Having failed to find the St Andrews Ring Necked Parakeet on Sunday I was pleased to hear of another (or possibly even the same?) bird in Carnoustie on Monday and Tuesday found by Stuart Green of Angus Birdtours. Unfortunately the weather forecast for Wednesday didn't look like being too helpful with strong winds and heavy rain both forecast. As the morning progressed the heavy rain looked to be passing through before the 1500 time the bird had been seen the previous 2 days so it was another case of nothing ventured, nothing gained (though expectations of success were very low).....
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| Black Headed Gull & Common Gull |
I headed out at around 1315 to catch the bus to Carnoustie. Herring Gull and Feral Pigeon were the only birds seen before I reached Arbroath Road. There weren't too many other birds seen from the bus though I did manage to see Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon, Starling, Jackdaw, Curlew and Kestrel. Arriving in Carnoustie I walked up the street where the bird had been seen, noting House Sparrows and a Robin. I easily found the garden where the bird had been seen but the only birds around were a single Blue Tit and a Magpie. I walked around a few of the nearby streets adding Blackbird, Long Tailed Tit and Pied Wagtail to the list but a second pass by the house drew another blank.
I decided to head for Craigmill Den and then down to Westhaven though again expectation levels were very low. Goldfinch, Redwings and a Black Headed Gull were seen before I crossed the main road out of Carnoustie and onto the quieter road leading to Craigmill Den. A field full of Curlews were seen to the north and a Mistle Thrush calling loudly in a tree back by the main road was also noted. A Great Black Backed Gull was picked out distantly in a stubble field along with a lot of corvids and Woodpigeons. A couple of Rooks were on a roadside wire further on. A Chaffinch was seen before I reached the track down through the Den. A few Goldfinches flew around overhead.
Long Tailed Tits were heard but not seen across the burn after I had spooked a Grey Heron from near the weir. A Buzzard was seen down towards the southern end of the track as I walked along the muddy path. A Stock Dove flew over and a party of Mallards were seen on the burn. Other than a few more Woodpigeons and a small flock of Goldfinches there was nothing else to be seen though a party of House Sparrows were at the feeders in the front garden of the house at the bottom end of the Den path by the road.
By now the light was rapidly fading as I walked back along the cycle path to Westhaven. A Meadow Pipit called as it flew past. I cut over the bridge to the small car park to see what was on the water and beach. The tide was still rather high and the waves were rather large but a group of Black Headed Gulls were foraging just offshore. A Common Gull joined them and a Cormorant roosted on one of the wooden poles not far offshore. Just as I was about to head down onto the beach Stuart Green arrived to walk his dogs. A quick chat was had before we set off in opposite directions. Me towards Carnoustie and home, him eastwards along the beach. I added Redshank, Turnstone, Oystercatcher and a couple of Ringed Plover before I decided to call it quits and head for the bus home As I walked home back in Dundee a few hundred Pink Footed Geese flew over in the direction of the Tay.
Not a great afternoon's birding with a total of 35 species seen but the chance of the Parakeet got me out into the fresh air rather than just sitting around at home doing nothing much as would likely have been the case had it not been reported. Despite it being early November it was still relatively mild if a touch on the windy side. Once again, I didn't take very many photos, so those illustrating this post are not very numerous, or indeed very good.
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| Goldfinch |
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| Chaffinch |
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| Buzzard |
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| Mallard |
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| Curlew |
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| Common Gull & Black Headed Gull |
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| Common Gull |
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| Redshank |
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| Redshank & Ringed Plover |
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| Oystercatcher |
Species seen - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Cormorant, Curlew, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Grey Heron, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mistle Thrush, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Redshank, Redwing, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Starling, Stock Dove, Turnstone, Woodpigeon.
