August 1st Med Gulls breaks rules

August 21st

Holiday over and back to ring reading.  In Sean Walsh Park still the only coloured ring is the Black Headed Gull, 27H0.

August 20th

Sandycove turned up two med Med Gulls, but they were both recently ringed! The regular Great Black backed 1VV was at Bullock Harbour.

August 5th

The one that keeps getting away.  I have been playing with a metal ringed Black Headed Gull in Sean Walsh Park or rather it has been playing me.  Landing allowing 1 photo and taking off again.  It is now a week and I think it is EY65133 but have to make sure there aren't two birds.  Although in adult Plumage it has the orange legs of a 2nd cy / 3rd cy bird.  It is not a ring I've seen before.

August 4th

While looking for Mediterranean Gulls Roosting on the Northside of Dublin I spied a yellow Darvic among the Black Headed Gulls.  It was 9.30 and dark but I took out my camera and hand held at 1/30sec and 1600iso I pushed my luck for 40m away.  But having lightened the images TP86 is visible. Another Polish Black Headed Gull using Dublin Bay.

August 3rd. Med gull breaks the rules

Mediterranean Gulls winter as a juvenile in a location.  They may change their wintering location during the 1st and 2nd year, then they stick to what they know.  Today I spotted an adult med PRN6 from Poland. I don't think it has been seen in Ireland before.  Very unusual to be first seen here as an adult.  Three possibilities.
1. It was ringed last year as an adult so it has been coming here for years we just didn't know it.
2. It found the weather in Portugal too hot and came for the rain!
3. It got lost and will move on quickly!
The data has been input into the Polish website and I will get a full report tomorrow.

05/08/2015. Got my answer tonight. 

PRN6  was ringed in 2015 as an adult!  It didn't come for the weather, it wasn't lost  It may have been coming here for a few years as one of the many un-ringed.

Mediterranean Gull  - Poland

The couple of hours this morning were very rewarding.  9 Coloured ringed med Gulls in total.  Including the following individuals.

Green [AKAJ] been coming to Dublin since 2012

2X7A Adult Mediterranean Gull

Adult Mediterranean Gull 2XA4

 At Bullock Harbour the Herring Gull 0JH turned up.

August 1st

The long staying Herring Gull from Scotland was still at Bray Harbour this afternoon.  Otherwise it was quiet, I read 5 mute swans while there.  The only interesting Mute was ringed in 2006 as an adult.  It hadn't made an appearance since last August.

Herring Gull from Scotland

I stopped at Poppintree Park but no coloured rings.  I did however, spot a Black Headed Gull with a metal ring.  It was from Holland.and this was my bird of the day.

Black Headed Gull with metal ring

The Ring -ARNHEM-HOLLAND 3675.873

Howth was spectacular this morning with 100's of Herring and Great Black Backed Gulls.  However there were very few Coloured rings to be seen.  I only recorded 7 rings.

Great Black Backed Gull 1TN on take off

2009 GBBGU 2JJ at Howth