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Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition 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 garden in Cobh, Co. Cork.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The thick-billed murre or Brünnich's guillemot (Uria lomvia) is a bird in the auk family (Alcidae).
The thick-billed murre and the closely related common guillemot (or common murre, U. aalge) are similarly sized, but the thick-billed still bests the other species in both average and maximum size.
Adult birds are black on the head, neck, back and wings with white underparts. The bill is long and pointed. They have a small rounded black tail. The lower face becomes white in winter. This species produces a variety of harsh cackling calls at the breeding colonies, but is silent at sea.
They differ from the common murre in their thicker, shorter bill with white gape stripe and their darker head and back; the "bridled" morph is unknown in U. lomvia – a murre has either a white eye-stripe, or a white bill-stripe, or neither, but never both; it may be that this is character displacement, enabling individual birds to recognize conspecifics at a distance in the densely packed breeding colonies as the bridled morph is most common by far in North Atlantic colonies where both species of guillemots breed. In winter, there is less white on the thick-billed murre's face. They look shorter than the common murre in flight. First year birds have smaller bills than adults and the white line on the bill is often obscure, making the bill an unreliable way to identify them at this age. The head pattern is the best way to distinguish first-year birds from common murres.
The thick-billed murre is distributed across the polar and sub-polar regions of the Northern Hemisphere where four subspecies exist; one lives on the Atlantic and Arctic oceans of North America (U. l. lomvia), another on the Pacific coast of North America (U. l. arra), and two others that inhabit the Russian arctic (U. l. eleonorae and U. heckeri).[15][16]
Thick-billed murres spend all of their lives at sea in waters which remain below 5°C, except during the breeding season where they form dense colonies on cliffs. They move south in winter into northernmost areas of the north Atlantic and Pacific, but only to keep in ice-free waters.
Brünnich's guillemot is a rare vagrant in European countries south of the breeding range. In Britain, over 30 individuals have been recorded, but over half of these were tideline corpses. Of those that were seen alive, only three have remained long enough to be seen by large numbers of observers. All three were in Shetland - winter individuals in February 1987 and November/December 2005, and a bird in an auk colony in summer 1989. The 1989 and 2005 birds were both found by the same observer, Martin Heubeck.
The species has been recorded once in Ireland, and has also been recorded in the Netherlands. In the western Atlantic, they may range as far as Florida, and in the Pacific to California. Before 1950, large numbers appeared on the North American Great Lakes in early winter, passing up the St. Lawrence River from the East coast. Such irruptions have not been seen since 1952. (wikipedia)
A throwback to a trip around Svalbard pre-COVID. An adult Brunnich's Guillemot flying over the fast ice around Svalbard.
::GB:: Loose Velour jacket / Black
::GB::Color rollup jeans (F) / Light blue
::GB::Rook tank White / A
::GB::Strap Boots / Ivoly
Kibitz - Jeanie necklace - gold
#Foxy - Milena Hair (Pastel Fades)
*Epic VIP* Mesh Checkered Nerd Glasses
VRSION KNV27 Backpack w/ Katana [MESH] BW
MINIMAL - Server Room Green
Fat Pack - Anne Bra & Panties Applier 8 Colors
Quick & ez light lunch w/saLsa-fLavored chicken breast roLLed uP in vegan provoLone chiz, fresh bLackberries, and my meLody mouLded hard boiLed egg.
Was mad-rushing to make,
took this with me whiLe waiting in line at schooL
to register for cLasses.
FOUR HOURS!!!
the program requires you to be there in person,
iono why we couLdn't do it onLine.
my superman insuLated lunchbox drew the most attention tho.
teehee...
a kid goes to coLLege.
***My Melody egg mouLd courtesy of my manang gRa ^_^
***made it on EXPLORE on June 10, 2007
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The white-winged tern, or white-winged black tern (Chlidonias leucopterus or Chlidonias leucoptera), is a species of tern in the family Laridae. It is a small species generally found in or near bodies of fresh water across much of the world, including Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia.
Adult birds in summer have short red legs and a short black bill (small and stubby, measuring 22–25 mm from the feathers, decidedly shorter than the head), a black neck (often with a pale gray back) and belly, very dark grey back, with a white rump and light grey (almost white) tail, which often looks 'square' in juveniles. The face is tinged yellowish. The wings, as the name implies, are mainly white. The inner wing is grayish with brown-tipped coverts.
