Bird, bug, butterfly and a wild variety of photos from Belarus, Cyprus, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Scotland and Spain by Irish wildlife photographer Patrick J. O'Keeffe and invited guests

Monday 4 March 2013

LITTLE EGRET (Egretta garzetta) Broadmeadow Estuary, Swords, Fingal, Co. Dublin, Ireland

 
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The Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) is a small member of the heron family Ardeidae which includes Bitterns, Egrets and Herons. It is found in the temperate parts of Eurasia and Africa as well as Australia and New Zealand. Over the last 60 years or so this species has greatly expanded its range including recolonising its former breeding areas in Northern Europe, as well as Ireland. It first bred in the Caribbean in the mid 1990’s and is increasingly being recorded along the North American eastern seaboard.

Patrick J. O'Keeffe / Raw Birds

Sunday 3 March 2013

BLACK TAILED GODWIT (Limosa limosa subspecies L .l. islandica) at the Horse Marsh, Broadmeadow Estuary, Swords, Fingal, Co. Dublin, Ireland

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The Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa) is of the family Scolopacidae which is in the genus Limosa. This large, long-legged and long-billed shorebird's breeding range extends from Iceland through central Europe as well as central and northeastern Asia. In the autumn, it migrates south to spend the winter in southern and western Europe, sub Saharan Africa, southern Asia and parts of coastal Australia. The species breeds in fens, damp meadows, moorlands and bogs. In the winter, it occurs on estuaries, lake shores, and in damp coastal fields.
 
There are three subspecies recognised; 
  •  Icelandic Black-tailed Godwit - (Limosa limosa islandica) 
  • European Black-tailed Godwit - (Limosa limosa limosa) 
  • Asian Black-tailed Godwit - (Limosa limosa melanuroides)

Patrick J. O'Keeffe / Raw Birds
 
Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa) distribution map
 
LimosalimosaWorldDistribution.jpg
Yellow breeding     Blue wintering     Green breeding resident
 
J. Schroeder, CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons

Saturday 2 March 2013

GOLDCREST (Regulus regulus) Broadmeadow Estuary, Swords, Fingal, Co. Dublin, Ireland

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The Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) is of the family Regulidae which is in the genus Regulus.
  
 

GOLDCREST (Regulus regulus) collecting dog hairs for nest lining material Broadmeadow Estuary, Swords, Fingal, Co. Dublin, Ireland

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The Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) is of the family Regulidae which is in the genus Regulus.