Don and I met for a meal in Morecambe before heading to Heysham Port to collect our tickets and board the Power, a larger CLdN vessel that was recently relocated from Liverpool to Heysham.  A temporary closure of Holyhead Harbour operations meant that Heysham was even busier than usual, but we were still greeted cheerfully.

We were welcomed by the steward and made our arrangements for breakfast and to go up to the bridge at 8:00, to ensure that we did not miss any of our valuable survey time.  With such short days, by the time there was enough light to start the survey at 8:15, we were already west of the Isle of Man and the distant lights of Dublin and the skyline of the Wicklow Mountains were beckoning us.

We were soon greeted by the first of many adult Kittiwake, followed shortly afterwards by a Fulmar, and we then enjoyed a productive 1.5 hours recording before we reached the entrance to Dublin Port.  As we approached Dublin Bay small groups of Kittiwake, with a few beautifully patterned juveniles amongst them, gave way to larger flocks with some over 100 birds strong.  Small groups of auks, mainly Guillemot but some Razorbill, flew across our bows or were rafted, and diving as we neared them.  We had several close sightings of Great Black-backed Gull, two of the birds seen feeding on bird carcasses floating in the sea.  Whether these were kills or carrion we could not tell.

The survey ceased as the Power sailed past the outer breakwaters, but we continued looking for wildlife.  Two Grey Seal were seen cruising just outside the harbour entrance where Shag and Cormorant were frequent, with one of the latter flashing the titanium white thigh patch of its breeding plumage at us.  To his great delight, Don added Black Guillemot to the list of birds seen in the harbour, and after much deliberation and discussion, his telephoto photograph of a pair of ducks was confirmed as a pair of Red-breasted Merganser.

As the Power departed the port, leaving the surprisingly spring-like warmth of Dublin, the sea was mirror calm and the sky a bright blue.  A flock of Herring Gull and a couple of Great Black-backed Gull on the water attracted our attention, and we were quickly rewarded by the appearance of a Harbour Porpoise next to the birds, all perhaps attracted by a shoal of small fish.  As on the outward leg, Kittiwake was the most frequent bird recorded out at sea, together with Herring Gull, Fulmar, and Guillemot.

After the crystal-clear air of the Western Irish Sea, we had some spectacular views of fog banks ahead of us to the east, illuminated by the afternoon sun. Things all changed when we entered the fog banks, which at times prevented us being able to see to the edge of our 300-metre survey box!  However, we persevered until the failing light stopped play, and although the captain had explained that if the fog was too thick we might not be able to get back into Heysham Harbour, in the event we had a very smooth return to the port.

A huge thanks to all the staff at Heysham Port and the captain and crew of the CLdN Power for making us so welcome and our MARINElife survey successful.

Don Ainsworth & Chris Lumb, Research Surveyors for MARINElife. Registered Charity No. 1110884; Registered Company No. 5057367)

Weather:

Outbound:  Initially overcast, with the skies clearing as we neared Dublin.  Calm seas, initially sea state 2, dropping to 0 and almost no swell at all.  Excellent visibility with no precipitation.

Return:  Initially clear skies and calm seas, sea state 0, increasing to 1 and almost no swell.  Excellent visibility until late in the survey when we encountered a bank of sea fog which dropped visibility to 100m for the last hour.