With the prospect of bad weather up the A9 having meant a change of plan from going to see Crested Tits in Speyside to a productive trip to East Lothian instead the previous weekend, birding buddy Rhona was fairly champing at the bit to head north for the day on our latest outing together. With the A9 being a rather boring long drive with not too many birds to see en route I suggested taking the route over the mountains via Glenshee and the Lecht instead. This has the added bonus of taking you to within a few miles of Loch Garten, our intended destination. Hopefully we would get good, early views of the Cresties quickly allowing us to explore the local area a bit better, though in lots of ways it isn't a good time of year to visit the area for birds. However, Rhona was going whether I was going or not, so having not made it to Speyside for Cresties last year, I decided it was better to go than not. If luck was on our side I'd get a new bird for my year-list anyway.
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| Crested Tit |
Rhona arrived before 0800 to pick me up. It was a fairly typical beginning to the day list with Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon and Herring Gull seen before we set off. Feral Pigeon and Starling were added on our way to Tesco Kingsway for fuel. Lesser Black Backed Gull was next as we headed out of Dundee, while the first Pheasants of the day weren't too much further on. A pair of Mute Swans and a few unidentified gulls were around at a pool near Ballo Hill. A few Chaffinches flew up from the roadside as we neared Coupar Angus. Rooks were next to join the lengthening list and a Blackbird, some House Sparrows and a pair of Jackdaws were seen as we passed through Blairgowrie. A Song Thrush was a nice addition on the way back out of the town.
Our first Buzzard of the day was finally added around Spittal of Glenshee while a pair of Mallards were in a farmyard pond a few miles further on. Rhona spotted a gaggle of Greylags in a field but we decided not to stop for a more in-depth look through the flock. There were also Oystercatchers sharing the field. There were yet more Oystercatchers as well as Lapwings and Common Gulls and a few Mistle Thrushes in another roadside field just minutes later. We stopped at Glenshee ski centre for a quick scan of the area. We didn't have to try too hard to see Red Grouse even though the area was relatively busy with skiers. A pair of Pied Wagtails were a bit of a surprise though. A Curlew flew over as we photographed a Red Grouse near the car and another bird flying along the ridges turned out to be our first Raven of the day.
Rather surprisingly we were in Aberdeenshire on the road near Balmoral before we chanced upon our first Red Legged Partridge of the day. Surprisingly for around the next hour birds were in rather short supply with only a single Red Grouse near the Lecht, some Mistle Thrushes, a few Ravens and not too much else to be seen before we arrived in Speyside. A Meadow Pipit flew up from a field as we approached Nethybridge. Arriving at Loch Garten car park we could see a few photographers with custom perches and food placed where the light was good, waiting for Crested Tits to visit. There were a few birds around the car park area, mostly Chaffinches and Coal Tits though we did also see a few Great Tits and just as we set off for the feeders at the Osprey visitor centre I heard and then found a few Long Tailed Tits high in the trees.
There were a few folk at the feeders already, waiting patiently for Cresties to show. One of those in place looked vaguely familiar but given the location I thought I was probably wrong, and as Rhona (who knew the person I thought it was) didn't say anything I assumed I must be mistaken. After a few minutes we had our first sighting of a
Crested Tit. Frustratingly though it moved like lightning ensuring that neither of us managed a photo. We had a second chance a short while later but the photos I did get were well out of focus, being rather rushed in their execution. Blue Tits and Siskins as well as a few Great Spotted Woodpeckers were around in the trees too. Eventually the familiar looking person decided to go for lunch and got up. Even as he did so he somehow managed to not see Rhona, nor she him. It took a few more seconds before they both noticed each other and I was proven to have been correct with my identification of the out of area sighting of Bob "Beaver Boy" Smith.
After a short chat and introductions (I knew Bob via Facebook but we had never met) we debated whether to stick around for another while or to head back to the car for lunch and to try somewhere else. Lunch won, so back to the car we went. Rhona was happy that she'd seen Cresties, but frustrated that she'd failed to get any photos, as was I, though I know how tricky they can be to get good photos of, having still to get a really decent photo of the species. I suggested a drive to Strathdearn in the hope that we might get distant (or better) views of some of the raptors that can be seen in the area, and maybe the Feral Goats too that frequent the glen.
Unfortunately, we were largely out of luck with only 3 Buzzards over Boat of Garten and another 3 in Strathdearn, high above the hills. The one non-Buzzard was a Red Kite over the forested hillside across the valley but even this only gave disappointing views as it flew out of our line of sight after only a few seconds on show. From the car park at the end of the glen we saw a grand total of no birds at all. I did manage to find a trio of very distant Goats though. We debated what to do with the rest of the afternoon. I knew Rhona really wanted the Cresties so I suggested heading back to Loch Garten for a second try to which Rhona readily agreed. A skein of Pink Footed Geese passed over as we made our way back along the road through the glen.
Collared Dove was seen in Carrbridge and we added a nice mix of wildfowl species at some road side pools near Grantown-on-Spey with Teal, Wigeon, Mallard, Goldeneye and a few Greylags. A Robin greeted us at the car park. There was only a single man at the feeders who told us the Crested Tit had shown really well a few minutes previously whereas the Chaffinches had all flown off en masse. They soon returned, along with a few Siskins and plenty Coal Tits. Once again the views we had of Crested Tit were fleeting until one perched for a few seconds in a small bush below the feeders. We both took a number of photos but there were too many branches in the way and even the best of my photos were rather disappointing despite being my closest views yet. Ah well, just have to try again later in the year.
Rhona spotted a Treecreeper which proved easier to photograph than the Crested Tits and a pair of Great Spotted Woodpecker males chased each other through the trees, while a female came to the feeders. It was now around 1630 and with a long journey back down the road ahead of us we called it a day. We had intended to return the way we had come but instead chose the slightly quicker A9 route, so birds were in very short supply. Nevertheless, it had been a successful, and enjoyable day out, though the total for the day was only 43 species.
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Red Grouse |
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| Red Grouse |
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| Red Grouse |
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| Curlew |
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| Coal Tit |
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| Siskin |
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| Chaffinch |
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| Coal Tit |
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| Coal Tit |
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| Chaffinch |
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| Coal Tit |
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| Red Kite |
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| Pink Footed Goose |
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| Feral Goats |
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| Common Toad |
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| Treecreeper |
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| Treecreeper |
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| Great Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Crested Tit |
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| Great Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Great Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Chaffinch |
Species seen (year-tick in bold) - Blackbird, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull,
Crested Tit, Curlew, Goldeneye, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Long Tailed Tit, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mistle Thrush, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Raven, Red Grouse, Red Kite, Red Legged Partridge, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Siskin, Song Thrush, Starling, Teal, Treecreeper, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Woodpigeon.
