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Reflections along the Grand Canal near Charlemont Bridge, Dublin 2.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and a Leitz Elmar 50mm f2.8 lens on Ilford Delta Plus 400 black and white film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

St Mary street, Cardiff

From "Cardiff After Dark" book, available on Amazon UK, on amazon .com, worldwide on bookdepository.

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Aungier Street, Dublin.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and a Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm f2 lens on Kodak TriX 800 black and white film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

My book about signs is shipping to the States now. It's packed with photos & info and ridiculously cheap (thanks to the favorable US/UK exchange rate):

www.bookdepository.com/Vintage-Signs-of-Americ-Debr-Jane-...

There's also a CNN article which came out today. Although the photos have been overly saturated (not like those in the book) and there are lots of just plain made up quotes, you might enjoy it:

www.cnn.com/travel/article/vintage-american-road-signs/in...

I never wanted to write a book and have always considered my website (www.RoadsideArchitecture.com) to be far more important and substantial than any little book could be. But, hey, there it is for those of you that like to fondle and collect things.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The Redwing is a widespread winter visitor to Ireland from Iceland and Scandinavia between the months of October and March from.

The Redwing is about the same size as a Song Thrush. Ages and sexes have the same appearance. The head is plain brown with an obvious, broad white supercilium. The throat and breast are white with extensive brown streaks. The belly and vent are white and there is an obvious patch of red along the flanks. The back, rump and tail are plain brown. In flight, the red patch on the underwings is obvious even at a distance.

Rather vocal – the most frequently heard call is a fine “tseep”. This call usually reveals the presence of night-flying Redwings during autumn migration. When alarmed also gives a “wuck”, while small groups of Redwings resting in Redwings may give a continuous chatter of squeaks and warbles. (Birdwatch Ireland)

Tends to avoid urban areas except in the coldest of conditions. Always a treat to see in my local park and not always easy to photograph.

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A robust finch, with large head, massive bill and shortish tail. The plumage of both sexes is a mixture of greens and greys with splashes of bright yellow - the female being duller, browner and showing faint streaks. The tail is forked, dark at the tip and centre and yellow on the sides. Bill very thick at base, pale, with a pinkish tinge. Legs slightly fleshy pink. In spring, sings from high perch or in wavering songflight over territory. Found mainly in farmland and around towns and parks. A common garden bird, often occurring in large flocks. (Birdwatch Ireland)

A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2012 found that the greenfinches are not closely related to other members of the genus Carduelis.[8] They have therefore been placed in the resurrected genus Chloris that had originally been introduced by the French naturalist Georges Cuvier in 1800, with the European greenfinch as the type species. (wikipedia)

This displaying male was seen along the Dodder River in Dublin 4, Ireland. Not as common as they once were, so always a pleasure to see them.

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The Iberian Magpie (Cyanopica cooki) is a bird in the crow family. It is similar in overall shape to the Eurasian magpie (Pica pica) but is more slender with proportionately smaller legs and bill. It has a glossy black top to the head and a white throat. The underparts and the back are a light grey-fawn in colour with the wings and the feathers of the long tail are an azure blue.

The Iberian magpie occurs in southwestern and central parts of the Iberian Peninsula, in Spain and Portugal. However, it can sometimes be spotted also in south-western France, and recently its presence has been reported even in north-western Italy. It inhabits various types of coniferous (mainly pine) and broadleaf forest, including parks and gardens in the eastern populations.

This taxon is sometimes treated as conspecific with the azure-winged magpie (C. cyana), but this population is 5400 miles (9,000 km) away from those in eastern Asia. Genetic analyses have suggested that Iberian and azure-winged magpies are distinct at species level.

This species usually nests in loose, open colonies with a single nest in each tree. (wikipedia)

Iberian Magpie were common along the coast near Faro, Portugal, and in the scrublands. A beautiful and charismatic bird.

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Maser is an Irish artist who began painting graffiti on the streets of Dublin, and was strongly influenced by typography, letterforms and sign painting.

His large scale mural work and his collaborations with artists such as musician Damien Dempsey, TED prize winner – JR, Conor Harrington, and Fintan Magee have won him notoriety not only in the graffiti world, but also have helped establish him in the contemporary art world.

