Once again my intention for birding on Tuesday was to get up early and head for Riverside Nature Park to catch the waders in Invergowrie Bay just after high tide in favourable light and maybe also catch up with some vis-mig from the top of the small hill but instead I stayed in bed for a few hours longer meaning it was almost 1100 before I actually headed out to walk to the park. Because of the late start it would be around noon before I reached the park, which unfortunately would be less than ideal for catching up with any migrants passing over the park. However, the park can, and does, sometimes throw up surprises...
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Hawfinch
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The walk to the park was relatively uneventful with Chiffchaff and Skylark(both heard only), Long Tailed Tits and Stock Dove the best noted on the way there. It was shortly after 1205 when I reached the park. I had put on too many layers and was a bit too warm, but it wasn't quite warm enough to stick a layer in my camera bag. There was a slight chill to the light wind and when the sun disappeared behind the clouds the drop in temperature was noticeable. I would just have to put up with both. I recently bought a small digital recorder which I can leave recording as I wander around, in case I hear anything interesting. It is also interesting to listen back and notice things that I hadn't at the time. I set the recorder going and took my time to listen to mostly Robins and a Chiffchaff in the small wood north of Buzzard Wood.
Two Swallows flew over and I added Goldcrest, Magpie, Wren and Chaffinch and a Pied Wagtail before I decided that I'd spent enough time in that particular area and headed along the eastern edge of Buzzard Wood and out onto the grassy area next to what had been the boggy area in previous years. A Meadow Pipit flew over and the Starlings near the airport boundary circled round before a large group of around 15 Long Tailed Tits flew from the wood into the hedge I was standing close to. As I tried to get a better view I heard a call that sounded like a slightly 'buzzy' Pipit - and spun round to try and get a photo of what the bird might be, expecting a possible 'rare' Pipit.
I managed a short slightly out-of-focus sequence of what turned out not to be a Pipit at all. The bird in question was a good bit chunkier than a Pipit and had a large white stripe running along the middle of the wing. A more than slightly unexpected Hawfinch! Although not a year-tick having made it to Scone Palace pre-lockdown, and also having seen one at Kilminning the day before (confirmed after re-visiting the photos on the back of these ones as with tired eyes when scrolling through the day's photos I couldn't completely rule out Chaffinch given the odd angle) it was a new species for the park. It was a bird I thought I could run into at Balgay Hill - with previous records at Royal Victoria Hospital and Ninewells, but it had never crossed my mind that I might catch one over the park. I also had been totally unaware that Hawfinches made a pipit-like flight call.
A male Bullfinch flew into the hedge in front of me and a Buzzard mewed from somewhere distant. A Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard near the car park but went unseen. Redwing, Siskin and Song Thrush were all noted flying over and the mewing Buzzard calling again had me scanning the sky above the park. I spotted a bird circling high in the sky but it turned out to be a Peregrine. I then found 2 Buzzards circling a bit further to the west. The Peregrine spotted them too and swooped at one of them a few times before heading out over the outer bay. While searching the area behind the car park what I expected to be the Peregrine returning turned out to be a Kestrel which briefly hovered almost directly above me. Ten minutes later a Grey Heron flew low westwards over the park and a skein of Pink Footed Geese arrived from the north, quite high in the sky.
I wandered round for a quick check of the tide state at the bay adding Redshanks, Dunlin, Mallard, Teal and a distant Great Black Backed Gull. The Kestrel was hovering nearby and I was able to get some nice photos as it did so. A Carrion Crow took exception to the raptor and harassed it for a few minutes before giving up though it or another crow did try again later. A small flock of rather grey-ish Redpoll took flight from the bushes and headed out over the bay. More scanning resulted in a Curlew and some distant Black Tailed Godwits being added to the list. A young male Sparrowhawk showed well before being joined by another larger bird on which the secondaries appeared rather pale on a few photos but which is most likely just a chunky looking female Sparrowhawk. It was good and slightly unusual to get all 4 of the 'regular' raptors in one visit.
Looking across the bay I picked up a bird that I was sure was a Brent Goose - not a new bird for the park list, but the one already on the list for which I had no background info for - it appeared on the monthly round-up of sightings in Birdwatching magazine back in 2012. It would be a new bird for my own park list. However when I moved along the path a bit for a better view, I found a Carrion Crow in what I thought was the same place with the strong sunlight making the rear look rather pale and decided I must have been mistaken as the Goose view had also been from the rear. A young Mute Swan was however a definite sighting on the water.
