I had a vague plan in place for Saturday which involved a visit to Elie for the Black Necked Grebe in better lighting conditions with sunshine being forecast, followed by a visit to Crail in the hope that Yellow Wagtails which were reported on Thursday were still around. After that I would most likely spend some more time in the area, or head to Guardbridge, with Whimbrel the main target species. After an exchange of messages with birding pal, Jacqui, we agreed to meet up for some birding in the morning along the lines of my original plan, with a relatively early morning start (meet at 0750).
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| Yellow Wagtail |
I headed out at 0715 to walk to the bus station for the 0735 bus. It was already rather a nice morning with blue skies and a bit of warmth to the sun despite the time. Unusually it was a Blue Tit that was first on the list with the local nesting pair once again looking like they are using their usual hole in the wall. House Sparrow and Blackbird were next followed by a flyover Feral Pigeon and a calling Starling on a chimney. A Woodpigeon was perched atop a lamp post and rather later than usual a Herring Gull was added to the list on Dens Road. Goldfinch and Collared Dove flew over and a singing Dunnock was added at Dens Brae.
From the bus across to Fife I added a Pied Wagtail at the bus station, a Carrion Crow by the Olympia swimming pool and a pair of Lesser Black Backed Gulls among the numerous Herring Gulls perched atop the sheds to the south of the bus station. Rook was added at St Michaels before I met Jacqui and we headed off for Elie and hopefully better views of the long-staying Black Necked Grebe. There were a few additions to the list as we headed down through Fife - Skylark, Magpie, Pheasant, Buzzard, Swallow, Yellowhammers and Jackdaws.
Arriving in Elie we headed down to the harbour area but there was no sign of the grebe offshore by the flag and buoy. There were Eiders and Oystercatchers on the rocks, and more Eiders offshore. Scanning across the flat calm water I found Guillemot and Razorbill, as well as 2 Red Throated Divers. A few Shags were also seen out on the river. A Rock Pipit showed well on the harbour wall. We found the Black Necked Grebe in the bay to the south of the harbour and despite the position of the sun managed some reasonable photos, and video.
The original plan had been to head to Crail next but with the Forth being so calm and there being virtually no wind I suggested an alternative - Ruddon's Point. There was a slim chance of finding Surf Scoter or maybe even a Black Throated Diver and with the conditions as they were if they were nearby they should be easy enough to pick out. A few minutes later we were driving through the rather busy caravan park to the western end. From there we walked first to the trees to the north to scan the beach. A small flock of Common Gulls and a Grey Heron were by the water's edge along with a few Redshanks.
Out in the bay we could already see a few Common Scoters and a Sand Martin zipped over. A Great Black Backed Gull flew through as we walked further round towards the point for a better view out over the river. A Coal Tit was spotted in a small clump of bushes with another calling from the trees behind us. The first of plenty Meadow Pipits was seen and there were a few Skylarks around. Ahead of us towards the point a large bird flapped its way low across the longer grass. Jacqui said "Buzzard!" but realised straight away that it wasn't. I knew as soon as I got the binoculars onto the bird that it was a
Short eared Owl despite it vanishing out of sight within a second of me doing so. A rather unexpected year-tick.
We had a few more views of the bird with one in particular of 20-30 seconds when a dog walker appeared at the top of the small hill and the bird took flight from its resting place among the grass. Unfortunately all my photos were out of focus, though Jacqui had better luck. Year-tick number 2 wasn't far away. A
Whimbrel called and we spotted the bird flying in and landing on the shoreline. A few minutes later we saw another 2 in flight. A pair of Sandwich Terns flew over us and a pair of Red Breasted Mergansers headed out onto the river. Scanning through the birds offshore I found a trio of Long Tailed Ducks, numerous Eiders and a few hundred Common Scoters but failed to find anything any more unusual, though we could hardly complain.
A Kestrel was seen heading over the caravan park and a male Reed Bunting showed well near the path as did a Skylark and a few Meadow Pipits. The first Linnets of the day were also briefly seen. A Wheatear was seen out on the beach to the south among the rocks. A Pied Wagtail and a pair of White Wagtails were seen on the sand. Surprisingly there were few waders around except the Whimbrels and Redshanks, though a few Oystercatchers did fly past. As we drove through the caravan park a small skein of Pink Footed Geese headed north. From the car on our way towards Crail we added 2 separate Sparrowhawks.
We drove past the muddy track where the Yellow Wagtails had been reported but saw nothing. Jacqui decided to stop at the end of the track for a few minutes and suggested that I have a walk along the track to double-check that the birds were there or not. I'm glad she did as I was lucky enough to find 2 male
Yellow Wagtails on the track beyond the majority of the puddles. I was ale to get a few good photos of one of the birds - my best of the species, though I forgot to shoot some video too. A trio of geese flew over as I reached the car again and photos seemed to suggest orange legs and bills, but I think it is just a trick of the light and they were just the expected Pink Footed Geese.