Their breeding habitat is freshwater marshes across from southeast Europe to Central Asia and the Russian Far East. In winter, they migrate to Africa, southern Asia and Australia. (wikipedia)
The White-winged Tern (WWT) is a rare marsh tern in Ireland, with only one record every year or so. This adult summer bird was found on a seawatch from Dalkey, Co. Dublin by Noel Keogh, and later that morning further north at Swords Estuary by Victor Caschera. WWT is a very rare bird for Dublin.
::GB::Rook tank
::GB::Color rollup jeans
( Slink Hourglass,Slink Original,Maitreya)
GABRIEL- MAIN STORE↓↓
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis) is a cosmopolitan species of heron (family Ardeidae) found in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species, the Western Cattle Egret and the Eastern Cattle Egret. Despite the similarities in plumage to the egrets of the genus Egretta, it is more closely related to the herons of Ardea. Originally native to parts of Asia, Africa and Europe, it has undergone a rapid expansion in its distribution and successfully colonised much of the rest of the world.
It is a stocky white bird adorned with buff plumes in the breeding season which nests in colonies, usually near bodies of water and often with other wading birds. The nest is a platform of sticks in trees or shrubs. Unlike most other herons, it feeds in relatively dry grassy habitats, often accompanying cattle or other large mammals, since it catches insect and small vertebrate prey disturbed by these animals. Some populations of the Cattle Egret are migratory and others show post-breeding dispersal.
The adult Cattle Egret has few predators, but birds or mammals may raid its nests, and chicks may be lost to starvation, calcium deficiency or disturbance from other large birds. This species removes ticks and flies from cattle, but it can be a safety hazard at airfields, and has been implicated in the spread of tick-borne animal diseases. (wikipedia)
A flock of about 10 Cattle Egret were hunting behind a thresher in a meadow near Faro, Portugal. It was great watching them hunt for lizards, snakes, and insects.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus) is a widely distributed very long-legged wader in the avocet and stilt family (Recurvirostridae).They have long pink legs, a long thin black bill and are blackish above and white below, with a white head and neck with a varying amount of black. Males have a black back, often with greenish gloss. Females' backs have a brown hue, contrasting with the black remiges. In the populations that have the top of the head normally white at least in winter, females tend to have less black on head and neck all year round, while males often have much black, particularly in summer. This difference is not clear-cut, however, and males usually get all-white heads in winter.
Immature birds are grey instead of black and have a markedly sandy hue on the wings, with light feather fringes appearing as a whitish line in flight.
The breeding habitat of all these stilts is marshes, shallow lakes and ponds. Some populations are migratory and move to the ocean coasts in winter; those in warmer regions are generally resident or short-range vagrants. In Europe, the black-winged stilt is a regular spring overshoot vagrant north of its normal range, occasionally remaining to breed in northern European countries. Pairs successfully bred in Britain in 1987, 2014, 2017, and in northern England in 2022; this is believed to be the most northerly breeding success for the black-winged stilt. (wikipedia)
The local sewage treatment settling pools near Vilamoura, Portugal hosted a lot of duck (Pochard, Red-crested Pochard, Teal, Tufted Duck, Mallard), Dabchicks, Common Sandpipers, and Black-winged Stilt . I was delighted to see this small party while on a family holiday in Portugal in the summer of 2024. Such cool birds.
Yellow Doorway. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell - all rights reserved.
Yellow light in a doorway along a Manhattan sidewalk at twilight.
As we walked south from midtown to lower Manhattan on this winter day, afternoon turned to early evening, and down along the streets of the city, in the valleys between tall buildings, the light began to feel more and more like evening. As we walked I photographed, looking for light, color, and people that stood out to me. I made most of the photographs on the move, barely pausing long enough to make and exposure and then moving on.
I now barely remember making this exposure. I'm pretty certain it was somewhere in the vicinity fo Chinatown, and it may have actually been within the rough boundaries of that district. I de recall being fascinated — as I often am — by the patterns and textures of the roll-up doors on the closed shops, and by the warm yellow color of the doorway and the light emerging from it.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, "California's Fall Color: A Photographer's Guide to Autumn in the Sierra" is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres) is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae. It is a highly migratory bird, breeding in northern parts of Eurasia and North America and flying south to winter on coastlines almost worldwide. It is the only species of turnstone in much of its range and is often known simply as Turnstone.
At all seasons, the plumage is dominated by a harlequin-like pattern of black and white. Breeding birds have reddish-brown upper parts with black markings. The head is mainly white with black streaks on the crown and a black pattern on the face. The breast is mainly black apart from a white patch on the sides. The rest of the underparts are white. In flight it reveals a white wingbar, white patch near the base of the wing and white lower back, rump and tail with dark bands on the uppertail-coverts and near the tip of the tail. The female is slightly duller than the male and has a browner head with more streaking.
