STONEFACTION BIRDING: 0183 : Ducking And Diving (19/7/15)

0183 : Ducking And Diving (19/7/15)

Having once again spent a few days feeling rather under the weather and my plans to get out about with my birding buddy, Jacqui, having to be postponed due to illness, I was determined to try and get outside for some sort of birding, even if it was just a quick trip to check on the birds at Swannie Ponds. As I hadn't checked on the Moorhen chicks at Caird Park, I wanted to check on the situation there also if possible. In addition, Nat had messaged me to say there was no sign of 'Dave' the Red Throated Diver at City Quay a few days ago, so checks had to be made there also. Unfortunately when I dragged myself out of bed it was still raining so I would have to wait for the rain to stop before I ventured out.

Red Throated Diver

I finally made it out into the daylight at around 1pm though the dark grey clouds just to the south still looked rather threatening. Standard summer fayre got the list started with the usual trio of Feral Pigeon, Herring Gull and Swift seen before I reached the end of my street. Nearing Clepington Road I added a couple of House Martins, plus Woodpigeon and a Lesser Black Backed Gull. I headed down Mains Loan towards the Kingsway rather than cut across the golf course as I usually do. House Sparrows were seen around the gardens and a Jackdaw was perched on a post near the former Keiller's site. A Chaffinch flew out from a garden as I waited to cross the rather busy dual-carriageway.

On the grass at the football pitches in the park were around half a dozen Black Headed Gulls, a family of 4 Carrion Crows, and a few Herring Gulls, while further away a Woodpigeon browsed around among the grass. Swallows swooped low above the wet grass hawking for flying insects. As I wandered up the slight slope towards the stadium entrance I heard birds calling from the trees opposite. These turned out to be a family group of Lesser Redpolls. A juvenile Robin popped out from below the hedge before vanishing again just as quickly. A Blackbird was on the grass at the side of the old cottages. A Common Gull stood alone on the grassy area just up from Mains Castle. A Buzzard drew a bit of half-hearted attention from a Carrion Crow as it drifted low over the trees towards Mill O'Mains.

A Grey Squirrel was in the trees beside the graveyard. I watched a few Blue Tits and Chaffinches foraging in the trees above the Gelly Burn for a few minutes before walking down to check out the rather overgrown ponds. The Moorhen nest I had watched, and filmed, being built up on my last visit was no longer there. However, an adult Moorhen made a bee-line straight for me, hurrying across the water to warn me off. A second adult followed close behind. No-one had told the youngsters however that I was a potential threat, and the two almost grown youngsters (of three originally) hurried along out from the reeds following the parents. Behind them, came two much smaller fluffy black chicks. It looks like a decent success rate, at least so far, for the Swannie Ponds Moorhens. The Moorhens seemed to decide I wasn't a threat after all, and they all fed among the weedy water.

A joined pair of Damselflies, possibly Common Blues, landed out on the weeds to lay eggs. This is the first time I've seen these insects here, though I don't often visit in Summer or during the main par of the day, when they are likeliest to be active. A group of Mallards were in the top half of the lower pond, though it was hard to tell if they were all a family group almost fully grown or just the resident adult males in eclipse plumage. The vegetation made it difficult to get good views. I spotted movement on the path ahead of me, as a rather pale looking moth struggled across. I managed to get it onto my hand where it sat quite relaxed as I took a few photos before setting it down on a nearby plant, on the side of the path where it appeared to be heading. It appeared to be a rather faded Emerald Moth, possibly a Light Emerald, a new species for me.

As I reached the top of the stairs between the two ponds, a flash of blue caught my eye. The tell-tale sign that the resident Kingfisher had spotted me before I had seen him. I walked slowly around the pond but there was no further sign. A female Mallard had her brood of 5 youngsters nestled down in the grass at the side of the pond just on the path, so I gave her what space I could as I edged around her, and the family stayed put. A Chiffchaff called loudly from one of the trees by the lower pond but I failed to see it. A Wren sang loudly from among the bushes also.

