0378 : Lifts And Lochs (22/2/17)

I really have to be in the right frame of mind to spend more than about half an hour on a bus. Three quarters of an hour at a push. So, one of the places I've never visited using public transport is Loch of Kinnordy. A visit requires spending just over an hour on the bus followed by a walk out to the reserve. However, with a drake Smew possible, and maybe a Bittern, and the possibility of a Kumlien's Gull it made sense to see what the journey actually entailed. having checked the bus times I discovered that if I caught the 0831 bus I could be at Kinnordy for around 0945.

Great Crested Grebe & Red Necked Grebe

I headed out at around 0820 to walk to the bus stop on Dura Street to catch the bus to Kirriemuir. Feral Pigeon and Herring Gull kick-started the list for the day, followed quickly after by a Starling on a chimney and a Blue Tit in a tree. Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon and a flyover Goldfinch were seen from the bus stop while waiting for the slightly late running bus to arrive. Black Headed Gull was added near Caird Park. Rooks were seen as the bus neared Forfar, while Blackbirds and Jackdaws were added as the bus navigated around the town.

I got off the bus a bit earlier than I needed to, to walk to the road out to Kinnordy. There was a strong wind from the west that I would be walking directly into, but if I hoped to see the Kumlien's Gull I needed to take that particular route rather than the Kirriemuir path network route. I added House Sparrows as I walked down Tannage Brae, and there were Blue Tits around in the trees. Unfortunately, walking out along the road there weren't too many birds around, with only a single Herring Gull seen for the most part of the walk. A pair of Greylag Geese which flew past and some Oystercatchers in the field adjacent to the reserve added to the list. Rather than continue into the wind, I cut over the fence and walked the short distance down to the East hide.

There were Long Tailed Tits in the trees by the path as I headed into the hide. Out on the Loch were Wigeon, Teal, more Greylags, a few Mallards and a flotilla of Tufted Ducks. There were a few Herring Gulls and I checked through them just in case the Kumlien's Gull was with them, but it wasn't. I scanned through the ducks as well, and across the far side near the eastern end of the reeds I spotted a white bird close into the shore. The drake Smew. A year-tick, and within a few minutes of having arrived too. It came closer but no closer than around halfway across the Loch before it headed back towrds the far shore again. I was joined by Doug Milne from Blairgowrie and pointed out the Smew to him. There were Mute Swans in small groups and also still a handful of Whooper Swans too. Two Cormorants were on the fallen tree across the far side to the east of the Smew. Another birder joined us in the hide.

More scanning around found a number of Goldeneye and a flock of Lapwings dropped into the bogbean islands in front of the Gullery hide. Another birder joined us in the hide. I added Common Gull to the list and found a drake Shoveler half-hidden among the reeds way across the far side. With the strong winds, the owl box on the lone pine was visible for a change, but unfortunately if the Barn Owl was inside it was staying out of sight. One of the Cormorants landed on the water not too far from the hide showing itself to actually be a Sinensis race bird. A nice male Pheasant wandered along through the reeds near the water's edge, the wind blowing his long tail vertical.

I decided to wander along to the Gullery hide to see if there was anything to be added from there. I stopped at the feeders where I was able to add a few more species. Great Tit, Coal Tit, Chaffinch and Tree Sparrows all together, with a single Siskin. I was joined by the other birder from the hide who asked if I knew if there was anything good at Loch of Lintrathen. There was. A Red Necked Grebe. Unfortunately, I hadn't seen it, as I explained to him, as I had no way of getting there other than a long walk. He asked if I would be able to recognise it, I said yes. He offered me a lift along to try and see it. He had looked for it already 3 times but had failed to find it. If I managed to find it then it was a plus for us both.

