Once again, the weather forecast was the determining factor when it came to making a decision on where to go birding for my mid-week outing. Strong winds were forecast coming from the northwest which meant that it was not going to be particularly warm. This ruled out a visit to Kinnordy as the wind would be blasting in the hide windows all day. There was also the possibility of the Tay Road Bridge being closed at some point during the day, which made Fife a risky proposition. I had the added complication of a visit to the dentist first.
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| Pied Wagtail |
When I got home after the dentist appointment I decided my best option was to try for Little Gull off Westhaven. The tide wasn't exactly in my favour so I decided to try Arbroath first for Iceland Gull or maybe a Glaucous Gull, though it was more in hope rather than expectation. I headed out just after 1030 to try and catch the 1045 number 39A to Arbroath. Feral Pigeon and Herring Gull were the only birds seen on the walk to the bus stop on Arbroath Road. This wasn't unexpected given the strength of the wind. Common Gull, Woodpigeon and Oystercatchers were seen on the football pitches near the Claypotts junction. Carrion Crow, Buzzard, Rook and Jackdaw were seen along the dual carriageway to Arbroath.
I got off the bus at Elliot to check the burn mouth gull roost but found only Herring Gulls and a few Great Black Backed Gulls. A few Sanderling scurried around on the sand. Offshore I could see a few Eider. A Pied Wagtail landed nearby before I set off towards Arbroath. A few more Pied Wagtails and a few Rock Pipits were encountered on the beach including one that I think was a moulting Scandinavian (Litorallis) bird with a mix of grey and olive feathering and a hint of yellow on the breast where the spots were rather faded. Continuing on to the rear of the cinema I found a Curlew while a Cormorant fished offshore.
Round towards the harbour I stopped to watch a flock of Starlings down among the rocks by the breakwater. The Black Redstart was still near the ramp down to the harbour but was rather elusive though I grabbed a couple of photos before continuing on to the other side of the harbour to check the gulls bathing and roosting out on the rocks. It was more Great Black Backeds and Herring Gulls and a single Black Headed Gull with full hood here. A Shag flew past out over the sea. I checked the rocks further to the east but the numbers of gulls I could see didn't appear to make the walk out to the cliffs worth the effort so I decided to head for the bus station and on to Westhaven.
Passing Keptie Pond on the bus I was able to add Mallard, Coot, Mute Swan and Tufted Duck. A Grey Heron flew alongside the bus as we headed out past Elliot on the dual carriageway. A trio of Roe Deer were seen standing in a field to the south of the road a few miles further on. A Lesser Black Backed Gull shared a puddle in a field with a number of smaller gulls as the bus headed for Easthaven. I got off the bus in Westhaven and headed for the shore adding Blue Tits, House Sparrows and a number of Goldfinches on the way. A Wigeon flew in and landed as I dug the camera out of my bag at the seats by the small car park before I set off along the beach towards the Craigmill Burn mouth.
A quartet of Mallards, a few Redshanks, a Grey Plover, a small flock of Goldfinches, a couple of flocks of Turnstones and a Ringed Plover or two along with a Purple Sandpiper were noted as I wandered along the beach just ahead of a dog walker whose dog spooked a nicely posing Goldfinch that I was photographing. I found a spot out of the wind near the burn mouth and settled down to see what I could find. A pair of Bar Tailed Godwits (including a Norwegian ringed bird seen earlier in the week by Stuart Green - yellow NEV), more Eider, more Wigeon and more gulls. I scanned out over the sea but the only gulls I could see offshore were larger ones rather than the hoped for Little Gulls. A Magpie showed briefly on the chimney of the house across the other side of the burn and what looked to be a dead seal was scavenged on by a small group of Carrion Crows, though surprisingly it wasn't investigated by any of the gulls.
I did find a Razorbill, a pair of Long Tailed Ducks and a Common Scoter on the water. More scanning found a pair of Dunlin on the rocks before a brief shower of rain passed through. There was some coming and going among the Common, Black Headed, Herring and Greaat Black Backed Gulls on the rocks including a yellow ringed young Great Black Backed Gull that although unread seems to be an Isle of May bird from last year, based on what I can see on photos. As it was now after 1600 I decided to head back to catch the bus back towards Dundee. A small flock of Linnets flew past me near the horse fields and a Collared Dove landed in a tree as I neared the main road and the bus stop. Another Lesser Black Backed Gull was seen from the bus back to Dundee and a male Pheasant wandered across the road in front of the bus as we passed through Barry village. A Magpie was seen as I walked back home though I was hoping to see a Blackbird - a species I'd somehow managed to miss. (I did hear one outside later while making my tea).
Not a classic day out, though given the conditions and time of year I still managed a reasonable mix of species between the two locations. I managed a total of 44 species of bird and 1 of mammal and again had some reasonably good photo opportunities with Pied Wagtails in particular posing nicely.
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| Sanderling |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit (Litorallis?) |
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| Rock Pipit (Litorallis?) |
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| Rock Pipit (Litorallis?) |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Jackdaw |
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| Jackdaw |
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| Black Redstart |
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| Black Redstart |
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| Black Headed Gull |
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| Redshank |
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| Grey Plover |
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| Redshank |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Goldfinch |
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| Goldfinch |
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| Black Headed Gull |
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| Great Black Backed Gull, Herring Gull, Black Headed Gull & Wigeon |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Great Black Backed Gull |
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| Great Black Backed Gull |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Eider |
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| Bar tailed Godwit (Yellow NEV) |
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| Long Tailed Duck |
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| Great Black Backed Gull, Herring Gull, Common Gull, Black Headed Gull |
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| Razorbill |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Carrion Crow & Herring Gull |
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| Common Gull & Black Headed Gull |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Pied Wagtail |
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| Great Black Backed Gull & Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull & Great Black Backed Gull |
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| Great Black Backed Gull |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Bar Tailed Godwit, Wigeon, Great Black Backed Gull |
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| Cormorant |
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| Common Scoter |
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| Common Scoter |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Great Black Backed Gull |
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| Turnstone |
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| Rock Pipit |
Species seen - Bar Tailed Godwit, Black Redstart, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Common Scoter, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Eider, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long Tailed Duck, Magpie, Mallard, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Purple Sandpiper, Razorbill, Redshank, Ringed Plover, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook, Sanderling, Shag, Starling, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Wigeon, Woodpigeon.
Mammals seen - Roe Deer.
