So, the 4th year of keeping this little blog going kicks off again. I've no targets or expectations for the year, I will see what I see, and there will doubtless be plenty of birds that I fail to see, either owing to no means of getting to see them, or them turning up when I'm at work/otherwise indisposed. So much the same as any other year really. Hopefully my identification skills will continue on their upwards journey, and that I manage to find a few more 'good' rarities (even a 3rd Red Flanked Bluetail would be good...), and maybe I'll even manage to find a Caspian or Yellow Legged Gull by December 31st. Time will tell.
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| Jack Snipe |
Anyway, I decided on an early start for January 1st and with around 12 miles worth of walking ahead of me, I decided that if it took all day it would probably not be quite as exhausting as doing it in 3 or 4 hours. I was out the door at around 0800 and the local Herring Gulls were yet again the first birds onto my list for 2017. It was still relatively low light and there were only a few Robins and Blackbirds heard before the second species for the day was seen - a vocal Carrion Crow on a tenement roof on Graham Street. Unfortunately, it appeared I'd misjudged things slightly and it was still rather gloomy when I reached Caird Park.
A skein of Pink Footed Geese headed north, and a single Siskin flew over. Both Robin and Blackbirds hopped around on the golf course but I missed Redwings which I heard passing over. At the ponds there was no sign of the Kingfisher, only 4 Mallards and 2 Moorhens. A Goldfinch overflew the old graveyard opposite the castle and there were a few Feral Pigeons flying around as the sun crept towards the horizon. Woodpigeons clattered out from the trees and a pair of Jackdaws chased each other around the treetops. A Dunnock popped out in front of me, near the bridge over the Gelly Burn.
I spooked 2 Mistle Thrushes that I failed to spot in the gloom, though I managed to see the one that perched atop a tall conifer opposite the 9-hole golf course starter's box. I heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker 'drumming' from near the castle so headed in that direction for a look. A few Chaffinches were in the trees, and a single Great Spotted Woodpecker flew out towards the ponds. However the drumming continued and I eventually spotted the male that was making the noise. A few Blue Tits were next onto the list, before a couple of Common Gulls were seen over the 9-hole golf course fairways as I searched for a view of a mewing Buzzard.
A Wren scolded from a tangle of branches in below the line of trees to the north of the graveyard, and I heard a couple of Jays loudly calling down towards the main road so I headed in that direction but failed to see them, though a Grey Heron which flew down the Dighty Burn was a decent bonus. I decided that I had probably spent enough time in the park and there were dog-walkers appearing from every direction, so I headed up past the athletics stadium and cycling track after adding Great Tit to the list. The only further addition before leaving the park was a Goldcrest high in the trees.
As I crossed the Kingsway I heard a Fieldfare calling and saw it fly over heading west. As I wandered along Mains Terrace I saw 4 Magpies fly out over the wasteground. As the reason for taking this route was to try for Magpie, I was pleased to get them so easily. At Swannie Ponds there were Black Headed Gulls, Common Gulls, Herring Gulls, Mallards, Tufted Ducks, Mute Swans, Moorhens and 2 Coots. One of the Black Headeds was ringed - green JN69, a Norwegian ringed bird and a regular visitor for the past few winters.
House Sparrow and Starling were seen on my way to Kingsway East where there had been a few sightings of Waxwings in recent days by Stuart Green of Angus Birdtours. A few Mistle Thrushes milled around in trees near DC Thomsons and I thought I could see birds in trees out front of the houses on the north side of the road. When I checked, I was pleased to see they were birds and that they were, as hoped, Waxwings. I crossed the dual carriageway and grabbed a couple of quick photos before heading back across the road. Things were pretty quiet until I reached the former Scott Fyffe garage at the Arbroath Road/Kingsway roundabout. I spotted a few birds fly into the tall trees at the back of the bus shelter opposite. These proved to be 3 Redwings.
There was activity among the bushes and small trees on the actual traffic roundabout (or circle, as we call them here in Dundee). One or two Redwings and a smaller bird which I was surprised to find was a male Blackcap. Seconds later another small bird chased it from its perch. This was another Blackcap, a female (or youngster). Not a bird I expected to get on January 1st but a very welcome one. I headed next for the Stannergate and hopefully some waders and maybe ducks on the river. A pair of Carrion Crows were trying to break shells on the road as I passed. There were Herring Gulls on the water, and a few Black Headed Gulls also. A single Curlew was feeding on the edge of the beach while a Redshank foraged further round to the east.