Aches has been painting for the last 10 years, and is known for his handstyle based letters with a style that is constantly evolving.

'U Are Alive' is a collaboration between both artists, and changes style occasionally. This is just off Camden Street, Dublin.

Taken with an Olympus XA camera on Washi D 500 black and white film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

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There are just three deer species in Ireland – red deer, sika deer and fallow deer. Fallow deer are the most numerous and most widespread nationally. Fallow deer have a dappled coat in summer, also turning to grey in winter. Fallow are larger than sika but smaller than red deer. This is the only Irish species of deer where the bucks have palmate (broad flattened) antlers. The coat coloration is quite variable including Black, White, Brown, Yellowish etc. With the exception of Black and White, the rest have a white underbelly and white rump patch with a black line surround and a black line from the top of the shoulder to the tip of the tail. Common Fallow (the most numerous) are light brown with white spots in summer and this grey and darkens in the winter. Size wise, the fallow is between the Sika and the Red. With adults bucks weighing about 55kg and Does weighting 40-45 kg.

Fallow deer have been present in Phoenix Park, Dublin since the 17th century when they were hunted for sport by the gentry of the day. The present-day herd is descended from those deer who were chased for enjoyment and hunted for food.

Some 200 fawns can be born each year in Phoenix Park. As part of a continuing study, hair and nail clippings are taken from the newborn animal for DNA samples, for official records.

Fawns are colour-tagged shortly after birth and allocated an individual identification number.

I stumbled upon this herd when I was out looking for the Long-eared Owls before dusk in July 2021. I gave them as much room as they needed! Beautiful mammals.

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The Little Gull, Hydrocoloeus minutus or Larus minutus, is a small gull which breeds in northern Europe and Asia. It also has small colonies in parts of northern Canada. It is migratory, wintering on coasts in western Europe, the Mediterranean and (in small numbers) the northeast USA. As is the case with many gulls, it has traditionally been placed in the genus Larus. It is the only member of the genus Hydrocoloeus, although it has been suggested that Ross's Gull also should be included in this genus.

This is the smallest gull species, with a length of 25–27 cm, a wingspan of 75–80 cm and a weight of 68-133 grammes. It is pale grey in breeding plumage with a black hood, dark underwings and often a pinkish flush on the breast. In winter, the head goes white apart from a darker cap and eye-spot. The bill is thin and black and the legs dark red. The flight on rounded wings is somewhat tern-like. (wikipedia)

A stunning bird and a joy to watch. Large flocks of Little Gulls get pushed up through the Irish Sea in certain weather conditions in Spring and Autumn. Taken in Swords, Co. Dublin, Ireland.

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The White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) is a small passerine bird in the wagtail family Motacillidae, which also includes the pipits. This species breeds in much of Europe and Asia and parts of north Africa. It is resident in the mildest parts of its range, but otherwise migrates to Africa. It has a toehold in Alaska as a scarce breeder. In some areas, notably Britain and Ireland, the sub-species Pied Wagtail (M. a. yarrellii) predominates.

This is a slender bird, with the characteristic long, constantly wagging tail of its genus. The nominate subspecies Motacilla alba alba is basically grey above and white below, with a white face, black cap and black throat. The Pied Wagtail has a much blacker back than the nominate race, black of throat continues on side of neck. (wikipedia)

The Pied Wagtail giving some bursts of song along the Great South Wall in Dublin Port.

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The Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis) is a small passerine bird which breeds in much of the northern half of Europe and also northwestern Asia, from southeastern Greenland and Iceland east to just east of the Ural Mountains in Russia, and south to central France and Romania; there is also an isolated population in the Caucasus Mountains. It is migratory over most of its range, wintering in southern Europe, north Africa and southwestern Asia, but is resident in Ireland, Great Britain, and neighbouring areas of western Europe. However, even here, many birds move to the coast or lowlands in winter. This is a widespread and often abundant small pipit. It is an undistinguished looking species on the ground, mainly brown above and buff below, with darker streaking on most of its plumage; the tail is brown, with narrow white side edges. It has a thin bill and pale pinkish-yellow legs; the hind claw is notably long, longer than the rest of the hind toe. The call is a weak tsi-tsi. The simple repetitive song is given in a short song flight. Birds breeding in Ireland and western Scotland are slightly darker coloured than those in other areas, and are often distinguished as the subspecies Anthus pratensis whistleri, though it intergrades clinally with nominate Anthus pratensis pratensis found in the rest of the species' range.