After two full circuits of the ponds, I decided to move on again, back up to the Kingsway and a slight detour off Mains Loan on my way to Swannie Ponds. A Pied Wagtail landed on the grass up from the castle, near where a rather heavy looking Spaniel rather optimistically was chasing the Swallows as they zipped low over the grass. Where I had seen the Lesser Redpolls earlier was now a family of Coal Tits foraging among the conifers. The gulls and crows were still around on the football pitch.

Once I finally made it across the road I spotted what looked like a Collared Dove on a TV aerial. A quick check confirmed it. A young Magpie was perched atop a wooden pole behind the gatehouse buildings in the Keiller's site and on the wires leading from it a pair of adult Goldfinches twittered away. With Magpie seen here there wasn't much I was likely to add by the wasteground opposite but I wandered along the street anyway. The roofs at the end had their usual quota of Feral Pigeons but otherwise it was rather quiet.

On reaching Swannie Ponds, I spotted one of the parent Coots by the island, and checking through binoculars discovered that all three youngsters were still alive. There weren't too many gulls around compared to usual, though a reddish scum covered areas of the pond. A few Lesser Black Backeds, Herring and Black Headed Gulls loitered out on the water, as House Martins skimmed the surface. One of the Coot adults took exception to the Mallards close by and chased them off, while a tenacious Tufted Duck female chased a few of the much larger Herring Gulls away. Another female was in the grass on the island with a pair of reasonably well-grown ducklings. I think this is the first time I've seen Tufted Ducklings here, though I don't tend to visit the ponds much in Summer usually.

Just visible on the island was one of the Mute Swans, which don't appear to have bred this year. I had great views of a Swift coming down to drink as it skimmed the surface of the pond a few times, with it's beak wide open. Unfortunately only having the P900 with me, meant no photos, or video. One of the adult Moorhens put in a brief appearance before I headed for my final stop of my short local birding outing, at City Quay. There was nothing to add on my way there, except a few gulls and pigeons. Overall, it was rather quiet.

When I reached City Quay, having crossed the footbridge across the railway line, there was nothing to see on the water at the outer quay area, though there were numerous Herring Gulls dotted around on the various rooftops nearby. As rain started to fall, I hurried into the main Quay area past the Clock Tower flats. Out on the water here were lots of juvenile Gulls, mostly Herring Gulls, though with possibly Lesser Black Backeds amongst them. There was no sign of Dave. Had the parent gulls taken umbrage at his presence and driven him from his safe haven? Or worse? I hoped neither was the case, but it wasn't looking promising. I scanned through all the birds on the water, but it was gull after gull after gull.

Eventually I spotted a bird on the water just beyond the footbridge which showed a bit of white. I stopped to look properly and there he was. Dave the Diver, still in one piece. I sent Nat a quick text confirming that he was still around, and safe. When the rain eased I walked over the bridge for a closer look. Last year, Dave almost, but not quite, made it into full breeding plumage. This year however, he has the whole ensemble going on. The red throat patch, the black and white markings on the back of his soft grey head and the speckled back. He looks like a Red Throated Diver should. He remained in the same area, holding station on the water, a short distance from the harbour wall, and slightly further away from the bridge. At one point, one of the young Herring Gulls swam over to check him out, but Dave moved away a bit and the gull moved on again.

A Linnet overflew, calling as it went, before I wandered off to the river to see if there was anything to add there. A pair of Cormorants were on 'submarine rock' but there were only gulls to be seen on the river. I headed back for a few more photos and videos of Dave before deciding to head for home just after 4pm. A Starling overflew, just as I was contemplating where I might see one on my way home, having not seen one in the preceding 3 hours. A Linnet sang from the top of a small post by the side of the Indian Buffet restaurant and allowed me to shoot a short video clip and take a few photos before it flew off a short distance and I walked home.

A nice mixture of the common and the slightly less so among the 33 species seen during the afternoon's wanderings. An earlier start had the weather permitted would probably have added a few more, with 40 species possible I suspect.

Species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Goldfinch, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kingfisher, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Lesser Redpoll, Linnet, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Pied Wagtail, Red Throated Diver, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Starling, Swallow, Swift, Tufted Duck, Woodpigeon.