Non-breeding adults are duller than breeding birds and have dark grey-brown upperparts with black mottling and a dark head with little white. Juvenile birds have a pale brown head and pale fringes to the upperpart feathers creating a scaly impression. (wikipedia)
This was taken along the West Pier, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin. The birds have come in from Iceland and other northern parts to spend the winter along the Irish coasts. Always busy feeding, chattering and can be quite tame.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus) is a large species in the dove and pigeon family. The three Western European Columba pigeons, common wood pigeon, stock dove, and rock pigeon, though superficially alike, have very distinctive characteristics; the common wood pigeon may be identified at once by its larger size and weight, and the white on its neck and wing. It is otherwise a basically grey bird, with a pinkish breast. Adult birds bear a series of green and white patches on their necks, and a pink patch on their chest.
Juvenile birds do not have the white patches on either side of the neck. When they are about six months old (about three months out of the nest) they gain small white patches on both sides of the neck, which gradually enlarge until they are fully formed when the bird is about 6–8 months old (approx. ages only). Juvenile birds also have a greyer beak and an overall lighter grey appearance than adult birds. The call is a characteristic cooing, coo-COO-coo-coo-coo.
In the colder northern and eastern parts of Europe and western Asia the common woodpigeon is a migrant, but in southern and western Europe it is a well distributed and often abundant resident. In Ireland, woodpigeons are commonly seen in parks and gardens and are seen with increasing numbers in towns and cities.
For birds that survive the first year the typical lifespan is thus only three years, but the maximum recorded age is 17 years and 8 months for a bird ringed and recovered on the Orkney Islands. (wikipedia)
The common or garden Woodpigeon is very underrated. What a stunning bird. Taken at Griffith Park, Drumcondra, Dublin 9.
@Epiphany
☑⇒D-LAB Alice Collection 01 ALICE RARE
☑⇒D-LAB Alice Collection 02 Mad Hatter
☑⇒D-LAB Alice Collection 03 Cheshire Cat
☑⇒D-LAB Alice Collection 05 White Rabbit
☑⇒D-LAB Alice Collection 06 dormouse
☑⇒D-LAB Alice Collection 08 Frog
☑⇒MishMish - Gemmies - Diamond
☑⇒MishMish - Gemmies - SECRET (add me)
☑⇒+Half-Deer+ Pomeranian - Lay (Merle)
☑⇒Tentacio & .{PSYCHO:Byts}. Childrens of Diana fishcorn pet
maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Epiphany/88/131/1006
【Wear】
☑⇒Hair *ARGRACE* YURA [A]
☑⇒+Half-Deer+ Beep - Beepercorn RARE
☑⇒RONSEM* Rollup Jeans / deep -female*
☑⇒Addams // Quilted Jacket w/ Hoodie & Shirt
☑⇒*katat0nik* (sick girl1+ / Maitreya) BENTO Prosthetic Hand
☑⇒CURELESS [+] Red Queen's Realm / Curious Alice Keys / RARE
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
Eristalis tenax, the common drone fly, is a common, migratory, cosmopolitan species of hover fly. It is the most widely distributed syrphid species in the world, and is known from all regions except the Antarctic. It has been introduced into North America and is widely established. It can be found in gardens and fields in Europe and Australia. It has also been found in the Himalayas.
Eristalis tenax is a large, stocky bee mimic. The eyes are marbled in black. Males have hovering displays. The average wing length is 9.75–13 mm and their average wingspan is 15 mm.
The exact appearance of the drone fly can vary considerably.
Diptera are an important but often neglected group of pollinators. They play a significant role in the pollination of agricultural biodiversity and the biodiversity of plants everywhere. Hoverflies are considered to be less specialized pollinators than bees, and they are more effective in open than tubular flowers.
Common drone flies are active during much of the year, from March to December, and sometimes they are more numerous than honeybees, especially during autumn in urban areas. (wikipedia)
Taken in my back garden in Dublin, Ireland.
All kinds of goodies in this one: corn tortilla wraps, mushroom / zucchini sautee, fruit and yogurt. What's not to like?
See what my preschooler thought of this bento at my blog: happylittlebento.blogspot.com/2012/04/4-section-variety-b...