We chatted in the car on the way along, though as he was a bit deaf and had forgotten his hearing aid, it wasn't always exactly flowing. It turned out that I had actually met him before (I'm not always great with faces until I've met someone a few times). He was Colin, from Invergowrie, and I'd met him in Arbroath with Nat when we were looking for the Glaucous Gull, and also possibly when I was with Jacqui looking for the Shorelarks in late December. I spotted a few Bullfinches in a bush by the road and shortly after a Buzzard lifted from a roadside fence post giving us great views. A great Spotted Woodpecker flew over the car also. A Shelduck was an unexpected sight as it flew along parallel to the car for a short distance when we were around halfway to Lintrathen.

We decided to try the 'old' hide first, figuring that the Grebe might be sheltering out of the wind at the western end of the Loch. A Wren was seen as we walked to the hide. From the hide I scanned through the birds on the water. Wigeon, Teal, Goldeneye, Mallards, Coots and lots of Herring Gulls, as well as a single Canada Goose. A scope would have made it possible to check the gull flock properly, but I'd decided against the extra weight of carrying one. I found a Little Grebe and also a few Great Crested Grebe as well as a small group of Pochards, but there was no sign of the Red Necked Grebe. I suggested to Colin that I would hurry along to the 'open' area near the small wooden bridge and see if the bird was tucked in the corner.

It wasn't, though there were a few Mute Swans and a Grey Heron in that corner. We scanned some more before deciding to head along to the 'new' hide at the other end of the Loch. Colin said to me to go in as he would be a minute or two getting organised so I walked the short distance down to the hide. There were Coots just to the right of the hide in the relatively sheltered small 'bay' next to the hide. In addition to the Coots there was also a Cormorant, a few Goldeneye and a Great Crested Grebe. Even better though was the bird on its own a little further to the left. The Red Necked Grebe. I opened up the window and rattled off a few photos as the bird bobbed around on the choppy water. Colin joined me in the hide and I gave him the good news and he soon found the bird thanks to my precise directions (apparently better than his wife's who he usually goes birding with. As these are along the lines of "in the tree" when there are lots of trees, I can certainly sympathise. (Not looking at anyone in particular, and with tongue firmly in cheek)).

We spent some time watching and photographing the Grebe. The Great Crested Grebe took exception to its presence and chased it off a few times which gave some nice opportunities. Eventualy we decided to move on again. Colin was heading for Murton and Balgavies so he dropped me off back at Kinnordy. There was nothing much to add at the Gullery hide except for a trio of Gadwall, so I decided to head along to the Swamp hide. A small party of Teal close to the hide flew off as I opened the hide window. It was otherwise rather quiet so I headed back to the Gullery Hide again. There had only been a single birder there when I left but there were now 4 or 5 folk in it when I arrived back.

It turned out that I'd met one of them before (and indeed he is on my facebook friends list), Tony Hilton from Aberdeenshire and we chatted away. He was hoping to see the Smew and I told him where I'd seen it earlier but there was no sign of it. I did find a Little Grebe over by the reeds at the far side but there was little else to persuade me to hang around, as time was rapidly approaching for me to leave unless I wanted to avoid hanging around for another hour, I decided to pop along to the East hide again. Tony came with me and offered me a lift along the road which would allow me to not have to rush my visit to the East hide. Once in the hide I scanned around and within ten minutes I spotted what I thought had to be the Smew again. It was and Tony was pretty pleased to get the bird on his own year-list, even if the views were rather distant. "Payment" for my lift along the road.

We headed back to the car park at around 1520. The gulls were in the field and we stopped and quickly scanned through those we could see but drew a blank on finding the Kumlien's Gull, though there were birds we could only see their heads owing to the contours of the field, so it may have been there. Tony dropped me off at the end of the road before he headed back northwards and I walked to the bus stop to wait for the bus home after what had been a rather successful day out. Only 46 species seen but 2 year-ticks (in bold) among them made it a worthwhile trip.

