs/s640/IMG-20171216-WA0027.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-87160768546759933892018-01-02T10:02:00.001+00:002018-01-02T10:02:15.699+00:00Happy New Year!<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thank you to everyone who reported sightings, sent photographs or helped with ringing during 2017. </span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We hope 2018 will be gull-filled!</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-78771956511006523292017-12-18T08:15:00.003+00:002017-12-18T08:15:57.909+00:00Black-headed Gull - Yellow 2H31<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Scanning through a large flock of roosting Herring and Black-headed Gulls at the former landfill site at Dargan on the shores of Belfast Lough last week, I noticed a Black-headed Gull with a yellow ring.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It took a bit of time to get the code as the wind kept blowing the telescope about, but eventually I managed to read it as <span style="background-color: yellow;"><b>2H31</b></span> and then got a couple of dodgy digi-scoped record shots of the bird on my phone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Checking the fantastic, </span><a href="http://www.cr-birding.org/" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">www.cr-birding.org</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> website, I reported the sighting to Paul Roper of North Thames Gull Group who got back to tell me that it had been caught and ringed as an adult at Pitsea Landfill Site in Essex in March this year.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9sEo8xVHKhw/Wjd5ByK9uGI/AAAAAAAADQ0/OVYwGpEQrhIBwOOfdaUeDUNri7mA8efFgCLcBGAs/s1600/Map.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="801" data-original-width="638" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9sEo8xVHKhw/Wjd5ByK9uGI/AAAAAAAADQ0/OVYwGpEQrhIBwOOfdaUeDUNri7mA8efFgCLcBGAs/s640/Map.JPG" width="508" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Yellow - Pitsea Landfill Site<br />Red - Dargan, Belfast Lough</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is the first sighting since.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-71858971325234093602017-12-14T08:56:00.000+00:002017-12-14T08:58:05.585+00:00Black-headed Gull - Black 2AXVI<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">n October last year, Gary recorded a colour-ringed first-winter bird at Peoples Park, Ballymena (see <a href="http://birdingatantrimmarina.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/latvian-return.html" target="_blank">here</a>).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3QZWNjeJqHc/WjI4cvK50aI/AAAAAAAADMI/p2u5H-VqRbYo9v6jQw5Z0O47gYeDMOdWACLcBGAs/s1600/1%2B-%2B23%2BOct%2B2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3QZWNjeJqHc/WjI4cvK50aI/AAAAAAAADMI/p2u5H-VqRbYo9v6jQw5Z0O47gYeDMOdWACLcBGAs/s640/1%2B-%2B23%2BOct%2B2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="background-color: black;">2AXV</b><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></span>at Peoples Park, October 2016<br />Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Gary heard back that the bird had been ringed as a chick by Brewood Ringing Group at Marsh Lane Nature Reserve in the West Midlands in June 2016.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F4epAYT3jyw/WjI84R3gl-I/AAAAAAAADMs/1kx8mv8Fe3wc0RCUFc-xd2O2zS71W7amgCLcBGAs/s1600/2AXN%2Bmap.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="654" data-original-width="904" height="462" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F4epAYT3jyw/WjI84R3gl-I/AAAAAAAADMs/1kx8mv8Fe3wc0RCUFc-xd2O2zS71W7amgCLcBGAs/s640/2AXN%2Bmap.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Black - Marsh Lane Nature Reserve<br />Orange - Peoples Park, Ballymena</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The bird was recorded at Peoples Park throughout the winter, with the last sighting being on 11th March 2017.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1Q8t6xhxxpY/WjI5EZBf9nI/AAAAAAAADMU/ML15YchkkdcXFl8Ne5_y_UTPfRYDcGdVACLcBGAs/s1600/4%2B-%2B17%2BFeb%2B2016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1Q8t6xhxxpY/WjI5EZBf9nI/AAAAAAAADMU/ML15YchkkdcXFl8Ne5_y_UTPfRYDcGdVACLcBGAs/s640/4%2B-%2B17%2BFeb%2B2016.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><b>2AXV</b></span></span> at Peoples Park in November 2016 (top), December 2016 (middle) and February 2017 (bottom)<br />Photos by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In yet another example of a wintering Black-headed Gull showing strong site fidelity, <span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><b>2ANX</b></span></span> has returned to Peoples Park for a second winter having been recorded on 1st September 2017.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><b>2AXV</b></span></span> at Peoples Park in September 2017 (top) and December 2017 (bottom)<br />Photos by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to Gary for the information and all the photos which give us an insight to the changing plumage of <span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><b>2AXV</b></span></span> as it ages.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-46642108105837398262017-12-12T09:24:00.004+00:002017-12-12T09:24:34.468+00:00Common Gull - Orange 2A06<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Paul McCullough recently sent through a photo of a colour-ringed Common Gull roosting at Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Paul McCullough</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This bird, originally ringed by Grampian Ringing Group as a breeding adult in July 2015 and was subsequently recorded at Carrickfergus in December 2015 by Gary (see <a href="http://birdingatantrimmarina.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/rings-galore.html" target="_blank">here</a>). </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="background-color: orange;">2A06</b> at Carrick, December 2015<br />Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was recorded later that winter by Cameron Moore, in February 2016. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It went undetected for 18 months, before being seen at Pow Burn, Prestwick in Ayrshire in September this year and then Paul's sighting of the bird back at Carrick.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Many thanks to Paul for the report and to Gary and Calum at GRG for the information.