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Rock Pipit
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It feels like ages since I last made it out to Broughty Ferry. To be fair, there hasn't be very much reason to do so with the majority of waders having moved on to their breeding grounds and with the exception of the Eiders, most of the seabirds and waterbirds are off breeding elsewhere too. However, as last summer's boat trips showed there can be birds hiding in plain sight out on the river even in the quieter days of summer and there are already failed breeders from among the waders on their way back south again. In other words, although expectations were very low, there is always the chance of a surprise, or two.....
It was just after 0745 when I headed out the door. Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Swift and Feral Pigeon made for a fairly typical, if rather quiet, start to the day's birding. I headed for Swannie Ponds via Clepington Road. On the way to the ponds I found Carrion Crow, Blue Tit, Magpie, Woodpigeon, Oyetercatcher, Goldfinch, Chaffinch and Starling. A Lesser Black Backed Gull was perched atop a lamp-post just round the corner from the top pond. Gulls were in relatively short supply at the Swannies but I did get Moorhen, Coot, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Mute Swan and a Grey Heron. Blackbird and Dunnock were added as I headed for Eastern Cemetery.
At the cemetery, there were lots of Rabbits and a single Grey Squirrel. Bird-wise, there was a pair of Collared Doves and a Jackdaw but nothing else worthy of mention. A Swallow swept northwards over Craigie Avenue as I wandered down towards the Stannergate and the river. A surprise as I reached the bottom of that road was a Kestrel hunting above the railway line. A Grey Wagtail on the small bit of rocky shore along the eastern edge of the harbour was another slightly unexpected bird. There were a couple of Linnets around just beyond the car park at the Stannergate and a single Black Headed Gull took flight from the shore a bit further on. A single Goosander was spotted out on the water, with another 2 by the sailing club yachts further to the east, and a roosting male on the outflow pipe at Douglas Terrace was seen later. A couple of female Eider were closer in to shore by the sailing club sheds.
A flock of 6 Canada Geese which landed off Douglas Terrace were another surprise to the day's list. A flock of 7 Cormorants flew downriver past Tayport harbour. A Siskin which flew past was yet another surprise addition given I was stood by the river, and a Rook with a full crop flew in from the direction of Fife. Just beyond the lifeboat station I found a family group of Rock Pipits down amongst the shingle. I happened to look up just as a Fulmar, my first of 2024, was about to fly directly over me. Another nice, and welcome, surprise. There were a few more Rock Pipits around by the castle. As it was still before 1000 I wandered round to the rocks which rise up to meet the southern castle wall and scanned from there with the scope. I found an Osprey over towards Tayport, along with a couple of distant Shelduck on the Fife shore. A lone Common Tern was picked out as it flew upriver and was another welcome bonus bird, but I failed to refind it with the camera as it passed in front of the houses of Tayport. Still, it was another #Dundee150 species, taking me to 134 which is 7 ahead of the same time last year.
Once the castle opened I headed up into the grounds to gain a bit more height. I found 3 Ospreys perched close together on wooden posts off the western end of Lucky Scalp and a 4th bird was seen flying across the river and inland to the northwest with a freshly caught flatfish a bit later in the morning. A Sandwich Tern flew past quite close to the castle as I chatted to a council employee. I spotted a distant Bottlenose Dolphin around 1145 and spent the next 2 hours or so watching a small group of the animals out on the river. Unfortunately, they never really came very close, but there were a few breaches including a 'synchro pair' at one point. I pointed the dolphins out to a number of visitors, both relatively local and from further afield and spent a good while in the very pleasant company of a lady from Texas, Kat, who was enjoying her visit to Scotland.
A Grey Seal popped up relatively close in a couple of times but there wasn't much else to see on the bird front, bar 100s of Eider across the south side of the river and out towards Tentsmuir Point. A brief visit to the beach found a single Ringed Plover being flushed by walkers. Around 1415 I decided to head homewards. A Turnstone and 2 Redshanks were roosting on the lifeboat jetty but things were very quiet on the walk back to the Stannergate, bar a few Rooks crossing the river. By this time, it was a bit too warm for my liking. A Chiffchaff was heard by the sewage tank at the Stannergate. I considered heading along the cycle path but instead headed up towards Eastern Cemetery. I was briefly mobbed by a (breeding?) Common Gull on Greendykes Road. There were a couple of House Martins over the Arbroath Road by Lidl which rounded off the additions for the day, taking me to 47 species of bird (of which 2 - in bold - were new for my #Dundee150 list) and 4 of mammals. Considering my expectations were pretty much zero, it turned out to be an interesting and productive visit to the Ferry.
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| Goldfinch |
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| Eider |
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| Oystercatcher |
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Canada Goose
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| Siskin |
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| Starling |
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| Rook |
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Rock Pipit
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Grey Heron
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| Fulmar |
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Grey Heron
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| Osprey |
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Black Headed Gull
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| Osprey |
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Pied Wagtail
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House Sparrow
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Rock Pipit
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Rock Pipit
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Sandwich Tern
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Bottlenose Dolphin
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Grey Seal
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Herring Gull
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Bottlenose Dolphin & Herring Gull
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Bottlenose Dolphin
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Rock Pipit
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Ringed Plover
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Birds - Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Collared Dove, Common Gull, Common Tern, Coot, Cormorant, Dunnock, Eider, Fulmar, Goldfinch, Goosander, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Linnet, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Osprey, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Redshank, Ringed Plover, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Rook, Sandwich Tern, Shelduck, Siskin, