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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Robin |
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| Robin |
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| Robin |
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| Greenfinch |
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| Common Scoter |
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| Rook |
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| Skylark |
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| Grey Plover |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Black Tailed Godwit |
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| Black Tailed Godwit |
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| Black Tailed Godwit |
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| Snipe |
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| Grey Wagtail |
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| Mediterranean Gull |
With a decent weather forecast and a day off, I wanted to round off another long weekend with a few more species added to my year-list. In contrast to previous years I've been taking things relatively easy, not bursting a gut to get the list up, just taking things as they come. I had arranged to meet up with birding buddy, Nat, around lunchtime but decided to try and find the Eden estuary Brent Geese and maybe pick up some other species offshore.
I headed out early, at around 10 minutes to 8. Woodpigeon and Starling managed to get on the list before the usual Herring Gull was added at the bus stop. Carrion Crow and Feral Pigeon were seen from the bus into town and a Blue Tit flew from a tree onto a window ledge in Commercial Street as I headed for the bus station to catch a bus to St Andrews.
With the windows on the rather busy bus being filthy there wasn't much to be seen, and even less that could be safely identified. Rook at St Michaels, Jackdaw and Common Gull at Leuchars and a Grey Heron on the Motray at Guardbridge being the exceptions. Roadworks in Guardbridge held up the bus for around 15 minutes throwing my plans out a little.
Arriving in St Andrews I headed for the harbour to scan the bay. The trees along The Scores held Chaffinches, Greenfinches, Blue Tits and Great Tits. A small flock of Curlews flew up from the shore and past some of the old mansion style buildings, some used by the University. Reaching the cliffs at the castle, I had a look out across the bay. Black Headed Gulls drifted by and I picked up a few Fulmars out above the water, their wings held straight as they glided just above the waves. A Shag dived below the waves not far offshore out from the rocks.
A Great Black Backed Gull stood imperiously at the end of one of the long rocky 'fingers' which run out parallel to the harbour from the castle. A Cormorant flew by, and down among the rocks I picked out Oystercatchers, Redshanks and a Mallard pair. Reaching the harbour I was greeted by a Pied Wagtail scurrying around near the lobster creels. Some more scanning found me a Great Crested Grebe out in the bay to the north. A Rock Pipit posed for a few photos at the far end of the harbour wall. A skein of Pink Footed Geese sped overhead, blown by the strong wind out to the south-east and towards Fife Ness.
Heading back towards town I stopped to photograph a Herring Gull on the wall which stayed put allowing me to fill the frame. A few House Sparrows and a Robin hopped around among the creels and I grabbed a few photos before heading back uphill. Another Robin sang from a cliff-top bush. Some more checking out across the bay found a Red Throated Diver, with a second bird a bit further out. I had spent a bit longer than intended down at the harbour area, so I hurried down to check out the area offshore from the rocks in front of the golf museum car park. A flock of Common Scoters including one with quite a bright orange-yellow bill were reasonably close in but were diving a lot making getting worthwhile photos quite tricky.
A few Red Breasted Mergansers also popped up, while the rocks held Oystercatchers, Black Headed Gulls and Herring Gulls. A few Cormorants could be seen out to the east off the end of the rocks. A Rook flew in, landing on the sand. I thought there was a road across the golf course allowing access to Balgove Bay not too far out towards Out Head. However when I reached it, it turned out to be the greenkeepers sheds, with no public access. With time against me I decided to head out to Out Head and to scan Balgove Bay in the hope of finding the Brent Geese. The plan wasn't ideal, limiting the opportunities for finding the birds, but it was all that I had time for as the plan was to meet Nat at Guardbridge hide around 1145-1200.
Hurrying out along the road, a few Blackbirds and Greenfinches and a few flyover Carrion Crows was the sum total until I reached the fenced-off area where I spotted a Skylark stood out in the open. Reaching the end of the road I headed into the dunes. Reaching the tops of the dunes I stopped to have a look not really expecting anything. Out on the water were a few Eiders and a more distant Long Tailed Duck. An Oystercatcher down by the water, and more than a little surprisingly three Brent Geese feeding around halfway up the sand. Giving the birds a wide berth, I walked down onto the beach but this put the sun behind the birds. Not ideal for photos. However, with the glare from the sun very strong and the face of the dunes in deep shadow I figured I could probably get around into a far better position for photos with the sun at my back.