Whooper Swan

Mute Swan

Tufted Duck & Smew

Smew

Tufted Duck & Smew

Smew

Goldeneye & Smew

Mute Swan

Whooper Swan

Cormorant (Sinensis race)

Shoveler

Pheasant

Canada Goose

Pochard

Red Necked Grebe

Red Necked Grebe

Red Necked Grebe

Great Crested Grebe & Red Necked Grebe

Great Crested Grebe & Red Necked Grebe

Red Necked Grebe

Wigeon

Lapwing & Oystercatcher

Teal

Greylag Goose

Lapwing

Little Grebe

Species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Gadwall, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Great Crested Grebe, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lapwing, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Tit, Mallard, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pochard, Red Necked Grebe, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Shelduck, Shoveler, Siskin, Smew, Starling, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Tufted Duck, Whooper Swan, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.

0377 : American Beauty (19/2/17)

I managed to sleep through a few messages from birding pal, Jacqui, yesterday morning before waking up around 1100. Jacqui had offered in her messages to pick me up at Guardbridge and take me to Gaddon Loch to see the American Wigeon drake but when she received no reply she went herself and had really good views of the bird. Knowing that I hadn't been in the best frame of mind of late, Jacqui persuaded me to get out of my bed and to meet her at Guardbridge and she would take me to see the duck, even though she'd already been.

American Wigeon

 By the time I was organised and ready to go it was around 1230. herring Gull was first onto the list for the afternoon, with a Blue Tit calling in a tree round the corner. A Goldcrest was singing in a tree on Dens Road as it flitted around from branch to branch by the busy road. A Woodpigeon was next and as I neared the bus station, a skein of Pink Footed Geese seemed to be struggling into the wind following the line of the river but over the Seagate, heading west. Feral Pigeons were seen from the bus station as I waited for the slightly late running bus to arrive. There were Cormorants on Submarine Rock, and a Black Headed Gull and a Carrion Crow were seen around the car park at the Fife end of the bridge. Rooks were seen at St Michaels.

Arriving at Guardbridge I headed into the hide to meet Jacqui. A Great Tit was in the trees on the way in. Out front was a single Black Tailed Godwit, though there was a large flock on the river just upstream. There was a sizeable flock of Knot bunched up down by the bend in the river and scanning around added Redshank, Mallards, Oystercatcher, Shelduck and Teal to the list. Tree Sparrows and Blue Tits visited the feeders before we set off for Gaddon.

Blackbird, Starling, House Sparrow and Collared Doves were seen on the way and when we arrived at Gaddon, there was not much room in the car park but Jacqui found a spot and we got organised. On Birnie Loch there were Greylags, Mallards, a few Eurasian Wigeon, Mute Swans and a few Moorhens. Black Headed and Herring Gulls were on the grass. We headed through the gate to Gaddon. I found a drake Pochard with another pair of Wigeon and a Goldeneye was close into shore below the trees along the bank in front of us. There were numerous Coot dotted around and a single Common Gull on the water, as well as a few Tufted Ducks.

We stopped to scan at various points along the path and saw a pair of Blue Tits in the trees. A small flock of finches shot past unidentified. As we neared the far end of the Loch, Jacqui spotted the American Wigeon out in the middle of the Loch, but still relatively close to the shore. This was the best views I've had of the species and I took photos and a short video clip to make the most of the opportunity. The light was very favourable also. Unfortunately, the bird did get further away from us so we walked further round but it didn't come any closer. Instead it spent a lot of time beside a Coot, which I think it was attempting to rob of any food it happened to bring up from underwater. We were joined briefly by Angus birder, Alex Smith, and as we were leaving a Fife couple who I speak to at Guardbridge regularly arrived.

We had good views of a very tame Robin which Jacqui attempted to hand feed but it just wouldn't take the food from her hand even though it was calm enough to stay put even with her hand a few centimetres away. There were Long Tailed Tits further along the track. Three of the local Buzzards hung in the wind above the railway line, one of them being a very pale bird I think I've photographed here before. There were a few Oystercatchers on the island but there was only more of the same around the rest of the Loch, and Birnie was rather quiet also until we arrived back at the car park.