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-15330137372746804052017-12-05T12:20:00.000+00:002017-12-05T12:20:29.933+00:00Black-headed Gull - Yellow T58T<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Suzanne reported that <span style="background-color: yellow;"><b>T58T</b></span> was seen briefly at Lurgan Park on Friday 1st December.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><b>T58T</b></span> at Lurgan Park, December 2017<br />Photo by Suzanne Belshaw</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><b>T58T</b></span> was caught and ringed in Poland as an adult in July 2016 by Lukasz Borek, the same ringer who has recorded one of "our" birds in Poland a couple of times (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2017/11/2anx-what-we-know-so-far.html" target="_blank">here</a>). I say "our" because it only spends the winter here, it was most likely born in NE Germany or NW Poland.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was first recorded at Lurgan Park in December 2016 and was regular sighting there throughout last winter, last being seen on 19th February.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The bird was photographed back in Poland in July this year and has now returned to Co. Armagh for another winter. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">In all likelihood, this bird had been wintering at Lurgan during previous years but went unnoticed until it was ringed by Lukasz. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">This is one of several Polish colour-ringed birds we have recorded here in winter which we've also been lucky enough to have recorded back on their breeding grounds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">All of this information provides us with an insight to the seasonal movements of these overlooked long-distance migrants.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-44976954221621652782017-11-28T21:53:00.000+00:002017-11-28T21:53:57.553+00:00Dispersal of 2017 chicks<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Back in the summer, we managed to visit two of our study colonies to ring young Black-headed Gulls. A total of 79 young birds were colour-ringed at WWT Castle Espie on Strangford Lough in Co. Down and RSPB Blue Circle Island, on Larne Lough in Co. Antrim.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E09PWUhggpQ/Wh2W-ojGl1I/AAAAAAAADKk/-rt05gIl-dAiLlEaowFD3RQ5PU0vGkDXACLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="756" data-original-width="739" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E09PWUhggpQ/Wh2W-ojGl1I/AAAAAAAADKk/-rt05gIl-dAiLlEaowFD3RQ5PU0vGkDXACLcBGAs/s640/Capture.JPG" width="624" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Blue - RSPB Blue Circle Island, Larne Lough<br />Green - WWT Castle Espie, Strangford Lough</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Since ringing, we have received re-sighting reports of four of the 2017 birds.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All four originated from Blue Circle Island and all the sightings have been from the east Antrim coast. One bird has moved slightly north, and three have moved south to various sites along the north shore of Belfast Lough.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Orange - Re-sighting locations of 2017 birds ringed on Blue Circle Island (Blue marker)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="background-color: orange;">2CLV</b> at Whitehead, August 2017<br />Photo by Cameron Moore</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P7urX7vSDd0/Wh3ZYaBgnDI/AAAAAAAADLE/1QZR6v2HAaw4fGk-ODUtopZ9-aNDTxItwCLcBGAs/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CPN%2B%252820171118%2B%25281%2529%2529%2B%2BWhiteabbey.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P7urX7vSDd0/Wh3ZYaBgnDI/AAAAAAAADLE/1QZR6v2HAaw4fGk-ODUtopZ9-aNDTxItwCLcBGAs/s640/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CPN%2B%252820171118%2B%25281%2529%2529%2B%2BWhiteabbey.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="background-color: orange;">2CPN</b> at Whiteabbey, September 2017<br />Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gotvrGtQhJQ/Wh3aMsEj6QI/AAAAAAAADLM/apphg7bBxswrcQFoHAXROwHaaEFgwsZ0wCLcBGAs/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CNB%2B%252820171123%2B%25281%2529%2529%2B%2BSandy%2BBay.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gotvrGtQhJQ/Wh3aMsEj6QI/AAAAAAAADLM/apphg7bBxswrcQFoHAXROwHaaEFgwsZ0wCLcBGAs/s640/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CNB%2B%252820171123%2B%25281%2529%2529%2B%2BSandy%2BBay.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="background-color: orange;">2CNB</b> at Sandy Bay, November 2017<br />Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ykeTdjA-1g/Wh3aerprhGI/AAAAAAAADLQ/LTy0knH1_3QzsmiUYoKSgew9CnnZva6qwCLcBGAs/s1600/Bkack%2Bheaded%2BGull.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1440" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ykeTdjA-1g/Wh3aerprhGI/AAAAAAAADLQ/LTy0knH1_3QzsmiUYoKSgew9CnnZva6qwCLcBGAs/s640/Bkack%2Bheaded%2BGull.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="background-color: orange;">2CPS</b> at Carrickfergus, November 2017<br />Photo by Paul McCullough</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to everyone who continues to report colour-ringed birds to us. All reports are greatly appreciated.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-40423634369310451532017-11-23T11:53:00.001+00:002017-11-23T11:53:06.389+00:002ANX - what we know so far<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In January 2016, we caught and colour-ringed a bird which was already sporting a German metal ring. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The same bird had been recorded at Carrickfergus, Belfast Lough during previous winters but by adding the colour-ring we were hopeful it would increase the number of re-sightings of the bird.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the 22 months since we colour-ringed <b style="background-color: orange;">2ANX</b>, we've had some excellent results.