The generic name 'pipit', first documented by Thomas Pennant in 1768, is onomatopoeic, from the call note of this species. In colloquial use by birders in Ireland, the name Meadow Pipit is often abbreviated to "mippit". Old folk names, no longer used, include "chit lark", "peet lark", "tit lark" and "titling"; these refer to its small size and superficial similarity to a lark. (wikipedia)

This adult bird was alighting on the razor wire in the rain at Poolbeg, Dublin.

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The European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a subspecies of the Common Stonechat. Long considered a member of the thrush family Turdidae, genetic evidence has placed it and its relatives in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is slightly smaller than the European Robin. Both sexes have distinctively short wings. The summer male has black upperparts, a black head, an orange throat and breast, and a white belly and vent. It also has white half-collar on the sides of its neck, a small white scapular patch on the wings, and a very small white patch on the rump often streaked with black. European Stonechats breed in heathland, coastal dunes and rough grassland with scattered small shrubs and bramble, open gorse, tussocks or heather. They are short-distance migrants or non-migratory. The male's song is high and twittering like a Dunnock. Both sexes have a clicking call like stones knocking together. Saxicola rubicola hibernans occurs in northwestern Europe in Atlantic coastal areas, in southwestern Norway, Great Britain, Ireland and northwestern France. (wikipedia)

This breeding-plumaged female was busy collecting insects and grubs for her hungry chicks nestled away somewhere in a hedgerow or ditch somewhere close by. Great to see this species no matter what time of year.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis) is a small passerine bird which breeds in much of the northern half of Europe and also northwestern Asia, from southeastern Greenland and Iceland east to just east of the Ural Mountains in Russia, and south to central France and Romania; there is also an isolated population in the Caucasus Mountains. It is migratory over most of its range, wintering in southern Europe, north Africa and southwestern Asia, but is resident in Ireland, Great Britain, and neighbouring areas of western Europe. However, even here, many birds move to the coast or lowlands in winter. This is a widespread and often abundant small pipit. It is an undistinguished looking species on the ground, mainly brown above and buff below, with darker streaking on most of its plumage; the tail is brown, with narrow white side edges. It has a thin bill and pale pinkish-yellow legs; the hind claw is notably long, longer than the rest of the hind toe. The call is a weak tsi-tsi. The simple repetitive song is given in a short song flight. Birds breeding in Ireland and western Scotland are slightly darker coloured than those in other areas, and are often distinguished as the subspecies Anthus pratensis whistleri, though it intergrades clinally with nominate Anthus pratensis pratensis found in the rest of the species' range.

The generic name 'pipit', first documented by Thomas Pennant in 1768, is onomatopoeic, from the call note of this species. In colloquial use by birders in Ireland, the name Meadow Pipit is often abbreviated to "mippit". Old folk names, no longer used, include "chit lark", "peet lark", "tit lark" and "titling"; these refer to its small size and superficial similarity to a lark. (wikipedia)

This adult bird was alighting on a post along a railway line that runs down the Irish east coast.

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The Church of our Lady of Dolours, Glasnevin on a summer's day.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and Leica Summarit 35mm f2.5 lens on Kodak Gold 200 film, and developed and scanned by the good folk in Gunns on Wexford Street.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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All Hallows Campus, Drumcondra, Dublin.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and Leica Summarit 35mm f2.5 lens lens on Santa Rae 125 film, and developed and scanned by the good folk in Gunns on Wexford Street.

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A snoozing snood, Dublin, Ireland.

Taken with a Yashica Electro 35 GSN on Kentmere 400 black and white film, and developed and scanned by the good folk in Gunns on Wexford Street.