A single Goosander youngster/female was feeding among the gulls on the water. Further on I could see a Grey Heron by the water's edge. There were Oystercatchers feeding along the shore. Well out on the river I spotted 2 pairs of Red Breasted Mergansers and eventually a Turnstone near Douglas Terrace. A small dog was chasing a Redshank back and forward along the water's edge while the dog-walker shouted for it to come to her. I doubt it could even hear her, but it spent around 15 minutes chasing the birds. I eventually told the woman why it was a bad idea for the dog (her sister's apparently) for the dog to be chasing the birds at this time of year. She hadn't realised this before and said she would keep the dog on a lead in future to stop it chasing the birds, though it made no difference to the amount of effort that she used to get the dog to actually stop chasing the birds, there and then. There were Woodpigeons passing westwards in large groups throughout the day and sometimes Redwings too lower down.
There were Mute Swans, Black Headed and Herring Gulls and a Redshank or two between the 2 ends of the harbour area at Broughty Ferry. Preparations for the New Year's 'dook' were well under way and I skirted around the burger stands to get to the castle. A female Eider was further out in the river and there were 3 Red Breasted Mergansers closer in to shore. A pair of Pied Wagtails flew past and I caught up with them on the beach around the other side of the castle. Further on, I bumped into my pal, Kenny, as he wandered out from the dunes with his dog. We had a chat while I scanned the beach and river. There were 3 black and white birds just a bit too far away to be sure of their identity out on the water, though them having their backs to me didn't really help. A Rock Pipit flew past with the Pied Wagtail pair.
I thought the mystery birds might be Brent Geese and once I'd finished chatting to Kenny, I headed down the beach for a closer look. It turned out to be a trio of pale bellied Brent Geese, quite probably the ones I'd seen at Tentsmuir Point just over a month ago. Another good January 1st find. Also on the wet sand were a number of Ringed Plovers and a single Dunlin. My birding pal, Jacqui had messaged me to tell me she'd found some Waxwings nearby but that she'd meet up with me, so I headed up to the road just in time to see her driving along towards me.
We decided to head into the small local nature reserve behind the flats next to the Glass Pavilion restaurant. A Greenfinch flew past and there were Blue Tits, Robins, Wrens, Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Woodpigeons and Goldfinches seen as we wandered along. A Goldcrest gave us really good views before a lady (who was an ADBC member apparently) stopped to ask what we were photographing. A little further on, I spotted a bird on top of an ivy covered tree stump in one of the gardens over the railway line. A rather nice Jay. Another one clawed back from the 'heard-only' list from earlier. We headed out to the beach again and scanned along towards Balmossie to see if it was worth continuing our walk that way. It was. A pair of Wigeon were swimming along the edge of the water and we could see a group of waders on a small stretch of sand.
There were more Ringed Plovers and Dunlin further up the beach but by the water's edge were a group of Bar Tailed Godwits and some Knot. I managed to find a couple of Grey Plover as well before the birds took flight. The reason was a Peregrine passing over headed east. Another nice bird to get. At the mouth of the burn, there were Redshanks, Turnstones, various gulls including the first Great Black Backed of the year, Starlings, Dunlin and Ringed Plover. Offshore were Wigeon, Mallard and slightly further out were Eider. There was also a huge raft of Eider well out in the river. Unfortunately on came a shower of rain and we retreated to the shelter of the lee side of the footbridge over the railway line.
A single Song Thrush flew across the road as we headed back towards the nature reserve but disappeared below the rose bushes. Thankfully, I was able to see enough of the bird's underside to get the species onto the list for the day which was sitting at a rather healthy and unexpected 55 species. I suggested we could head along to Riverside Nature Park to see if we could add anything else there and Jacqui agreed. We stopped briefly where she'd seen the Waxwings but there were only 3 Redwings there.
At the Nature Park, we picked up Mistle Thrush on our way in, followed by Redwing and Carrion Crow. We headed for the boggy area in the hope of Snipe. Jacqui spotted some of the grass stems moving just before a couple of Snipe broke cover and flew off. Another 5 soon followed in quick succession without us even having to enter the water-logged area. When I eventually did venture into the vegetation, a single bird broke cover from close by, without calling and I quickly managed to rattle off 3 photos which proved it to be the hoped for Jack Snipe. We had views of a Magpie flying around, and Robin and Herring Gull were soon joining the Nature Park list.
