STONEFACTION BIRDING: 0232 : November Rain (18/11/15)

0232 : November Rain (18/11/15)

There had been some decent birds around at the weekend, Mediterranean and Glaucous Gull reported from Lunan Bay, Black Redstart in Montrose, Great Grey Shrike at Lintrathen all via the AGV grapevine text message service. There were also White Fronted Geese reported from Kinnordy both days via the ADBC website. On Monday, a Green Winged Teal was found at Lintrathen too, so despite the rather unpromising date, there were clearly opportunities to see some good birds. Having spent the weekend at home feeling a bit run-down and thus missing out on all of the above, I wanted to get out and about with Nat on our usual Wednesday outing despite some very heavy rain and low temperatures being forecast. I was also hoping to give my new Tamron 150-600mm lens a better work-out than the previous week.

Greylag Geese

We decided to make a later start than usual with the whole of Angus under varying degrees of heavy rain until late morning. All 4 of our intended destinations for the day had hides which would provide shelter from the elements, however 2 of these would require a bit of a walk to get to. Nat picked me up at 0930 and having checked the weather a short while before, we decided to change our original plan and reverse our direction from roughly anti-clockwise to something resembling clock-wise around Angus. There wasn't much to see on our way out of Dundee with only a single Carrion Crow and Herring Gull to kick-off the list.

We headed off the A90 onto the road for Glamis which would help add a few species to the list, even if the weather was far from perfect. A flock of Common Gulls and a single Herring Gull were roosting together in one field while there were a few male Pheasants dotted around in others. Woodpigeon was next onto the list. We turned off along the Linross road adding Blackbird after a short distance. A flock of Redwings were in the trees near the farm. A small flock of Starlings overflew the car a bit further on and there were good numbers of Fieldfares around the trees at the farm. A Feral Pigeon flew off one of the sheds as we passed. Two Robins chased each other from bush to bush along the roadside.

The first Buzzard of the day was spotted on a roadside pole as we headed for Auchindorie and Kinnordy. It was raining steadily when we arrived at the reserve so we headed into the Gullery hide where there were a few birders already in. A drake Shoveler was feeding close to the hide along the edge of the reeds. Out on the bogbean islands were numerous Lapwings and Teal, and well over 100 Snipe, despite the water levels having risen a bit higher. Scanning around added Goldeneye, Mute Swans, Mallards, Greylags and a Cormorant. A Reed Bunting male was found among the reeds as the rain got heavier.

A few Wigeon appeared among the Teal and a flash of white at the hole of the box on the 'lone pine' gave us first views of the day of the Barn Owl, which later showed really well, as it preened at the opening to the wooden box. A trio of Gadwall were next onto the list. There was no sign of any of the more interesting birds that have been seen recently on the reserve. No Hen Harrier, no Bittern and no Great White Egret or Smew either. There was still plenty to see however, and Goosander was added to the list as the morning progressed. Eventually we had a break from the rain and decided to take the chance to head to Loch of Lintrathen to see if we could see either the Great Grey Shrike or Green Winged Teal which had been seen in the area recently.

We walked along the rather wet track to the raised hide, hearing a few birds but seeing none. From the hide, we could see a mixture of species out on the water. Mallards, Wigeon, Tufted Ducks, Teal, Mute Swans and Coots. There were a few roosting Grey Herons in the trees along the western edge of the Loch. I found a Great Crested Grebe diving among the ducks before I started scanning through the Teal flock. The rain which had been very light previously increased its ferocity and we wondered if it would stop for long enough to allow us to stay dry when we headed back to the car. I scanned slowly backwards and forwards through the Teal but there was no sign of the Green Winged Teal among them. The rain went off and we took the opportunity to hurry back to the car for lunch.

We stopped briefly to watch Coal Tits and Goldcrests in the trees. As we neared the car I spotted a small flock of birds among the weeds beyond the fence. These turned out to be mostly Lesser Redpoll, though there was also a single Reed Bunting feeding lower down. Another Goldcrest was in the trees and a small number of Bullfinches flew in to the few trees nearby. We drove further round the Loch road to an area that I though offered our best chance of seeing Great Grey Shrike if it was still around. Blue Tit, Chaffinch and Siskin were all I managed to find here, though Nat did find a Green Woodpecker that I missed. After lunch we debated whether to head to the coast to the gull roost at Lunan Bay or to return to Kinnordy.

With limited daylight at this time of year we chose the latter option. A bit further round the Loch we spotted a Jay in flight which then landed in a tall tree, but as soon as Nat stopped the car it flew off again. A flock of Jackdaws and Rooks were seen in the fields near Kingoldrum. As we neared Kinnordy, we could see large skeins of geese in the distance but flying towards us. These turned out to be hundreds of Pink Footed Geese and they continued on their way west, rather than dropping in to join the Geylags at Kinnordy. As we headed into the hide from the car park I spotted a nice wee flock of Siskins in the trees above the path and we stopped to watch them for a minute or two.

A Dunnock was in the trees by the wooden walkway as we headed into the Gullery hide again where we found a similar mix to earlier in the day out in front. A single Pink Footed Goose overflew eastwards. The Lapwings took to the air and as they circled around a small flock of Fieldfares passed westwards over the Loch. We walked along to the Swamp hide stopping to watch some Bullfinches and a Reed Bunting feeding in the trees above the boardwalk. Out in front apart from Greylags, a few Teal and Mallards there wasn't too much else to be seen. With rain looking likely once again we headed for the East hide but a Great Spotted Woodpecker near the feeders was the only highlight and addition to the list. With the light beginning to go we chose to head for home and reached the car as the rain started to fall once again.

Despite the weather we had enjoyed a decent day out and the Tamron lens had proven to be a bit quicker to react to birds in flight than my Bigma. Only 43 species seen but a nice mixture and some decent views.

Species seen - Barn Owl, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Dunnock, Fieldfare, Gadwall, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goosander, Great Crested Grebe, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Heron, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Jay, Lapwing, Lesser Redpoll, Mallard, Mute Swan, Pheasant, Pink Footed Goose, Redwing, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Shoveler, Siskin, Snipe, Starling, Teal, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Woodpigeon.