Bird Visitors to Our Coasts

In addition to the seabirds that breed here, very large numbers of wading birds, geese, ducks and swans that normally live in arctic or sub-arctic regions visit our coasts in winter. The attraction is our mild climate. The waders find un-frozen mud and sand that they can probe with their beaks to get at the nutritious creatures that live below the surface. The vegetarian geese and swans find flourishing plant life in salt marshes and agricultural land close to the coast.

In spring and autumn our coast, particularly the west coast, sees many passage migrants. These are birds that are travelling from somewhere to the north of us to somewhere to the south of us (or the other way around) along what’s called the ‘Eastern Atlantic Flyway’ - a sort of invisible highway in the sky. Some of these birds stop off in Ireland for a short rest and a bit of food, while others just keep on going.