Irish Wildlife Observations 2012.

I saw a swallow today a few miles away from where I spotted the house martin and swift yesterday.

Saw a pair of skylarks at the roadside, St. John's Point, Donegal on Monday, 30th April. The female is not dead, just having a dustbath! I got a quick pic of the male before he took off, flew away up into the sky and started singing; sunny weather, skylark singing and the intoxicating coconut scent of gorse on the breeze, you had to be there. Later on I spied this hare sitting motionless in a field but when I got out of the car to get the camera he moved off but kindly stopped atop the stone wall for a photo. The gusty wind doesn't half make it difficult with the zoom lens!

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swallows are definetly back..sorry no pics yet watch this space..

Found a large mink dead on the road yesterday . The flat ones are definitely the best !

Found a large mink dead on the road yesterday . The flat ones are definitely the best !

No chance it was an otter?

Found a large mink dead on the road yesterday . The flat ones are definitely the best !

No chance it was an otter?

Definitely not Otter or Pine Marten tho' both live in the vicinity . Just a very large very flat mink ! It is now hanging above my pond and about to provide a steady cascade of maggots for the little brown trout below if the heron doesn't get them first . The fish , that is .
I have kept its tail , not as a trophy but to use for pollinating courgettes etc in the polytunnel . As I mentioned , the best mink are the flat ones

Was out fishing the spent on Lough sheelin on Monday night and on the way home seen plenty of foxes, then i seen a muntjac running across the road in front of me, has anyone else seen any of these?

I haven't seen Muntjac myself but one of my neighbours has seen one in his garden.

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Had a session happy disturbed by a few otters in Sligo few week ago
Makes me wonder what they were feeding on as I didn't get a bite all night
Arnt muntjac deer an invasive species they destroy saplings and young trees

they destroy saplings and young trees

so do all DEER

Saw these birds flocking in Donegal Bay yesterday, I'm not certain but I think they may be Scoters.

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From the Indo....

http://www.independent.ie/video/video-h ... 33054.html

Found a large mink dead on the road yesterday . The flat ones are definitely the best !

No chance it was an otter?

Definitely not Otter or Pine Marten tho' both live in the vicinity . Just a very large very flat mink ! It is now hanging above my pond and about to provide a steady cascade of maggots for the little brown trout below if the heron doesn't get them first . The fish , that is .
I have kept its tail , not as a trophy but to use for pollinating courgettes etc in the polytunnel . As I mentioned , the best mink are the flat ones

Sorry to resurrect an old post but that takes recycling to a whole new level for me

Saw a leveret on the road today near Enniskillen. It loped up the road in front of me for about 50 yds and then made off into a field of long grass. I've seen adult hares often enough but this was the first young one I've ever seen. On the return trip, the field had been cut for silage, I hope the little fella kept on running and wasn't caught up in the machinery. No pics, he was far too quick!

Heard a pair of Corncrakes last week. Haven't heard those in years.

Just saw an otter on the road in the headlights coming home from fishing, well away from any river or the sea, it was about 300 yards from the nearest stream. In Spring 98 I picked up a dead one about 100 yards from where I saw that one tonight, wonder what they be out foraging for away from the water????

Heard a pair of Corncrakes last week. Haven't heard those in years.

Whereabouts if that's not classified? Last corncrake I heard was at Dunfanaghy years ago.

Heard a pair of Corncrakes last week. Haven't heard those in years.

Whereabouts if that's not classified? Last corncrake I heard was at Dunfanaghy years ago.

Funny enough it was just outside Dunfanaghy, on the Horn Head Road. I was heading over to check a mullet mark.

I'll hardly win anything with this one but it was a nice sighting of an otter after dark in the headlights. It came up the road towards the car on the wee road parallel with the coast road, between Cushendall and Waterfoot, Co Antrim. It had a good look at the car and just as I pressed the button it turned its head away and headed back the other direction. It went off the road down into a stream.

The image isnt great but its the best of 3 I manged to take. Pity it turned its head as the eyes were very bright in the headlights.

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