With Paul available for a trip out on Wednesday and a bit of catching up to do with his year-list I suggested we head first to Riverside Nature Park and from there to the Tay reedbeds at Errol. If time allowed later then a few sites in Fife could be visited. Targets for the day would be mainly warblers though Marsh Harrier and maybe Bearded Tit would also be possible in addition to the hirundine trio of House Martin, Sand Martin and Swallow. We arranged a 0730 pick-up time.
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| Yellowhammer |
I headed out around 0715 to meet Paul noting a few species on the walk - Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon, Herring Gull and Carrion Crow with Lesser Black Backed Gull being added on the drive out to Riverside Nature Park where we arrived around 0735. Jackdaw, Blue Tit, Blackcap, Blackbird, Herring Gull, Woodpigeon, Great Tit and Robin were all seen before we'd even set off to see what else we could find around the park. A Rabbit was seen on the grass behind the car park. A Linnet was perched along with a Blackbird in the bushes south of Buzzard Wood. A pair of Oystercatchers flew off from the grassy field to the east.
Whitethroat, Willow Warbler and Skylark were all picked up by hearing them singing first. A Magpie flew past before the first Swallow of the day was seen. Things quietened down slightly but birds were still being added as we wandered further round - Goldfinch, Carrion Crow, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush, Coal Tit, Chaffinch, Yellowhammer and Stock Dove all being seen before we reached the Lochan. A Lesser Black Backed Gull flew over with Mallard and Moorhen seen on the water. Heading out to the hide we watched Starlings, Dunnock and Feral Pigeon on the way.
At the hide we spooked a moth which then flitted up over the wall and settled on a tree on the other side. Photos showed this to be a new species for me - The Streamer. In the bay we were able to see Black Headed Gull, Shelduck, Redshank and Mute Swan. Further round we found Black Tailed Godwits, Grey Heron, Teal and Curlew. From the southwest corner bend in the path we spotted Great Black Backed Gull and distant Cormorants along with Grey Seals well out on the sandbanks. A pair of Reed Buntings showed close by. A couple of House Martins circled above the recycling area as we headed back to the car. A reasonable total of 41 species had been noted in the park giving me some idea of what to expect on my guided walk planned for Saturday.
It was just after 0900 when we left the park to head down to Errol for our walk to the reedbeds. Magpie, Starling, Oystercatcher and Blackbird were all noted on the way there. Collared Dove and a male Orange Tip were seen on the walk down Gas Brae. Tree Sparrow, Whitethroat, Blue Tit, Chaffinch and Goldfinch were all noted around the community garden. Skylarks sang from high above the fields. A Dunnock was seen near the house at the end of the path. There was plenty of birdsong in the area beyond and this helped us find a few of the day's target species for Paul and a few others - Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Chiffchaff, Reed Bunting, Robin as well as a male Marsh Harrier.
There was no sign of Grasshopper Warbler so we headed along the path in the trees towards the pools at Port Allen. Roe Deer and Treecreeper were spotted before we reached the eastern pool. Scanning over the water added Wigeon, Great Crested Grebe, Mallard, Mute Swan, Coot, Grey Heron, Shelduck, Tufted Duck and a few Swallows. Sedge Warblers sang from within the reeds.We moved on again adding Long Tailed Tits from the path. Teal were seen on the second pool with a few Mallards. Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen much further on with a distant calling bird being heard before a second flew out from the tree behind us towards the first.
A single distant Reed Warbler was heard in the reeds but despite lots of hopeful scanning we failed to catch any sight of the bird. By way of compensation we did see a few Bearded Tits in flight just above the reeds. A Great Black Backed Gull and a few Linnets overflew before we headed back towards Errol noting a circling Buzzard on the way. A possible Garden Warbler turned out to be another Blackcap. A drake Shoveler was seen on the western pool on the walk back and another butterfly turned out to be my first Comma of the year. Wren, Grey Squirrel and Goldeneye were the only additions before we had another attempt at finding Grasshopper Warbler but failing once again. A House Sparrow, Coal Tit, Song Thrush and Pied Wagtail were seen before we headed back up to Errol.
A few more butterflies were added on the way - Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock and Green Veined White as well as a few more Orange Tips. From Errol we headed to Kingoodie to an area I found a few years ago that was decent for Grasshopper Warbler. A Common Carpet moth, Yellowhammer, Greenfinch and Great Tit were seen on the walk but we found the vegetation and quite a few trees had been ripped out rendering the area rather bird-less and depressing considering how good it had been previously. The ripping out of the vegetation and the cutting down/back of trees/bushes seemed to serve no real purpose but is just another example of what makes the Carse of Gowrie's farmland a bit of a wildlife desert. After that we called it a day and headed for home.
A reasonably decent day out with a few species added to Paul's year-list among the 60 seen though my hoped for Reed Warbler was a no-show, though if I start counting 'heard-only' birds it could go on the list. History did repeat itself however with the discovery of a small Tick attached to my lower leg the following day, as happened last year while looking for Reed Warblers.
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| Linnet & Blackbird |
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| Skylark |
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| Robin |
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| Whitethroat |
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| Willow Warbler |
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| The Streamer |
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| Skylark |
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| Black Tailed Godwit |
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| Whitethroat |
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| Herring Gull, Black Tailed Godwit & Curlew |
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| Reed Bunting |
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| House Martin |
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| House Martin |
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| Skylark |
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| Magpie |
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| Willow Warbler |
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| Marsh Harrier |
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| Chiffchaff |
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| Chiffchaff |
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| Peacock |
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| Roe Deer |
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| Marsh Harrier |
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| Marsh Harrier |
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| Marsh Harrier |
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| Marsh Harrier |
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| Marsh Harrier |
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| Shoveler |
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| Comma |
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| Goldeneye |
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| House Sparrow |
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| Coal Tit |
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| Small Tortoiseshell |
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| Orange Tip |
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| Orange Tip |
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| Yellowhammer |
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| Common Carpet |
Species seen - Bearded Tit, Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunnock, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Crested Grebe, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Marsh Harrier, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Redshank, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Sedge Warbler, Shelduck, Shoveler, Skylark, Song Thrush, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Treecreeper, Tufted Duck, Whitethroat, Wigeon, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.
Butterflies seen - Comma, Green Veined White, Orange Tip, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell.
Moths seen - Common Carpet, The Streamer.
Mammals seen - Grey Seal, Grey Squirrel, Rabbit, Roe Deer.
