Further to Tommy's sighting of 7 White-fronted geese passing over Marloes (26.10.18) and thanks to the photo he managed to get that showed a neck collar and leg ring code (N2A). We’ve received some information from Tony Fox.
N2A was a female caught as a first winter bird at Wexford Slobs Ireland in March 2003, with siblings N5A, J0Z and J8Z (also females) and adults N0A and N3A (females) and N7A (probably the Dad), with which she associated the rest of that winter. It is not clear if N0A or N3A was the Mum, because offspring of previous years may associate with their parents for up to 13 years. N3A had likely laid eggs in summer 2003, N0A possibly may have done, so that does not really solve the question, so N2A’s parentage is a little in doubt. She associated with most of these individuals again the following year, but from 2004/5 she has been on her own, wintering most years as you will see at Wexford, but I have seen her a few times in Iceland as well in the intervening years.
An Icelandic friend of Tony Fox says
“birds had a golden opportunity to use favourable tail-winds all the way to UK on Wednesday and Thursday (24th and 25th). They all seem to have jumped on that train. Winter has arrived. We now have frost and the mountains have turned white. All ponds and lakes near Hvanneyri are frozen.”