I walked back up the beach and made my way round so that I was positioned along the line of debris the geese were working their way along. Either the birds couldn't really see me, or they didn't consider me a threat as they moved towards me. A jogger wandered down to the shoreline at the far end and I expected the birds to fly off, but luckily they ignored her and she headed back into the dunes almost straight away with the birds resuming their feeding. I sat for about 10 minutes as the birds wandered around, giving me my best ever photos of the species. I turned around to see a large flock of mixed waders and gulls down by the shore a bit further round into the bay. Bar Tailed Godwits mixed with a few Knot, Dunlin, Grey Plover, Sanderling and a Curlew or two as well as a few more Oystercatchers and even a Turnstone. A pair of Goldeneye were offshore. A few Herring Gulls and Common Gulls made up the numbers. I took a few photos and then turned back to see where the geese were, only to find them flying off across the bay.
With the time now after 11am I knew I had to hurry back to try and catch a bus to Guardbridge to meet Nat but having walked over 12 miles on the Saturday my legs felt very heavy as I walked up through the dunes. A male Sparrowhawk glided over towards the golf course, which was a bit of an unexpected sighting. With my legs growing increasingly tired I hurried as fast as I could back towards the town. Goldfinches and Carrion Crow being seen. A brief stop found a Sanderling scampering along the water's edge through a gap in the dunes. A Wren popped up in a fenced off area of the dunes reclamation area. I sent Nat a text message to say I would be closer to 12 o'clock at Guardbridge and waited for a bus to arrive.
Arriving in Guardbridge at around 1155 I headed in through the gate at the south end of the park. A Blue Tit flitted around in the upper branches of the tree nearest the gate, while a Tree Sparrow chirped from atop a nest box fixed to the tree. Possibly a wee bit early for scouting nest sites, but fingers crossed for Tree Sparrows breeding here. Heading into the empty hide, I could see there weren't too many birds close by, but I opened the window anyway, as being able to hear the birds can give a second or two warning of something interesting, and it is easier to take photos with the window open.
On the mud opposite I picked out a few Lapwings, Curlews, numerous Redshanks and Black Tailed Godwits. Dunnock, Blue Tit, Greenfinch and Blackbird all loitered around the feeders. Herring and Black Headed Gulls could be seen up by the bend in the river. In addition to the waders and gulls on the mud there were a few Carrion Crows. The only ducks I could make out initially were a handful of Mallards. Two Black Tailed Godwits splashed down in the shallow water of the river in front of the hide and proceeded to indulge in quite a vicious fight, although the length of their respective bills made getting a good jab in on an opponent quite tricky, though the main aggressor did perch on the other's back while jabbing and seemingly trying to force the other Godwit under the water. Whatever the cause, the fight went on for around 30 seconds before the 'victim' had the chance to escape and flew off upriver.
Nat joined me in the hide a few minutes later and we scanned around a bit more but only succeeded in adding Shelduck to the list. We worked out a plan of sorts on where to go in the afternoon, with the area around Largo Bay the main focus. Heading south off the St Andrews road past Kincaple, we encountered a Kestrel hovering by the side of the road and nearer Strathkinness had a Buzzard fly off across the fields from its roadside perch as we approached in the car. We decided to head first to Kilconquhar then to Ruddon's Point in the hope of seeing either King Eider or Surf Scoter, though preferably both. Fieldfare and Woodpigeon were both seen before we arrived in the picturesque little village.
Just up from the small car park there is a small nature reserve, Barnyards Marsh, and a previous attempt to have a look was thwarted by just a bit too much water. It did look promising for Snipe however, so I wanted to check it out, just in case. A few Jackdaws were on the chimneys of the houses nearby, and a Stock Dove flew over. A few Blue Tits were in the small trees opposite as we headed through the small wooden gate. We hadn't gone too far along the path when a Snipe flushed despite being across the other side of a small ditch/burn and a good bit away from us. A few seconds later another two burst skywards followed shortly after by yet another three. Not a bad wee haul.
We headed back again and crossed the road to the churchyard and headed round to the quiet garden area where we could look out on the loch. It was mostly frozen with the birds and any open water quite far over to the other side. A large gull flock held four species (Black Headed, Common, Herring and Great Black Backed) but nothing exotic. The only wildfowl seemed to be small groups of ducks, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Teal, Wigeon and Goldeneye. No grebes and no Coots though. We wandered back to the car for the short drive to the caravan park so we could walk to Ruddon's Point.
A few Blackbirds and Carrion Crows seemed to be the only birds actually in the caravan park. We parked as close to the bay as we could then walked through the old world war 2 concrete blocks to check out the mouth of the burn and the beach. A small flock of Ringed Plover with a couple of Dunlin were the closest to where we were, with Oystercatcher, Curlew and Rooks a little further back. Common and Black Headed Gulls were on the beach with a couple of Bar Tailed Godwits even further away. Offshore were a few Eiders. We walked along the muddy track, stopping to scan across the bay by the end of the trees and finding a Red Throated Diver out among the waves.
The wind was rather strong and it was quite tricky to pick out many birds among the waves and with the sun more or less in the wrong place to the southwest of us, it was tricky picking out birds down among the rocks on the beach. Oystercatchers onshore and Eiders offshore being the exceptions. A flock of waders flew past and round the point. As we were to discover a few minutes later when we found them roosting on a fairly sheltered bit of the beach, these were mostly Knot. There were a few Dunlin and Turnstone picking around amongst them and a few Grey Plovers too. Out on the rocks, Cormorants roosted with a couple of adult Great Black Backed Gulls and a Curlew. A Red Breasted Merganser swam in the sheltered little bay behind the rocks. There was no sign of any Scoters at all which was a big surprise and the light made searching for the female King Eider nigh on impossible without a scope.
Lower Largo was our next stop. We saw a few Buzzards on the way but little else. We parked at the car park by the toilets at the beach and scanned around for birds. Out on the water it seemed to be only Eiders again. A few Oystercatchers were along on the beach to the east. Goldfinches called from the trees, and a Grey Wagtail flew in to land on the beach briefly. Leven was our next planned stop so once again we hit the road westwards.
A car park by the mouth of the river Leven is the usual spot for a bit of easy birding in the town, usually en route to try for Mediterranean Gull at nearby Buckhaven (which was our next planned stop too). There were plenty gulls on the opposite shore, mostly Black Headed (with another group on the beach over the seawall), but with a few Common and some Herring Gulls too. Not unexpectedly there was no Mediterranean or Iceland/Glaucous Gull amongst them. Carrion Crows, a Rock Pipit, and a pair of Turnstones along with a few Redshanks completed the list except for the Goldeneye out on the water, and a Red Breasted Merganse pair. Before we left, even more Goldeneye flew in. A quick count gave in the region of 50 of these small ducks, probably the largest flock I can remember seeing.
Shore Road in Buckhaven for some reason is probably the most reliable location in the east of Scotland if you want to see a Mediterranean Gull, so that was our final planned stop. I explained to Nat that more often than not, a Med Gull stood on the grass was the first bird you were likely to see as you headed down the hill. However, having said that it was inevitable that we would draw a blank and we did. A bit of scanning out over the Forth gave us plenty of Eiders but little else, with a few rafts of 20 or so birds quite close in to shore along with a few Herring Gulls. We headed further west to the small car park at the other end of the street, overlooking the rocky foreshore. There is always a decent chance of catching a Mediterranean Gull gliding past from here, so our fingers were crossed as we got out of the car for a look out across the river.
More Eiders were readily apparent. Herring Gulls circled round above the houses and a small flock of Oystercatchers fed nervously on the grass off to our left. A Carrion Crow dropped in briefly. Scanning offshore I finally picked up a few Common Scoters but disappointingly drew a blank on Velvets. A pair of Long Tailed Ducks zipped past quite far out, low across the waves. A duck close into shore but distant appeared to be quite small and brown, and had me puzzled until photos showed it was a female Eider, the distance and lack of nearby birds making it appear to be a smaller species. A Cormorant landed offshore before diving below the waves. Oystercatchers were down on the rocks on the other side of the breakwater and peering over the top I was careful not to spook the flock.
I caught a glimpse of a possible contender for Mediterranean Gull, but frustratingly it disappeared up among the houses and assorted gulls swirling round. A few minutes later and over our heads appeared a lovely white winged Mediterranean Gull which I pointed out to Nat. Mission accomplished. Another good Fife specialty to go with my Brent Geese from earlier in the day. A few more photos were taken of the Eiders and as we walked back to the car, Nat spotted movement among the rocks, which I missed. Her description of a jet black animal had me suspecting a Mink, and on checking later at home she found that to be the case. An animal that has up till now eluded me, but one I'd rather not see, though there are plenty around unfortunately.
We headed back up through Fife, with more Woodpigeons and Buzzards seen but not too much else except the odd flock of crows, which could be Carrion Crows, Rooks or Jackdaws or any combination of the three. One further possibility as we headed back through the patchwork of agricultural land was Grey Partridge and as we headed downhill from Strathkinness, a small covey was in the field edges by the side of the road. A nice way to finish a good day out.
63 species seen of which 8 (in bold) were new for my 2015 list, taking my total to 102 so far.
Species seen - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Brent Goose, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Common Scoter, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Fieldfare, Fulmar, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Crested Grebe, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Partridge, Grey Plover, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Knot, Lapwing, Long Tailed Duck, Mallard, Mediterranean Gull, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook, Sanderling, Shag, Shelduck, Skylark, Snipe, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.