 |
| Jay |
 |
| Jay |
 |
| Spotted Redshank |
 |
| Kingfisher |
 |
| Magpie |
 |
| Spotted Redshank |
 |
| Greenshank, Black Tailed Godwits, Redshank and Herring Gulls |
 |
| Redshank |
 |
| Tree Pipit |
 |
| Carrion Crow |
 |
| Reed Bunting |
 |
| Fulmar |
 |
| Tree Pipit |
 |
| Tree Pipit |
 |
| Lapwings |
 |
| Great Tit |
 |
| Long Tailed Tit |
 |
| Willow Warbler |
There are some days that are disappointing when out birding. The kind of day when you see none of the species you are looking for, or the ones you do see fly off before you can get a photo, or the weather spoils things. Most days are pretty average overall with a nice mixture of birds though some expected ones get missed and other surprises take their place. And then there are the really good days when everything just seems to click. August 31st was one of those.
With Autumn migration for waders already underway I decided to visit Riverside Nature Park in the hope of maybe finding one or two of the less common waders passing through. I decided on an early-ish start, aiming to be at the park for before 9am. The weather forecast was reasonable with decent sunshine predicted.
I left the house around 0750 to walk into town. Blue Tit was unusually the first bird onto the list for the day, with both Feral and Woodpigeon soon following. On Dens Road a Robin was seen, Collared Dove, Herring Gull and Lesser Black Backed Gull also. Feral Pigeons were seen by the Wellgate. From the bus out to the Nature Park a Carrion Crow was seen along Perth Road.
On reaching the park, a Blackbird was seen perched on a wire next to a Buzzard. A nice start. A Woodpigeon clattered out of the trees by the eastern entrance. As I took my camera out of my bag the Buzzard from the wires suddenly appeared from behind the trees as if about to land in the trees by me. I was spotted and the brakes were applied before the bird headed off towards Buzzard Wood. Great Tit and Chaffinch were next up and a really nice surprise came in the shape of a Jay, flying out from the trees close to where I stood and into the trees at Buzzard Wood. A Pied Wagtail touched down briefly on the thinly covered area of grass opposite the east end of Buzzard Wood.
I decided to head for the hide and then to work my way back through the park. The list rose relatively quickly as I followed the paths through the park in the early morning sunshine. Dunnock on the ground, Black Headed Gull overhead, Robins perched on fences, a Chiffchaff in the trees, a Blackcap nearby. A Blue Tit, then some Goldfinches and then a few House Martins hawking for insects. Carrion Crows and Herring Gulls were next. Feral Pigeons in a flock above the houses off Perth Road and an agitated Wren in the bushes. At the Lochan I added Mute Swan and Mallard with a pair of Stock Doves popping in for a quick drink before heading off towards the Perth Road houses.
A few Meadow Pipits could be heard overflying and I managed to see them against the blue sky. A Lesser Black Backed Gull drifted across towards the bay. I arrived at the hide and scanned through binoculars. The first bird I saw was one of the hoped for species - a Spotted Redshank. It was feeding in the burn outflow just in front of the hide, slightly closer than the views I normally get of the species at Guardbridge. A Kingfisher flew in and landed in a washed up tree by the bridge. My first at the park and a great addition to the growing day list. Next up was a group of 4 young Magpies which also landed in the tree, now vacated by the Kingfisher. There was a bit of a dispute with a juvenile Carrion Crow in the same tree before an adult Magpie flew in to join the youngsters. Teal and Mallard swam around nearby while Redshanks poked around nearby. A Goosander swam against the flow of the burn, head held downwards in the water looking for something to eat. A Great Black Backed Gull stood out among the Herring Gulls and Black Headed Gulls further downstream. A few Jackdaws bathed bringing my list for the park to 30 despite it only being around 50 minutes since I arrived.
Lapwings circled up from the shore where they had been hidden by the vegetation. A Song Thrush perched in a bush down from the hide. There was a bit of excitement when a female Sparrowhawk shot by close to the hide, unfortunately a bit too fast to react and get a photo. Among the Redshanks on the mud were some Dunlin and a few Black Tailed Godwits. A Grey Heron flew in and landed. A Willow Warbler showed up next in the trees by the hide. I managed to find a Greenshank among the waders then a Curlew. A few groups of Swallows headed westwards across the bay. Having been at the park for less than 2 hours the list had already passed 40 species. One of the Redshanks had a red leg ring and a yellow flag on the other leg with number 100 on it. I will have to try to find out where this bird was ringed (I suspect Aberdeenshire). The first Oystercatcher of the day was seen out in the bay. Some more scanning produced a Common Sandpiper foraging along the mud near the outer edges of the bay.