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I've set out below what we know of <span style="background-color: orange;"><b>2ANX</b></span>:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>May 2008</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ringed as an adult at Bohmke, Germany</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>November 2013 </u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Recorded at Carrickfergus Harbour - metal ring read</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>January 2016</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Caught and colour-ring <b style="background-color: orange;">2ANX</b> added (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/when-opportunity-presents-itself.html" target="_blank">here</a>)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>February 2016</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Re-sighted at Carrickfegus</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>March 2016</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Re-sighted at Swinoujscie, NW Poland (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/black-headed-gull-2anx.html" target="_blank">here</a>)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>July 2016</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Caught by ringer at Swinoujscie, NW Poland as by catch - he was actually trying to catch a crow! (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/2anx-update.html" target="_blank">here</a>)</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wGecKN7x5Mg/WhazfKGRSSI/AAAAAAAADJs/DUQTeKLQFXkHnE_0F1Fvl49QnlE7U1BSQCLcBGAs/s1600/2anx_ni.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wGecKN7x5Mg/WhazfKGRSSI/AAAAAAAADJs/DUQTeKLQFXkHnE_0F1Fvl49QnlE7U1BSQCLcBGAs/s640/2anx_ni.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Lucasz Borek</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>December 2016</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Re-sighted back at Carrickfergus, where it was recorded again in January and February 2017</span><br />
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<u style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">May 2017</u><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Photographed at breeding colony at Bohmke, the colony where it was originally ringed, at a nest with 2 young.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uSL7XJBtEWo/Whaog8SExpI/AAAAAAAADJU/LSgBZWwk-cwo2lcE0nIzs5W2_BBMFX45QCLcBGAs/s1600/18788526_1325615990825629_1515155989_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="373" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uSL7XJBtEWo/Whaog8SExpI/AAAAAAAADJU/LSgBZWwk-cwo2lcE0nIzs5W2_BBMFX45QCLcBGAs/s640/18788526_1325615990825629_1515155989_n.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="background-color: orange;">2ANX</b> at breeding site at Bohmke, NE Germany<br />Photo by Simon Piro</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>June 2017</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Photographed back at Swinoujscie, NW by same ringer who had recorded it at same site in 2016.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qeg3e39ZN6U/WhapMYxbF7I/AAAAAAAADJc/XM-tKxTen748NM_RqvtE88eFhfGuESs2wCLcBGAs/s1600/P1030910.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qeg3e39ZN6U/WhapMYxbF7I/AAAAAAAADJc/XM-tKxTen748NM_RqvtE88eFhfGuESs2wCLcBGAs/s640/P1030910.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: orange;"><b>2ANX</b></span> in flight behind Lukasz's son<br />Photo by Lukasz Borek</span></td></tr>
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<u style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">November 2017</u><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Re-sighted back at Carrickfergus for another winter.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zLNI05Ll30c/Wha1o2DHqAI/AAAAAAAADJ4/zgQdz4GuwNcVbPrTDpwzNCz7NJ5WwwQMgCLcBGAs/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="446" data-original-width="1345" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zLNI05Ll30c/Wha1o2DHqAI/AAAAAAAADJ4/zgQdz4GuwNcVbPrTDpwzNCz7NJ5WwwQMgCLcBGAs/s640/Capture.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">The map shows known wintering location of <span style="background-color: orange;"><b>2ANX</b></span> at Carrickfergus, Bohmke in NE Germany where it breeds and the site it visits at Swinoujscie just over the border in NW Poland.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks everyone who has reported this bird and if you happen to visit the car park by Carrick Castle, please keep an eye out for our colour-ringed birds and let us know via bhgni@ymail.com</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-24343170975433837632017-11-21T13:43:00.000+00:002017-11-21T13:43:54.737+00:00First birds of the winter caught and ringed<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Gary was successful at the weekend catching and ringing the first birds this winter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Two first winters and a second winter bird became the latest additions to our study cohort. </span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WvTO4WE78J4/WhQs6n9l9uI/AAAAAAAADJA/Vj2SyViEqZE78pxI0xPrCGxZZDOMXxcOQCLcBGAs/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CSA%2B%252820171119%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BAntrim%2BMarina.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WvTO4WE78J4/WhQs6n9l9uI/AAAAAAAADJA/Vj2SyViEqZE78pxI0xPrCGxZZDOMXxcOQCLcBGAs/s640/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CSA%2B%252820171119%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BAntrim%2BMarina.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y6AvecQXTvQ/WhQs7BLQzII/AAAAAAAADJE/MO6y0o1hHwg-wqblhf4Egmf49XdXtCA9wCLcBGAs/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CSB%2B%252820171119%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BAntrim%2BMarina.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y6AvecQXTvQ/WhQs7BLQzII/AAAAAAAADJE/MO6y0o1hHwg-wqblhf4Egmf49XdXtCA9wCLcBGAs/s640/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CSB%2B%252820171119%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BAntrim%2BMarina.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While we do not know where these birds have come from (we know from previously recorded ringed birds that they might have fledged from a colony a few miles away or Eastern Europe), we do have the advantage of being able to age them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">If you record any colour-ringed birds which you think might be from our study, even if it's a bird previously reported, you can get in touch via bhgni@ymail.com</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-50071515931059683402017-11-14T08:48:00.000+00:002017-11-14T08:48:02.166+00:00Back online!