0442 : Carnoustie Collection (15/9/17)

Friday was technically the last day of my week off work on holiday, so once again I was determined to get out birding. However the earlier starts than usual from a few days were beginning to tell on me, and I lay in bed a good bit later than intended. I was also rather indecisive as to where I wanted to go. Fife Ness was considered but I much prefer to get there early so I can make the most of it, otherwise birding in that area feels rushed. Montrose Basin was another thought, but having already seen most of the likely wader species and the thought of over an hour each way on the bus soon dissuaded me of the notion. Eventually I settled for a trip to Carnoustie and Craigmill Den to see if the tide would bring in anything interesting.

Pink Footed Geese

It was just before 1000 when I headed out the door and Feral Pigeon was first onto the list. A high flying skein of Pink Footed Geese were heard and then spotted approaching from the north east as I walked down Maitland Street heading for Arbroath Road. Herring Gull was seen as the bus arrived. The bus journey provided a few more species with Black Headed Gull, House Sparrow, Carrion Crow, Collared Dove, Woodpigeon and Mute Swan, Jackdaw and Starling seen as the bus passed through Broughty Ferry and Monifieth. The slightly more rural section added Curlew, Oystercatcher, Rook and Swallow.

I wandered down to the shore past the golf course hotel. A few Pied Wagtails wandered around on the grass and a small group of Linnets also dropped in briefly. Offshore a single Eider wasn't too far away. Further out, I spotted a small group of dark ducks in flight which turned out to be Common Scoters. A Grey Heron flew over from the direction of the golf course, while offshore a small group of Sandwich Terns cruised around noisily calling. A few Gannets milled around. I headed east along the path up from the beach. A Robin sang from a back garden tree. A small flock of Goldfinches landed ahead of me on some of the weedy plants by the edge of the beach. On the rocks among the Sandwich Terns were a few Curlews and Oystercatchers, as well as a few Redshanks. A Red Breasted Merganser gave a good impression of a Diver species in flight but photos provided an ID.

A few White Wagtails were seen and a few Meadow Pipits passed overhead. A House Martin and more Swallows headed west along the beach staying low. I eventually managed to find a Turnstone out on the rocks. There were also a few Ringed Plover camouflaged quite well against the sand until they moved. Also on the rocks with the Sandwich Terns nearer Westhaven were a number of Kittiwakes. A large flock of Starlings were also picking around on the newly exposed beach. Something caused them all to take flight and as they did so, a Golden Plover which had gone unseen until now, caught my eye as it flew off out over the sea away from the Starling flock which soon settled back down on the sand and rocks.

A small flock of Wigeons flew past eastwards towards the congregation of birds near the Craigmill Burn mouth where I was headed next. Among the Herring Gulls, Black Headed Gulls, Kittiwakes and Common Gulls were a few Great Black Backed Gulls and at least a single Lesser Black Backed Gull. There were a number of Mallards mingling with the Wigeon along the shoreline near the burn mouth. I managed to once again jump across the narrowest part of the burn without getting my feet wet, and I wandered along to a tree trunk section on the beach where  could sit and have some lunch. A Redshank and three Dunlin fed by the water's edge.

A passing train put up birds further along the beach, including a few Lapwings. With nothing much of interest, I crossed the railway line at the level crossing and wandered up into Craigmill Den. A Buzzard spotted me before I spotted it and flew off. A Stock Dove flew over when I exited the Rookery tree's cover. A Yellowhammer perched up on the wires. I decided to take my time and see what I could find by being patient rather than hoping for the best on a normal walk through. I wasn't sure whether this approach would be successful or not as things appeared very quiet on the surface.

However, a Blackbird broke cover before a Song Thrush popped up into a small tree. A Wren showed for a few seconds among the undergrowth. The trees and bushes at the slight bend where the burn is closest to the path proved particularly productive, though again lots of patience was required. Chaffinch and Coal Tit were first and gave good views. A couple of Goldcrests picked around in the bushes by the path giving sporadic good views before flitting back behind leaves and branches. A Blue Tit would pop out into the open from time to time, at least until a Sparrowhawk flew in and landed on a fence post behind the trees, until it noticed me across the burn and off it went again.

A Chiffchaff proved elusive before giving a very fleeting view. A Great Tit and a Treecreeper shared a bush before a Grey Wagtail flew over. A Blackcap was another skulking bird but was seen flying from one bush to another. At the top end I was surprised to find that since my last visit a couple of large concrete blocks have been put in the parking spot to deter cars from parking which is going to mean anyone wishing to check the Den for birds is going to have to walk a lot further in future. More Pink Footed Geese flew over, as the sky grew more and more overcast.

I decided to head back towards Carnoustie in the hope of catching the bus back to Dundee. Unfortunately, it was early and passed me as I was halfway between the Den and Westhaven. What I didn't realise until I reached the end of the road was that the bus had been sitting for a few minutes and had I hurried I would have caught it. I checked what time the bus was due at the stop at the end of Carnoustie and it appeared that I had around three minutes so I ran, more in hope than expectation and actually arrived at the bus stop around 30 seconds before the bus.

