As I hadn't really maximised my holiday off work I decided I should try and get out birding on Wednesday. An early start to catch the tide at Riverside Nature Park saw the alarm set for a pre-sunrise departure and a brisk walk of over an hour. When the alarm went off in the morning however sleep seemed like a better idea and some hours later I did eventually get out of bed. With half the day almost gone I decided I would still head for Riverside Nature Park via the Law and Balgay Hill. My challenge to myself was to try and see 50 or more species in Dundee in an afternoon. I knew it would require a bit of luck but I also knew it was doable.
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Magpie
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I headed out around 1200 and saw next to nothing. A skein of Pink Footed Geese high over the Law was welcome but hardly surprising given the time of year. A Sparrowhawk circling high over Balgay Hill took the list into double figures. A family of Long Tailed Tits and a Stock Dove did provide a few reasonably good birds, but there was no sign of the local Nuthatch. A Jay was seen up on the hill in the trees above the gravestones. I could just see Grey Seals out on the sandbanks in the river. The list hadn't even reached 20 species of birds - I would really need Riverside Nature Park to deliver.
A Chiffchaff was heard but not seen near the road as I was leaving the cemetery. I reached the park at around 1335 - a little over an hour and a half after leaving the house. The first bird seen in the park was another Jay followed soon after by a few more common species I'd already seen elsewhere. Thankfully I did start to pick up a few new ones for the day - Chaffinch, Starling, Goldfinch and Black Headed Gull. Things were rather quiet in the park too, so it did take a bit of effort to add new birds. Moorhen and Teal were the only birds seen at the Lochan.
With the tide well out it was difficult to add much at the Bay, though there were plenty of Redshanks and a few gull species as well as a number of Mallards. A Grey Wagtail flew past and distant Cormorant and Grey Heron were noted. A very welcome Meadow Pipit flew over and a Red Admiral butterfly landed on a fencepost as I passed by. A Chiffchaff was briefly seen near the picnic tables and a Bullfinch was seen in flight near the car park. Another look at the bay as the tide began to come in added Dunlin, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Black Tailed Godwit and a single Bar Tailed Godwit while a Yellowhammer took a bit of searching for after I'd heard it calling.
Things weren't improving much so around 1700 I decided to head for home, a Great Spotted Woodpecker was added as I walked past Buzzard Wood. There had been a pair of Army Air Corps Apache helicopters in at the airport for fuel earlier and they arrived again as I was about to leave. I got a few photos of them then decided I should head for the football pitches to try to catch them departing, as they appeared over the trees. Thankfully, this did work out though the light wasn't great. I stopped to talk to a photographer at the railway bridge which slowed me down even more. A Sparrowhawk over the Inner Ring Road at the Wellgate, a Cormorant over Victoria Road and a Grey Wagtail over the old Eagle Jute Mills building were the final birds of the day though none were new species.
I finished the day a few short of the target - with a few species that are usually slightly more reliable conspicuous by their absence (House Sparrow, Great Black Backed Gull, Skylark, Swallow etc). 26 species were seen outwith the park and a reasonable total of 43 species in the park, with a joint total of 47 species suggesting that my target number wasn't too far off what I could expect with an earlier start and a better tide state. I would have to try again....
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Sparrowhawk
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Magpie
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Pink Footed Goose
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Jay
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Jay
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Black Headed Gull
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Buzzard
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Buzzard & Carrion Crow
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Buzzard
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Blackbird
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Chaffinch
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Moorhen
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Moorhen
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Jackdaw
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Common Gull
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Lesser Black Backed Gull & Carrion Crow
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Cormorant
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Grey Heron
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Buzzard
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Stock Dove
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Greenfinch
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Starling
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Herring Gull
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Woodpigeon
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Bullfinch
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Teal
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Woodpigeon
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Sparrowhawk
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Yellowhammer
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Dunlin & Herring Gull
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Mallard
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Black Tailed Godwit
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Meadow Pipit
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Redshank & Dunlin
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Meadow Pipit
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Starling
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Chaffinch
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Magpie
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Magpie
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Jay
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Species seen - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black
Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch,
Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock,
Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch,
Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Jay, Lesser Black
Backed Gull, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Moorhen,
Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Redshank, Robin, Feral
Pigeon, Siskin, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Teal,
Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.
Butterflies seen - Red Admiral.
Mammals seen - Grey Seal, Grey Squirrel, Rabbit.
A few bonus Army Air Corps Apache photos -
