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| Shoveler |
My plan for Wednesday the 7th of June was for a very early start and a trip to Riverside Nature Park to catch the high tide as it receded. My target species for the day would be Canada Goose, a bird I've missed out on earlier in the year when a single bird was found by Lainy at Clatto Reservoir but had disappeared by the time I was able to try for it. These birds are currently moving northwards to their moulting sites in Scotland, apparently mostly around the Beauly Firth. Some years they can occur in reasonable numbers passing over Dundee but in other years they can prove to be rather elusive. I wanted to maximise my chances and was hoping that there might be a flock roosting up overnight on the Tay.
A combination of my 3 hour sleep at the weekend and a few other factors meant that I slept much longer than I really wanted to. However, with a back-log of blog-posts and photo editing to catch up on, I decided that I might as well stay at home and do a bit of catching up with these tasks. I had just started editing photos when Mark Wilkinson messaged me to let me know he had a single Canada Goose in Invergowrie Bay and also a pair of Shoveler on the Lochan at Riverside Nature Park. That was not just 1, but 2 potential Dundee145 ticks with the Shoveler the trickier of the duo to catch up with normally. I couldn't really write both species off if I hoped to reach my target figure. I got organised to head out which didn't take long as I'd mostly sorted out my gear the previous night for my intended early start before going to bed.
I headed out at 1055 for the walk to the park. Things were relatively quiet bird-wise though Herring Gull, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, House Sparrow, Feral Pigeon and Goldfinch were noted almost immediately. Between the football stadiums I was able to get Blackbird, Starling, Jackdaw, House Martin, Magpie and Swallow. On the walk up past the stadiums I contemplated whether or not jumping in a taxi was a good idea. I knew it would be expensive to go all the way but cutting out a couple of miles seemed like it would save me time and not be too expensive (relatively speaking). At Caird Avenue I decided to go for it. I hadn't decided exactly where I wanted dropped off so I told the driver to just head in the direction of Ninewells Hospital. I eventually decided to get out around Ninewells Avenue and to walk the rest of the way through there, down through Ninewells Hospital grounds and in to the park from the Invergowrie end.
Blue Tit, Buzzard, Oystercatcher and Robin were found as I walke down Ninewells Avenue. There was a bit of a commotion in the trees below the rookery at the Arboretum. Wren and Nuthatch were both heard calling and a Grey Squirrel looked to be the likely cause of the apparent concern. I continued on down through the Arboretum where a pair of Great Spotted Woodpeckers were heard then seen. I got into conversation with a novice birder from Perth who worked in the hospital, for a few minutes before moving on again. Behind Carseview I noted Chaffinch, Garden Warbler and Blackcap and just before I reached the underpass I heard a singing Goldcrest.
I had saved around 20 minutes of journey time by getting the taxi even allowing for stopping to chat at the Arboretum. I stopped to scan from the bridge over the railway. The Canada Goose was still where Mark had said it would be, in the burn outflow near the gull bathing pool. There were numerous Herring Gulls and Lesser Black Backed Gulls nearby with a few Black Headed Gulls dotted around too. There were a small number of Lapwings and Oystercatchers also around, as were the Mute Swan pair and a few Carrion Crows and Jackdaws. Chiffchaff, Wren, Linnet, Woodpigeon, Bullfinch and Dunnock were all seen or heard while I scanned the burn outflow and the wider bay to the south.
I wandered in to the park after a few minutes, stopping briefly to photograph an orchid in behind the fence (with another on the opposite side of the path). I could hear the Skylarks singing from further into the park as well as a Blackcap near the hide. With Shoveler the priority I decided to forego the hide and headed straight to the Lochan next. A single Stock Dove and a few Swifts flew past. Thankfully, I was in luck as the Shoveler pair were still there. The drake seemed to share the same trait the Shoveler from last Autumn had, of scratching his face after feeding as if something in the water made his face itch. There were 5 or 6 House Martins hawking low over the Lochan and I tried for a photo or two rather half-heartedly. The Moorhen showed briefly as it crossed the Lochan from one side to the other and a Magpie dropped in for a drink. A small family group of Starlings landed by the water's edge but didn't stay long.