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The Eurasian treecreeper or common treecreeper (Certhia familiaris) is a small passerine bird. It is similar to other treecreepers, and has a curved bill, patterned brown upperparts, whitish underparts, and long stiff tail feathers which help it creep up tree trunks. It can be most easily distinguished from the similar short-toed treecreeper, which shares much of its European range, by its different song.

The Eurasian treecreeper has nine or more subspecies which breed in different parts of its range in the Palearctic. This species is found in woodlands of all kinds, but where it overlaps with the short-toed treecreeper in western Europe it is more likely to be found in coniferous forests or at higher altitudes. It nests in tree crevices or behind bark flakes, and favours introduced giant sequoia as nest sites where they are available. The female typically lays five or six pink-speckled white eggs in the lined nest, but eggs and chicks are vulnerable to attack by woodpeckers and mammals, including squirrels.

The Eurasian treecreeper is insectivorous and climbs up tree trunks like a mouse, to search for insects which it picks from crevices in the bark with its fine curved bill. It then flies to the base of another tree with a distinctive erratic flight. This bird is solitary in winter, but may form communal roosts in cold weather. (wikipedia)

I stumbled upon this juvenile in Wicklow during the summer, which had recently fledged from its nest. Such wonderfully effective camouflage.

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The Mediterranean gull (Larus melanocephalus) is a small gull. This gull breeds almost entirely in the Western Palearctic, mainly in the south east, especially around the Black Sea, and in central Turkey. There are colonies elsewhere in southern Europe, and this species has undergone a dramatic range expansion in recent decades.

The Mediterranean Gull is slightly larger and bulkier than the Black-headed Gull with a heavier bill and longer, darker legs. The breeding plumage adult is a distinctive white gull, with a very pale grey mantle and wings with white primary feathers without black tips. The black hood extends down the nape and shows distinct white eye crescents. The blunt tipped, parallel sided, dark red bill has a black subterminal band. The non breeding adult is similar but the hood is reduced to an extensive dusky "bandit" mask through the eye. This bird takes two years to reach maturity. First year birds have a black terminal tail band and more black areas in the upperwings, but have pale underwings. (wikipedia)

A recent colonist, the Mediterranean Gull arrived in Ireland in 1995 and first bred in the Republic in 1996 in Co. Wexford. Prefers low lying islands near the coast on which to breed. Only two or three pairs breed but this is likely to increase with more and more birds seen in suitable habitat in the breeding season. Regularly breeds, at Ladies Island Lake in Co. Wexford, along with other nesting seabirds, including Black-headed Gulls, with which it is often associated. In winter, Ireland attracts birds from northwest France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland and the Baltic States, occurring from September to April.

Dublin Bay is a good place to see them in winter and spring.

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Home. My beautiful hometown of Cobh, Co. Cork.

Taken with a Yashinon Auto 5cm lens on a Canon A1, and with Kodak Portra 160 film.

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Winter in Dublin during Level 3 lockdown. A piece of street art commending and applauding our frontline workers during these COVID times. Taken in Ranleagh, Dublin.

Taken with an Olympus XA on Kosmo Foto 100 black and white film.

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The Portobello Hotel and Pub, side entrance, Dublin.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm f2 lens on CineStill XX black and white film, and developed and scanned by the good folk in Gunns on Wexford Street.

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The White-throated Dipper (Cinclus cinclus) is an aquatic passerine bird found in Europe and the Middle East, also known as the European Dipper or just Dipper. The species is divided into several subspecies on colour differences, especially of the pectoral band. The Dipper of Great Britain and Ireland is known as the "Brown-Bellied" Dipper (C. c. gularis), while the Irish race is Cinclus cinclus hibernicus.

The Dipper is a rotund, short-tailed bird, dark above and white-breasted, closely associated with swiftly running rivers and streams or the lakes into which these fall. The Dipper often perches bobbing spasmodically with its short tail uplifted on the rocks round which the water swirls and tumbles.

It acquired its name from these sudden dips, not from its diving habit, though it dives as well as walks into the water. It flies rapidly and straight, its short wings whirring swiftly and without pauses or glides, calling a shrill zil, zil, zil. It will then either drop on the water and dive or plunge in with a small splash. From a perch it will walk into the water and deliberately submerge, but there is no truth in the assertion that it can defy the laws of specific gravity and walk along the bottom.