I had a wider view of the bay from by the bench and spotted a Cormorant on the outflow pipe among the gulls. A small flock of Linnets were spooked and circled round before settling again. I could hear a distant Sandwich Tern but found it difficult to see. A minute or so of continuous effort resulted in another tick. I found a Common Carpet moth in the vegetation. Starlings were next to go on the list as a pair overflew. A small party of Common Gulls headed over in the direction of Invergowrie Bay. Swallows and Meadow Pipits were still passing over in small groups. A different call made me look up and I managed to pick out the first Tree Pipit of the day. Somehow I had managed to reach 50 species for the day, although it was still not even mid-day.
I bumped into another park regular, Arthur, and had a wee chat about all the birds that were around, and wondered which birds I could get to pass the previous day-list record for the park of 53 species. Coal Tit and Greenfinch seemed the most obvious, though both could be surprisingly hard to find at times. A few minutes after leaving Arthur I added number 51 - a Reed Bunting followed a few minutes later by another bunting species - a Yellowhammer. A Sparrowhawk, the second sighting of the day circled up on a thermal. I now needed just one more species to equal the record. Could I do it? If so, what would it be?
It took another hour of wandering around before I had my answer -a Coal Tit in the trees at Buzzard Wood. Minutes later and the record had gone - an adult and juvenile Greenfinch perching in the treetops. A Magpie managed to get me another bird for the list as it flew from its perch atop one of the roadside poles to the one near the corner where it had spotted a Kestrel. The Kestrel put up some half-hearted resistance before flying off towards the airport with the Magpie giving chase.It was starting to cloud over and the wind was picking up a little. I headed back round by the bay but there was nothing new among the gulls and waders and ducks, although I did find and photograph a Peacock butterfly on the way. A Buzzard drifted over from the north and on towards the airport.
As I wandered back to the main path network I spotted a bird to the north and raised my binoculars to check it out. I then had to double-check with a photo. It was what I suspected. Not only an unexpected bird, but a patch-tick for me and a new bird from Dundee for me. A Fulmar. It was flying towards Invergowrie from the direction of Ninewells. Where was it going and where had it been? I suspect there is an overland shortcut to/from the Tay and beyond westwards used by seabirds, such as Skuas and possibly others (a dead juvenile Kittiwake was found at Scone Palace on an ADBC outing in 2013).
With the list now standing at a very impressive 56 species I contemplated giving up and heading for home, satisfied with the day's tally and a new record into the bargain. Apart from Long Tailed Tits which I had heard but failed to see three or four times in the morning, I was starting to struggle to think what else I could add. Once again however I discovered that the list wasn't quite finished yet. I spotted activity towards Ninewells and peered through the binoculars trying to identify the small birds I could see. Swallows mostly but also a rather late Swift. I managed a photo despite the distance, confirming number 57. I realised that I hadn't seen any Sand Martins, and no sooner had the thought entered my head than two of that species overflew westwards following the Swallows route towards Invergowrie and points west and south. Again I took a photo to confirm the sighting. I managed to find a Common Darter dragonfly near the lochan.
With the list approaching 60 species I decided I had to at least try to reach that milestone though I knew it would likely be rather tricky. The way my luck was going I knew there was a chance. Two Tree Pipits popped into Buzzard Wood for a bath and a feed and I did manage a few photos. I had another good view of the Jay in flight as it flew out from Buzzard Wood towards the trees by the dump. A Grey Wagtail flew by, heading west across the park. Number 59. I spotted number 60 a few minutes later - A Goldcrest in the trees by the southeast corner of Buzzard Wood. A Wren dried off after a bath. I headed back towards the car park. In the trees behind I spotted yet another species - a Common Whitethroat.
I bumped into a couple of birders in the car park who had popped down to try for the Spotted Redshank. I wandered round to scan the bay with them. There were plenty waders still around but the position of the sun was making it tricky to make out too much detail. We moved further along to scan but it was mostly Redshanks, Dunlin, Mallard and Teal in the bay. I headed back into the park getting another view of Stock Dove and another sighting of Magpie. Around 1645 I decided to call it a day and headed for the exit via a zig-zag route. Approaching Buzzard Wood again I could hear the calls of a party of Long Tailed Tits and there they were, in the trees. Bird number 62 for the day in the park. There was also a very sorry looking Great Tit among the trees, as well as another Chiffchaff. Off towards the access road a small flock of swallows were perched on the wires. I managed some nice photos of the Long Tailed Tits and some of the Great Tit before I headed up to catch the bus, very tired but satisfied with the day's haul.
The 62 species list for the park - Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Common Sandpiper, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Fulmar, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Greenshank, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Martin, Jackdaw, Jay, Kestrel, Kingfisher, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Redshank, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Sand Martin, Sandwich Tern, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Spotted Redshank, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Swift, Teal, Tree Pipit, Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer
The 8 species list for outwith the park - Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Collared Dove, Herring Gull, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon