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| Willow Warbler |
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| Arctic Skua |
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Sandwich Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Sandwich Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Arctic Skua |
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| Arctic Skua |
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| Grey Plover |
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| Sanderling |
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| Sanderling |
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| Terns and Gulls |
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| Peregrine |
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| Osprey |
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| Cormorant |
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| Peregrine |
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| Tufted Duck |
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| Teal |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Golden Plover |
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| Golden Plover |
With more reasonable weather forecast and no solid plans in place for heading out birding the following morning, I received an offer to head out and about again with my pal, Rhona. As there were some good birds around I thought that a similar route to previous outings might be worth doing, but when Rhona picked me up we decided on a wee change of plan as Rhona hadn't really seen what Fife had to offer bird-wise. We worked out a rough plan to head first to Tentsmuir, then to stop at Guardbridge around lunchtime for the tide coming in and then finally off to the Fife Ness area for a spot of sea-watching.
With the barrier at Tentsmuir not being opened till 9am we had roughly 30 minutes to kill, so I suggested popping in to City Quay to see Dave, the Red Throated Diver with the damaged wing. This would give us a good bird for the list and use up a few minutes of the 30 minutes spare. On route to City Quay we spotted Feral Pigeon, Carrion Crow and Woodpigeon. Once we arrived at the quay area there was no obvious sign of Dave, though there were a few juvenile Herring Gulls in the water. A few House Sparrows were around the flats, and a Lesser Black Backed Gull watched as we passed to turn the car and scan the easternmost quay area. Thankfully, Dave was having a sleep over in the northwest corner here. Not the best of views but a new species for Rhona. As we watched I heard a Meadow Pipit go over and managed to pick it out against the clouds. From the roadbridge we could see Cormorants out on the 'submarine'.
We headed for Tayport, Starlings and Woodpigeons seen as we passed through. A few Swallows were low over the fields as we turned down the road towards Tentsmuir and Kinshaldy beach. We walked out through the trees from the car park. A Robin was first to be added. The bushes by the forest edge held a mixture of birds - Great, Blue and Long Tailed Tits plus a Willow Warbler and a Wren. The flock was moving through the trees northwards so we positioned ourselves ahead of them and let them come to us. There were also good numbers of Chaffinches and at least one Goldcrest.
We headed north through the dunes with Swallows and Meadow Pipits passing over in small numbers. Another bird with a call that I didn't recognise went unidentified as it passed southwards. We could hear terns calling from beyond the dunes so we headed for the beach. A few Oystercatchers were down by the shoreline. An light phase Arctic Skua put in an appearance a bit to the north causing havoc among the birds within the nature reserve at Tentsmuir Point. A Bar Tailed Godwit flew past and a line of Cormorants could be seen on a sand bank. A nearer sandy island was gradually being swamped by the tide. This islet held a large roost of terns - Common, Arctic and Sandwich but also Black Headed Gulls and Kittiwakes. A long line of Goosanders were offshore with more on the beach. I counted at least 90 birds. A Great Black Backed Gull passed southwards.
Two Rooks flew north behind us and we spotted a single Sanderling foraging along the edge of the beach. A Curlew and a small flock of Ringed Plover dashed past southwards. Further offshore Gannets could be seen circling and diving. The terns were leaving the island in droves and heading north past us giving us both good photo opportunities. A Common Gull chased a Common Tern with a fish in its beak but gave up after a few seconds. Rhona was attempting to get photos of the Sanderling as I scanned out to sea. I picked up a few Eider flying by, but my attention was drawn to a closer bird, another Arctic Skua (a dark phase bird) which spent a minute or two giving chase to various seabirds.
A small flock of Sanderling flew past and landed on the shoreline not far from us allowing a few photos before they took flight again northwards along the beach. With the tide coming in we trapsed back down the beach a bit. Another island offshore held two Grey Plovers, two Kittiwakes and a Great Black Backed Gull. The plovers flew off south as the water began to lap at their feet. We headed back into the dunes to head for the car park again. Carrion Crows called as they flew past. We found a couple of young Reed Buntings among the Sea Buckthorn but there wasn't too much else seen before we made it back to the car park which was now extremely busy with people.
