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| Siskin |
Yet again the weather forecast for my day off on Wednesday wasn't particularly great with a strong possibility of rain. I still wanted to get out birding, but there was no strong favourite as to where to go. In the end I settled for a trip to Riverside Nature Park as that seemed to offer the best chance of an early returning migrant species for my Dundee150 list (Sand Martin, Black Tailed Godwit and Wheatear being the most likely - though that likelihood was still rather slim for all 3 species though with the wader being the likeliest of the 3). Keith's Mediterranean Gull from the previous week was also a slight possibility. I had a bit of a lie-in but was ready to go just before 0935.
It wasn't raining but it certainly didn't look particularly promising when I could see the sky out to the west. Herring Gull, Blue Tit, Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Carrion Crow, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Magpie, Starling, Jackdaw and Blackbird were noted between leaving home and reaching Byron Street via the football grounds. Wren was added on Byron Street as were Grey Wagtail, Siskin and Great Tit. Loons Road produced Chaffinch and Oystercatcher. As I headed along Ancrum Road a few minutes later a Pied Wagtail was spotted. A bit further on I realised I could hear Waxwings. On my way home on Monday around the same place I'd seen a flock of birds perched in a tree behind the houses but wrote them off as Starlings - though I couldn't really use binoculars pointed towards the houses anyway. The same tree held a flock of Waxwings now. I should have checked on Monday (and/or Tuesday). I managed to find a spot on Ancrum Place where I could take a few record shots without pointing a camera at a house before continuing on again.
Common Gulls and a couple of Herring Gulls were on the football pitches at Lochee Park. Treecreeper was found in Balgay Cemetery but things were otherwise relatively quiet there. Long Tailed Tits were in the gardens just off Ninewells Avenue. Greenfinch and Robin appeared once I'd crossed the footbridge into the grounds of Ninewells Hospital. There were a few Rooks around the nests in the rookery behind the hospital and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard 'drumming' in the same area. A single Redwing was in trees further along near the Community Garden and a Grey Squirrel scurried up a tree nearby. Goldfinch and Coal Tit were also noted near the Gore building.
I reached the eastern end of the Nature Park just before 1044. Blackbird, Robin, Chaffinch, Wren and Long Tailed Tit were first onto the list with Teal, Shelduck, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Curlew, Redshank, Greylag Goose and Herring Gull picked out down in the bay. I had a quick check of the Lochan through the binoculars which got me a Black Headed Gull and the resident Mute Swan pair. Yellowhammer and Goldfinch were in the bushes near the junction down to the hide. I spent a fair bit of time at the hide scanning and rescanning through the birds I could see - Dunlin, Oystercatcher, Mallard, Feral Pigeon and Jackdaw were all seen, while a couple of Chiffchaffs were heard singing either side of the hide.
As it had begun raining as I reached the park, I spent much longer at the hide than I ordinarily would have, while waiting for the rain to stop. On the plus side there were still plenty of birds around, even if there was nothing particularly out of the ordinary. Goldcrest, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Bullfinch, Dunnock, Grey Wagtail, Common Gull, Great Tit, Cormorant and Woodpigeon all made for a relatively decent haul despite the rain. The rain finally abated a little over an hour later allowing me to venture into the park at last. Skylarks were singing from above the hill as I headed for a look at the Lochan. A Moorhen on the path was a bit of a surprise and I found another 2 on the Lochan itself - an adult and a younger bird. A Grey Heron was also stood at the eastern end of the pool, while Mallard, Teal, Black Headed Gull and Mute Swans were also visible.
From the hill I spotted a Red Breasted Merganser. Song Thrush and Stock Dove were the only new sightings over the course of the following 40 minutes before I managed to get a Redwing near the path down to the lower half of the park. It took over an hour before I found anything else with a Buzzard putting in an appearance. I spoke to Lindsay and Jack who I met recently at Broughty Ferry local nature reserve, who were visiting the park for a spot of afternoon birding. They let me know a little later that they'd been watching the Common Toads and Smooth Newts in the pond and when I had a look I managed more success seeing the Toads than I did with my fleeting view of a solitary Smooth Newt coming up for air.
A large flock of Bar Tailed Godwits flew into the bay from the direction of the airport along with some Oystercatchers and a Dunlin. I found a very distant bird out on the Tay, off the bay, which I was certain was a Great Crested Grebe - though my small scope wasn't quite powerful to be certain. Thankfully, a few of the photos I'd taken showed that I had been correct with the ID. With little likelihood of adding much else I headed for the exit around 1515. Rabbit and Reed Bunting were seen before I left, taking my total for the visit to 46 species. The walk home produced Nuthatch, Stock Dove and Jay at Balgay Hill taking my 'outwith the park' list for the day to 34. There was no further sight of the Waxwings where I'd seen them earlier which was disappointing especially as I discovered that I could have had better views from a car park at the end of Ancrum Place. The combined total for the day was 56 species of bird as well as my first 2 amphibian species for the year and 2 mammal species. Not a bad day, considering the less than favourable weather.
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| Waxwing |
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| Waxwing |
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| Shelduck |
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Redshank & Dunlin
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Greylag Goose
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| Siskin |
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Teal, Common Gull & Black Headed Gull
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Grey Heron
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Mute Swan
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Reed Bunting
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| Bullfinch |
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Cormorant, Lesser Black Backed Gull & Black Headed Gull
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Great Crested Grebe
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Bar Tailed Godwit & Oystercatcher
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| Bullfinch |
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Common Toad
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Common Toad
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| Skylark |
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| Rabbit |
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| Siskin |
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Long Tailed Tit
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Long Tailed Tit
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Birds (outwith Riverside Nature Park) - Blackbird, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Dunnock, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Jay, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Nuthatch, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Redwing, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Siskin, Starling, Stock Dove, Treecreeper, Waxwing, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals (outwith Riverside Nature Park) - Grey Squirrel.
Birds (at Riverside Nature Park) - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Common Gull, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Crested Grebe, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Redwing, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Shelduck, Siskin, Skylark, Song Thrush, Stock Dove, Teal, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.
Amphibians (at Riverside Nature Park) - Common Toad, Smooth Newt.
Mammals (at Riverside Nature Park) -Rabbit.