<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Once again, the blog has been neglected over past months. A perfect storm of fieldwork, expanding family, computer problems and other commitments has meant it has taken a hit and not been maintained.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All back online now and hopefully normal service will resume.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An update will be posted in coming days, especially since we have recently seen the 5th anniversary of the project starting. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the meantime rest assured that although things have been quiet, there has been plenty going on in the background with re-sightings from near and far and a cohort of 2017 chicks colour-ringed at two of our study sites.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">More soon....</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qwCX9-MoRRQ/VLF1VOsMmqI/AAAAAAAAB9I/e05yc9_K1kc1JEoWy4fQkQPNcGiwbEl9wCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/6426537027_1dc3a2c7e1_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="713" data-original-width="1024" height="444" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qwCX9-MoRRQ/VLF1VOsMmqI/AAAAAAAAB9I/e05yc9_K1kc1JEoWy4fQkQPNcGiwbEl9wCPcBGAYYCw/s640/6426537027_1dc3a2c7e1_b.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-208563970352389282017-03-17T12:23:00.000+00:002017-03-17T12:23:02.079+00:00Where have you been?<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the last post I touched on how some birds, despite being colour-ringed, can go long periods undetected.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well, Suzanne got another example last weekend...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">During another visit to Lurgan Park she photographed another colour-ringed Black-headed Gull <span style="background-color: yellow;">290P</span>. </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-57qRpc-PEIk/WMqCF3S1BeI/AAAAAAAADHI/dfHtKaaLMsMlzHz4z-9IuoWlMAWZg4k3ACLcB/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BYellow%2B290P%2B%252810%2BMar%2B2017%2B%25281a%2529%2529%2BLurgan%2BPark%2B%2528Suzanne%2BBelshaw%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-57qRpc-PEIk/WMqCF3S1BeI/AAAAAAAADHI/dfHtKaaLMsMlzHz4z-9IuoWlMAWZg4k3ACLcB/s640/BHG%2B-%2BYellow%2B290P%2B%252810%2BMar%2B2017%2B%25281a%2529%2529%2BLurgan%2BPark%2B%2528Suzanne%2BBelshaw%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Suzanne Belshaw</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We knew from previous sightings that this was likely a bird from Lough Mask in Mayo, so she reported her sighting to Chris Benson and Eoin McGreal.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chris replied, informing us that <span style="background-color: yellow;">290P</span> had indeed been ringed at Lough Mask, as a chick back in June 2007. This was the first re-sighting of it in the 10 years since!</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dq3Z7j9eUoQ/WMqDe2I5yXI/AAAAAAAADHU/pHQA4B6CJb0aukEtGP8G0p_jtnFve-WHgCLcB/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dq3Z7j9eUoQ/WMqDe2I5yXI/AAAAAAAADHU/pHQA4B6CJb0aukEtGP8G0p_jtnFve-WHgCLcB/s400/Capture.JPG" width="347" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This is similar to one of Gary's sightings from last spring, when he spotted a different Lough Mask bird at Glynn, Larne Lough which had also been ringed in 2007 (see </span><a href="http://birdingatantrimmarina.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/final-winter-visit.html" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">). This too, was the first re-sighting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Many thanks to Suzanne for her sightings and Chris for the ringing information.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-77423245037343120252017-03-15T08:00:00.000+00:002017-03-15T08:00:03.191+00:00Black-headed Gull - Blue 2F05<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Suzanne recently photographed a Black-headed Gull with a blue colour-ring at Lurgan Park, Armagh.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CeBmWRt-3lk/WMbBQkfvkeI/AAAAAAAADGg/5iKbDto4mpwDr0bsZmRWp_XctLq20VPMQCLcB/s1600/2F05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CeBmWRt-3lk/WMbBQkfvkeI/AAAAAAAADGg/5iKbDto4mpwDr0bsZmRWp_XctLq20VPMQCLcB/s640/2F05.jpg" width="636" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Suzanne Belshaw</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She reported her sighting to the BTO and heard back that it had been ringed as a first-winter in December 2012 at Preston Docks in Lancashire. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X8ulzTcT8I0/WMfSI33yPuI/AAAAAAAADGw/85xCyrZU1S87-JHJeyy2Jjx4559Fvv2vQCLcB/s1600/Capture2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="402" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X8ulzTcT8I0/WMfSI33yPuI/AAAAAAAADGw/85xCyrZU1S87-JHJeyy2Jjx4559Fvv2vQCLcB/s640/Capture2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Blue - Preston Docks, Lancashire<br />Yellow - Lurgan Park, Armagh</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We don't know if the bird has been recorded between these sightings and although you might not think it, it's amazing how long some birds can go undetected....more to follow on this soon!</span><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-66713237822624241112017-03-13T13:20:00.000+00:002017-03-13T13:20:00.693+00:00Black-headed Gull - Yellow 2BT3<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David Nixon reported a sighting of <span style="background-color: yellow;">2BT3</span> at Mill Quarter Bay, Strangford Lough back in November 2016.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We heard back in January from Grampian Ringing Group that it had been ringed as an adult during a night-time mist-netting session on the Ythan Estuary in August 2016.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dXepFDup9no/WMacKADqEPI/AAAAAAAADGQ/xnbDuDg1LFkaX1sdkl4-NM_mRkGCtfY0QCLcB/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dXepFDup9no/WMacKADqEPI/AAAAAAAADGQ/xnbDuDg1LFkaX1sdkl4-NM_mRkGCtfY0QCLcB/s400/Capture.JPG" width="338" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Yellow - Ythan, Aberdeenshire<br />Blue - Mill Quarter Bay, Down</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Grampian Ringing Group have been colour-ringing Sandwich Terns at the Ythan since 2010 (see <a href="http://grampianringing.