The grass was covered with Black Headed Gulls, one of which wore a white Norwegian ring (J3CC). I have a feeling I've seen a photo of this particular bird before online, so it will be interesting to find out a bit more about its history.There was a Common Gull amongst the gulls and on the water was a presumed female Barnacle Goose sticking close to her Greylag mate, and their 3 hybrid offspring, Whatever the provenance of this particular Barnacle Goose (fence-jumper from the now-defunct Fife Animal Park?), the family are a fairly regular sight around the local area. I've seen them at The Wilderness and Letham Pools as well as at Gaddon the last time I tried for American Wigeon with Nat. As I'm pretty certain I've counted the same bird for my year list in previous years I'll keep that going, and hope that I get a 100% wild bird eventually (probably around September when the returning winter flocks pass over Fife on their way to the Solway).

Heading back to Guardbridge, we added a flock of Lapwings soon after leaving Birnie and a Magpie in Ladybank by the railway station. We stopped off briefly at the Wilderness where there were Mute Swans, Mallards, Teal, Wigeon and Oystercatchers as well as a Buzzard but nothing additional to what we had seen already. Pheasants were seen as we headed along the road to Letham Pools, where a small group of Pink Footed Geese put in an appearance but it was a similar haul of mostly Mallard, Teal and Wigeon and a few gulls and Oystercatchers and not much else, except a Curlew.

Jacqui dropped me off at Guardbridge and I headed into the hide. There wasn't too much else to add there but I did get a Great Black Backed Gull, a Goosander drake and a Grey Heron. A large skein of at least 300+ Pink Footed Geese dropped in for 20 minutes or so before heading off again. I scanned through them but there didn't appear to be anything unusual in their midst. There was a lot of emergency service activity visible over by the farm where the Fife Bird Club hide is, which I later discovered was because of a very serious road accident at the Strathkinness junction. I headed for home at around 1600 after what had been quite a successful afternoon out for me with 2 new year-ticks (in bold) and some nice video and photos of the American Wigeon.

American Wigeon

American Wigeon & Coot

American Wigeon

Wigeon

Black Headed Gull

Buzzard

Greylag Goose

Long Tailed Tit

Greylag x Barnacle Goose hybrid

Greylag & Barnacle Goose

Black Headed Gull (J3CC)

Barnacle Goose

Greylag & Greylag x Barnacle Goose hybrids

Greylag, Barnacle Goose & Greylag x Barnacle Goose hybrids

Greylag x Barnacle Goose hybrid, Barnacle Goose, Greylag Goose

Pink Footed Goose

Pink Footed Goose

Pink Footed Goose

45 species seen - American Wigeon, Barnacle Goose, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Knot, Lapwing, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pink Footed Goose, Pochard, Redshank, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Shelduck, Starling, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Woodpigeon.

0376 : Hawfinch Hunt (17/2/17)

There are places that need to be visited every year to get a particular bird on the year-list (hopefully). Usually, there are a few different locations possible, so that if you don't manage to see the bird at one, you might still get it elsewhere. That isn't normally the case with Hawfinches though. Scone Palace is usually the one place in Scotland where these birds can be found, but it is not often an easy task. Despite their size they do like to loiter at the tops of tall trees and don't make too much noise. You have to work to see Hawfinches. With Nat having managed to see an unusual wintering group of the birds in Speyside very early in the year, I had the option of going on the ADBC outing to try for them, but decided against it. With nothing in particular to try for on Friday, I decided to attempt to get to Scone Palace under my own steam and then try to find the birds on my own.

Hawfinch

I had a delivery to wait in for that was coming between 0700 and 1000. Thankfully it arrived around 0820, allowing me time to get organised and out for around 0930. I had decided to try for the X7 coach to Perth, so headed for the bus station. Herring Gulls, a Jackdaw and a Blackbird were all on the roofs opposite as I left. A Carrion Crow overflew Dens Road and a Feral Pigeon was spotted near Princes Street. The usual Robin was singing near the bus station. I caught the coach with a few minutes to spare. Starling and Woodpigeon were seen as the bus headed first to Royal Victoria Hospital and then Ninewells.

