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| Dipper |
Having only managed a morning's worth of birding on Saturday and with the weather forecast looking better for Sunday I wanted to get out quite early and to check the Dighty Burn between Douglas and Whitfield once again to see what warblers were in attendance. I wondered if the reedbed area near the footbridge might have a few Grasshopper Warblers and returning Sedge Warblers. I knew that Willow Warblers and a few Chiffchaffs were already there and there was a good chance that Whitethroats might also be around. I didn't think there was much chance of any Lesser Whitethroats being around but starnger things have happened. Blackcaps I knew were also about though I doubted the likelihood of any Garden Warblers where I was going. Just as with Lesser Whitethroats I didn't really expect to find any but would be happy to prove myself wrong.
I headed out at 0715 and headed for Swannie Ponds. It was quite a productive walk with Oystercatcher, Collared Dove, Willow Warbler, Swallow, Jackdaw and Long Tailed Tits along with the more typical species. I added Chiffchaff just before I reached the ponds, with Mute Swan, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Coot, Herring Gull and Lesser Black Backed Gull around the top pond. A Grey Heron was wading around halfway to the island. There was no sign of any Moorhen though. I headed down Pitkerro Road adding Wren, Blackcap, Robin and Song Thrush in the wooded area on the opposite bank from the supermarket. A Dipper was singing down on the burn and a Pheasant was heard from somewhere to the north. Great Tit, Goldcrest and Jay were all seen before I crossed Drumgeith Road to the main stretch of burn I was most interested in.
The first Roe Deer of the day were seen in behind the houses on the south side of the burn as I wandered along past the football pitches. When I reached the reedbeds I could hear a Sedge Warbler singing and watched as it moved through the reeds quite close to the path. Annoyingly the camera was still in the bag. By the time I got the camera out the bird had moved back a bit into the taller reeds but I was able to get some photos unlike the previous morning when I couldn't even see the singing Sedgie at Clatto. Reed Bunting was also noted nearby. The first few House Martins of the day zipped about overhead and I added Bullfinch and Siskin in the same general area before moving on again.
Both Grey and Pied Wagtail were added to the list before I heard another singing Dipper and crept closer to the edge of the bank to see if I could see it. I found it easily and watched it for a minute or two before deciding to move on again. I then realised I could hear young birds calling for food and surmised there must be a nest close by. It was actually hidden in plain sight opposite where I was standing. By staying on the path I was able to watch and photograph the adult Dippers coming and going to the nest to feed the four chicks without causing any disturbance. A few folk passing stopped to ask what I was photographing and were then able to watch the parent birds flying in to feed the youngsters, though at times the food pass was over in less than a second.
I continued on and found the location of a second Dipper nest before crossing the road with the intention of checking the area where I had found Grasshopper Warblers. However, I spotted two folk down by the burn who looked potentially 'dodgy' - though it was a very brief glimpse and they may just have been fishing, and I decided to go back to where I'd already been instead. I added a Whitethroat to the list before wandering back to where I'd photographed the Dippers from earlier. A young photographer I'd spoken to earlier was lying on his belly above the nearside bank, close enough that the adult birds would have easily seen his head and the camera lens. I suggested that he might be deterring the adults from coming in to feed the youngsters and that it was perfectly possible to get good enough photos from the path with the lens he was using. He moved back from the edge but decided not to stay as he had things to do.
I got a few more photos before moving on again. I was able to add Kingfisher a little further on but the views were just quick flypasts. I followed the path back along the burn and decided I might as well continue on for a few miles back to Caird Park and then home. I followed the burn through Drumgeith Park and Finlathen Park but when I reached Mill O' Mains I realised that the carnival was in Caird Park so I decided I would head for Trottick Ponds and then wander up the Kirkton end of the park. I added Greenfinch and Moorhen at Trottick Ponds as well as a Small White butterfly and a Great Spotted Woodpecker. As I headed up Old Glamis Road I contemplated heading up the Law to see if there were any raptors around as by this time the sun had appeared and it was getting quite warm. Having already walked far enough (around 8 miles at this point) I cut over the golf course and home instead.
I ended the day's wanders having recorded a total of 46 species with nothing new for the Dundee 140 list, though I did manage to see and photograph Sedge Warbler unlike the previous day. The views and photo opportunities provided by the Dippers made for an interesting morning's birding, with the best part of the whole experience being how easy it was to observe the comings and goings without causing any disturbance. The youngsters looked well grown (and already ringed in the nest) and I suspect they may well have fledged from the nest by the time I post this blog-post.
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Sedge Warbler
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| Pheasant |
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Reed Bunting
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Blue Tit
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Great Tit
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| Blackcap |
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| Swallow |
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| Dipper |
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| Dipper |
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House Sparrow
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Willlow Warbler
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| Dipper |
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| Dipper |
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Roe Deer
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Roe Deer
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Pied Wagtail
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| Chaffinch |
Birds - Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Collared Dove, Coot, Dipper, Dunnock, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Jay, Kingfisher, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Sedge Warbler, Siskin, Song Thrush, Starling, Swallow, Tufted Duck, Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Butterflies - Small White.
Mammals - Roe Deer.
