Kittiwake

Ireland has been battered in recent weeks by Atlantic storms, today was no different.  I set out on a trip up the Meath/Louth coast taking in all the usual stops, Gormnstown, Ben Head, Port Oriel, Dunnay Point and on up to Anagassen and Lurgangreen.  The winds never died off all day and when it rained it poured, a really wild winters day spent on the East coast.

The harbour at Port Oriel was packed full of all manner of gulls and seabirds, all looking for some shelter from the storm.  A first Winter Kittiwake kept me amused for some time as it flew out of the harbour only to turn some way out and ride the winds back in, a process it repeated again and again.  The Kittiwake is a common enough  resident breeding species for Ireland, it's found on cliffs during the breeding season but during Winter it can be found almost anywhere along the coast and in harbours.

Kittiwake  and Seal