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| Bullfinch |
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| Long Tailed Tit |
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| Kestrel |
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| Kestrel with prey (insect/spider?) |
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| Meadow Pipit |
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| Oystercatchers, Mute Swan, Black Headed Gull & Starling |
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| Reed Bunting |
I arrived at the park around 1425 and wandered in from the eastern end. First up was a Carrion Crow perched high in a tree near the entrance. Ahead of me on the grass in the park I could see something small flitting around. This turned out to be a Pied Wagtail, with this small fairly bare area one of its regular spots. A Song Thrush spotted me before I saw it and shot into the bushes on the right. A Woodpigeon clattered out the other side and over the field towards the railway line. Chaffinches and Goldfinches could be heard calling from the bushes and trees and were easy enough to see among the still bare branches. A male Bullfinch was doing his best to keep the branches bare, nibbling at the fresh buds. Wandering further on, a Blackbird spooked from the long grass into Buzzard Wood. I could hear Greenfinches calling wheezily from the trees but the strong sun made it difficult to see just where the sound was coming from.
The puddle at the southeast corner of Buzzard Wood was passable and the water levels were quite low within the wooded area itself. There wasn't too much activity here, except for a few Chaffinches and a pair of Long Tailed Tits. I decided to explore the flooded area opposite the wood in the hope of finding Jack Snipe. This area seems to retain water for most of the year, even moreso than the larger field behind the car park. A pair of Mallards flew past, having been spooked from somewhere else, and a Meadow Pipit rose from the vegetation calling as it flew over into the trees. A Herring Gull drifted over on the wind. I turned around and was surprised to see the male Kestrel hovering not too far away. He dropped lower and then again before dropping into the long grass. I hurried closer while he was out of sight but he lifted again with one talon closed around something small, which he proceeded to feed on, Hobby-style, on the wing. Looking at the rather poor photos I managed I suspect it was probably a large insect or spider, rather than anything more substantial.
I headed back into the boggy area walking towards the hedge that cuts across the area. A pale bird in a tree at Buzzard Wood caught my eye. Looking through the binoculars showed it was a male Reed Bunting. A pair of females were in the hedge ahead of me and as I got closer an unseen pair of Common Snipe burst upwards calling in alarm and shot off in opposite directions once clear of the hedge. Unfortunately I didn't manage a photo of this pair but as I don't encounter Snipe too often at the park it was still good to see them. I wandered back to Buzzard Wood where a Wren was hunting around low down. I heard a call from deep within the flooded area in the wood that I knew but couldn't initially place. After a few seconds thought, I recognised it as a Moorhen. A bit of loitering and listening resulted in hearing it again but no matter how hard I looked I was unable to see anything of the bird through the rather thick tangle of vegetation. It would be good if someone could get a positive look at this bird as it would be a new species for the park list.
Over the airport a flock of Starlings wheeled around and a pair of Carrion Crows loitered on an aerial mast. The path round to the bay via the car park was pretty much bereft of birds with hardly anything even heard. The tide was still quite far out and with the sun being rather strong and reflecting off the wet mud it was tricky to make out much against the harsh light. Redshanks and Oystercatchers were still around though numbers were rather low. A Teal was just offshore but there were none in the burn channel. A Carrion Crow glided along the edge of the hill over the heads of two dog walkers who turned to watch it as it flew down into the bay. I followed the fence line along to where the gulls bathe and scanned through the small group. Mostly Herring Gulls though there were 2 Common Gulls and 3 Lesser Black Backeds here too. A few Mallards and Redshanks were also close by, with a few more Mallards and 2 Shelducks in front of the hide.
Carrion Crows were foraging in the grassy field and looking towards the Lochan I could see Oystercatchers and Mute Swan. As I got closer I could also see a single juvenile Black Headed Gull and a Starling among the Oystercatchers. A young Herring Gull stood by the water's edge nearby. In the field with the Highland Cattle were a few Jackdaws and more Oystercatchers. A Robin was feeding in the hedge slightly further on. The small patch of trees on the hill had a few Chaffinches and I could hear a Yellowhammer calling from the oppoiste side of the path but failed to see it. Another pair of Carrion Crows were in the trees near the junction of the paths overlooking the low fields and I managed to see a Blue Tit flitting around in the tops of one of the smaller trees here.
I headed back to Buzzard Wood with only some movement of Woodpigeons to add en route. A pair of Dunnocks were hunting around among the branches on the fallen fir tree and the Long Tailed Tits could still be seen feeding among the branches further in. A female Chaffinch kept catching my eye as she moved from tree to tree, the drab colouring making me hope for a Chiffchaff but there was no sign of one, nor any calling from over by the railway line (although the clearing of a LOT of cover there won't have done much for the birtds). I wandered back through the boggy area just in case a Snipe or two had dropped back in. I did find 3 Meadow Pipits and I could hear Skylark over the airport but didn't try too hard to see one. Four Linnets flew low overhead as I reached the hedge and three Greenfinches flew out from the hedge towards Buzzard Wood. No Snipe or Jack Snipe however, so I decided to head for home around 1615.
31 species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long Tailed T|it, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Redshank, Reed Bunting, Robin, Shelduck, Snipe, Song Thrush, Starling, Teal, Woodpigeon, Wren.
(Yellowhammer, Skylark and possible Moorhen heard).