Copeland Bird Observatory

Passive Acoustic Monitoring is a new tool in our repertoire, & thanks to advice/inspiration from @SoundsIrish we had our 1st successful monitoring in late October. So far we have notched up 38 species, including a further 3 Yellow-browed Warblers to those ringed. More to annalise

The trail cameras on CBO have been very productive in recent years, notching up some 44 species, including Ring Ouzel, SE Owl, Hen Harrier, Woodcock, Stonechat, Otters etc. They provide a great insight into those birds that visit in the in closed season & also island breeders

The cast of 2024. I undertook the annual Grey Seal pup count @CopelandBirdOb & we have 50 pups, with 5 more that didn't make it. There were 13 more visible on Mew Island, and 20 on a small section of Big Copeland. There are likely to be in excess of 100 across the island group

Another fantastic trip to @CopelandBirdOb at the weekend with 2 star birds in the hand - Little Egret & Buzzard. Extremely windy on Saturday but much more pleasant today with a fall of 111 redpolls ringed. Zero warblers on the island but a Snow Bunting was an island 1st for me

DAERA Minister @AndrewMuirNI visited the Copeland Bird Observatory, located on Light House Island. The Minister congratulated the observatory on reaching its 70th Anniversary and had the opportunity to hear about its work in monitoring the birdlife and managing the site

What a day out on Mew Island for the annual @CopelandBirdOb #Eider ringing event. Sun, sea, and a cheeky wee drake to boot! *photos and ringing under licence

Another great week at @CopelandBirdOb helping with the Avian Behaviour and Ecology field course - finishing of course with the spectacular aurora on the ferry back @Ben_Sheldon_EGI @OlliePadget @JamesKing7341 @OxfordBiology

Nice to be back @CopelandBirdOb over the weekend with great migration & birds ringed. 50 birds of 18 species caught inc. 3 Garden Warbler, 2 Whinchat, Spotted Fly, Fieldfare, 2 Wheatear. Passage waders were notable, especially Whimbrel & the year list was boosted by 11 species

Thanks so much @BTO_NIreland for inviting me to give a talk on my PhD. I feel incredibly lucky that fellow seabird enthusiasts want to listen to me natter away about Manxies @CopelandBirdOb. I hope you all enjoyed it! ❤️🐧🌊

One week left to buy tickets for the 70th anniversary gala @CopelandBirdOb dinner at Malone House Hotel, Belfast!

Coming up on the last push for tickets for our anniversary event - also a great networking opportunity for #ornithology in Ireland/ NI, & to find out about great opportunities to spend time on @CopelandBirdOb & gain experience in #habitatmanagement #birdringing

@NiamhEsmonde @wood_mj @HansjoergKunc @PelagicLabQUB @QUBEcology Well done Niamh. Great that the CBO shearwater dataset helped get you there.

VIVA FINITO!! Had a wonderful day yesterday defending my thesis on Atlantic storms and Manx shearwaters 🌊🐧 @CopelandBirdOb. A massive thank you to my examiners @wood_mj and @HansjoergKunc and chair @PelagicLabQUB for making it a surprisingly enjoyable viva🥳 #PhDone

Best wishes to @AndrewMuirNI who has environment in his ministerial brief. Just to say this includes ~4500 pairs of Manx shearwaters and 100 or so Puffin on Lighthouse Island, CBO. Don’t be remote - we are happy to host you for a visit.

The latest BOC Newsletter is now available at tinyurl.com/BOC-Newsletter… Read about the fantastic work the Observatories have undertaken in 2023, see the pictures of the magnificent selection of rarities that arrived with 🇺🇸 passerines galore! Read about the YBOV grants and Motus.

Where do the birds that we ring go and the ones that we find, come from? Check out the updated interactive map below. You can pan, zoom and click on the icons for details @_BTO @BTO_NIreland google.com/maps/d/viewer?…

Tickets are now available for the Dinner to celebrate the 70th anniversary of @CopelandBirdOb - looking forward to welcoming you to celebrate with us! #birdobservatory @_BTO @BTO_NIreland @BelfastLive @QUBEcology @birdobs_council eventbrite.com/e/copeland-bir…

@josh_ecology Looking forward to you starting surveys on @CopelandBirdOb to see what you find! Hope we do the same weekends for a wee catchup too

We look forward to continuing collaboration and working with people across the island of Ireland and those in GB. If you would like to get involved or hear more, then please reach out.

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