I recently met up with Ian Ford, the chairman of the Friends of Riverside Nature Park group who asked if I would lead a guided walk at the park in October. I agreed to, with a date of the 16th agreed on. It would be an 0830 start, as usual, on a Saturday morning. There would be a slight chance of some vis-mig action coupled with the likelihood of the Pink Footed Geese leaving their roost in the river to head inland. At this time of year, the numbers can be relatively high, making it quite a spectacle as the birds gain height as they pass over the bay and the park. There was also the possibility of something unusual turning up in the park - perhaps a Yellow Browed Warbler or something in that vein. As the date approached I began to feel a bit apprehensive about the walk because of the relatively high Covid case numbers locally, though I suspected the actual numbers of attendees would be somewhere between zero and ten. As Ian was not going to be around trying to lead, and shepherd, more than about a dozen folk would likely be nigh on impossible on my own.
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Buzzard
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I headed out just before 0700 to walk to the park. With sunrise around 0745 or so, it was still relatively dark and rather quiet. A few Robins were heard calling and singing as I wandered up towards the football stadiums. A Blackbird flew into the allotments. Ten minutes further on, a Herring Gull was seen gliding over in the pre-dawn gloom and a Carrion Crow loudly cawed from its perch atop a lamp post. Dunnock and Wren were both heard as I neared the football pitches where Black Headed Gull and Common Gull were both noted. I added Song Thrush, Blue Tit, Goldcrest and Woodpigeon around Balgay Hill and cemetery before a pair of Foxes sprinted off when a Carrion Crow alerted them to my approach. A Bullfinch was heard from the trees nearby and before I finally reached the Nature Park I had also added Coal Tit and Feral Pigeon to the list.
It was around an hour after I'd left home that I entered the park and I decided to do a quick 'recce' around the edges to help decide on a route for the walk. High tide was to be around lunchtime meaning that there was a good chance that an early visit to the bay would mean the majority of birds would be too far away. Blackbird, Blue Tit and Black Headed Gull were the first birds noted within the park. Coal Tit was next before the first of the Pink Footed Geese were seen out to the west leaving the river heading northwards to a stubble field inland somewhere. Robin, Wren, Song Thrush, Magpie, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow and Chaffinch were all seen before I reached the Lochan. A few Moorhens and Mallards were there but there was no sign of any Teal.
A Curlew was heard as I neared the bay with one spotted easily when I did get a look over the exposed mud. A Cormorant was on the pipe and a Grey Wagtail flew over. There were thousands of Pink Footed Geese on the sandbanks off Kingoodie and within their number I managed to find a couple of Barnacle Geese (a park tick for me, after my 'near-miss' of a few weeks ago). Mallard, Redshank, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Dunlin and Oystercatcher were all picked out before I headed round to the car park to wait and see if anoyone was going to show up, or not. By the time the 0830 start time arrived I had been joined by Lainy - who was the one person I knew was intending on coming along. We waited for a few minutes to see if anyone else was going to show up though it wasn't looking promising.
A text message from Kate Treharne said she was on her way with her 11 year old neighbour (and raptor enthusiast), Joe. A familiar looking car drew up a few minutes later and Angus Duncan, from Fife joined us. So it appeared there would be five of us - which is probably more or less an ideal number for a walk around the park - not too many (which can lead to too much noise/disturbance and not everyone being able to see all the birds) and not too few (for it to qualify as a 'guided walk' rather than a 'chatty birding wander'). As we waited for Kate and Joe to arrive we watched birds pass over head. It appeared that the vis-mig opportunities from the park were far better than those from the Law. Bullfinch, Pied Wagtail, some unexpected late Swallows, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and Siskin as well as hundreds of Pink Footed Geese kept us occupied until Kate and Joe arrived just before 0900.
We headed for the hill first to see if there were still any geese left out on the mud. There were still a few thousand birds and we watched small parties taking off and heading off inland. A lone Rook flew over us. Down in the bay we were able to add a few Black Tailed Godwits to the list. A Yellowhammer flew over and the first Redwings of the day were noted. A pair of Grey Heron chased one another along the length of the pipe. A few Goldfinch were seen down by the Buddleia bushes near the picnic benches. A Goosander was added out on the pipe. Mistle Thrush, a flock of Tree Sparrows and one of the largest flocks of Skylarks I've seen outwith cold weather movements headed over. Teal were picked out in the bay. Greenfinch, Starling and Reed Bunting were all added before we were joined at the top of the hill by Keith Edwards.
An interesting looking thrush dropped into the bushes around the 'bowl' surrounding the two small pools. It was most likely just an odd Song Thrush, though the wings had a reddish patch on the coverts, and the facial markings had what appeared to be a supercilium which stopped at the eye. Both Lainy and I managed to get a few photos of the bird but it was odd enough to have us ruling out possibilities while trying to get better views. A Great Black Backed Gull was noted across the bay and Keith spotted a passing Stock Dove. Keith headed off around 1045. The intention to actually have a walk all the way round the park had long since vanished with plenty happening in front, behind and above us. We decided to just make the most of the birding opportunities as they arrived.
