For a variety of reasons it has been a while since I last got out and about with birding buddy, Rhona. With some free Sundays this Monday, Rhona had got in touch to see if I fancied a few trips out and about. She wanted especially to pop up to Speyside to see Crested Tits and knowing that I also try to get to that part of the world at least once a year, figured I might like to join her. The only possible fly in the proverbial ointment was the weather, March not being particularly known for warm, sunny days. As the week progressed, the forecast seemed to firm up and it did look like snow was likely further up the A9 just as we were likely to be returning southwards. I suggested an alternative and Rhona agreed, though the Crested Tits are still on the agenda for another time.
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| Water Pipit |
With a number of good birds around in the area, I had suggested a visit to East Lothian in the hope of a lifer for me in the shape of Water Pipit and with possibilities including Long Eared Owl, Black Necked Grebe and Surf Scoter it would hopefully turn out to be a productive, and enjoyable day out. Rhona arrived to pick me up just before 0800 and off we went. Feral Pigeon, Blackbird and a Great Tit were first on the list with Black Headed Gull, Carrion Crow, Herring Gull and House Sparrow all added as we headed for Tescos for fuel. As I waited in the car I saw movement in a tree by the Kingsway and a quick check through binoculars showed it to be a Song Thrush. As Rhona arrived back at the car the bird could be heard singing its repetitive and loud song above the traffic noise.
We decided to take the M90 to the Forth Road Bridge which would mean that birds would be in short supply but that we would save a bit of time over the alternative route through Fife which would likely have given us more bird species. As predicted, birds were few and far between. Rooks in the fields, a few Woodpigeons, a Pheasant or two, a flyover Starling and a small group of Curlews were the additions until we left Fife. Surprisingly we had seen no Buzzards or Magpies. As we navigated our way around the Edinburgh city bypass we succeeded in seeing both species, first the Magpie then 30 minutes later our first Buzzard of the day. As we headed down the A1 towards Dunbar I spotted a few Skylarks lifting off from a roadside field. A brief stop at Asda in Dunbar gave us a skein of overflying geese, though these went unidentified, and a few Herring Gulls.
Having studied the area we were headed for using Google Street-view the previous evening, I knew we weren't far away from our first birding stop at Whitesands Quarry where the Black Necked Grebe had been lingering for a while. A mile or so down the road we turned off down the single track road leading to the beach which skirted the large pool where hopefully we would find the bird. A brief stop by a passing place showed that there were a few birds around on the water as well as a number of very distant gulls and waterfowl further round. We continued on for hopefully a better view of the birds. Near the northeastern 'corner' we parked just off the road and I got out to scan the waters.
I had brought a small spotting scope with me and after a quick check using binoculars which gave me Goldeneye, Coot, Greylags, Little Grebe and Mallard, I rested it on a fence post to scan a bit further away. A small bird close in to the bank off to our left looked promising. The 'jizz' of the bird was different to the Little Grebe with the neck stretched all the time, and the bird seemingly happy to remain on the surface. I took a few photos which frustratingly showed very little detail with the bill especially being out of view in most of these. What detail could be seen however was enough to clinch the
Black Necked Grebe ID though the photos were of the very, very poor record shot quality. Our first good bird of the day and target number 1 on the list.
A Robin, a few Skylarks, a pair of Reed Buntings and a heard only Meadow Pipit provided a few more species. Off we went again in the direction of the Barns Ness lighthouse where hopefully the Water Pipit would be easy enough to find. I had seen a single photo of the bird on Birdguides website and it looked sufficiently different to the Rock and Meadow Pipits that I was hopeful if it was around it would be obvious. With the tide on its way in, there would also be less shoreline to check. We walked down to the beach where a small flock of Eiders were in the small bay to the north of the Ness. A Cormorant and a few Oystercatchers could be seen on the rocks. A Redshank landed on the beach and ran along the waters edge. A pair of Shelducks sailed around in the shallows.
