0343 : October Lochs (26/10/16)

There was a bit of discussion on where to go for last Wednesday's outing with Nat as she had already seen elsewhere most of the possible 'target species' which had been seen around Angus in the previous few days. However, given the weather conditions (westerly winds) the other options were rather more 'hit and hope' or a race against the clock. So, we decided to head inland after all.

Gadwall
Nat picked me up at 0810 and off we went. Birds were in rather short supply and it did take a wee while before we saw any birds at all - Carrion Crow and Herring Gull starting off the list. Out in the countryside we slowly added a few others - Rooks, Woodpigeons, Collared Doves and Jackdaws. We headed first to an upland site to look for raptors, but had to settle for just a single Buzzard. We did manage to see a few other birds though with Pheasant, Chaffinch, Starling and an unexpected Stonechat giving us at least a few birds. In addition we watched a Raven flipping over onto its back as it dived down over a conifer plantation.

As we headed on to our next destination we picked up a few Fieldfares overflying and a few House Sparrows near a farm. Backwater Dam was our next stop and as is often the case here it was rather quiet though we did manage to see a Kestrel, a Grey Heron, a Cormorant and a small group of Wigeon. There were also a trio of Teal and a Little Grebe on the water down from the car park but the light was very poor making photography rather pointless.

Next stop was Loch of Lintrathen which proved to be rather more productive with flocks of thrushes moving through - Redwings, Fieldfares and a few Mistle Thrushes settled periodically in the tall trees to the south of the track to the hide. A Brambling was almost missed among the larger thrushes. A Jay flew out from the trees and our first Pink Footed Geese of the day overflew. A few Redpolls dropped into the trees as we walked to the hide from where we scanned through the numerous waterbirds on the Loch. There were a few Mallards and Mute Swans, as well as plenty of Wigeon and Coots. There were fewer Goldeneye and Pochard and among the Tufted Ducks were a couple of Scaup. A Little Grebe and a Great Crested Grebe were also found and some Greylag Geese dropped in.

A shower of rain delayed our departure from the hide but on our way back to the car we added yet more birds to the list - Robin, a flyover Grey Wagtail, Blackbird, Goldcrests and Coal Tits as well as Treecreeper and Siskin. Not a bad wee haul, though there was no sign of any returning Great Grey Shrike, which was one of our potential targets, though as of yet there had only been a bird in Glen Esk seen locally. Around at the other hide we added Blue Tit and Wren on our way in and a calling Great Spotted Woodpecker was easily found high in a conifer. We headed next to Loch of Kinnordy where Nat decided to have her lunch in the car while I headed in to the empty Gullery hide to see if I could add anything new.

A drake Shoveler was the first addition and a Reed Bunting flew past before a couple of Goosander swam out into the open. I found a single Lapwing sleeping on one of the small bogbean islands before Nat joined me. There were also the usual waterbirds here but there was no sign of any Hen Harrier, 2 of which had been seen recently, nor any interesting geese. Smew was also an outside chance, but again we drew a blank. A few other birders joined us in the hide, and a party of Snipe took flight and headed west. I spotted a Peregrine over the rear side of the Loch and a few minutes later we had a Sparrowhawk low over the reeds, A Buzzard was perched in a tree  over the far side and a pair of male Pheasants perched on a gate behind the Loch.

Forfar Loch was our next stop and we decided to do a full circuit. Our target species here was Ring Necked Parakeet - apparently there have been a couple of birds around, unreported via AGV, since at least the Summer. Having added Feral Pigeon on our way to the Loch we added Gadwall, Common Gull, Moorhen and Black Headed Gull before we set off on our circuit of the Loch. A family group of Long Tailed Tits announced their presence before we saw them. Despite lots of scanning and searching it was quite some time before we found anything else new - a Magpie pair. However, within a few minutes we had added another couple of species - Goldfinches and a rather untypical group of Bullfinches - of around half a dozen birds, one was still in partial juvenile plumage, there was a young male moulting into adult plumage and the rest were females/youngsters. A Lesser Redpoll was with the flock. A Buzzard was seen here too, but there was no sign of any Parakeets.

We had good views of the ducks, Moorhens and Coots around the eastern end before we headed for home having managed to see a decent 62 species, though none of the hoped for species were spotted.