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/theyre-terning-up-everywhere.html" target="_blank">here</a>) and </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">we have had a number of their birds recorded in NI (see </span><a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/colour-ringed-oystercatcher_25.html" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> and </span><a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/colour-ringed-sandwich-terns.html" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As part of their study, they catch birds at night in mist nets and they sometimes catch other species which they also ring, including Black-headed Gulls. This is the second colour-ringed Black-headed Gull from Grampian we have reported from NI (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/black-headed-gull-yellow-2xcn.html" target="_blank">here</a>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to David for his report and Calum for the life-history.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-87118401541662031962017-03-10T08:00:00.000+00:002017-03-10T08:00:12.639+00:00Black-headed Gull - White 2APK<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Despite not blogging for a couple of months, recording of colour-ringed birds has been ongoing and we have a number of reports of birds ringed outside Northern Ireland recorded here since the start of January. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I will try to get reports of them up on the blog over the next couple of weeks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">James O'Neill recorded <span style="background-color: white;">2APK</span> at the lake in Castlewellan Forest Park back at the start of January. This is the same site where we recorded a Scottish-ringed bird in January 2013 (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/black-headed-gull-ew85348.html" target="_blank">here</a>) and Lithuanian colour-ringed bird in December 2013 (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/black-headed-gull-black-p309.html" target="_blank">here</a>). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We reported this latest sighting to Tom Dougall in Scotland and he confirmed that <span style="background-color: white;">2APK</span> had been ringed as a chick at a colony at Moorfoot Hills, Scottish Borders in June 2015. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2WWd5elHpmQ/WL6R3JK5sLI/AAAAAAAADFg/492BLVSmykkQBPbCDPAyRqSi_jskLzMhQCLcB/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2WWd5elHpmQ/WL6R3JK5sLI/AAAAAAAADFg/492BLVSmykkQBPbCDPAyRqSi_jskLzMhQCLcB/s640/Capture.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Red - Moorfoot Hills, ringing site<br />Blue - Castlewellan, re-sighting location</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tom reported that this was the first re-sighting of this bird away from the natal colony and one of the few sightings of the 2015 cohort, which was small in size and had a poor fledging success which was attributed to poor weather around the time of hatching.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is not the first bird from Moorfoot Hills we've recorded in NI (see </span><a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/black-headed-gull-white-2apt.html" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GZbmhFqwbro/VN4loQZtmgI/AAAAAAAAB-o/GjMcaBy4uLoOvGuAmfdQOOsfmf-GLVC0gCPcB/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BWhite%2B2APT%2B%252808%2BFeb%2B2015%2B%25281%2529%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GZbmhFqwbro/VN4loQZtmgI/AAAAAAAAB-o/GjMcaBy4uLoOvGuAmfdQOOsfmf-GLVC0gCPcB/s640/BHG%2B-%2BWhite%2B2APT%2B%252808%2BFeb%2B2015%2B%25281%2529%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: white;">2APT</span> at Antrim, February 2015<br />Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to James for his report and to Tom for his reply.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-12652870522258361692017-03-08T08:00:00.001+00:002017-03-08T08:00:19.390+00:002ABT returns to breeding site<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Many thanks to Stephen Foster for sending through this photo of <span style="background-color: orange;">2ABT</span> at Sandy Bay, Larne Lough. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This bird was ringed by Kerry Leonard at Ballyholme in January 2013 and, thanks to the colour-ring, we have established it breeds at Larne Lough and returns to Ballyholme each winter.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2oWT7JF6-UU/WL8hChd5N8I/AAAAAAAADF4/Sal6AQ_PIoErg2Lp-48ktl5-UANKjj8GACEw/s1600/IMG_2657%2B2ABT%2BBlack-headed%2BGull%2B%2B%2BLarne%2B06%2BMar%2B2017%2BS%2BFoster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="622" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2oWT7JF6-UU/WL8hChd5N8I/AAAAAAAADF4/Sal6AQ_PIoErg2Lp-48ktl5-UANKjj8GACEw/s640/IMG_2657%2B2ABT%2BBlack-headed%2BGull%2B%2B%2BLarne%2B06%2BMar%2B2017%2BS%2BFoster.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Stephen Foster</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-24372218713125613962017-03-06T11:57:00.000+00:002017-03-06T11:57:31.354+00:00Black-headed Gull - Green JZ20<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Robin Vage got in touch last month with reports of large numbers of gulls at Corbet Lough, Co. Down.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This site normally has a small wintering flock of 20-30 birds, but numbers had swollen to a couple of thousand at the start of February and it seemed inevitable that something interesting was going to turn up.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As well as a returning Lesser Black-backed and a Mediterranean Gull, two birds with NI colour-rings were recorded. In addition, Robin recorded a Black-headed Gull with a green colour-ring and another with a white colour-ring.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Es9eak7hoMo/WL1N8DCuK9I/AAAAAAAADFM/-cV8XMeBkdQ5pJOkiAvZIa0VxS1cxL_SgCLcB/s1600/bhgs-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="422" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Es9eak7hoMo/WL1N8DCuK9I/AAAAAAAADFM/-cV8XMeBkdQ5pJOkiAvZIa0VxS1cxL_SgCLcB/s640/bhgs-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Colour-ringed BHG at centre of shot<br />Photo by Robin Vage</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Robin reported his sightings and heard back that the green ringed bird, <span style="background-color: #6aa84f;"><span style="color: white;">JZ20</span></span>, had been ringed as an adult female in April 2016 at Engervannet, Sandvika in Norway.