Albino Curlew

 The weather was terrible this afternoon but i still decided to head out and see what i could get in the hope the weather might clear for a bit. It didn’t 😒

However as i was heading down to Lough Atedaun i noticed the curlews were feeding in a field beside the road and the partially albino curlew was also present. I love watching this bird but usually only get distant views as the curlews usually don’t come too close but this time i was able to roll down the window of the car and get a few shots off and despite the heavy rain and dull weather i managed my best shots to date of this fascinating bird which i’m delighted with. 

A Trip Up The Coast

 I was free this morning so despite the desperate weather i said I’d take a trip down to the coast to catch up with a few birds I hadn’t seen in a while and hopefully find a few new ones also. 

First stop was Doonbeg to catch up with the Canada Geese that were hanging around with the barnacle geese in that area. When i got out of the car i could see the large flock of geese up on the hill a few fields away from me. However before i got a chance to scope in on the flock with my camera i stumbled across 3 otters in the ocean beside me. I had an amazing experience and got a few nice pics aswell which i was over the moon with. Unfortunately shortly after my otter encounter it began to rain so i didn’t get a chance to properly check out the geese flock which i could see in the distance. I took a few pictures before i left to see if i could zoom in on the photos and spot one of the Canada Geese while i was back in the car and bingo! I got one just about on the screen. It was my first time seeing both Canada and Barnacle geese so i was absolutely delighted with that aswell as my 3 otter friends.

                                   Otter checking me out

Canada Goose bottom middle with Barnacle

I then continued up the coast to Seafield Quilty to catch up with the Purple Sandpipers which had recently returned from their breeding grounds up north. When i arrived at Seafield there was a huge flock of about a thousand waders including sanderlings dunlins turnstones ringed plover and about 50 purple sandpipers. I love watching these elagant little waders as they run in and out from the tide and also feed on the seaweed laying along the beach.

On the way out a flock of oystercatchers were braving the elements on the sand dunes in the pouring wind and rain.

Purple Sandpiper

                    Oystercatchers in the rain

Finally to finish up my trip i headed up to liscannor bay to see if i could see a few scooters eiders and black or red throated divers which would all be new birds for me. I went to liscannor pier first but unfortunately the water was way too choppy to see anything. 1 or 2 Great Northern Divers and a few Shag were swimming in the water near the pier but that was about it. Clahane was the same unfortunately apart from a small flock of brent geese, a few redshank in a flooded field on the other side of the road and loads of gulls.

                               Great Northern Diver

Overall i was fairly happy with how the day went the highlights being the Canada Goose and more so the Otters i got to watch. They’re amazing!