My day out with Paul on the 1st had by necessity been around Angus as there was no public transport for me to get to Fife so it made sense that if Paul was going to have to pick me up and drop me off we might as well concentrate on the north side of the Tay. However with some buses running on the 2nd and Paul able to get out again we arranged to meet up at Guardbridge and to search for some of the recent 'good' birds around the eastern end of the county. Again the weather forecast was reasonably good though a few degrees colder than on the 1st.
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| Buzzard & Bank Vole |
The first bus to Guardbridge didn't leave until 0920 meaning I was missing out on some potential birding time between sunrise and the bus departure time. I decided to put that time to good use instead. I headed out at around 0830. Magpie, Feral Pigeon, Herring Gull and Blackbird started off day 2 followed soon after by Woodpigeon and Carrion Crow. A Black Headed Gull was seen as I waited for a bus into town on Dens Road. My plan was to look for Waxwings around the Willison Street car park area where Ian had seen them a few days earlier and where we had seen that there was still plenty potential food available the day before.
A Blue Tit was seen in the Howff. I headed round to check the area around the Police HQ and Court. I did find a tree full of Redwings but no sign of any Waxwings. Heading back towards the car park I spotted 2 birds which looked like they might be Waxwings fly over the Robertsons building before flying back the way they had come. I decided I might as well walk out past the Howff again on my way to the bus station. As I crossed the road at the western end of the graveyard I heard the unmistakeable calls of Waxwings. I quickly found the locked gate halfway along that section of wall. There were birds in a tree behind another tree. A quick check.
Waxwings they were. Some of them flew nearer Ward Road and I managed a better view unhindered by branches before heading to the bus station.
I added Starling, Mistle Thrush, Rook, Jackdaw and Common Gull from the bus which was running late because of having to re-route owing to a police incident in the city centre. I arrived at the hide at 0950 and headed in to see what was around. I quickly mopped up as many species as I could -
Goldeneye, Red Breasted Merganser, Curlew,
Lapwing, Redshank, Dunlin, Chaffinch, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow and a few distant
Pheasants. The Goldeneye, Lapwings and Pheasants were all new but there was no sign of any Little Egrets or Kingfisher. Dunnock showed below the feeders where Tree Sparrows were feeding en masse.
More scanning added Mallard, Oystercatcher and Shelduck as well as Black Tailed Godwit. We decided to head to Ruddon's Point first to try for Water Pipit and hopefully some sea ducks, grebes and divers. House Sparrow and Buzzard were seen on the way. Paul's car wasn't sounding very healthy which was worrying though he was already planning on putting it in for preventitive work anyway. We chose to change our plan slightly and stop first at Kilconquhar where a quick check of Barnyard's Marsh produced a solitary Snipe, a fly-over Mistle Thrush and a
Bullfinch. A Robin was added on the walk around to the hide. Coot, Cormorant, Little Grebe, Mallard, Mute Swan, a single
Pochard, Teal, Grey Heron and Tufted Duck were all noted before we hurried back to the car to head to the caravan park.
Driving in along the access road a Buzzard flew across in front of the car into the vegetation below the edge of the trees. The bird had caught something. Paul reversed the car back so I could get photos. The bird flew up onto a branch with a talon-full of moss, grass and an unfortunate Bank Vole clasped tightly. The bird then had to figure out how to get rid of the plant life to get to the Vole while remaining on the branch and eventually managed before the vole was swallowed whole. We had really good views of the whole process and despite the light I managed a sequence of photos that are among my best Buzzard photos yet.
We walked along to the the burn mouth through the trees from the car park.
Goldcrest and Great Tit were spotted on the way but it was otherwise rather quiet. Reaching the slope behind the bridge we could see a few pipits flying around. As we got closer there was more movement and a bird landed on the opposite shore. We were then treated to some very nice and prolonged views of a
Water Pipit and I was able to shoot a couple of video clips and get some nice photos. The bird was also Paul's first lifer of 2019. There were plenty Rock Pipits around as well. Oddly the Water Pipit flew up and over the trees as if heading for the other bay. I picked it up by its call as it re-appeared a few minutes later, the call having an almost Tree Pipit-like buzzy quality to it.
With that bird safely seen we checked the beach where some Oystercatchers were roosting. Alongside them were a few
Sanderling. Offshore were Wigeon, Mallard and Eider. A
Meadow Pipit flew up from among the long grass as we walked towards Ruddon's Point. There wasn't much happening out on the river though a
Long Tailed Duck and some
Common Scoters plus a few
Velvet Scoters were found but all were very distant. Paul found a Red Throated Diver equally distant but further round into the main body of the Forth. Turnstone and Grey Plover were discovered roosting on the rocks before we headed back to the car. A Stonechat popped up along the edge of the long grass. There were lots of Robins in a very small section of the park. A Buzzard flew along the top of the wood and a Carrion Crow was seen perched at the top of one of a tree.