Although I'd left the rain behind me at Carnoustie, it was moving west too. I decided to get off the bus at Balmossie to check the Dighty mouth in the hope of adding a few more species. There were a few Mute Swans and plenty of gulls along with a mixture of common waders. There were a few Goosanders and Teal by the mouth of the burn and a couple of Bar Tailed Godwits were on the beach a little to the east of the burn. I knew there was a good chance of adding Sanderling to the list so despite the threat of rain I wandered along towards the small car park near the roadbridge over the railway line.

I hadn't gone very far when three of the diminutive waders flew low and fast over the gull flock. There were others on the sand along with a couple of Dunlin and Ringed Plovers while Redshanks were out by the water's edge. By now, the rain seemed imminent so I hurried up the road to the nearest bus stop which I almost made before the rain began to fall. Thankfully, it didn't get particularly heavy until I was under cover, and the bus arrived shortly after to take me home after a shorter than usual day's birding.

Far from a classic day with little in the way of decent photo opportunities or even particularly 'good birds' with a fairly ordinary selection of species among the 60 seen which suggested that I had perhaps made the wrong choice of destination and at times I'd felt as if I didn't even want to be out birding. Maybe I was feeling a bit jaded having done little but birding and looking at photos of birds since the previous Sunday morning.

Common Scoter

Grey Heron

Cormorant

Pied Wagtail

Sandwich Tern, Herring Gull, Redshank, Starling & Turnstone

Ringed Plover

Curlew, Redshank, Turnstone & Starling

House Sparrow

Golden Plover

Kittiwake, Sandwich Tern & Oystercatcher

Pied Wagtail

Dunlin

Yellowhammer

Goosander & Herring Gull

Sanderling

Species seen - Bar tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Common Scoter, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Eider, Gannet, Goldcrest, Golden Plover, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kittiwake, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail (& White Wagtail), Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Sanderling, Sandwich Tern, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Teal, Treecreeper, Turnstone, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.

0441 : Eden After All (14/9/17)

Nat was available to go birding on Thursday again, but unfortunately not for an early start, so I decided that I would get up and out early rather than waste the more productive early morning hours when birds tend to be on the move and generally more active, or at least more noticeable. So I arranged to meet her at around 0915 at the Guardbridge hide and as she hadn't yet been to the George Evans hide at Balgove Bay we would head there and see if it was as productive as it had been for me on Tuesday. I decided that I would head to the Fife Bird Club hide at Guardbridge first to watch the birds being pushed in closer by the tide, then at Bagove Bay we could watch the tide recede and hopefully a good mix of birds.

Curlew Sandpiper

I was out before sunrise to catch the 0635 bus over to Fife. Only a Herring Gull was seen at that early hour as I walked into town, though a few more species were heard only (Robin, Blue Tit, Blackbird etc). A Kestrel was seen on the wires just a little further on from Drumoig where it is seen regularly. Rooks and Jackdaws were added at St Michaels. Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Black Headed Gull and Starling were all spotted in Leuchars and Guardbridge.

The short-ish walk to the hide at the farm was quite productive with birds seen on the river in particular adding a few extra species to the growing list. House Sparrows were in the brambles by the bridge. Greay Heron, Curlew and Goosander were viewed from the bridge, along with a few more gulls. Walking up through the village added Robin, Swallow, Goldfinch and Pied Wagtail. Once I reached the hide and got organised I was able to add a few more without trying too hard with Lapwings in particular, relatively close to the hide. A Common Gull glided over, and a small party of Cormorants flew in to the estuary. Dunlin and Redshank picked around on the mud.

Further out were a number of Mute Swans and a Great Black Backed Gull dropped in. Feral Pigeons flew westwards towards Guardbridge. There were a few ducks visible out on the river, a single female Eider, a pair of Pintail and a larger group of Wigeon. As the amount of mud available lessened, birds flew in from further away. An Oystercatcher with a yellow mud-splattered ring wandered along not too far from the hide and a party of four Golden Plover dropped in. The temperature was colder than expected and I was rather glad that I had popped a pair of fingerless gloves, a free gift from a photography magazine, into my bag. They did make a wee bit of a difference to the comfort levels though the wind being from the north didn't help.

A Meadow Pipit flew over, and a pair of Canada Geese dropped in. A small group of Teal were next to fly in. A pair of Stock Doves circled the hide briefly, before the first few Black Tailed Godwits landed alongside the other waders  now occupying a small area of mud. A flock of around 8 Skylarks headed west. A large flock of Goldfinches circled over the salt-marsh a few times before landing on the fence and the weedy plants below for a feed. A much smaller group of Linnets were briefly in view before they dropped out of sight among the grass in the field beside the horses. A Sandwich Tern was heard out over the estuary and after a bit of searching was added to the list successfully.

