Outing to Inch Reserve,Co Donegal on Sunday 10th November

whooper swan 

An outing to Donegal to visit Inch Reserve and Blanket Nook will take place on Sunday 10th November. At this time of the year large numbers of whooper swans are present, having just completed the journey from their breeding grounds in Iceland to Inch. November is one of the nicest times of the year to visit the reserve as the calling swans and geese make for a very atmospheric scene. We will also visit Blanket Nook which is another good location for viewing geese and waders.

Meet at 10.30am at the Reserve car park.This is reached by turning left at Burt Church when coming from Letterkenny. keep straight  and follow the narrow road to the reserve car park. If you wish to car share from Bailieborough or need more information please email elizmckenna@eircom.net in advance of the outing.

Warm waterproof clothing recommended. You may bring a packed lunch if you wish but there is also a hotel and filling station close by with catering facilities.

For lots more information of Inch Lough Reserve,visit the following link http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/travel/inside-ireland/walk-of-the-week-inch-wildfowl-reserve-co-donegal-26766078.html

To visit the BirdWatch Ireland website click here

Upcoming Event: Tuesday 26th November

"Feeding Garden Birds", a presentation by Jamie Durrant of Birdwatch Ireland, will take place in the Cavan County Museum, Ballyjamesduff at 8pm.

Dundalk Bay Sunday 6th October

Brent Geese by Michael Mc Nulty

A branch outing to Dundalk Bay took place on Sunday 6 October. Although it was quite an overcast day, the mild weather made for pleasant birding conditions. The group met up at midday and we began our outing with a trip to Lurgangreen to see the high-tide wader roost. Very large numbers of oystercatchers were present, and it was especially nice to observe a small flock of brent geese who had just returned from Arctic Canada to overwinter here.

While the tide was still high, we relocated south to Salterstown where we enjoyed close-up views of a mixed wader roost. Of particular note were the flocks of red brested mergansers on the water along with very large numbers of black headed gulls in the nearby fields.

Black-tailed godwit

As the tide started to recede we concluded the outing with a visit to Seabank, where the spectacle of large numbers of black tailed godwits flying overhead as the returned to feed made for a nice end to the day.