North Bull

North Bull Ireland

In the north of Dublin Bay, North Bull is a 5km long, 1km wide sandbar, part of which is a very popular recreational beach for Dubliners. There are also two golf courses on the "island" but there are extensive intertidal mudflats and sandflats, backed by saltmarsh that provide feeding and roosting sites for thousands of waders and waterfowl. A small patch of alder trees has grown up around a marshy area towards the tip of the Bull providing another kind of wetland habitat.

Breeding species are few, although Little Tern and Ringed Plover are present in summer, but during passage periods and winter the birder can expect to see large numbers of a variety of species. Of the waterfowl, Pale-bellied Brent Goose, Common Shelduck, Eurasian Wigeon and CommonTeal are the most numerous but also present in good numbers are Mallard, Northern Pintail and Northern Shoveler. Offshore Red-breasted Merganser and Common Scoter can be seen as well as divers and grebes.

Most of the regular north European waders occur here including both godwits in large numbers and scarcer species such as Spotted Redshank, Curlew Sandpiper and Little Stint occur each autumn. The tip of North Bull is a regular site for Purple Sandpiper in winter. The large flocks of birds present in autumn and winter attract predatory birds and Short-eared Owl, Peregrine Falcon and Merlin are regular. Snow Bunting occurs in small flocks along the sands in winter.

Vagrants are often recorded and in the past have included waders such as Buff-breasted Sandpiper and Pectoral Sandpiper and Wilson's Phalarope and waterfowl including American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal and Blue-winged Teal and Black Duck. Black Brant has been recorded here regularly in recent years.

North Bull is within easy reach of Dublin and makes an ideal day out from that city. However, it requires a full day to really do it justice. For those with limited time head for the causeway opposite St Anne's and scan from the path to the north and south of the causeway. This will enable the visitor to see most of the ducks, for the waders, cross the causeway and check the mudflats to the north and south. There is a visitor centre with information about the natural history of North Bull.

Birds

Birds you can see here include:

Red-throated Diver, Great Northern Diver, Great Crested Grebe, Great Cormorant, Pale-bellied Brent Goose, Common Shelduck, Eurasian Wigeon, Common Teal, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler, Red-breasted Merganser, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Grey Plover, Northern Lapwing, Red Knot, Sanderling, Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Purple Sandpiper, Dunlin, Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit, Whimbrel, Eurasian Curlew, Spotted Redshank, Common Redshank, Greenshank, Turnstone, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Common Tern, Little Tern, Short-eared Owl, Pied Wagtail, Northern Wheatear, Snow Bunting

Content and images originally posted by Steve