Conservationists captured more than 60 birds during a seasonal survey at Dublin Port, more than the total caught in the previous five years combined.

Teams from the Dublin Bay Birds Project, funded by the Dublin Port Company, have spent the summer monitoring and protecting Ireland's common and Arctic terns, both 'Amber-listed' species of medium concern.

Dublin Port hosts the country's third-largest breeding colony, making it a key site for conservation efforts.

"Terns have the longest migration of any animal," the Dublin Bay Birds Project team said.

"Arctic terns, as their name might suggest, have a breeding range that extends up to the Arctic circle during our summer, before migrating down to their feeding grounds in Antarctica during our winter.

"Though common terns don't migrate as far as this, with Irish-breeding Common Terns migrating down as far as the west coast of Africa during our winter, it is still an impressive distance to travel for a bird that doesn't weigh much more than 100g."

The project involves ringing chicks and adults with uniquely coded metal and colour ID rings.

"This work helps us to assess survival rates, site fidelity (do individuals return to the same place to breed every year, or do they move elsewhere), as well as to identify migration routes when birds are resighted travelling to and from their breeding grounds," they said.

As summer drew to an end, the focus for the team shifted from chicks to adults.

"To do this, we set up mist nets near their evening roost sites. It's a task easier said than done," the project team said.

"It requires the right tides to align with the right time, and because of this, we usually only get one opportunity a year to ring adults and fledgling terns in this way.

"It is an exciting opportunity whenever it arises, and luckily, this year did not disappoint!"

The haul included not only terns but also oystercatchers, redshanks, turnstones, and even a black-tailed godwit.

"With over 60 birds captured, we caught more birds this year than in the previous five put together," the team said.

"A fantastic day for us, which offers us an opportunity to learn much more about these birds in the years to come."

Highlights of the haul included a common tern that was ringed in Senegal whilst migrating northwards in the spring, offering them an insight into the migration paths such terns take.

They also had a resighting of a common tern that was ringed in 2010.

"For a species that lives on average to around 10 years old, a resighting of a 15-year-old is pretty special," the team said.

"We colour-ringed three turnstones, which is part of a new project on this species and so we are delighted to be able to ring these for the first time.

"We also had a resighting of an oystercatcher, which helps build our knowledge on the site fidelity of this species and their migration routes between their summer breeding and winter feeding grounds," they said.

All handling and ringing are carried out by trained and licensed bird ringers under NPWS licences.