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Curvilinear Glasshouse in Glasnevin s built of iron and has a distinctive, curved roof. This style and method of construction was promoted by the celebrated Dublin iron-master Richard Turner; he was instrumental in having this range erected, and was largely responsible for its design. In the 1990s it was fully restored by the Office Of Public Works, with particular care being taken to restore the building faithfully in all its facets.
The east wing was constructed in 1843 by William Clancy, but the remaining sections were built by Richard Turner and his son William. The two extreme wings originally had brick walls at the back (i.e. down the middle of the existing houses), but in 1869 their size was doubled by adding a matching half to the wings. This is the most important building in the National Botanic Gardens, and its central dome was featured for many years on Irish stamps.
Taken on a Yashica 35 Electro camera with a 45mm f1.8 lens on Cinemot 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 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The European herring gull or simply herring gull (Larus argentatus) is a large gull, up to 66 cm (26 in) long.[2] It breeds throughout the northern and western coasts of Europe. Some European herring gulls, especially those resident in colder areas, migrate farther south in winter, but many are permanent residents, such as in Ireland, Britain, Iceland, or on the North Sea shores. They have a varied diet, including fish, crustaceans, as well as some plants, and are also scavengers, consuming carrion and food left by or stolen from humans. (wikipedia)
A large gull, which in adult plumage has light grey upperwings, showing black tips with white 'mirrors' (white at the very tips surrounded by black); the rest of the plumage is white. Similar to Common Gull in colouration, but separated by size, Common Gull is much smaller and shows larger, more conspicuous white 'mirrors' at the wing tip as an adult. Adult birds have heavy yellow bills with a orange spot on the lower bill, the head is pure white in the summer and streaked in the winter. The legs are pink at all ages. Herring Gulls have four age groups and attain adult plumage after three years when they moult into adult winter plumage. Juveniles are brown with finely patterned feathers which fade in the first year, especially the wing and tail feathers which are retained through the first summer. Juvenile and first year birds, do not have any plain grey adult like feathers in the upperparts and can be difficult to tell apart from immature Lesser and Great Black-back Gulls. Grey in the upperparts develops from the second winter onwards, initially mostly in the mantle and back and becomes more extensive over the wings as the bird moves towards maturity. Younger immature birds have a dark terminal tail band which becomes less prominent as they get older, adult birds lack this band completely. (Birdwatch Ireland)
A stunning adult Herring Gull from Dalkey Island, Dublin Bay.
Gummy Nigiri. Quick and simple recipe.. make Rice Krispy Treats (recipe on the box or on the marshmallow package), place a gummy fish, swedish fish or whatever else sounds good (or gross) and wrap with a cut strip of fruit rollup.
Old sign above an old door in Manchester, England that says "Computer Stationery". I don't know that I've ever seen those two words together before.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The green-winged teal (Anas carolinensis) or American teal is a common and widespread duck that breeds in the northern areas of North America except on the Aleutian Islands. It was considered conspecific with the Eurasian teal (A. crecca) for some time, but the two have since been split into separate species. This is once again under debate and the two species may be joined togetehr again.
This dabbling duck is strongly migratory and winters far south of its breeding range. It is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and will form large flocks. In flight, the fast, twisting flocks resemble waders. (wikipedia)
Very similar to Common Teal and care is needed to separate the two species. Adult male Green-winged Teal can be identified by the white vertical stripe on the flank, a feature never shown by Common Teal. Adult male Green-winged Teal also lack the obvious horizontal white stripe, while the yellow markings on the head are much reduced. Adult females and juveniles are indistinguishable from Common Teal. (BirdWatch Ireland)
There are several records a year in Ireland. This male, flanked either side by his distant Eurasian Teal cousins, was found in Broadmeadows in the Swords Estuary, Co. Dublin.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
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)
There are 1 or 2 pairs of Treecreeper in my local park. Always a joy to watch them scamper up trees looking for insects.
The Heart Of The Ocean, Episode 3 pic 31
Ricky is wearing
- DS Reilly Glasses
- not so bad. ANTEO turtleneck. Forest
- (Cold Ash) Holloway Ripped Jeans (RollUp)- Light Blue
-NATIVE URBAN-Chuka Boots
-Benson is Wearing
(Deadwool) ERNST sweater- fitted turtleneck-red
(COLD-ASH) LARKHAM Jeans (straight)-Dark Blue
-(*RG*) Miles Sneakers-Classic- *REDGRAVE*
Trying to replicate and understand the previous lighting setup with Erianna as seen here:
www.flickr.com/photos/evolutionfotos/5429693215/
4x6' Larson softbox above and aimed down like a sun roof. Larson reflectors on the side. Rollup floors are from Denny Mfg.
