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Rock Pipit
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Following on from the weekend's excitement having found a Red Backed Shrike at Riverside Nature Park on Sunday, I decoded I should probably head for the other end of the city on Wednesday with a trip to Balmossie. My original plan was for an early start but once again, it didn't happen. The later I get out the more dog walkers tend to be around, meaning more prospective disturbance and more frustration for me. With this in mind, I decided to take the direct route to Balmossie rather than via any of my other usual locations. This would likely impact on the number of species, and the variety, I was likely to encounter along the way.
At 0925 I headed out in the direction of Baxter Park. Woodpigeon, House Sparrow, Feral Pigeon, Starling, Swift, Herring Gull, Blue Tit, House Martin, Carrion Crow, Blackbird and Goldfinch provided the interest on the 10 minute walk to get there. Chaffinch, Pied Wagtail, Robin and Magpie were spotted on the short walk across the width of Baxter Park. I chose not to route through Eastern Cemetery, instead I continued along as direct a route as possible to the Stannergate where around 20 minutes after leaving the house I had added Rabbit to the list and was watching a small group of Linnets while a Whitethroat sang in the background.
As I walked along the esplanade towards Douglas Terrace, a few Swallows were noted and a Chiffchaff was heard from the other side of the railway line. A Wren was spotted among the bushes and an Oystercatcher was photographed picking around among the seaweed. A Blackcap sang loudly and a Great Tit and a family group of Long Tailed Tits were noted a bit further on. Another family group, this time of Greenfinches foraged down on the grassy beach, their green colouration providing surprisingly effective camouflage as they did so. A Common Gull flew past before I spotted a pair of Cormorants heading east downriver, low over the water. What was likely the same pair were spotted shortly after, fishing near the anchored yachts off the sailing club buildings.
A Grey Heron was stood at the foot of the ramp from the old lifeboat shed. Shortly afterwards, what was possibly the same Heron was involved in a tussle with a second Heron, which resulted in one of the birds flying off up one of the streets off Beach Crescent. At Broughty Castle I found a pair of adult Rock Pipits with a couple of youngsters on the grass. I managed some reasonably close views of one of the youngsters as it waited to be fed by the parents in a recess on the Castle wall. A Grey Seal showed briefly out on the river as I continued on towards Balmossie. Things were very quiet however. There were Mute Swans still around at the mouth of the Dighty and sizeable flocks of Eider further out on the estuary but very little in the way of variety. A Lesser Black Backed Gull was seen among the Herring Gulls at the burn outflow, while Carrion Crows, Jackdaws, Starlings and a few Oystercatchers were all I could rustle up on the shore.
With nothing much to be gained by lingering near the burn mouth I decided to walk back to the local nature reserve. Coal Tit was the only addition to the bird list for the day there, though I did again spend some time photographing insects though I was careful to stay away from any potential Tick carrying vegetation this time. The Grasshopper nymphs appeared a little larger than previously though still tricky to see. A pair of Collared Doves flew past back at the Castle, and I had good close views of an adult Rock Pipit with a beakful of insects on the large rocks by the slipway opposite.
Walking back homewards I realised that the list for the day was very underwhelming given the distance walked. I decided I would cut up through Eastern Cemetery to Swannie Ponds which would give me a few more species to make the list for the day look a little more respectable. A Kestrel in the Cemetery was a bit of a surprise, though I did see a pair earlier in the year while trying to cross the Arbroath Road late in the afternoon. A Goldcrest was singing as I got closer to the gatehouse. Coot, Mallard and Tufted Duck were added at the Swannie Ponds and I chatted to an older couple, with a young puppy, about birds. My list for the day was just 40 species with the Kestrel at Eastern Cemetery and the Rock Pipit encounters the main highlights.
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7-Spot Ladybird
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| Linnet |
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Long Tailed Tit
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| Greenfinch |
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| Cormorant |
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| Oystercatcher |
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Grey Heron
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Grey Heron
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Grey Heron
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Rock Pipit
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Carrion Crow
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House Sparrow
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Ichneumon sp.
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Click Beetle sp.
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Early Bumblebee
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Tree Bumblebee
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| Malthodes marginatus(?) |
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Grasshopper sp.
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Ichneumon(?) sp.
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Rock Pipit
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Herring Gull
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Goldfinch |
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| Kestrel |
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Pied Wagtail
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Pied Wagtail
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| Moorhen |
Birds - Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Dunnock, Eider, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Kestrel, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Starling, Swallow, Swift, Tufted Duck, Whitethroat, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals - Grey Seal, Rabbit.
