Wryneck, The Orchard, Mizen Head, Co. Cork. 10 September 2006
(Michael O'Keeffe)
Irish Rare Birds Committee
The Irish Rare Birds Committee (IRBC) is responsible for maintaining a list of the birds recorded in the Republic of Ireland and in addition the inshore waters up to 30km from the nearest land or where relevant, the median point between Ireland and Great Britain. So-called ’at sea’ records, i.e. records of birds outside this 30 km limit but still within the Exclusive Economic Zone which extends to approximately 370 km (200 nautical miles) offshore or where relevant, the median point between Ireland and Great Britain are assessed and published by the IRBC in the Irish Rare Bird Report (IRBR), but are excluded from the main list.
The primary function of the IRBC is the assessment of records of certain rare and scarce species. From 2004 the results are published annually in the IRBR and previously in the Irish Bird Report (IBR) from 1953 to 2003. The most recent report is for 2007 which, along with the 2005 and 2006 reports is available for download from this website as PDF documents. In addition the IRBR is included in Irish Birds, which is published by BirdWatch Ireland. Irish Birds is available from Wings, the BirdWatch Ireland online shop.
Beginning with the 2004 IRBR, the IRBC changed its method of record submission and assessment. Generally speaking many regularly occurring and apparently seldom misidentified rarities no longer require formal documentation (although there may be occasional exceptions). The full list of species affected are included in Appendix 2. Those species which continue to require formal documentation are listed in Appendix 1. For a full account of the background and reasons behind these changes click here.
The Committee, whose members work in an honorary capacity, operates under the auspices of BirdWatch Ireland. The Committee's current membership is listed here. For a short background to its origins as well as the all time list of its members click here.
The Northern Ireland Birdwatchers' Association Records Committee (NIBARC) performs a similar role in Northern Ireland and the two committees work together to maintain a comprehensive record of birds found on the island of Ireland.
September Banner
This month's image of Ballycotton in Co. Cork was taken by Mark Carmody. It shows the village and harbour area and to the left, Ballycotton Island with its lighthouse. The village, which is situated about twenty-five miles east of Cork city, overlooks the east facing Ballycotton Bay which stretches as far as Knockadoon Head including Ballycotton Lake, Garryvoe, Shanagarry and Allen's Pools. The whole area is a mix of shallow lagoons, intertidal flats, shingle banks, sandy beaches, tidal channels, reed beds, boggy land, farmland and gardens. To date it has added Blue-winged Teal, American Coot, Black Kite, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Red-necked Stint, Long-toed Stint, Lesser-crested Tern and Citrine Wagtail to the Irish List as well as recording such rarities as Tundra Swan, American Black Duck, Little Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Purple Heron, Red-footed Falcon, Spotted Crake, Little Bustard, Black-winged Stilt, Killdeer, Kentish Plover, Pacific Golden Plover, Temminck's Stint, Least Sandpiper, Stilt Sandpiper, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Wilson's Phalarope, Ivory Gull, Bonaparte's Gull, Gull-billed Tern, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Alpine Swift, Lesser Grey Shrike, Red-rumped Swallow, Greenish Warbler, Dusky Warbler, Savi's Warbler, Booted Warbler, Nightingale, Bluethroat, Tawny Pipit, Red-throated Pipit and Buff-bellied Pipit.
Appendix Lists
2005 Revised Rarity List with subsequent updates (Appendix 1), click here.
2005 Supplementary Accreditation Species with subsequent updates (Appendix 2), click here.
Screen Resolution
This website is best viewed with screen resolution set at 1280px x 1024px.
Cookies
This website does not use cookies.
BirdWatch Ireland
BirdWatch Ireland is the largest independent conservation organisation in Ireland dedicated to protecting Ireland’s birds and biodiversity.