Next we headed for Kilminning, stopping on the road out to see a Roe Deer and a Pheasant. From the bottom end we added a Gannet offshore and some passing auks which went unidentified but were most likely either Razorbills or Guillemots. Chaffinch was the only other addition. Great Tit and Wren were added at the top end and a male Sparrowhawk was lurking among the trees but eventually had enough of the 2 cameras trying to get a photo through the branches and flew off. A Green Veined White butterfly was seen from the car. With Jacqui having something on in the afternoon we called an end to the morning's very successful birding and headed back to Guardbridge.
Jacqui dropped me off at the bridge and rather than cross the road I decided to walk down the muddy path by the river to see what I could find. A pair of Mallard were by the water's edge and further round were a pair of Shelduck. There were also at least 1000 Pink Footed Geese of which the majority were spooked by a walker to the south of the fields they were in and soon the sky above the bend in the river was full of geese, most of which flew off northwards. A small group dropped down into one of the fields further west. I decided I might as well investigate the side of the river beyond the reeds.
It was quite muddy in places along the south bank of the river, though I did succeed in avoiding the worst parts. A pair of Curlew flew across the river and I found a single Black Headed Gull among the Herring Gulls roosting on a sand bar in the middle of the river. I managed to get alongside the Pink Footed Geese before they spotted me but long grass in between me and them stopped me getting decent photos before they all took flight. I headed back along the river and spent 10-15 minutes trying to locate Long Tailed Tits and at least 1 singing Willow Warbler in the small copse of trees beyond the reedbed. I found the first but failed on the 2nd. A few Peacock butterflies were around, and I watched 1 chasing a bumblebee for 20 seconds or so.
I decided to head for the Eden Estuary Centre hide and a spot of lunch. I wasn't expecting to add too many new species though there were plenty of possibilities that I hadn't yet seen that day. I scanned downriver from the footbridge and picked up a distant Sparrowhawk near the military base. As I was trying to find it with the camera I caught some movement out of the corner of my eye, above and to my left. I looked up just in time to see an Osprey about to fly over about 20 feet above me, and photos of the Sparrowhawk were forgotten as I grabbed a couple of photos of the Osprey instead.
I stopped to photograph the rather tame Tree Sparrow perched in the bush by the gate into the small park where the Eden Estuary Centre is located. A Small Tortoiseshell butterfly was an unexpected bonus as I walked in through the park. The windows were all in use when I got into the hide, so I sat back a little, but between Willie Irvine and another whose name I forget, which allowed me to see most of what was happening. Black Tailed Godwit was the only addition from this spot. Gradually the hide emptied and I had the place to myself for most of the rest of the afternoon, though a few folk came in later on.
A small flock of Whooper Swans flew towards the fields beyond the farm, and a few sleeping Teal were spotted downriver. After a lot of searching I eventually found Knot and Dunlin among the other waders as the tide came in. A Cormorant was a long-overdue addition to the da's list just as I was about to pack up and head for home. Nothing else was added while waiting for the bus or on the journey home.
A very good morning's birding with a much quieter afternoon to follow resulting in a total of 67 species including 3 year-ticks (in bold) and sightings of all the 'targets' for the day. I was disappointed to screw up the owl photos and also for forgetting to shoot some Yellow Wagtail video, but seeing both species was the important part.
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Eider |
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| Razorbill (& Eider) |
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| Shag & Guillemot |
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| Black Necked Grebe |
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| Black Necked Grebe |
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| Black Necked Grebe |
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| Eider |
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| Redshank, Common Gull & Grey Heron |
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| Common Gull |
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| Skylark |
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| Long Tailed Duck |
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| Skylark |
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| Short Eared Owl |
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| Short Eared Owl |
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| Short Eared Owl |
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| Red Breasted Merganser |
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| Linnet |
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| Meadow Pipit |
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| White Wagtail |
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| Shag |
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| Whimbrel |
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| Common Scoter |
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| Reed Bunting |
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| Meadow Pipit |
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| Yellow Wagtail |
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| Yellow Wagtail |
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| Yellow Wagtail |
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| Pink Footed Geese |
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| Gannet |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Pink Footed Geese |
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| Pink Footed Geese |
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| Great Tit |
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| Pink Footed Goose |
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| Jackdaw |
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| Osprey |
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| Osprey |
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| Tree Sparrow |
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| Tree Sparrow |
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| Curlew |
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| Mallard |
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Wren |
Species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black Necked Grebe, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Common Scoter, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Gannet, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Guillemot, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Knot, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long Tailed Duck, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mute Swan, Osprey, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail (also White Wagtail), Pink Footed Goose, Razorbill, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Reed Bunting, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook, Sand Martin, Sandwich Tern, Shag, Shelduck,
Short Eared Owl, Skylark, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Swallow, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Wheatear,
Whimbrel, Whooper Swan, Woodpigeon, Wren,
Yellow Wagtail, Yellowhammer.
Butterfly species - Green Veined White, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock
Mammal species - Roe Deer