This is one of a pair that were singing and appearing to be paired up under a bridge near Dublin city. I used a long telephoto lens so as not to disturb the birds. A fantastic sight to see.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.

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Some of the aspect of Castle Market, Dublin.

Taken on a Leica M4-P camera body with a Carl Zeiss Planar T* 50mm f2 lens on Harman Ilford HP2 black and white film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The long-eared owl (Asio otus) is a medium-sized species of owl with an extensive breeding range. The species breeds in many areas through Europe and the Palearctic, as well as in North America.

This owl shows a partiality for semi-open habitats, particularly woodland edge, as they prefer to roost and nest within dense stands of wood but prefer to hunt over open ground. The long-eared owl is a somewhat specialized predator, focusing its diet almost entirely on small rodents, especially voles, which quite often compose most of their diet.

The long-eared owl is one of the most widely distributed and most numerous owl species in the world, and due to its very broad range and numbers it is considered a least concern species by the IUCN. Nonetheless, strong declines have been detected for this owl in several parts of its range.

This species is a rather slim and long winged owl with usually prominent erectile ear tufts, which are positioned closer to the center of the head than in many other types of owl. The purposes of ear tufts are not definitively known and are present in about half of living owls. Arguably the most popular theory amongst biologists and ornithologists is that ear tufts could be a means of intraspecies communication of intent and mood. In general coloration, the long-eared owl is often considered a hue of ochraceous-tawny with a grayish or brownish wash variably manifesting.

Fledging young call all with high-pitched, drawn-out notes, variously transcribed as feek, peeyee and pzeei, and are often likened to the noise of a gate swinging on a rusty hinge. (wikipedia)

This individual was difficult to find amongst the scrubby trees on a steep hill not far from Dublin city centre.

I am also very impressed with the clarity of the image considering it was shot at 10,000 ISO!

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The Madeiran chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs maderensis) is a subspecies of the European Chaffinch that is endemic to the Portuguese island of Madeira, part of Macaronesia in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is locally known as the tentilhão.

The chaffinch is found only on the island of Madeira, being absent from other islands in the Madeiran archipelago. It is widespread through the hills of the island, occupying both the native laurisilva forest and plantations of introduced trees, as well as in areas of heath, farmland and shrubland. (wikipedia)

The Madeira subspecies of Chaffinch is quite distinct from the European chaffinch, specially the males whose colours are completely different. Females are more alike, mostly all brown being hard to distinguish the subspecies. As for other species, only the female Brambling might have some similarity with the female Chaffinch though the first one has an all dark tail and less white on the wings.

We encountered this quite tame male along one of the walking trails in the hills above Funchal, Madeira.

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The fantastic piece by local sculptor Bob Quinn in the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, and is titled ‘Best Night Ever’. The two women are walking arm in arm, looking blissfully happy with one carrying her bag and the other her shoes.COVID-19 Level 5 lockdown, March 2021.

Taken with a Leica Summarit-M 35mm f2.5 lens on a Leica M4-P camera body, using Ilford Ortho 80 film, shot at 400 ISA. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola) is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a subspecies of the Common Stonechat. Long considered a member of the thrush family Turdidae, genetic evidence has placed it and its relatives in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is slightly smaller than the European Robin. Both sexes have distinctively short wings. The summer male has black upperparts, a black head, an orange throat and breast, and a white belly and vent. It also has white half-collar on the sides of its neck, a small white scapular patch on the wings, and a very small white patch on the rump often streaked with black. European Stonechats breed in heathland, coastal dunes and rough grassland with scattered small shrubs and bramble, open gorse, tussocks or heather. They are short-distance migrants or non-migratory. The male's song is high and twittering like a Dunnock. Both sexes have a clicking call like stones knocking together. Saxicola rubicola hibernans occurs in northwestern Europe in Atlantic coastal areas, in southwestern Norway, Great Britain, Ireland and northwestern France. (wikipedia)

A male in its winter finery going headlong into the strong wind on the North Bull Island, Dublin.

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Colourful shop shutter on Montague Lane, Dublin.

Taken with a Leitz Elmar 50mm f2.8 lens on a Leica M4-P camera body, using Kodak C200 colour film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

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Established in 1850, Kennedys pub enjoys a long standing reputation as one of the finest watering holes in Dublin. Situated on the corner of Trinity College and steeped in a literary tradition, today’s customers stand where Wilde, Joyce, Beckett and Behan once stood. A young Oscar Wilde once worked in the building when it was a shop, before it became the well known bar it is today.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and Voigtlander Nokton Classic 40mm f1.4 lens on Kodak Ultramax 400 colour film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.

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Christmas 2020 in Dublin during Level 3 lockdown. The government made a complete balls of it. St. Stephen's Green Shopping Centre, Dublin, decked out very tastefully.

Taken with an Olympus XA on Ilford HP5 black and white film.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa) is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the Limosa genus, the godwits. There are three subspecies, all with orange head, neck and chest in breeding plumage and dull grey-brown winter coloration, and distinctive black and white wingbar at all times.

Its breeding range stretches from Iceland through Europe and areas of central Asia. Black-tailed godwits spend winter in areas as diverse as the Indian Subcontinent, Australia, western Europe and west Africa. The species breeds in fens, lake edges, damp meadows, moorlands and bogs and uses estuaries, swamps and floods in winter; it is more likely to be found inland and on freshwater than the similar Bar-tailed Godwit. The world population is estimated to be 634,000 to 805,000 birds and is classified as Near Threatened due to a decline in numbers of around 25% in the previous 15 years.

Godwits from the Icelandic population winter mainly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and the Netherlands, though some fly on to Spain, Portugal and perhaps Morocco. (wikipedia)

The bird depicted on the left is of the islandica race of Black-wits that breed in Iceland and winter in Ireland. In 2004, the population size of Icelandic Black-tailed Godwits was estimated to be around 47,000 individuals. Given the continued expansion since then, it is likely that there are now around 50-60,000 Icelandic Godwits. In a site in Cork Harbour called Harper's Island, up to 2,000 of these beautiful birds may be found in winter, making this an internationally important wintering site for this species.

The Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia), in the background, is a wader, a subarctic bird, breeding from northern Scotland eastwards across northern Europe and Asia. It is a migratory species, wintering in Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, and Australasia, usually on fresh water.

Common Greenshanks are brown in breeding plumage, and grey-brown in winter. When in water, they can appear very similar to Marsh Sandpipers but are distinguished by the shape of the lower bill which gives it an upturned appearance to the bill. They have long greenish legs and a long bill with a grey base. They show a white wedge on the back in flight. They are somewhat larger than the related Common Redshank. The usual call is a rapid series of three short fluty notes syllabilized as teu-teu-teu.

Like most waders, they feed on small invertebrates, but will also take small fish and amphibians. The Common Greenshank is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.

Taken in Dublin Bay, off Booterstown DART station.

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The Superintendent’s (or Gate) Lodge in a quiet corner at the at the south-west of Saint Stephen’s Green, Dublin, was designed by James Franklin Fuller and completed shortly after 1880.

Taken with a Yashica Mat 124 medium format camera on Fujifilm PRO 400H 120 film, and developed and scanned by the good folk in Gunns on Wexford Street.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

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The Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge Warblers are migratory, crossing the Sahara to get from their European and Asian breeding grounds to spend winter in Africa. The male's song is composed of random chattering phrases and can include mimicry of other species. The Sedge Warbler is mostly insectivorous.

The song is varied, rushed and chattering, with sweeter phrases and some mimicry, typical of the Acrocephalus warblers. It is composed of phrases in random order, so that it is never the same. Male Sedge Warblers which have the widest repertoire mate with the largest number of females.

All Sedge Warblers spend winter in sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal in the west to Ethiopia in the east, and as far south as the eastern Cape Province of South Africa and northern Namibia. The route taken on the southward migration, and eventual wintering grounds, correspond to the birds' breeding grounds. Birds ringed in the United Kingdom and Netherlands are later found from south-west Iberia to Italy; birds from Sweden are recovered in central Europe and Italy; while Finnish birds are found in north-east Italy and Malta east to the Aegean region. Sedge Warblers from the former Soviet Union take routes via the eastern Mediterranean Sea and Middle East. Loss of wetland areas for feeding on migration, and the expansion of the Sahara desert, pose threats to the Sedge Warbler's breeding population. Birds begin leaving Africa in late February, fatten up at wetlands before and probably after crossing the Sahara, and arrive in Europe from March onwards. (wikipedia)

The reed beds and surrounding hedgerows in the East Coast Nature Reserve, Wicklow, were full of Sedge Warbler. Fantastic to see and hear so many. Taken from the south-facing hide.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

www.markcarmodyphotography.com

The site of the old Eat Yard and George Bernard Shaw on Richmond Street near Portobello/Camden area of Dublin 2. The graffiti still lives on and new additions adorn the hoarding. COVID-19 Level 5 lockdown, February 2021.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and a Leitz Elmar 50mm lens on Fujjicolor PRO 400H colour film.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

www.markcarmodyphotography.com

The European goldfinch or goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), is a small passerine bird in the finch family that is native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia. It has been introduced to other areas including Australia, New Zealand and Uruguay.

The goldfinch has a red face and a black-and-white head. The back and flanks are buff or chestnut brown. The black wings have a broad yellow bar. The tail is black and the rump is white. The female is very similar to the male but has a slightly smaller red area on the face.

The goldfinch is often depicted in Italian renaissance paintings of the Madonna and Child. Goldfinches are commonly kept and bred in captivity around the world because of their distinctive appearance and pleasant song. In Britain during the 19th century many thousands of goldfinches were trapped each year to be sold as cage-birds. One of the earliest campaigns of the Society for the Protection of Birds was directed against this trade.

In the poem The Great Hunger by Patrick Kavanagh, the goldfinch is one of the rare glimpses of beauty in the life of an elderly Irish farmer:

"The goldfinches on the railway paling were worth looking at

A man might imagine then

Himself in Brazil and these birds the birds of paradise" (wikipedia)

An adult Goldfinch feeding on Ragworth that has gone to seed.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

www.markcarmodyphotography.com

The House Sparrow is a sturdy relative of the finches, with large head and bill. Dark brown upperparts with heavy dark streaking, grey underparts. Male has chocolate brown nape, grey crown and large black bib. Female plainer with a buff stripe extending back from eye. Active and noisy around farms, urban areas, parks and gardens. Hops along ground, frequently flicking tail. Sometimes in large flocks, though numbers have declined in recent years.

The House Sparrow is native to most of Europe, the Mediterranean Basin, and a large part of Asia. Its intentional or accidental introductions to many regions, including parts of Australasia, Africa, and the Americas, make it the most widely distributed wild bird.

It breeds throughout Ireland and is strongly associated with human habitation, and can live in urban or rural settings. Though found in widely varied habitats and climates, it typically avoids extensive woodlands, grasslands, and deserts away from human development. It feeds mostly on the seeds of grains and weeds, but it is an opportunistic eater and commonly eats insects and many other foods. Its predators include domestic cats, hawks, and many other predatory birds and mammals.

In Great Britain (and Ireland), populations peaked in the early 1970s, but have since declined by 68% overall, and about 90% in some regions. The RSPB lists the house sparrow's UK conservation status as red. In London, the house sparrow almost disappeared from the central city. The numbers of house sparrows in the Netherlands have dropped in half since the 1980s, so the house sparrow is even considered an endangered species.

A shortage of nesting sites caused by changes in urban building design is probably a factor. A primary cause of the decline seems to be an insufficient supply of insect food for nestling sparrows. Declines in insect populations result from an increase of monoculture crops, the heavy use of pesticides, the replacement of native plants in cities with introduced plants and parking areas, and possibly the introduction of unleaded petrol, which produces toxic compounds such as methyl nitrite. (BirdWatch Ireland and Wikipedia)

This male House Sparrow was photographed in a suburban coastal garden in Dublin. It was quite a cold and wintery morning.

Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.

www.markcarmodyphotography.com

Old Chestnut, Griffith Park, Drumcondra, Dublin 9.

Taken with a Leica M4-P and a Carl Zeiss Planar T* lens on Ilford HP5 B&W film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.