There wasn't much to be seen between Dundee and Perth with a few perched roadside Buzzards and Mute Swans in a field being the sum total before more swans were seen below the Friarton Bridge. Arriving at Scone Palace I discovered that the entrance I'd intended using was marked 'no pedestrians', so I, along with 2 English lady tourists, wandered round to the side gate and entered there. Mallards were on the small pool just inside the gate. I scanned the trees along the driveway adding Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Blue Tit. A pair of Buzzards circled up in the sunshine. The gate up towards the palace was marked 'No unauthorised access', but with the option of a detour of around a mile or more to the main gate and in or the short walk uphill to where we wanted to be, the decision was made to 'sneak in'. The ladies went first as I scanned the trees and eventually having only had a glimpse of a possible Hawfinch in flight, I followed.

The track led to the children's play area and out into the main grounds. I bumped into another birder who had had no luck with seeing the Hawfinches. I wandered on towards the end of the driveway near the northeast corner of the grounds where I've had luck in the past. Great Tit and Treecreeper were added but no Hawfinches. I had a wander along the edge of the grassy area towards the driveway I'd entered by. A Yellowhammer was singing in the trees, and a small flock of Siskins overflew. As I turned to head back I spotted a couple of distant Buzzards. Beyond those I spotted another bird flapping along purposefully. It turned above the trees on the hill to the east and circled round. I took some photos which showed it to be a displaying male Sparrowhawk.

I was joined by a birder from Skipton in Yorkshire who was visiting the area, and we exchanged sightings. He'd had no luck with the Hawfinches either. We wandered back to try the corner area again. A distant Stock Dove flying past was noted. A Great Spotted Woodpecker put in an appearance before I found a single Hawfinch high in one of the trees. It flew to a different tree and we then saw a few more small groups fly in to join it. Unfortunately, the birds were rather restless and moved from tree to tree almost as soon as we found a potential viewing point. Eventually we had good views of a few of the birds including a single bird that appeared to be pulling at bark from the tree it was perched on. I even managed a 25 second video clip of this particular bird.

A Goldcrest flitted around in a tree in front of us and there were more Blue Tits working their way through the trees. A Dunnock showed briefly and a Wren was heard but not seen. I decided that I would head for the bus, so decided to head out the main gate, just in case there was something to add along that route. A Pied Wagtail flew past. I'd heard it earlier but hadn't managed to see it. There were a couple of Mistle Thrushes high in a tree in a field of sheep along the driveway, and a pair of Redwings near the gate. I didn't have too long to wait for the bus and headed back into Perth.

Some confusion with the travelineScotland app led to me eventually deciding to try for the quicker way back of catching the train back to Dundee (I wasn't in the mood of being stuck on the bus for an hour or so). A Rook was seen as I headed for the station. Unfortunately there was a queue at the ticket desk and the lady behind the counter refused to allow me to get a ticket (the lady customer at the counter offering to let me in as I only had 2 minutes before the train was due to leave). I decided  to get a ticket on the train. This proved easier said than done with the conductor not coming back to me after I asked for a ticket (he said he would be back with the ticket machine but never returned). There were a few birds added from the bus, Black Headed Gulls on the Tay, a few Teal in a small pool in a field and a small party of Pink Footed Geese near Invergowrie.

A successful trip but the travel hassles reminded me why I don't tend to travel too far on public transport if I have the choice. Only 32 species seen but the target bird (year-tick in bold) made it 2 additions to the year-list in 3 days.

Robin

Treecreeper

Sparrowhawk

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Mistle Thrush

Redwing

Species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Dunnock, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Hawfinch, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Mallard, Mistle Thrush, Mute Swan, Pied Wagtail, Pink footed Goose, Redwing, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Siskin, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Teal, Treecreeper, Woodpigeon, Yellowhammer.