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GyEL-UfwmZI/WL1ONNX-jlI/AAAAAAAADFQ/f5doqUZzt3MXXZrVO5ejSkH4lZOxdpm9gCLcB/s1600/JZ20.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="323" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GyEL-UfwmZI/WL1ONNX-jlI/AAAAAAAADFQ/f5doqUZzt3MXXZrVO5ejSkH4lZOxdpm9gCLcB/s400/JZ20.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Green - Engervannet, Norway<br />Blue - Corbet, Co. Down</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was re-sighted nearby the following day, but this was the first report since.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Great work by Robin and many thanks to him for passing on the information.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-4312176908041589402017-03-05T19:17:00.000+00:002017-03-05T19:17:14.649+00:00NI Seabird Report 2016 - Full report<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Kerry Leonard, BTO NI Seabird Coordinator, has kindly sent me a link to the full report which is now available via the BTO website.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wtZ4c79Bk08/UKF-zwwFtoI/AAAAAAAACcM/7VnY7nHOUy4ZIWAJqnaXsB_pOlJ3U6tYgCPcB/s1600/bto_logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="104" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wtZ4c79Bk08/UKF-zwwFtoI/AAAAAAAACcM/7VnY7nHOUy4ZIWAJqnaXsB_pOlJ3U6tYgCPcB/s320/bto_logo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Full list of papers included in the report:</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Breeding Seabirds in Northern Ireland in 2016 (Kerry Leonard)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The East Coast (Northern Ireland) Marine SPA (Neil McCulloch)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2016 - Record Year for Larne Lough Islands (Matthew Tickner & Shane Wolsey)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Establishing a Puffin Colony on the Copeland Islands (Shane Wolsey & Wesley Smyth)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lower Lough Erne Islands RSPB Nature Reserve Seabird Resport 2016 (Brad Robson)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Monitoring Gulls and Terns on Lough Neagh (Bob Davidson & Stephen Foster)</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You can get a copy of the report by clinking </span><a href="https://www.bto.org/sites/default/files/bto-norther-ireland-seabird-report-2016.pdf" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;" target="_blank">HERE</a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-15082395721624412822017-03-02T13:24:00.000+00:002017-03-02T13:24:31.467+00:00Northern Ireland Seabird Report 2016<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well, it has happened again....another unforeseen break from blogging! I've managed to get back earlier than last year and will post some updates soon.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the meantime, I recently got my hands on a copy of the latest BTO Northern Ireland Seabird Report. The report contains some very useful articles, in particular I was very interested in a paper by Matthew Tickner and Shane Wolsey, "2016 is a Record Year for Larne Lough Islands".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The RSPB-managed Blue Circle Island in Larne Lough is one of our study colonies and I was delighted to read that BCI is now the largest individual Black-headed Gull colony in Ireland with 3,050 AON* in 2016. The total for Larne Lough as a whole was 3,201 AON.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One of our other study colonies, Lough Swilly, was also in the top 5 sites in Ireland (see below) and of course, the colony at WWT Castle Espie falls under Strangford Lough.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It is very interesting and useful for anyone with an interest in ecology and other papers include an overview of breeding seabirds in Northern Ireland in 2016; information on the new East Coast (NI) Marine SPA; establishing a Puffin colony on the Copelands; and updates on monitoring at Lower Lough Erne and Lough Neagh.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well done to those involved in putting it together!</span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
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<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
<b><span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Site<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
<b><span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">AON in 2016<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
</td>
</tr>
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<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 24.65pt;" valign="top" width="41">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">1.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Lough Neagh, Northern
Ireland<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">5,798 (over 8 colonies)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 24.65pt;" valign="top" width="41">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">2.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Larne Lough, Antrim<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">3,201<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 24.65pt;" valign="top" width="41">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">3.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Lady's Island, Wexford<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">2,429<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 24.65pt;" valign="top" width="41">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">4.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Lough Swilly, Donegal<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">1,450<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 24.65pt;" valign="top" width="41">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">5.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Strangford Lough, Down<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">1,312<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 24.65pt;" valign="top" width="41">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">6.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 190.6pt;" valign="top" width="318">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Lower Lough Erne,