A Buzzard appeared from the direction of Ninewells, and a Blackbird flew across the path in front of us. An Oystercatcher was next to fly past, in the direction of the bay, as we wandered in the direction of the Lochan. Feral Pigeons and Woodpigeons could be seen passing over Ninewells in large-ish groups. A Wren gave us decent views before we reached the Lochan. There was quite a selection at the Lochan with Teal and Mallard on the water, a Grey Heron stood among the vegetation and Redshank and Black Tailed Godwits across the far side. A Black Headed Gull flew over.
The first Stock Dove of 2017 was spotted a little further west as one circled round above the Lochan, with another pair slightly higher in the air. As we headed towards the hide, a Dunnock gave us really good views but we were interrupted by the distinctive calls of Waxwings. We managed to see around half a dozen birds flying over the road towards Invergowrie. A Chaffinch was in the trees behind the hide. More Redshanks and a few Dunlin were on the small 'beach' down from the hide. A skein of Pink Footed Geese were spotted off to the west and others flew over us minutes later. Jacqui spotted a Grey Wagtail by the burn, near the tunnel outflow. A small charm of Goldfinches contained a single Greenfinch and a Common Gull circled above the bay before dropping in to join the other gulls.
Heading back along the path we added Jackdaws and there were a few more Carrion Crows in the field before I spotted 4 Fieldfares heading out over the bay towards Invergowrie. Near the junctions of the paths and the hill another familiar call was heard, but it took a few seconds to register what it was, but both myself and Jacqui realised it was actually a Skylark and I managed to grab a couple of photos. One notable omission from the list for the whole day was Cormorant though Jacqui had seen one well out above the river from Broughty Ferry. I scanned the river in hope before actually picking one up in flight headed towards Kingoodie. The 64th species for the day. With that we headed back into the city centre where Jacqui dropped me off and we both headed for home. A Pied Wagtail in the High Street and a small charm of Goldfinches in trees on Dens Road were all that I saw on my way home.
All in all a very good start to 2017 with some unexpected birds spotted, and some hoped for birds actually found. Meeting up with Jacqui saved me a long walk home which probably wouldn't have added too many extra species, and gave me the chance to add Riverside Nature Park (and 9 extra species seen) to the places visited.
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| Great Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Magpie |
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| Common Gull & Black Headed Gull (JN69) |
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| Waxwing |
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| Waxwing |
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| Blackcap |
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| Blackcap |
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| Redwing |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Black Headed Gull |
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| Dunnock |
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Grey Heron |
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| Pink Footed Goose |
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| Red Breasted Merganser |
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| Grey Heron |
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| Redshank vs dog |
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| Starling |
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| Redwing |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Red Breasted Merganser |
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| Eider |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| House Sparrow |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Dunlin & Ringed Plover |
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| Brent Goose |
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| Wigeon & Oystercatcher |
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| Goldcrest |
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| Jay |
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| Peregrine |
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| Bar Tailed Godwit, Knot & Black Headed Gull |
55 species seen outwith the Nature Park - Bar tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, (Pale Bellied) Brent Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Coot, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Fieldfare, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Jay, Knot, Linnet, Magpie, Mallard, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Peregrine, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Redwing, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Siskin, Song Thrush, Starling, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Waxwing, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.
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| Jack Snipe |
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| Jack Snipe |
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| Buzzard |
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| Feral Pigeon |
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| Grey Heron & Teal |
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| Teal & Black Tailed Godwit |
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Fieldfare |
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| Buzzard |
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Teal, Redshank & Dunlin |
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| Skylark |
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| Buzzard |
34 species seen at Riverside Nature Park (already seen birds in italics) -
Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Buzzard,
Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Cormorant,
Dunlin, Dunnock, Fieldfare, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail,
Herring Gull, Jack Snipe,
Jackdaw, Magpie, Mallard, Mistle Thrush, Oystercatcher, Pink Footed Goose, Redshank, Redwing, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Skylark, Snipe, Stock Dove, Teal
, Waxwing, Woodpigeon, Wren