Nothing else was seen between then and 0855 when I decided I'd better head round to meet Nat. When I'd arrived the gate into the stables had been locked so I'd climbed over the fence to reach the hide. The gate was being unlocked as I was leaving, so I asked what time it normally gets unlocked and checked to ask if it was ok that I'd gone to the hide so early. The latter was no problem, and the gate gets opened at whatever time  the guys get there to open it, sometimes early, sometimes later. One of the guys chatted about birds for a few minutes and as he did the Canada Geese flew past. As I had a look at them, I noticed much higher in the sky, a skein of arriving Pink Footed Geese (the first having been seen on Tuesday arriving back in Scotland).

I made it around to the hide at around 0915 and found a few more species around at the feeders to add to the list - Blackbird, Dunnock, Chaffinch and Blue Tit. When Nat arrived we decided not to linger as it wasn't a particularly high tide and we had around half an hour before we would make it to the George Evans Hide. At the golf course, Pied Wagtails, Meadow Pipits, Skylark and Swallows were seen but there was nothing new to add. Arriving at the hide just after 1000, we got organised and started scanning.

There were plenty of Shelduck again, along with Lapwings, Curlews, Black Tailed Godwits, Redshanks, Grey Herons as well as Woodpigeons, Jackdaws and Rooks. An Osprey was out on one of the posts. A few Mallards were found within the throng of birds further round the bay to the west. Gannets were easy to see out over St Andrews Bay, their white plumage catching the light as they circled. Nat was feeling the cold from the northern wind coming in the windows, so we improvised a way to keep her ears a bit warmer which seemed to work quite well as she spotted the four Curlew Sandpipers flying in and landing not too far from the hide. We were then treated to much closer views than I'd had on Tuesday, and the opportunity to get some decent photos and videos.

A Chiffchaff sang from outside the hide and as I opened the door to look for it, it flew off across the estuary, though Nat's directions allowed me to catch a rear view of the bird. A Willow Warbler was heard a bit later but not seen. With the expanse of mud getting larger by the minute I looked for some of the species that I'd seen on Tuesday but hadn't yet seen today. This proved successful with Ba Tailed Godwit, Grey Plover and Ringed Plover all found within a few minutes. There was no sign of any Ruff or Knot however. We decided to head back to the car while discussing the options for the early afternoon.

Unfortunately, with Nat having to be finished birding sometime around 1400 or so, our options were rather limited. With Fife Ness, we would barely have time to scratch the surface, and The Wilderness was a bit too far away, so we were rather limited as to where we could get to, and have time to actually see things. We eventually settled on Morton Lochs, as it wasn't too far away and we might add a few more birds that we hadn't seen yet owing to the different habitat types. House Martin was added on the way and a skein of Pink Footed Geese were seen coming in, struggling into the wind.

We arrived at around 1245 and immediately added Great Tit and Goldcrest in the trees surrounding the car park. With the car park busy I figured the likelihood was that the Railway Hide would be full of Kingfisher photographers so we went the other way. There were lots of Common Darter dragonflies around, while above us in the trees we were able to see Coal Tits and Siskins. From the top hide overlooking the Loch, we added a selection of waterbirds and wildfowl - Moorhen, oot, Little Grebe and Tufted Duck. We heard the Kingfisher before we saw it fly low over the water and along to the left and out of view.

Heading back to the car, the trees seemed to be alive with Long Tailed Tits, but it took almost five minutes before we actually managed to see one, though there had to be at least 15-20 birds within a small area. A Wren popped up as Nat was photographing dragonflies. On the way to Nat dropping me off at the bus stop a pair of birds flew off from wires ahead of us. From the very brief glimpse I had, I thought they were Mistle Thrushes. Round the next bend in the road, we spotted two birds perched up on wires - Mistle Thrushes. Possibly the same birds. The arrival of a funeral cortege along the single track road meant we were held up for a few minutes, though having just missed a bus by thirty seconds or so, the wait did produce the first Buzzard of the day as one drifted slowly over the road.

Decent views of the Curlew Sandpipers was the highlight of the day though overall it didn't feel like a particularly productive day's birding somehow - perhaps over-familiarity with the Eden Estuary lately. 66 species were seen, though nothing new for the year, though a few additions to the list for my holiday week were made.

Dunlin

Pintail & Curlew

Goldfinch

Redshank

Oystercatcher

Golden Plover

Golden Plover & Curlew

Golden Plover

Canada Goose

Carrion Crow

Woodpigeon

Grey Heron

Skylark

Curlew, Lapwing & Canada Goose

Lapwing

Grey Heron

Jackdaw

Black Headed Gull

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Curlew Sandpiper

Pink Footed Geese

Common Darter

Species seen - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Gannet, Godcrest, Golden Plover, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Kingfisher, Lapwing, Linnet, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Tit, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Osprey, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Pintail, Redshank, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Sandwich Tern, Shelduck, Siskin, Skylark, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Teal, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.