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Grey Wagtail
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With nothing 'new' particularly likely over the final week or so of 2023, I decided to chase up a sighting of a Black Redstart (female type) at Beach Crescent, Broughty Ferry from 11th of December. Having had a brief sighting of one that I didn't see enough of to be absolutely 100% certain back in early November, I suspect it could be the same individual keeping a low profile. As not many birders tend to hang around near Broughty Castle anyway, a single wary and relatively nondescript bird could easily be overlooked. The weather on Christmas Eve was not particularly helpful with strong winds forecast - though unlike the previous day, it was meant to be dry.
I headed out at 1000 for the walk out to Broughty Ferry and Balmossie. Feral Pigeon, Magpie and Herring Gull were the first birds spotted. Blue Tit and Robin were both heard as I wandered on along Dundonald Street. Carrion Crow and Redwing were next onto the list in Baxter Park with Woodpigeon spotted as I left the park a few minutes later. House Sparrows, Goldcrest, Starling and Black Headed Gull were all noted as I continued on down Craigie Avenue towards the river. I added a trio of Goldfinches at the Stannergate and was able to pick out a few Red Breasted Mergansers in flight over the Tay.
A Common Gull was down by the water's edge and a Dunnock was in the bushes by the path. Five minutes further on, the first Turnstones of the day were noted along with Rock Pipit nearby. An Eider female was off the sailing club slipways. As I headed along Douglas Terrace, a skein of Pink Footed Geese were blown over the river and continued inland. There were a few Redshanks on the lifeboat jetty with a few more Turnstones. I stopped to photograph a Turnstone having a bath in a puddle on one of the jettys, and was able to get eye level shots. The first Oystercatchers of the day were noted at Beach Crescent but with the tide already quite far in, there was no activity on the seaweed where the Black Redstart had been seen a few weeks ago. There was a rather tame Pied Wagtail wandering around on the path in the same area though.
I scanned from the sheltered side of the castle but only managed to add a Cormorant. I headed in the direction of Balmossie but with very little beach left, I decided not to continue all the way and instead headed in at the eastern end of the local nature reserve. Long Tailed Tit, Blackbird and Great Tit were all noted as I wandered through, only to find the paths at the western end underwater, due to some sizeable puddles. Thankfully, I was able to find a way through the bushes and trees and out the other end. As I passed the sailing club sheds on the walk back along the river, a Buzzard suddenly appeared overhead with a Carrion Crow in pursuit, though the longer wing of the Buzzard meant it was able to out-turn the crow which gave up on the chase.
There were a few Rabbits around at the Stannergate. I decided to wander along to City Quay to see if I could find anything good there. As I wandered along the Docks Way cycle path I spotted 3 distant birds heading north. These turned out to be a trio of Whooper Swans, which were a nice surprise. There were Chaffinches in the trees to the north of the railway line, and a Siskin overflew. Things were quiet at City Quay, with a couple of Red Breasted Mergansers and a Grey Wagtail the main interest there. I called it a day and headed homewards having managed a total of just 32 species, which was fairly disappointing though unsurprising given the strength of the wind and the fact that I'd missed out a few places which usually add to the list.
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| Goldfinch |
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Carrion Crow
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| Turnstone |
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Pink Footed Goose
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Rock Pipit
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Rock Pipit
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| Turnstone |
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| Turnstone |
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| Turnstone |
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| Turnstone |
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Rock Pipit
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| Oystercatcher |
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| Cormorant |
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| Turnstone |
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Cormorant (probable Sinensis race)
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Black Headed Gull
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| Redwing |
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Common Gull
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| Turnstone |
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| Buzzard |
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| Buzzard |
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Whooper Swan
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Red Breasted Merganser
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Birds - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Cormorant, Dunnock, Eider, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Redwing, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Siskin, Starling, Turnstone, Whooper Swan, Woodpigeon.
Mammals - Rabbit.
