Antrim Marina - Sunday 26th November 2023 I was not too sure whether to undertake today's weekly visit to Antrim Marina. Having started my car this morning at home, there was a 'wild' screeching...
I was not too sure whether to undertake today's weekly visit to Antrim Marina. Having started my car this morning at home, there was a 'wild' screeching sound coming from the alternator belt. In the end, I decided to go ahead, arriving at the Marina at the later time of 10:50. Weatherwise, it was very dull, but calm, with the temperature reading 10°C. With very few people having arrived to feed the ducks today, I was going to attempt to catch and ring a few more Black-headed Gulls before I departed at 2pm. Quite heavy rain began just before 1:30, so the idea of ringing was cancelled, so as not to put the gulls under any stress in the circumstances. Having departed at 2pm, I was around a quarter of the way back home when the alternator belt snapped. The battery light came on, and I also discovered that I had no power steering. Keeping my speed down, once home, I took all of my gear out of the car, before driving down to my mechanic where I turned off the engine. The car was ready on Thursday, with a brand new alternator and belt fitted.
Today saw another poor visit, with Black-headed Gull numbers around the 50 mark on my arrival. Over the next four hours, there were times where I had no gulls at all. The highest number of around 70 gulls were recorded around 11:30.
With - 2AFD having returned from Latvia during last Sunday's visit, I was on the lookout for 28 colour-rings during today's visit, 3 of which, had been ringed this winter. Altogether, 18 rings were read today, with the 16th being the 'shock' returnee - 2CTA . I had given this bird up as dead, along with 10 others that were ringed with Orange Darvics in my blog post after my visit here on the 22nd October 2023 (read here).
2CTA , was ringed as an unsexed 2nd winter bird at Antrim Marina on the 10th December 2018. After being ringed, it was spotted on the 24th December 2018, which was it's final sighting of the 2018/2019 winter.
2CTA then returned to the Marina on the 28th October 2019, and was recorded on 7 occasions including the 24th February 2020. The birds return for a third winter, was recorded on the 25th October 2020, with a just one other sighting made on the 31st October 2020. Four sightings were made during the 2021/2022 winter, the first on the 25th October 2021, with the final sighting on the 21st February 2022.
The 2022/2023 winter, saw a single sighting which was made on the 13th March 2023. This winter, due to no sightings through to October, I decided to 'write off' - 2CTA as having perished through contracting 'Bird Flu'. Now that the gull has been 'resurrected', I'm having second thoughts about it's status here now. As the gull is now a mature adult, I reckon it has changed it's wintering status. I'm leaning towards the idea that this is a foreign breeding bird, and could be using Antrim Marina as a 'staging post'. This could also explain the single sighting last March - was the gull stopping by on it's way back home?
Now that I know it is still alive, it will be interesting to see how many times it will be recorded this winter - how I would also like a summer breeding season sighting. The duration since being ringed, is now 4 years, 11 months and 18 days.
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Black-headed Gull - 2CTA - Antrim Marina, Antrim Town, Co. Antrim (26 Nov 2023)
(Ringed as an Unsexed 2nd Year Bird, on the 10th December 2018, at Antrim Marina)
With the return of - 2CTA , this winter's total of colour-ring sightings now increases to 29 rings. I was also hoping to record - 2FDL back from Sweden. Last winter, it's return was recorded on the 28th November 2022, but there was no sign of it today.
The Icelandic Black-headed Gull - 543335 , was again spotted at 11:58. This bird was ringed in Iceland in July 2023, and has been recorded here during most weekly visits since the 8th August 2023. Two other Icelandic metal-rung Black-headed Gulls, have also been recorded here this winter, but there has been no further sightings for these two. I am still waiting on the ringing details from Iceland regarding 595818 , which was spotted on the 12th November 2023.
Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Sunday 26th November 2023
Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded This Autun/Winter but Absent Today
From Graham McElwaine
An email arrived with me on Tuesday 28th November 2023, from Graham McElwaine. Following on from surveying Whooper Swans in the Toome area of County Antrim, Graham stopped by Antrim Marina before heading home to Newtownards in County Down. Whilst at the Marina, Graham recorded 8 colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls. One of these was - 2ABN , which was absent during my visit two days earlier, and also the newly returned - 2CTA . My thanks to Graham for these.
Colour Ringed Black-headed Gulls Recorded at Antrim Marina on Tuesday 28th November 2023
Other Birds Recorded at Antrim Marina
9 Mute Swans, plus 1 cygnet were present on my arrival. A further 4 Mute Swans arrived from upriver at 11:15, taking the total to 13 (White) Mute Swans. At one point, all 13 were out of the water, but none were ringed. A 14th swan arrived in from Lough Neagh at 11:28, and this one was - Z78580 , which was ringed here in November 2020 as a juvenile. This winter - Z78580 arrived back to the Marina on the 1st October and has been recorded on most weekly visits since then. The duration for this one is now 3 years and 11 days since being ringed.
Mallard numbers still remain low for this time of the year. Around 30 were present throughout my visit, and I'm fairly sure all were checked for rings.
The resident adult male Herring Gull was present throughout. 2 Common Gulls, increased to 5 birds by 11:20. By 12:18, a high of 7 were recorded, and once again, there is still no sign this winter of the small metal-rung female from Scotland. So far this winter, 10 adult Common Gulls has been the highest number to be recorded so far.
Just 2 Jackdaws appeared today on several occasions, so I'm presuming that they were the same two each time. A pair of Hooded Crows also made several appearances. They happily fed on a dead fish lying on the slipway. A juvenile Pied Wagtail was the only other species recorded, possibly the same bird noted recently.
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