The weather on Saturday morning when I got out of bed was just as expected - wet and rather windy. Not great birding weather. I knew the forecast for the afternoon was for a few hours of drier weather but with no let up in the wind speeds forecast there was a good chance that any birding attempts would be spoilt to some degree by the gales. As Sunday was also to be windy, I knew that things weren't overly promising for getting in some decent birding. However, there had been good numbers of Little Auks and Grey Phalaropes around Fife Ness and the Isle of May over the previous few days and there was word of birds moving into the Forth on Saturday morning. If they were heading into the wind and into the Forth, what were the chances they were doing likewise into the Tay?
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Common Gull
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The rain finally abated around 1300 though the sky still looked rather threatening. I got organised and headed out around 1310 to head for Broughty Ferry. As expected it was more than just a bit windy and birds were relatively few and far between on the walk to the Swannie Ponds. Herring Gull, Magpie, Carrion Crow and Feral Pigeons were the only birds noted. Thankfully things were slightly better at the ponds with Black Headed Gulls, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Moorhen, Coot, Mute Swan as well as a few Herring Gulls seen there. I continued on to a relatively quiet Eastern Cemetery with Starling, Blue Tit, House Sparrow and Long Tailed Tit noted en route. Chaffinch, Woodpigeon, Robin and Wren were added at the cemetery.
I continued onwards to the Stannergate where I discovered the tide was already quite far in. A Linnet flew over and a Rabbit was seen in behind the industrial unit. A Sparrowhawk sailed overhead sideways with the wind before I could get the camera out of the bag. With the tide in, there was a lot less to be seen along what was left of the shore. I did find a Red Breasted Merganser out on the river with a Cormorant closer in. A Common Gull and a single Turnstone were seen on a tiny bit of beach but both were flushed by a dog walker who seemingly just had to be on that 3 foot wide bit of beach. The very same thing happened further on with a small flock of around half a dozen roosting Turnstones flushed by another dog walker throwing a ball around along a thin strip of pebbles near the sailing club sheds.
When I reached Broughty ferry I found the waders that usually roost on the lifeboat jetty were tucked in on the shore behind the temporary fencing. There were a few Redshanks with the Turnstones and Black Headed Gulls. I added a Pied Wagtail as I neared the castle. I had decided that as the castle was open again, I would attempt some scanning out over the estuary from the raised viewpoint offered by the castle grounds. It was very windy up there and it proved quite tricky to even stand up let alone do serious scanning of the river. I noticed there was a wooden structure down by the fence and wondered if it would offer at least some respite from the wind if I sat down behind it. The downside of this plan was that my view would be partially obscured by the mesh fence. Thankfully, the wind-break idea worked (more or less).
There were decent numbers of Eiders out in the estuary as well as distant gulls on the wind above them. A young Gannet was seen in flight in the same area and a drake Red Breasted Merganser flew past upriver close in below me. A Rock Pipit was heard nearby but seemed to be keeping a lower profile than even I was. I gave up on the scanning around 1530 and began the long walk back home. With sunset around 1630 the chances of adding too much more seemed relatively slim however I did manage to find a Guillemot near the White Tailed Eagle feathers sculpture and a Diver which looked a bit odd was photographed landing out in the river. The bill didn't look right for Red Throated Diver and the head shape was more like Great Northern but the bird itself seemed too skinny for that. It didn't look right for Black Throated Diver either.
I couldn't make up my mind when I got home and viewed the photos on the PC. I posted them on Twitter. Simon Ritchie was undecided on an ID, as I was, but Mark Lewis suggested that it was 'just' a Red Throated Diver and having failed to find anything other than a Red Throated Diver in the same rough area after I lost sight of the original bird, that appeared to make the most sense. Although the bill shape wasn't particularly typical for Red Throated Diver it was similar enough to a small percentage of others of the species I've seen. The contours of the area where the head met the neck did seem unlike any other Red Throated Diver I've photographed though. Mark Wilkinson also agreed with Mark Lewis and the bird was noted as being 'just' a Red Throated Diver after all.
As I neared the end of the docks a small group of Jackdaws were flying around by the fence. A single Oystercatcher flew over towards the shore followed by a larger group of Curlews heading to roost. A Pied Wagtail and a Goldfinch were both added to the list and I finally managed to see a Blackbird as I neared Baxter Park. I finished the afternoon's birding with a total of 35 species of bird and 1 of mammal on the list. Although it wasn't overly productive it was good to get out for a few hours despite the windy conditions. It also wasn't too cold and I didn't even feel particularly tired after the 10 mile round trip. I've certainly had less productive and less enjoyable afternoon's birding before.
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Red Breasted Merganser
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| Cormorant |
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| Cormorant |
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Common Gull
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Common Gull
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| Turnstone |
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Common Gull
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Common Gull
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| Turnstone |
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Common Gull
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Eider & Herring Gull
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Red Breasted Merganser
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| Eider |
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| Eider |
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Herring Gull
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Herring Gull
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Herring Gull
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| Woodpigeon |
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Common Gull
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Common Gull
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Red Throated Diver
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Red Throated Diver
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Red Throated Diver
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Red Throated Diver
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| Guillemot |
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Black Headed Gull
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| Cormorant |
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| Goldfinch |
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| Rabbit |
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Pied Wagtail
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Curlew |
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| Curlew |
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Herring Gull
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Birds - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Eider, Goldfinch, Guillemot, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Linnet, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals - Rabbit.