Saturday, 23 August 2014

Bridges of Ross 23rd August 2014

Time: 0730-1905
Weather: F3 N (am), F3 NW (pm), dry, sunny & good visibility.
Observers: Niall T. Keogh, Neal Warnock, Des Higgins, Peter Gluth, Peter Colston, Sharon Hogan, Andy Marshall, Victor Caschera, Jimmy Dowdall, John Power, Dave Fox, Paul Keating, John N. Murphy, Finbarr MacGabhann, BirdWatch Ireland Clare Branch et al.

Balearic Shearwater: 2
Sooty Shearwater: 6
Manx Shearwater: 1200 East in 30 mins (am) & 485 West in 4.5 hrs (pm)
Arctic Skua: 6
Sandwich Tern: 1
Arctic Tern: 29
Black Guillemot: 1

Chough: 2 around the watch point

Ocean Sunfish: 1
Minke Whale: 1
Unidentified Whale sp: 1
Common Dolphin: 3

A short but busy passage of distant Manx Shearwaters going the ‘wrong’ way early in the morning probably accounted for most of the birds which drifted back the ‘right’ way throughout the afternoon. Both Balearics were typical in that they were on their own & quite close in, one of which put on a good show for the participants of the BirdWatch Ireland Clare Branch outing. 


The most tantalising sighting of the day related to a series of large, distant splashes from a breaching whale which was also seen to produce a blow on one occasion, behaviour suggestive of Humpback more than anything else but not confirmed unfortunately.


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