Fermanagh<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 147.2pt;" valign="top" width="245">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-IE" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">1,238<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2XkrWNNKEXU/WLgW8sHUA5I/AAAAAAAADEs/y7H-VK3K4zUA16KAIUZIyorcxvX167UaQCLcB/s1600/20170302_125553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2XkrWNNKEXU/WLgW8sHUA5I/AAAAAAAADEs/y7H-VK3K4zUA16KAIUZIyorcxvX167UaQCLcB/s640/20170302_125553.jpg" width="468" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Cover of 2016 Northern Ireland Seabird Report featuring a fantastic Shag photo taken<br />by Ronald Surgenor.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">*AON - Apparently Occupied Nests</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-20956026254128245772016-12-20T09:17:00.001+00:002016-12-20T09:17:02.863+00:00Black-headed Gull - Yellow 2PAC<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the same day that one of our study birds was recorded in southern England (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/where-have-you-been.html" target="_blank">here</a>), a bird which had made the journey in the opposite direction was photographed by Neal Warnock at Carnlough, Co. Antrim.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y3Gmj3bYNmI/WFj2EtiCFeI/AAAAAAAADBs/CmNSBD9q30AOInG7o4v1CAZ_yxrqxaayQCLcB/s1600/Untitled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y3Gmj3bYNmI/WFj2EtiCFeI/AAAAAAAADBs/CmNSBD9q30AOInG7o4v1CAZ_yxrqxaayQCLcB/s640/Untitled.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"> <b>2PAC</b> </span> at Carnlough, 3 Dec 2016<br />Photo by Neal Warnock</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><b> 2PAC </b></span> was ringed as an adult by the North Thames Gull Group at Pitsea landfill site in Essex on 27th February 2016 and this is the first resighting of it since.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The bird has since been re-sighted by Gary and he managed to get a closer photo.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qA4PT5IstE4/WFj2mJtVfhI/AAAAAAAADBw/mZ6Uc0VaImoui_blWKQOGSl_IS7ivSRkwCLcB/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BYellow%2B2PAC%2B%252816%2BDec%2B2016%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BCarnlough%2BBay.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qA4PT5IstE4/WFj2mJtVfhI/AAAAAAAADBw/mZ6Uc0VaImoui_blWKQOGSl_IS7ivSRkwCLcB/s640/BHG%2B-%2BYellow%2B2PAC%2B%252816%2BDec%2B2016%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BCarnlough%2BBay.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><b> 2PAC </b></span> at Carnlough, 16 Dec 2016<br />Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I wonder if this is a continental bird which has regularly wintered in Co. Antrim and was trapped on it's return journey east. Hopefully further re-sightings of the bird will tell us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to Neal and Gary for their photos and Paul Roper at NTGG for the information.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-75605643378742411752016-12-12T08:31:00.003+00:002016-12-12T08:31:40.582+00:00Another wanderer returns<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A couple of weeks back, I put up a short post about visiting sites around Carrickfergus (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/checking-local-sites.html" target="_blank">here</a>). The visit was in the hope of seeing the German-ringed bird we caught and colour-ringed last winter (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/when-opportunity-presents-itself.html" target="_blank">here</a>), which was subsequently recorded in Poland (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/black-headed-gull-2anx.html" target="_blank">here</a>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well, as usual, Gary has beaten me to it!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I was delighted when he sent an email on Saturday evening with the photo below attached, <span style="background-color: orange;"> <b>2ANX </b></span> is back. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ILCwpyczKSM/WE5fTZVI4wI/AAAAAAAADBM/DuuPLavAAMMQNeXpSoxJvPmbauHn0xUegCLcB/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2ANX%2B%252810%2BDec%2B2016%2B%25281%2529%2529%2B%2B%2BCarrickfergus.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ILCwpyczKSM/WE5fTZVI4wI/AAAAAAAADBM/DuuPLavAAMMQNeXpSoxJvPmbauHn0xUegCLcB/s640/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2ANX%2B%252810%2BDec%2B2016%2B%25281%2529%2529%2B%2B%2BCarrickfergus.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Gary Platt</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Many thanks to Gary for the photo and his efforts in re-sighting so many ringed birds here.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-82524398857866103672016-12-10T20:53:00.003+00:002016-12-10T21:36:16.432+00:00Where have you been?!<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We have received a report from the BTO that one of our birds was recorded in Norfolk last week.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: orange;"> <b>2BAN </b></span> was ringed as a chick on RSPB Blue Circle Island in 2013 and hasn't been seen since, until it was seen at Ormesby Broad near Great Yarmouth.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-g-5PGJowMtk/WExqAZX7YKI/AAAAAAAADAs/BJQ5ygZUjo46y7rRwBaAdKXrMbDSqt5mACLcB/s1600/Larne%2BLough%2BIslands%252C%2B1%2BJuly%2B2013%2Bby%2BSeamus%2BBurns%2B%252819%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-g-5PGJowMtk/WExqAZX7YKI/AAAAAAAADAs/BJQ5ygZUjo46y7rRwBaAdKXrMbDSqt5mACLcB/s640/Larne%2BLough%2BIslands%252C%2B1%2BJuly%2B2013%2Bby%2BSeamus%2BBurns%2B%252819%2529.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Ringing on Blue Circle Island, July 2013</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VcST_M4DXD0/WExqTVyQzTI/AAAAAAAADAw/7ptpGhOtQOYJPhXaaFBke-vj1qsdP9_EwCLcB/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="528" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VcST_M4DXD0/WExqTVyQzTI/AAAAAAAADAw/7ptpGhOtQOYJPhXaaFBke-vj1qsdP9_EwCLcB/s640/Capture.