South Stack, Anglesey

Chough 2
Stonechat 4

Lough Bunny, the Burren, County Clare

Mountain everlasting

Grass of Parnassus

Irish Eyebright

Devil's bit scabious

Sea plantain
Golden rod

Just a very brief stop at Lough Bunny.

Mullagh More, the Burren, County Clare

Shrubby cinquefoil
Mountain aven (some in flower)

O'Kelly's spotted orchid 1
Irish eyebright
Mountain everlasting
Devil's bit scabious
Grass of Parnassus

Autumn fellwort    

Dark red helleborine (over)
Broad-leaved helleborine (over)  
Golden rod
Harebell
Spindle
Rusty back fern
Wood sage
Burnet rose (a few in flower and one with robins pin cushion)
Ladies bedstraw   
Blue Moor grass
Wall lettuce
Bloody cranesbill
Quaking grass       
Yellow wort
Birds foot trefoil
Northern bedstraw
Sea plantain
Yellow rattle

Purple moor grass

Whilst searching for Father Ted's house, we stumbled across a series of footpaths leading up to the remarkable Mullagh More, which is surely as much a geologists paradise as it is a botanists. At its heart is the amazing lough Gealain, which is part permanent lake and part turlough (i.e a lake fed by groundwater).

The flowers in this area are fantastic, and I was surprised to see so many given that in other areas most seemed to be over. Highlights for me were the shrubby cinquefoil and the mountain avens, a few of which of the latter were in flower, whilst the former seemed in full flower. Another good find was O'Kelly's spotted orchid, a Burren speciality, which some authorities treat as a distinct species, but which is more generally considered as a variety of common spotted orchid. An amazing place, where it's possible to see mountain everlasting growing side by side with sea plantain!

Inish Mor, Aran islands, County Clare

Balearic shearwater 1

Manx shearwater 50

Black guillemot 15

Sandwich tern 10

Gannet 100

Fulmar 20

Kittiwake 100

Shag 30

Stonechat 10

Flowers:

Devil's bit scabious

Yellow rattle 

Bloody cranesbill

Quaking grass

A glorious day on Inish Mor, the largest and outermost of the Aran Isles, we couldn't have picked a better day to go. 

The journey across was fairly uneventful, until a fantastic Balearic shearwater appeared in the midst of the manxies! My first in British waters, though I have seen them in the Mediterranean.

The island itself was a revelation, a continuation of the Burren, with miles of limestone pavement, and lots of great flowers, though most had gone to seed.

Black head, the Burren

Harbour porpoise 3

The biggest surprise for me about the Burren is that it goes right down to the sea . Even at our campsite there is limestone pavement on the coast, but it is most spectacular at Black Head, at the mouth of Galway bay. Today the ocean was like a mirror, and we watched as harbour porpoise broke the surface.

Ballyvaughen, County Clare

Flowers:

Autumn ladies tresses

Birds:

Little egret 1

Curlew 10

Turnstone 20
Redshank 10

Our first sighting of Galway bay was at Ballyvaughen, where the Burren meets the sea. We walked out along a beautiful sandy, grassy spit where we found autumn ladies tresses growing. I tend to find this orchid growing on the coast in limestone areas, but this is the most exposed location I've seen it at, little more than a metre above sea level.

Poulnabrone Dolmen, The Burren, County Clare

Flowers:

Devil's bit scabious

Bloody cranesbill

Irish Eyebright

Rusty back fern

Limestone polypoddy

Maiden hair fern

The Burren is a wonderful place of limestone pavement as far as the eye can see, and this combined with a mild Atlantic climate results in an array of flowers comparable with anywhere in the British Isles. At its heart is the neolithic burial tomb of Poulnabrone Dolmen, over 5000 years old. We were too late in the season to fully appreciate the flora, but even so it was a pleasure to be here on a beautiful, warm and sunny day.

Cliffs of Moher, County Clare

Chough

Fulmars

Ravens

Gannets

The Burren, County Clare

We've finally arrived at the Burren in County Clare. The limestone pavements of the Burren are world famous for their flowers and I've wanted to see them for many years, and though September is a bit late in the season, tomorrow should be an exciting day. For now though, we're in O'Conners pub in Doolin,  enjoying a pint of guiness and some live music!

Rossbeigh Strand, Dingle Bay

Great northern diver 2 (ad sum & juv)

Common scoter 40

Little egret 3

Curlew 50

Dingle Peninsula, Kerry

Sabine's gull 1 from Slea head

Chough 30 Slea head
Black guillemot 15

Gannet 100

Common scoter 20

Wheatear 1

Grey plover 1 summer plumage

Ringed plover 10

Dunlin 1

Bar-tailed godwit 1

Oystercatcher 100

Little egret 2

Shag 50

Fulmar 50

Stunning scenery and some great birds. The sab and the Gannets all flew past at close range.