Stonechat

Mistle Thrush

Redwing

Redwing & Brambling

Pink Footed Goose

Scaup

Wigeon, Mute Swan & Goldeneye

Coot

Pochard

Wigeon

Pochard

Greylag Geese

Great Crested Grebe

Siskin

Shoveler

Goosander

Shoveler

Shoveler & Mallard

Goosander

Peregrine

Buzzard

Gadwall

Wigeon & Black Headed Gull

Bullfinch

Moorhen

Gadwall

Wigeon
Species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Brambling, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Fieldfare, Gadwall, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Crested Grebe, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Jay, Kestrel, Lapwing, Lesser Redpoll, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Peregrine, Pheasant, Pink Footed Goose, Pochard, Raven, Redwing, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Scaup, Shoveler, Siskin, Snipe, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stonechat, Teal, Treecreeper, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.

0342 : A Carnoustie Collection (22/10/16)

The winds for Saturday looked favourable for bringing in more migrants to the Angus coast, so I decided I would get up early and head out although I was undecided just how far up the coast to start my searching. When I woke up it was raining heavily but looking at the forecast persuaded me to take a chance and get out as there was a chance that the rain would bring anything passing down at the coast and into shelter. Once the rain abated, the birds would feed up and possibly move on. Hopefully I would be in the right place to find something good.

Dipper
Slightly later than intended I headed out the door at about 0845 to walk down to Arbroath Road to catch a 73 bus. Starlings and a Blackbird started off my list for the day in a low-key fashion. Feral Pigeon and Herring Gull were added on the way to the bus stop and a Blue Tit flying across the road and a Carrion Crow attempting to eat a bit of what appeared to be Mars Bar next to the bus shelter gave me another couple of species. From the bus I added Woodpigeon, Collared Dove and Black Headed Gull before the bus reached the far end of Monifieth. Rooks and Curlews were added between Monifieth and Barry village with a Pheasant and a Stock Dove seen in the field on the outskirts of Barry.

I decided to chance the golf course and potentially Barry Buddon (if the range wasn't active) in the hope that the winds from the east had brought some birds in overnight. As I walked down the western edge of Carnoustie I saw movement across the field and watched 2 Roe Deer clambering up the far bank of the small burn. A flock of House Sparrows were in the bushes along the side of the road. Cutting along the track towards the access road into the camp I was met with a nice mix of birds with lots of activity all around. Coal Tits, Chaffinch, Song Thrush, overflying Jackdaws, Jays, and Carrion Crows plus a Wren, Great Tits and a Robin in the bushes with Skylarks high overhead and more House Sparrows plus a few Blackbirds was a nice way to start things off. A few Woodpigeons and 4 Collared Doves on overhead wires by the road added to the plethora of birds around.

I was pleased to find the red flags were not flying and that the gate into the camp across the railway was open. A Common Gull glided over and another Jay headed north inland. Walking on to near the Yeomanry Ponds a Mallard duck overflew. A few minutes further on found a flock of Goldfinches in the trees. I could hear Redpolls too but failed to pick one out among the birds I was able to see in the treetops. There were a few Blue Tits and a Treecreeper, plus at least a couple of Goldcrests in the same area of trees.

I reached a fork and decided to take the 'north' road (I'd have said it was more easterly) A distant Buzzard was being harassed by a Carrion Crow as it perched in the tops of some conifers. I could hear Long Tailed Tits and eventually managed to see some of the flock moving through the trees. Another bird heard before it was seen was a nice male Bullfinch. A Great Spotted Woodpecker landed in a small-ish tree on the golf course giving me decent views. Pied Wagtila, Meadow Pipit and Skylark were all seen along the edge of the road and the golf course. I could hear the sea just beyond the banking when I reached the end of the road I was on. I chose to go left to see if there was somewhere I could scan the water from.

A Stonechat was in the long grass and I found an opening by a sentry box at the edge of the camp. From here I could see Common Scoters among the waves in small groups. A Cormorant flew past and a Long Tailed Duck went in the opposite direction. A pair of Oystercatchers were next to fly past. More scanning found a Red Throated Diver among the waves and a pair of Rock Pipits dropped into the rocks by the edge of the golf course. I spotted a trio of Gannets flying east quite distantly. I wandered off the camp and along the edge of the golf course stopping to check the small mixed gull roost of Common, Black Headed, Herring and a single Great Black Backed Gull.