The first Rock Pipits of the day picked around on the beach, sometimes flying a short distance calling as they went. A male Stonechat gave us good views by the small track we were on, with the slightly less showy female nearby. Another pair of Shelducks and numerous other Rock Pipits showed among the rocks near the lighthouse. We stopped to speak to a very helpful birder who told us where he had just seen the Water Pipit a few minutes before and how distinctive it actually was. We thanked him for the info and continued round past the lighthouse to the 'wreck' on the shore just beyond. Rhona concentrated on trying to photograph a Stonechat pair while I checked every Rock Pipit in the hope that one would be the Water Pipit.
A Pied Wagtail flitted around on the sand ahead of me and a few Linnets also gave brief views, while a Wren popped into the open to give a quick burst of loud song before vanishing again into cover. An interesting looking Rock Pipit with a very greyish head but brownish back, wings and tail as well as slightly finer streaking than usual and hints of pink on the breast gave good views on the seaweed in front of us. As we were watching this bird, another flew in chasing a second bird. The chased bird was clearly a Rock Pipit. The other wasn't. It was very pale brown on the back with a white breast and belly with not too much streaking. The facial markings were quite clear too with a nice strong supercilium above the eye. This was the hoped for
Water Pipit. A lifer for me. It chased a few more Rock Pipits away before settling down to a spot of foraging round on the rocks and among the rockpools. I'd read that the species was usually quite wary but this one seemed quite content to let us sit about 15 feet away taking photos as it went about its business.
A minute or so later it was off again chasing yet another Rock Pipit away. With hopefully some decent photos taken and the time already 1130 we decided to head back to the car and to make our way round the coast to Aberlady. Out on the rocks among the Redshanks roosting were a few Turnstones and a calling Grey wagtail passed right over us heading past the lighthouse. I heard a Yellowhammer near the car but couldn't find it in the bushes. As we drove back out from the car park a Magpie gave us good views as it perched on the fence. A little further on we had even better views of a female Kestrel perched on another post. Unfortunately a car coming up the road meant the bird flew off before we were able to grab some photos. There was no sign of the Black Necked Grebe where we had seen it earlier but Rhona did spot a few Roe Deer running from a dog-walker across the far side of the water.
Another Kestrel was on wires near a church as we drove up the east coast towards North Berwick. Rooks, Jackdaws and Curlews were in a field not far from Tantallon Castle. The Bass Rock looked good in the sun but seemed to be empty of its usual snowy covering of Gannets, it still being a bit too early in the year for them to be around in any numbers. Arriving at Aberlady we were lucky enough to grab a parking spot as another car left. We had something to eat before setting off across the wooden bridge towards the Marl Loch. A single Greenshank, a Shelduck, some Teal and Wigeon could be seen on the far shore. We had very nice views of a few Teal just below the bridge and I managed a few nice photos of them feeding in the mud.
Further on a Grey Heron flew off to the river with a large frog dangling from its beak. Out on the saltmarsh a single Roe Deer could be seen, with the 3 Forth bridges in the distance behind. Later as we walked back, we would see a total of 5 Roe Deer together. I could hear Bullfinches calling from within the tangle of Sea Buckthorn but they proved to be rather elusive and it was only when we were out in the open again that we finally glimpsed a few of them. There were a few other birders checking the bushes across the other side of the small lochan for the Long Eared Owls which had been seen roosting from time to time. Unfortunately we were out of luck this time. A Fieldfare among the bushes was some consolation. A Chaffinch or two flitted around in the same area while on the water a pair of Mute Swans could be seen.
As the Owls had been our main target here we decided to head back to the car to pop in to the Waterston Building a mile or so west, the SOC's headquarters. I like to browse their selection of books, hopefully picking up a bargain or two from among the specialist titles in their second-hand section. There were Blue Tits and Great Tits at the feeders outside, while a Dunnock picked around underneath. I succeeded in picking up a bargain among the books - a copy of Birds And People by Mark Cocker and David Tipling for £25 (rather than £40). It was now after 1400 so rather than a visit to the Gosford estate to try for Nuthatch we chose to continue towards Musselburgh.