I then wandered round to check the Lochan adding Moorhen to the list for the day. Back at the bay I added Linnet and overflying Mistle Thrushes. A pair of Cormorants were stood on the pipe wings held out. I wandered round to the hide to wait for the tide to come all the way in so I could attempt to scan through the waders properly - the sun was in the wrong place further out and most of the birds too distant for binoculars. When the tide had come in far enough I discovered that there was indeed a Brent Goose in the bay and it gave reasonably good views just on the Perthshire side of the pipe for the next hour or so while the tide came in. Common Gull and Bar Tailed Godwit were noted while Grey Wagtail, House Sparrow and Skylark were all heard but not seen from the hide.
Scanning through the hundreds of Dunlin I thought I saw a Little Stint (a year-tick and a park-tick for me) just seconds before the section of mud where it was cleared of birds. Thankfully photos showed it and also the leucistic Dunlin among the flock. I also found a Curlew Sandpiper and a trio of Knot hiding in plain sight among the Redshanks. A Lesser Black Backed Gull was also noted before the majority of waders had dispersed elsewhere as the area of mud available to feed on had shrunk considerably. A Yellowhammer flew over before I headed back into the park. Another look at the Lochan allowed me to see that a pair of Mute Swans had appeared there and a Stock Dove flew by as I headed back onto the path to head for the exit and the long walk home. A Jay over Glamis Road and a Peregrine from Cox's Stack were seen on the way taking the non-park list to 22 species (of which 2 were heard only).
A really good day out at the park with another 50+ total of species seen (54 + 4 heard only) meaning it was my 2nd highest total recorded (still a bit short of the record 63 species seen - I think a Sedge Warbler was a heard-only bird that day, taking the total to 64 if both seen & heard are counted). The Hawfinch was a massive and very welcome surprise and the Little Stint (year-tick) and Brent Goose were both new birds for my own park-list, taking me to 125 of the now 144 on the 'official' list (which I keep track of). In addition the Curlew Sandpiper and Mealy Redpoll would have been highlights on most other days. The bird in bold was a year tick, birds in italics were heard only.
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Carrion Crow & Swallow
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Swallow
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Pied Wagtail
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Meadow Pipit
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Blackbird
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Hawfinch
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Bullfinch
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Buzzard & Carrion Crow
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Black Headed Gull
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Siskin
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Meadow Pipit
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Peregrine
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Peregrine & Buzzard
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Peregrine
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Kestrel
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Buzzard
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Buzzard
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Grey Heron
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Siskin
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Siskin
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Feral Pigeon
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Pied Wagtail
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Pink Footed Goose
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Kestrel & Carrion Crow
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Kestrel
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Kestrel
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Kestrel & Carrion Crow
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Kestrel
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Mealy Redpoll
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Curlew
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Kestrel
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Kestrel
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Kestrel
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Mute Swan
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Sparrowhawk
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Sparrowhawk
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Sparrowhawk
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Magpie
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Woodpigeon
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Blue Tit
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Moorhen
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Mistle Thrush
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Cormorant
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Linnet
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Chaffinch
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Cormorant
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Song Thrush
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Carrion Crow
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Dunlin & Little Stint
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Dunlin, Redshank & Little Stint
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Black Tailed Godwit, Curlew Sandpiper & Dunlin
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Common Gull
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Redshank, Dunlin & Brent Goose
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Brent Goose & Redshank
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Teal, Carrion Crow, Bar Tailed Godwit & Redshank
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Brent Goose, Dunlin & Redshank
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Bar Tailed Godwit, Black Tailed Godwit, (Dunlin) & Redshank
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Yellowhammer
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Herring Gull
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Mute Swan
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Mistle Thrush
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Starling
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Species seen (outside park) - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch,
Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jay, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Peregrine, Robin, Feral Pigeon,
Skylark, Starling, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon.
Butterflies - Red Admiral
Species seen (at park) - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Black Tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Brent Goose, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Common Gull, Cormorant, Curlew, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Dunnock, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Black Backed Gull,
Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Heron,
Grey Wagtail, Hawfinch, Herring Gull,
House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Knot, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet,
Little Stint, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mealy Redpoll, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Peregrine, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Redshank, Redwing, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Siskin,
Skylark, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Teal, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.
Mammals - Rabbit.