Near the leisure centre I scanned the shore picking out a few Oystercatchers among the rocks. I found a couple of Turnstones  well camouflaged among the rocks as well as a number of Redshanks and Ringed Plovers. There was a single Eider offshore and a Curlew flew along the shoreline. Further on I heard my first Grey Heron of the day and turned round to see it about to land among the rocks. As I neared the small car park at Westhaven I could see Dunlins and Bar Tailed Godwits by the water's edge. There were birders scanning from the car park (a few I recognised from having met them in the past) and we had a brief chat about what else had been seen. They'd had Knot and Golden Plover at Monifieth. Just as they were packing up to move on to Eliott a Red Breasted Merganser sped by offshore.

I walked on out the road to check out the trees around Panbride House, but they were relatively quiet except for the Rooks and Jackdaws. I managed to find a route into Craigmill Den that didn't involve the rather risky muddy steep slope where the boundary wall of the grounds met the Den. Things appeared rather quiet in the Den but I took my time allowing the Linnets on the wires to get used to me being there, though small groups took flight before settling back again. There were a few Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings with them. Well to the north I spotted a flock of Golden Plover looking like they had been spooked from a field. There were a few Blackbirds, Blue Tits and Wrens around but no sign of any Chiffchaffs or Blackcaps. Despite the favourable winds it appeared that there were only a few Skylarks on the move.

Near the footbridge at the top end I chanced upon the Dipper and was able to grab a few shots in very poor light by the bridge. The bird flew a short distance into a better lit area and I was able to get close when the bird was underwater and succeeded in getting a series of rather nice Dipper shots before the bird moved a little further on upriver. I headed back down the Den adding a Grey Wagtail by the weir and Tree Sparrows, Reed Bunting and Meadow Pipit on the wires. There were a few Goldcrests around but no Redwings. I had a brief chat to the home owner who I'd also talked to just before I'd got soaked the previous Sunday by the heavy rain. As I left the Den to head for the level crossing I heard a Kingfisher call from the other side of the road and crossed over to look over the side of the bridge. Sure enough there was the Kingfisher which spotted me and flew off below the bridge and up the river. Another nice bird to get.

The tide was still quite far out and the majority of the birds were quite distant, across the other side of the burn. A small flock of Wigeon and Mallards flew in. A Stonechat showed near the house and as I turned to walk back the white of a Wheatear's tail caught my eye as it flew up into the longer grass. It looked like it was about to land on a fence post but it didn't. I hurried back up the track to scan along the edge of the field but there was no sign of it. I had one other brief view of it as it once again flew up off the beach, some distance away, but despite lots of searching I failed to refind it. Given that all sorts of Wheatears have been turning up down the east coast, it could have been something good, potentially a lifer for me. It may well have just been a 'Northern' but I'll never know for sure. It went on the list as Wheatear sp.

A shower of rain came on and I tucked myself close in to the sandy bank to try and keep myself relatively dry. Once it had gone off again I continued on, adding a few more Stonechats as well as Pied Wagtails and Meadow Pipits on the beach. A Magpie was in trees by the houses at Easthaven. I checked the bus times to plan my next move. With the sky looking rather heavy and with showers forecast for the next few hours I weighed up the options.In the end I caught the bus to Arbroath after having to shelter from another shower, adding Tufted Duck and Coot at Keptie Pond before catching the X7 coach back to Dundee.

A pretty decent day with some good birds but once again a poor showing on the migrant front. I still managed to see 65 species in all, and was pleaseed to get some nice Dipper shots for a change, even if the ISO had to be ramped up to ISO2000.

Jay

Buzzard & Carrion Crow

Bullfinch

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Skylark

Common Scoter

Long Tailed Duck

Red Throated Diver

Stonechat

Great Black Backed Gull

Curlew & Oystercatcher

Yellowhammer

Linnet

Great Tit

Reed Bunting

Reed Bunting

Dipper

Grey Wagtail

Goldfinch

Meadow Pipit

Linnet

Meadow Pipit

Mallard
Species seen - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Common Scoter, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dipper, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Gannet, Goldcrest, Golden Plover, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Jay, Kingfisher, Linnet, Long Tailed Duck, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Reed Bunting, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook, Skylark, Song Thrush, Starling, Stock Dove, Stonechat, Tree Sparrow, Treecreeper, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Wheatear sp., Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.