Guardbridge was our next planned stop so we headed back out through the forest and into Leuchars village where a few Jackdaws and a Rook were on the rooftops. A Peregrine looking rather Kestrel-like overflew the car park as we got out of the car. Greenfinches were on the feeders and Lapwings were flying around outside the front of the hide. A Common Sandpiper flew low upriver. A bit of scanning produced Canada Geese and Little Egret, both species being temporary late summer residents. There were plenty of Redshanks around, strung out along the mud opposite. I found an Osprey feeding on a fish near the 'goalposts'. It must have been a large fish because the bird was still feeding when we left around an hour later. A Carrion Crow and Herring Gull were paying close attention in case an opportunity arose to steal the catch. The two Pink Footed Geese wandered out across the mud.
A Curlew flew upstream, and I scanned through the gulls. As expected it held Black Headed, Common, Herring and Great Black Backeds. Beyond them a few Mallards swam. Scanning through the Redshanks I found a few Dunlin. A single Black Tailed Godwit stood in the water near the gulls. A very distant Shelduck was another addition to the list. A Kingfisher shot past low over the water below the hide giving us a brief glimpse. Chaffinches and a pair of Dunnocks were feeding on the ground below the feeders and a Woodpigeon flew in and landed on the gate momentarily. With the tide rising quickly there was movement of waders from other areas with the birds congregating opposite the hide. I managed to find at least three Curlew Sandpipers among the throng but drew a blank on Ruff and Curlew Sandpiper. A Teal flew across the widening river towards the mouth of the Motray where it joined a few others.
A Buzzard flew in to near the still feeding Osprey. A Grey Heron headed upriver. A Blackbird pair showed on the fence between the hide and the former paper mill. A Cormorant hunted in the river out front of the hide before flying off. Swallows twittered as they fed above the hide and another large group of maybe 20 of these birds headed south across the river. Goldfinches flew up from the salt marsh before settling once again among the long grass. Feral Pigeons flew from the paper mill upstream towards the bridge. I scanned the paper mill building to see if I could pick up the Peregrine that sometimes perches there but the distance meant I drew a blank. However, a photo showed a white blob that looked rather promising. Rhona hadn't seen a Peregrine before so we decided to go and investigate.
Having parked the car in the street opposite we crossed the road at the bridge and wandered down the track by the Motray. There were a few Greenfinches in the bushes as well as House Sparrows. We reached the end of the burn where it enters the Eden and stopped to scan the building. There, perched on the metal rail around the top, was a male Peregrine. Rhona was rather pleased to finally see one, especially so near. We took a few photos then headed back to the car. Rather than head straight to Fife Ness, I suggested checking the small pool at the end of the road as we had to turn the car round anyway. This turned out to be a good decision as the pool held a few species we hadn't seen already - two Tufted Ducks, two Teal, a Wigeon, two Little Grebes and two Mute Swans. A Collared Dove was on a lamp post as we drove through the village.
Nearing St Andrews, a Pied Wagtail was on the grass by the roadside and at the other end of town a House Martin was still visiting a nest on a house. A few Woodpigeons and Carrion Crows were all that was seen as we drove to Crail and on to Kilminning. It was rather quiet at the bottom end car park area with Linnets in the field and a few Goldfinches in the bushes. A Sparrowhawk lifted from a tree behind us and flew off into the wind. A flock of Greenfinches fed among the rose bushes. Scanning out over the sea I picked up Fulmar and Shag as well as a few Gannets. We decided against stopping at the top end and instead headed down across the golf course to Fife Ness for a spot of sea-watching. As usual the rocks to the north held Great Black Backed Gulls and Shags with a few Oystercatchers and Herring Gulls in the mix.
A Fulmar came past over the rocks in front of us and after a few minutes a flock of Golden Plover dropped in relatively nearby. Another smaller group landed a bit closer allowing us a good look. A seal popped up offshore but overall it was quite quiet with very few birds passing. A small group of Common Scoter headed north low over the water in line abreast and Gannets and gulls trickled past but none of the hoped for Skuas or Shearwaters. With Rhona hoping to be home for around 5pm or so, we called it a day and headed for home. A Magpie was on the path as headed back uphill across the golf course, and we added the final species of the day not too far outside Crail when a Pheasant flew up from the roadside.
All in all a very productive day out with 77 species seen, though no year-ticks.
Species seen - Arctic Skua, Arctic Tern, Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Common Sandpiper, Common Scoter, Common Tern, Cormorant, Curlew, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Fulmar, Gannet, Goldcrest, Golden Plover, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kingfisher, Kittiwake, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Little Egret, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mute Swan, Osprey, Oystercatcher, Peregrine, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Reed Bunting, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Sanderling, Sandwich Tern, Shag, Shelduck, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Swallow, Teal, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren.