Info:
Denny Mfg roll up floor
Radiopopper Jr Studio transmitter/receiver
Larson 4x6' softbox
Larson 42x72" reflectors
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
Good Vibrations was a Belfast record label and store. Founded by Terri Hooley in the early 1970s, Good Vibrations started out in a small derelict building on Great Victoria Street, Belfast. Good Vibrations began life as a record shop, opening in late 1976. Hooley went on to sign and release groups such as The Undertones, Rudi, The Outcasts, Protex, Victim, Ruefrex, The Tearjerkers, The Moondogs, The Shapes, among others such as Shock Treatment and The Lids, whom he signed and recorded but did not release due to financial limitations. Although the original Good Vibrations shop on Great Victoria Street in Belfast had closed in 1982, Hooley's friends later got him a shop called Vintage Records, Co. just around the corner. As Good Vibrations he reopened in 1984, closed in 1991, reopened in 1992, closed in 2004 and reopened in 2005. Due to ill health, Hooley closed the shop for the final time on 13 June 2015. (wikipedia)
Taken on a Leica M4-P camera body with a Voigtlander APO LANTHAR 50mm f2 lens on Wolfen Colour 500 colour film. Developed and scanned by the excellent John Gunn Camera Shop on Wexford Street.m Wolfen Colour 500
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Railway Preservation Society of Ireland have put "Q" class 4-4-0 No.131 back to full running order.
No.131 was built in February 1901 as part of a class of 13 4-4-0 express passenger locomotives for the Great Northern Railway (Ireland). The 4-4-0 tender locomotive was built by Neilson Reid in Glasgow. No.131 was designed under the auspices of Charles Clifford. She was rebuilt with a superheated boiler, under George T. Glover (then Chief Locomotive Designer of the GNR(I)) in Dundalk works in 1920.
She was used mainly on the routes from Belfast to Clones and Belfast to Londonderry and throughout her GNR(I) life was rarely seen south of Dundalk. She was overhauled again in 1958 at Dundalk and in October 1958 when the Great Northern Railway board split between the Ulster Transport Authority and Córas Iompair Éireann, the locomotive passed into the hands of CIÉ for operation until withdrawal in October 1963. Between 1963 and 1965 she lay unused. No.131 always carried GNR(I) black livery whilst in operation, but for a short time, whilst on display, she carried GNR(I) sky-blue. In the late 1970s the locomotive was repainted and placed on a plinth at Dundalk station (the spiritual home of the GNR(I)).
No.131 moved under its own steam for the first time in over 50 years on Saturday 31st January 2015.
Various items were still required before a return to traffic, i.e. a tender, and all the electronic signalling paraphernalia required to run on the main line at up to 60mph.
The locomotive's restoration is, of course, a big Heritage Engineering Ireland contract - with 'contributions in kind' by our members. There is still plenty of work to be done to keep it in tip-top order.
The first public train was on Saturday 25th July on the Whitehead Festival train rides within the RPSI's premises. No.131 had to wait for the construction of its tender before a return to the main line. The first test run with a train took place between Whitehead, Carrickfergus and Belfast on Sunday 5th November 2017, followed by another on 19th November. The official launch of the locomotive took place at Whitehead on Saturday 24th March 2018. No.131 was certified by Translink NI Railways to operate at 60 mph from 29th June 2018, and received all-island clearance in 2022.
The locomotive eventually made a triumphant return to Dublin on 1st April 2023.
In December this year, the 131 pulled the Santa Train from Connolly Station in Dublin to Maynooth Station in Co. Kildare. Here it is passing through Drumcondra train station.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The garganey (Anas querquedula) is a small dabbling duck. It breeds in much of Europe and across the Palearctic, but is strictly migratory, with the entire population moving to Africa, India (in particular Santragachi), Bangladesh (in the natural reservoirs of Sylhet district) and Australasia during the winter of the Northern hemisphere, where large flocks can occur.
The adult male is unmistakable, with its brown head and breast with a broad white crescent over the eye. The rest of the plumage is grey, with loose grey scapular feathers. It has a grey bill and legs. In flight, it shows a pale blue speculum with a white border. When swimming it will show prominent white edges on its tertials. His crown (anatomy) is dark and his face is reddish brown.
Some care is needed in separating the brown female from the similar common teal, but the stronger face markings and more frequent head-shaking when dabbling are good indicators. Confusion with the female of the blue-winged teal is also possible, but the head and bill shape is different, and the latter species has yellow legs. Pale eyebrow, dark eye line, pale lore spot bordered by a second dark line.