As we neared the car park I was sure I could hear a Raven and shouted to Paul a short distance away who agreed it sounded like one. Just at that a corvid appeared from over the trees and we were able to see that it was indeed a
Raven. Not a bird I was expecting us to get so easily but a welcome one. There were Chaffinches, Blackbirds and a Yellowhammer near the car. Elie harbour for Black Necked Grebe was to be our next stop. Arriving at the harbour wall we had a quick look towards the bouy and flag where the bird was almost always seen before. It wasn't there. More scanning found a few
Shags and a minute or so later there was the
Black Necked Grebe. Another good bird onto the list nice and early in the year.
Although we were hoping to check St Andrews Bay for Surf Scoters we decided to pop into Cameron Reservoir to hopefully get Smew as 2 had been seen there earlier in the winter but hadn't been reported recently. Collared Dove was seen on the way to the site and Tree Sparrows were at the feeders in a garden by the dam when we arrived. A few distant
Whooper Swans could be seen along with Mallard, Tufted Duck, Coot, Pochard, Goldeneye, Teal and Wigeon out on the water. A Goldfinch flew over. We had talked to a couple of birders as we'd got out the car who told us they hadn't seen the Smew but had seen Crossbills which would be decent compensation if we too dipped on the main target bird.
We hadn't gone too far before we heard a
Crossbill call and spotted one high in a tree. We walked along a frosty track along the back of the trees and checked the water from an area where it was possible to reach the edge. I spotted a possible
Smew out towards the far side and photos confirmed it. What appeared to be a second one flew off towards the dam. A Meadow Pipit was seen feeding in the fields behind the reservoir with Chaffinches. With time increasingly against us we hurried back to the car adding a Redshank at the dam as well as a few more Crossbills flying over.
There weren't as many Scoters in St Andrews Bay as there had been the previous week but there were still lots of scanning to be done and the light wasn't great. A couple we had spoken to at Ruddon's Point were also scanning for the Surf Scoters. Two scopes doubled our chances.
Fulmar were seen around the cliffs behind us and a Great Black Backed Gull flew past. There were still plenty of Long Tailed Ducks and a flock of Eider to be seen but unfortunately no Scaup out on the water. The rocks were covered with Herring Gulls and a few Rock Pipits showed nearby. A Pied Wagtail flew over. Despite much scanning however there was to be no last gasp winner and we eventually had to concede defeat and call it a day. Paul dropped me off in Guardbridge and we both headed for our respective homes.
Another very good day out with some excellent birds among the 69 species seen, 20 of which were year-ticks (in bold). The bumpy track at Cameron also seemed to cure, at least temporarily, whatever was wrong with Paul's car engine with it sounding a lot less like a tractor than it had done most of the day. We were both on a total of 90 for the two days - Paul had Goosander but no Waxwings and I had Waxwings but no Goosander. Not a bad start to the year and hopefully much more to come.
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| Waxwing |
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| Waxwing |
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| Goldeneye & Black Headed Gull |
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| Lapwing, Redshank & Dunlin |
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| Snipe |
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| Bullfinch |
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| Coot, Pochard & Tufted Duck |
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| Chaffinch |
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| Buzzard |
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| Buzzard & Bank Vole |
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| Buzzard & Bank Vole |
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| Buzzard & Bank Vole |
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| Buzzard |
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| Yellowhammer |
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| Rook |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Water Pipit |
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| Oystercatcher, Sanderling, Redshank & Mallard |
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| Oystercatcher, Redshank & Turnstone |
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| Cormorant & Grey Plover |
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| Magpie |
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| Raven |
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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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| Whooper Swan |
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| Meadow Pipit |
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| Crossbill |
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| Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Goldeneye, Mallard & Smew |
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| Smew |
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| Crossbill |
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| Crossbill |
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| Cormorant |
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| Common Scoter, Velvet Scoter & Long Tailed Duck |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Common Scoter |
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| Common Scoter, Cormorant & Long Tailed Duck |
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| Velvet Scoter & Common Scoter |
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| Black Headed Gull |
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| Great Black Backed Gull |
Species seen -Blackbird, Black Headed Gull,
Black Necked Grebe, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit,
Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Collared Dove, Common Gull,
Common Scoter, Coot, Cormorant,
Crossbill, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider,
Fulmar, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw,
Lapwing, Little Grebe,
Long Tailed Duck, Magpie, Mallard,
Meadow Pipit, Mistle Thrush, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher,
Pheasant, Pied Wagtail,
Pochard, Raven, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Redwing, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook,
Sanderling, Shag, Shelduck,
Smew, Snipe, Starling, Stonechat, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Tufted Duck, Turnstone,
Velvet Scoter, Water Pipit, Waxwing, Whooper Swan, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Yellowhammer.
