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Whooper Swan
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There was still plenty of Saturday's snow on the ground on Sunday morning but with a reasonable chance of no further snow I decided I needed to get out and do some birding. Yet again however, a later than planned exit from the relative warmth of my bed meant that it wasn't far off noon before I was ready to do so. My plan was for another trip out to Balmossie though rather than take one of my usual routes I decided to pay a visit to City Quay first and then follow the river out to Broughty Ferry and beyond. I was hoping that the snow would mean fewer walkers than usual and potentially a bigger haul of species because of that.
I set off just before 1130. Herring Gull, Robin, Starling and Feral Pigeon were soon followed by Blackbird, Blue Tit and Pied Wagtail as I reached Dens Road. As I was about to head down Dens Brae I stopped to look for the Long Tailed Tits I could hear in the tree above me. From the opposite side of the road I heard the tell-tale trill of Waxwings and spotted a pair in almost exactly the same spot I'd seen them previously - in the tops of tall trees just off William Street. A Woodpigeon sat just a little lower in the same trees and a Fieldfare flew over. Goldfinch, Dunnock and Carrion Crow were next onto the list, as I reached Blackscroft.
At City Quay, I was surprised to find a swan on the water. Even more surprising was that it was a young Whooper Swan. I took out the camera before continuing round in the direction of the footbridge. Unfortunately, as is often the case with Whooper Swans, it was a very wary bird and it took flight almost as soon as it spotted me and headed off west between the Apex hotel and the office blocks to the south. Red Breasted Mergansers and Cormorant were out on the river and a Grey Heron was roosting on Submarine Rock. An Oystercatcher flew in to join it. House Sparrows were chirping away among the flats and a Kingfisher was heard near the Unicorn.
I headed off eastwards towards the cycle path noting a Magpie, a Wren and a Grey Wagtail on the way. Things proved very quiet there however with Chaffinch the only addition until I reached the Stannergate. Common and Black Headed Gulls were down on the shoreline and a Song Thrush landed by a Buddleia bush at the start of the walkway along the river. Continuing on, Curlew, Redshank, and Turnstone were found along the shore and an Eider was on the water a little further out. A few Redwings and Fieldfares were seen in flight to the north of the railway line. A distant flock of Teal flew downriver before landing near Tayport harbour. As I passed the sailing club sheds, what was very likely the same Whooper Swan as I'd seen earlier flew north inland.
I had been thinking earlier that I'd yet to see any Little Grebes on the river or at City Quay so far this winter. Off Beach Crescent, I found a trio of these diminutive diving birds relatively close in to shore. A Rock Pipit flew around nearby. I popped up into the castle to scan out over the river from the raised viewpoint it offers. As I did so, a skein of Greylags flew north past me while a skein of Pink Footed Geese headed west up the river closer to the Fife side. I decided to move on eastwards again after a few minutes as there appeared to be little to see. There were a couple of Shags by the yellow marker pole and a Reed Bunting was seen in the dunes. A bit further on again, a Meadow Pipit perched up on the wooden fence and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard from somewhere near the railway line in the general area of The Glass Pavilion restaurant.
A walk through the local nature reserve proved fruitless. Back down by the beach I was able to add a few wader species - Bar Tailed Godwits, Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Grey Plover. Among the mixed flocks of gulls along at the mouth of the Dighty was a single Great Black Backed Gull. Mallard, Wigeon, Jackdaws, a single Goosander, a Pink Footed Goose and a few distant Goldeneye were all noted before I decided to head for home. The light was already starting to go and although the river is never particularly busy, my chances of adding anything at all would be diminished further, the darker it got. I did manage to spot a Red Throated Diver just off the beach down from the 3 Dolphins sculpture on my walk back. A Goldcrest was heard from across the railway line near the Eagle Feathers sculpture but there were no further additions before I made it home. A total of 54 species was a reasonable haul considering the late start and the Whooper Swan so close to the city centre was a nice surprise.
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Whooper Swan
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Whooper Swan
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| Cormorant |
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Red Breasted Merganser
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Grey Wagtail
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| Magpie |
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Black Headed Gull
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| Robin |
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Grey Heron
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Whooper Swan
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| Curlew |
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Herring Gull
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| Fieldfare |
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| Eider |
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| Redshank |
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Little Grebe
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Little Grebe
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Greylag Goose
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Meadow Pipit
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| Oystercatcher |
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Long Tailed Tit
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Bar Tailed Godwit
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Grey Plover
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Jackdaw, Oystercatcher, Pink Footed Goose & Mallard
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Red Throated Diver
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Birds - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Common Gull, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Fieldfare, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Grey Wagtail, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kingfisher, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Redwing, Reed Bunting, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Shag, Song Thrush, Starling, Teal, Turnstone, Waxwing, Whooper Swan, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.