In Ireland a few pairs breed in County Wexford, and at Lough Beg in County Derry, with occasional breeding elsewhere.(wikipedia)
I was fortunate to find this moulting juvenile Garganey at Bull Island, Co. Dublin recently. It is only the 3rd record for the reserve and my 2nd Garganey in Dublin this year (an adult male in Swords estuary). It is/was hanging around with a couple of teal. It is more than likely a male due to the warm colour on the breast.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Black Guillemot or Tystie (Cepphus grylle) is a medium-sized alcid.
Adult birds have black bodies with a white wing patch, a thin dark bill, and red legs and feet. They show white wing linings in flight. In winter, the upperparts are pale grey and the underparts are white. The wings remain black with the large white patch on the inner wing.
Their breeding habitat is rocky shores, cliffs and islands on northern Atlantic coasts in eastern North America as far south as Maine, and in western Europe as far south as Ireland.They are one of the few birds to breed on Surtsey, Iceland a new volcanic island. In the UK it is a fairly common breeding bird in western and northern Scotland and Ireland. In the rest of Great Britain they only breed at St. Bees Head in Cumbria, the Isle of Man and on east Anglesey in north Wales. Some birds breed in Alaska where their range overlaps with the similar Pigeon Guillemot.
These birds often overwinter in their breeding areas, moving to open waters if necessary, but usually not migrating very far south.
They dive for food from the surface, swimming underwater. They mainly eat fish and crustaceans, also some mollusks, insects and plant material. (wikipedia)
This was an adult winter bird at the mouth of Dun Laoghaire harbour earlier in the Spring of 2025.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus) is a large species in the dove and pigeon family. The three Western European Columba pigeons, common wood pigeon, stock dove, and rock pigeon, though superficially alike, have very distinctive characteristics; the common wood pigeon may be identified at once by its larger size and weight, and the white on its neck and wing. It is otherwise a basically grey bird, with a pinkish breast. Adult birds bear a series of green and white patches on their necks, and a pink patch on their chest.
Juvenile birds do not have the white patches on either side of the neck. When they are about six months old (about three months out of the nest) they gain small white patches on both sides of the neck, which gradually enlarge until they are fully formed when the bird is about 6–8 months old (approx. ages only). Juvenile birds also have a greyer beak and an overall lighter grey appearance than adult birds. The call is a characteristic cooing, coo-COO-coo-coo-coo.
In the colder northern and eastern parts of Europe and western Asia the common woodpigeon is a migrant, but in southern and western Europe it is a well distributed and often abundant resident. In Ireland, woodpigeons are commonly seen in parks and gardens and are seen with increasing numbers in towns and cities.
For birds that survive the first year the typical lifespan is thus only three years, but the maximum recorded age is 17 years and 8 months for a bird ringed and recovered on the Orkney Islands. (wikipedia)
The common or garden Woodpigeon is very underrated. What a stunning bird. Taken at Griffith Park, Drumcondra, Dublin 9.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide 2nd Edition with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The ruff (Calidris pugnax) is a medium-sized wading bird that breeds in marshes and wet meadows across northern Eurasia. This highly gregarious sandpiper is migratory and sometimes forms huge flocks in its winter grounds, which include southern and western Europe, Africa, southern Asia and Australia.
The ruff is a long-necked, pot-bellied bird. This species shows marked sexual dimorphism; the male is much larger than the female (the reeve), and has a breeding plumage that includes brightly coloured head tufts, bare orange facial skin, extensive black on the breast, and the large collar of ornamental feathers that inspired this bird's English name. The female and the non-breeding male have grey-brown upperparts and mainly white underparts.
The ruff forages in wet grassland and soft mud, probing or searching by sight for edible items. It primarily feeds on insects, especially in the breeding season, but it will consume plant material, including rice and maize, on migration and in winter. Classified as "least concern" on the IUCN Red List criteria, the global conservation concerns are relatively low because of the large numbers that breed in Scandinavia and the Arctic. However, the range in much of Europe is contracting because of land drainage, increased fertiliser use, the loss of mown or grazed breeding sites, and over-hunting. (wikipedia)
The Ruff is a scarce spring & autumn passage migrant in Ireland while moving from Siberia/Central Europe south to winter in Africa (and vice versa). This juvenile stopped off at Swords estuary, Co. Dublin this autumn on its journey south. Great birds.