A quick stop at the large car park overlooking Gosford Bay gave us a couple of new additions in the shape of Red Breasted Mergansers and Long Tailed Ducks though both species were very distant. Unfortunately for us there were no Divers or Grebes to be seen., so on we went. A Sparrowhawk shot across the road in front of us near another of the small car parks on this stretch. Just before we reached the outskirts of Musselburgh we parked in at a small car park to check out the waters to the eastern end of the Musselburgh Lagoons. On my last visit last Autumn with Nat, we had succeeded in seeing both Red Necked and Slavonian Grebe here along with Great Crested Grebes. If we had similar luck this time we would manage a first for me - all 5 UK Grebes in a single day.
A Common Gull glided by. A bird called from the rocks just offshore. A Greenshank, with a Redshank just in front of it. Beyond the rocks a Guillemot bobbed around on the surface. We walked westwards, stopping to scan from time to time. I spotted a trio of birds quite far out with a different pair a little closer in. The closer pair were drake Velvet Scoters while those just beyond were a trio of Slavonian Grebes. Unfortunately that was to be the extent of the birds on this stretch of water. I did get some video of the Slavonian Grebes of them doing not very much. Still, another species for the video collection.
Our next stop was the pools at the western end of Musselburgh lagoons. I hoped that with the tide still quite high there might be plenty waders around the pools. There were, but they were almost all Oystercatchers, though there were a couple of Redshanks too. There were plenty of Wigeon and some Teal while a Lesser Black Backed Gull was a new addition for the day lounging out on the water beside a Herring Gull. Beyond the pools near the trees I spotted a dark head and neck pop up from the grass. A second shape could be seen beside it. It took a second or so to come up with what it might be. A quick couple of photos confirmed my suspicions. A pair of
Grey Partridge, my first of the year and a nice unexpected bonus.
It was beginning to get rather cloudy and the wind seemed to be strengthening too, so we drove the short distance to the mouth of the river Esk. There were plenty of birds around, a mix of gulls, ducks and waders. Black Headed Gulls, Common Gulls and Herring Gulls were roosting out on the mud, with some on the water. Mallards, Wigeon and Goldeneye with a few Eiders further out made up the wildfowl contingent though a Mute Swan flew in as we watched. There were numerous Oystercatchers and Redshanks around on the mud. Closer in below us we watched a few Bar Tailed Godwits feeding at the waters edge, one plunging its bill full length into the soft mud. Further away there were a number of Dunlin.
We walked round a little bit further but the clouds looked rather ominous and quite snowy looking. Although snow wasn't forecast we decided not to press on any further as there didn't seem to be too much further out on the river. Instead we turned back. I spotted a few Grey Plovers in with the Bar Tailed Godwits and Redshanks on the other side of the river. It was now after 1600 and with wet weather certainly on its way we decided to head for the city bypass and the Forth road bridge and homewards. We soon ran into the wet stuff, though rather than rain, it did turn out to be snow. It was quite heavy at times and once we made it to the Fife side of the Forth we decided to cut in at Milnathort and head away from the snow and the M90 across Fife eastwards. Passing Letham Pools we spotted one final species for the day list as a cloud of Lapwings circled round above the road.
A very good day out and catch-up with Rhona with 62 species seen (year-ticks in bold), including 1 lifer, my first of 2016.
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| Herring Gull |
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| Coot |
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| Little Grebe |
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| Black Necked Grebe |
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| Stonechat |
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| Redshank |
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| Shelduck |
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| Stonechat |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Linnet |
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| Teal |
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| Roe Deer |
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| Redshank & Greenshank |
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| Velvet Scoter |
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| Slavonian Grebe |
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| Guillemot |
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Grey Partridge |
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| Bar Tailed Godwit |
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| Bar Tailed Godwit |
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| Turnstone |
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| Grey Plover & Redshank & Bar Tailed Godwit |
Species seen - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull,
Black Necked Grebe, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Fieldfare, Goldeneye, Great Tit, Greenshank, Grey Heron,
Grey Partridge, Grey Plover, Grey Wagtail, Greylag Goose, Guillemot, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Duck, Magpie, Mallard, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook, Shelduck, Skylark, Slavonian Grebe, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stonechat, Teal, Turnstone, Velvet Scoter,
Water Pipit, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.