A Reed Bunting was perched atop the hedge as I left the Lochan screen and a Goldcrest could be heard singing from somewhere not too far away - though their high-pitched voice does carry a bit further than you might expect from such a tiny bird. Blackbird, Swallow and Willow Warbler provided some interest on the walk back along to the hide where Garden Warbler was once again singing though as the foliage is getting even higher with every day that passes it proved impossible to actually see. Goldfinch and Chaffinch were also in the trees around the hide area while a Curlew was heard calling and a distant Shelduck was seen well out on the mud. There were also a few Feral Pigeons down at the pipe and a few Mallards on the burn.
I wandered round to scan out over the river from near the picnic tables. Yellowhammer, Whitethroat, Greenfinch and Pied Wagtail were all noted but there were no new finds down in the bay or further out on the exposed mud. I doubled back around by the Lochan finding Song Thrush and Robin and then seeing a hunting Kestrel over towards the airport. The Pheasant called a few times but I couldn't pin down the location it was calling from. More scanning out over the bay from the top of the hill added a small group of Goosander, a few Cormorants and a Grey Heron. I popped back to the Lochan where the Shoveler pair flew closer for some reason, landing in the middle of the Lochan, before swimming back to the edge again. A drake Teal there was a bit of a surprise. A Buzzard from Ninewells was harassed by a Carrion Crow and a Herring Gull a bit to the north.
I wandered down to check out the lower half of the park which gave me Long Tailed Tits, Blue Tit and a surprise Great Spotted Woodpecker which took my total at the park to 52 species. As I had to be at Swannie Ponds for 1600 to meet Ian Morrison to let him see a camera I had offered to sell him, I left the park around 1400. I chose to walk back along the river and up through the city centre. Swifts, Skylark, Chiffchaff and a rather odd looking Sparrowhawk (moulting inner primaries) as well as Pied Wagtails and a Whitethroat were all new for the 'outwith the park' list as I headed for the 'town'. A surprise by the bus stops at the Overgate was a Grey Wagtail landing in a tree to feed a youngster that I was unable to pick out among the branches but which could be heard calling to the parent bird repeatedly.
I made it home in time for a quick 15 minute break and to pick up the camera before heading up to the ponds to wait for Ian. Coot, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Black Headed Gull (numbers already back up to 5), Lesser Black Backed Gull, Tufted Duck and a Common Gull were all seen at the ponds as Ian and I dicussed the camera and various other subjects (mostly involving things with wings). The visit to the ponds took my total for the 'outwith the park' list to 38 species for a combined total of 59 species, of which 2 (in bold) were very welcome ticks for my Dundee145 list (numbers 121 and 122). Thanks again go to Mark Wilkinson for letting me know the birds were there.
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Lapwing, Herring Gull & Canada Goose
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Canada Goose
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| Shoveler |
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Reed Bunting
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Orchid sp. (Possibly Northern Marsh x Common Spotted hybrid?)
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Lapwing & Mallard
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| Shelduck |
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Pied Wagtail
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Pied Wagtail
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Swallow |
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| Kestrel |
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| Teal |
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| Shoveler |
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| Shoveler |
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| Shoveler |
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House Martin
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Carrion Crow & Buzzard
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Orchid sp. (Northern Marsh Orchid?)
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| Sparrowhawk |
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Carrion Crow
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Herring Gull
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Birds (outwith Riverside Nature Park) - Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Common Gull, Coot, Garden Warbler, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Nuthatch, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Skylark, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Swallow, Swift, Tufted Duck, Whitethroat, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals (outwith Riverside Nature Park) - Grey Squirrel.
Birds (at Riverside Nature Park) - Blackbird, Blackcap, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunnock, Garden Warbler, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Herring Gull, House Martin, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Lapwing, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Shelduck, Shoveler, Skylark, Song Thrush, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Swift, Teal, Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.