Long Tailed Tits and Jackdaws were added. Kate and Joe headed off to the hide while Angus, Lainy and I looked for migrants in the bushes and watched for birds passing overhead. Dunnock, Lesser Redpoll and Meadow Pipit were all further additions before Joe returned to find out where we were. Kate had been joined by a Belgian birder who was hoping to see the Mediterranean Gull that has been frequenting the area (and avoiding my binoculars) for a while now. We wandered along to the hide, meeting the Belgian birder about halfway along the path from the hide. We had a chat about what was around and where was best to try for the species he was hoping to see.
We joined Kate at the hide and managed to add Bar Tailed Godwit to the list. Unfortunately most of the waders flew off when something unseen spooked them, leaving only small numbers behind. Kate and Lainy saw a Jay in flight that I managed to miss as we stood just up from the hide at the junction of paths. We wandered back into the park for a look at the Lochan where a few Teal had now joined the Moorhens and Mallards. A Great Tit was seen in the trees to the east. We wandered up onto the hill and managed to see a few Buzzards and a distant Sparrowhawk. By now the sun was coming out and there was actually a bit of warmth in the air. Angus had left us when we'd been at the hide so there were now just the four of us, even though the 'walk' which had never really began had been due to end about two hours earlier.
We headed for the car park where Joe and Kate headed off. Lainy and I decided that as we had barely scratched the surface of the park we might as well see what else we could find. The lower half of the park proved slightly disappointing though there were still plenty of birds around, there was nothing new for us. Good views of a Buzzard on the telegraph pole near the road bend and a few Bullfinches were the highlights. A Chiffchaff was heard calling from the bushes west of the car park and as we headed round the hill again I spotted a very distant raptor to the northwest. The flight was very unlike a Buzzard and I struggled to get Lainy onto the bird. I did manage to get a sequence of photos which showed it to be my second Dundee and Riverside Nature Park Red Kite. A very nice (and still rather unexpected) bonus bird.
Lainy phoned Adam from the picnic benches and while she did so I scanned out across the river, picking up a lone swan in flight, well out though low over the water, heading upriver. Once again, I took a sequence of photos to try to determine whether it was a Mute Swan, or a Whooper Swan. It turned out to be the latter and I succeeded in getting Lainy onto the bird this time. Another Lesser Black Backed Gull was seen across the bay. After another visit to the Lochan where a Stock Dove made a very quick stop for a drink we were heading for the car park again when I looked up and spotted a Peregrine, giving us our fourth raptor for the day, and our final addition to the list taking my list to 59, and the overall list to 60, which I think puts it in the top 5 most productive visits, and shows that October can be just as varied as late August/early September. Adam arrived to pick up Lainy as we arrived back at the car park and I was very grateful to accept the offer of a lift home (thanks again!).
With reagrds the low turn-out for the walk, it did mean that we were able to do our own thing rather than make a circuit of the park against the clock (we almost always over-run by around 30 minutes). Had I been at the park on my own I would most likely have spent a few hours counting the vis-mig passage overhead as it was probably the second heaviest movement I've seen from the park. Given what we did manage to see, I wonder what we managed to miss. Not having a scope with us likely meant that anything good among the waders went unnoticed - there were LOTS of Dunlin in particular to work through, and possibly that Mediterranean Gull would've been seen, at last. All in all though, a very good and productive day at the park.
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Pink Footed Goose & Herring Gull
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| Magpie |
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| Robin |
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(possible?) Ring Ouzel
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| Chaffinch |
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| Rook |
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| Blackbird |
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Redshank & Dunlin
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| Yellowhammer |
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| Blackbird |
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| Goldfinch |
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Grey Heron
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| Curlew |
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Mistle Thrush
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| Skylark |
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Tree Sparrow
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Pink Footed Goose
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Pink Footed Goose
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Greenfinch
 | | Redwing |
 | (odd) Song Thrush
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 | (odd) Song Thrush
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 | (odd) Song Thrush
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Tree Sparrow
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| Magpie |
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Goosander |
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| Yellowhammer |
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Lesser Black Backed Gull, Black Headed Gull & Curlew
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| Starling |
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Pink Footed Goose
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Lesser Black Backed Gull
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Redshank & Dunlin
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Dunlin & Bar Tailed Godwit
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Dunlin & Redshank
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Black Tailed Godwit
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Reed Bunting
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| Buzzard |
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| Bullfinch |
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| Robin |
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| Buzzard |
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Common Gull
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Coal Tit
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Blue Tit
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Blue Tit
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Pink Footed Goose
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| Robin |
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| Buzzard |
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Carrion Crow
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Red Kite
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Lesser Black Backed Gull, Herring Gull, Common Gull, Black Headed Gull & Redshank
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Whooper Swan |
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| Teal |
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| Buzzard |
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| Peregrine |
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| Mallard |
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| Teal |
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Stock Dove
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Great Spotted Woodpecker
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| Teal |
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| Mallard |
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Herring Gull
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Great Spotted Woodpecker
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Birds (outwith Riverside Nature Park ) - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Dunnock, Goldcrest, Herring Gull, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Song Thrush, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals (outwith park) - Fox.
Birds (at Riverside Nature Park) - Barnacle Goose, 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, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, (Jay), Lesser Black Backed Gull, Lesser Redpoll, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Oystercatcher, Peregrine, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Kite, Redshank, Redwing, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Siskin, Skylark, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Whooper Swan, Wren, Yellowhammer.
Mammals (from park) - Seal sp..