Iceland Gulls

I was working in east Cork Harbour today and ended up at the end of the survey at Ballycotton Harbour.  There were two Iceland Gulls off the Pier along with one winter plumaged Guillemot in the harbour.

 

Two Iceland Gulls and one Guillemot at Ballycotton © John N Murphy

Laughing Gull

I was down in Cork City on the 30th December and made the short trip out to Ballycotton to catch up with the Laughing Gull that has been present there for the last year.  The bird spent much of its time flying up and down the pier wall fishing out over the sea.

Laughing Gull at Ballycotton John N Murphy

Short-toed Lark

I have been out of circulation for the past three weeks, mainly dew to the fact that a local railway bridge upgrade had my land-line and internet disconnected for some time.  Added to the fact that I was busy in work prior to a holiday to the Cape Verde Islands off Senegal and west Africa.  During this period I made two visits to Cork and Ballycotton, where I caught up with the Short-toed Lark for my year list and managed to find a Red-breasted Flycatcher, Pied Flycatcher, Common Redstart,  juvenile American Golden Plover and saw a White-rumped Sandpiper, Yellow-browed Warbler and an adult Sabine's Gull at Cobh.  Below are a few shots of the Short-toed Lark from the beach at Ballycotton.

Short-toed Lark at Ballycotton beach © John N Murphy

Arctic Skuas

Still catching up on shots I took and places I visited while in Cork over three weeks ago.  On an afternoon visit to Ballycotton in east Cork, I managed to capture a couple of Arctic Skuas on camera as they harassed Sandwich Terns in Ballycotton Bay.  

Arctic Skuas chasing Sandwich Terns over the sea at Ballycotton © John N Murphy