Industrial Strength Birding

Definitely a lot colder today and Redwing numbers were well up, though  strangely most were passing north.
With it supposed to get colder hopefully there will be some movement as things have slowed down. Checked a large flock of c 150 Chaffinches that were leapfrogging around an oilseed rape field but couldn't
dig out a suspected Brambling from last week. Last Friday I tried the Golf Course again at dusk for anything
that might be calling, luckily it's still closed or I could  be getting a name for myself as some sort of weird golf
voyeur, again I didn't hear any Water Rails but there was one interesting little interlude before I got there.

                                                       Hopefully not this week

Ringed Plover is on the patch list from two previous sightings, the first in June around ten years ago involved a single displaying bird high over the farm for five minutes. I figured it was a strange one off as Ringed Plover is a scarce bird in Cork Harbour in Winter and a  rare breeder in Summer. Then four or five years ago while

taking the kids for a cycle around the industrial estate 11 Ringed Plovers flew low off or over the largest building in the estate. Were Ringed Plovers breeding on the roof of a warehouse?. I had a good look at 

the roof after that but never saw a wader. Certainly the habitat looked right, the roof is almost flat and completely covered in stones presumably as some kind of strengthening/insulating cover. Gulls used previously roost on it in large numbers when the nearby abattoir was open, so much so that two plastic

Peregrines were put on the roof to try keep the gulls off.

                                                           Plastic doesn't count

Anyway while on my way to listen for Water Rails I set up the scope to have a general scan of the area. While panning right I scoped the roof and was most surprised to see some white blobs on the gravel. I moved a lot closer and confirmed Ringed Plovers roosting three stories up, 32 of them in total, probably the biggest flock I have ever seen around Cork Harbour, should I be counting it for IWeBS ? . Probably because there were 4 Dunlin with them also only the second patch record. Species 43 and 44 and 46 points.

What should I wish for next?

A nice sunny calm day in Cork and I was out and about, at this stage it's like the first 4 hours of a bird race where everything is easy and the ticks are coming fast. Blackcap on the feeders, Chiffchaff in a hedgerow or ditches as they're called around here. A bunch of Snipe flushed from a field and 12 Skylarks  fluttering around  were all to be expected.

It occurred to me that I couldn't recall seeing any bird of prey yet this year, very strange, a nice day like today should change that hopefully. A couple of hours later I was walking across the farmyard when a male Sparrowhawk zoomed over my head going straight for the feeders, panic amongst the birds but he left empty taloned. Hour or so later and a kestrel showed very well being chased by a Jackdaw.

No photos of any of these as carrying a camera is obviously not practical.  Early afternoon and a hell of a commotion around the house and I was thinking the Sparrowhawk was back, but no a Peregrine came into view circling overhead. Very nice, they breed just a couple of miles away and regularly hunt around the area. Amazingly that wasn't the end as on my way back from town I spotted a pair of Buzzards in early courtship soaring mode. I was only a quarter of a mile from home and was tempted to dash back but decided no I wanted them on the patch when I ticked them. I ignored the temptation when I reached home to look behind me but it made no difference anyway, within a few minutes they sailed over the house and they were properly on the list, and a little later I saw another perched in a tree. Amazing how common they have become, we'll be kicking them out of the way  during the soaring survey next month.

So that was it, from 0 to 4 BoPs in the space of a few hours and with just Merlin left as a real possibility pretty soon its going to be like the last three hours of a bird race, with arguments, boredom and tiredness ruling.

42 species and 44 points puts me over 50% for the year