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Blue - Blue Circle Island, Antrim<br />Orange - Ormesby Broad, Norfolk</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I do wonder where these birds go that they can manage to go unrecorded for several years before turning up. Gary had another recent example when he recorded one of Shane's colour-ringed Common Gulls at Whitehead, just 8 miles from the Copelands where it was ringed over six years ago.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It would be fantastic at some stage to tag birds to see where exactly they go on their travels. I'm sure we'd learn so much we don't know.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-70679573529205110752016-12-06T11:33:00.002+00:002016-12-10T21:36:38.237+00:00First new bird of the winter caught and ringed<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After a fairly quiet winter last year catching wise, we are hoping to add some wintering birds to our study in an effort to establish where our wintering birds have originated.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On Sunday morning, a couple of us met up at a site where we have had some success catching birds in the past. Generally these sites need to be places where the birds are used to be being fed by people and have lost some of their fear. As such, sites tend to be duck ponds or fast-food car parks!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, birds appeared wary and we only managed to catch and ring one new bird, a first-winter bird. While we at least know the age of this bird, who knows where it has come from. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In addition to this new study bird, there were 20 re-sightings of colour-ringed birds, including the Lithuanian BHG with a Polish colour-ring that we first recorded at Antrim in October 2012 (see <a href="http://bhgullsni.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/colour-ringed-blk-headed-gull-t35j.html" target="_blank">here</a>).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fQZa9yENXa8/WEagfJiHVqI/AAAAAAAADAU/_x14aS80S80uTD3MHPT6YoC5oz9kZn0wACLcB/s1600/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CJT%2B%252804%2BDec%2B2016%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BAntrim%2BMarina.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fQZa9yENXa8/WEagfJiHVqI/AAAAAAAADAU/_x14aS80S80uTD3MHPT6YoC5oz9kZn0wACLcB/s640/BHG%2B-%2BOrange%2B2CJT%2B%252804%2BDec%2B2016%2B%25281%2529%2529%2BAntrim%2BMarina.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: orange;">2CJT</span> shortly after being ringed</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Perhaps it was the fact it has been slightly milder recently, but we will keep trying and hopefully add a few more individuals in coming months.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8849924797579932404.post-65628830101654373382016-12-04T09:29:00.000+00:002016-12-04T09:29:04.639+00:00Another Norwegian bird returns<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I've heard of an influx of white-winged gulls but never "white-ringed" gulls, however, this is what appears to have happened recently, with another white colour-ringed bird reported! This time at Lurgan Park in Co. Armagh.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YLchhb8mScQ/WEE7TUxfNnI/AAAAAAAAC_A/OU75wytSzxwLYLv6xA1G__86RDVgFqRvQCLcB/s1600/J4P4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YLchhb8mScQ/WEE7TUxfNnI/AAAAAAAAC_A/OU75wytSzxwLYLv6xA1G__86RDVgFqRvQCLcB/s640/J4P4.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Suzanne Belshaw</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another returning bird, first recorded here by Stephen Hewitt back in 2013, <span style="background-color: #f3f3f3;">J4P4</span> was ringed as a chick at Stanga, <span style="background-color: white;">Råde, Østfold</span> in 2006. It wasn't recorded again until it was recaptured in 2011 and the colour-ring added.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The addition of the colour-ring has generated multiple sightings and it has subsequently been recorded at Oslo (2012); <span style="background-color: white;">Solgård avfallsplass, Moss, Østfold (2013); Lurgan, Co. Armagh (winter 2013-14 and 2014-15);</span><span style="background-color: white;"> and back in Norway during the breeding season in 2015 and 2016.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zfhT9Hah7Ls/VQdSSK9S-CI/AAAAAAAAB_s/BzIe9PbhRUgG_wTzoF16dV5o8bDDdT6WgCPcB/s1600/2015_March-Lurgan_Lake-BHG-J4P4%2B152.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zfhT9Hah7Ls/VQdSSK9S-CI/AAAAAAAAB_s/BzIe9PbhRUgG_wTzoF16dV5o8bDDdT6WgCPcB/s640/2015_March-Lurgan_Lake-BHG-J4P4%2B152.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">J4P4 at Lurgan, March 2015<br />Photo by Kev Kirkham-Brown</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Suzanne photographed the bird back at Lurgan a couple of days ago where it probably also spent last winter, but went undetected. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Frustratingly for Suzanne, there was another ringed bird present but unfortunately it wasn't colour-ringed and she was unable to read the number on the metal ring.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xopzL9itaFQ/WEE8xg5c-7I/AAAAAAAAC_M/SQVPW2-G3PwLkB3QHt9v8jV5LI_b9BkvACLcB/s1600/EW57XXX.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xopzL9itaFQ/WEE8xg5c-7I/AAAAAAAAC_M/SQVPW2-G3PwLkB3QHt9v8jV5LI_b9BkvACLcB/s640/EW57XXX.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Suzanne Belshaw</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thanks to the colour-ring, and the fantastic Norwegian colour-ringed birds website; we know where this bird was born (blue below), where it now breeds (red below) and where it winters (Lurgan Park!). </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MnL6LUzE-Ao/WEE-ga8m7xI/AAAAAAAAC_c/D2ZKy4LTwiI8FhBo_GHtzeRIALUSn51fwCLcB/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MnL6LUzE-Ao/WEE-ga8m7xI/AAAAAAAAC_c/D2ZKy4LTwiI8FhBo_GHtzeRIALUSn51fwCLcB/s400/Capture.JPG" width="271" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Blue (Stanga, Råde, Østfold) - colony where born<br />Red (Sondre Langara) </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">- colony where now breeds</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Many thanks to Suzanne for the report and her photos.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0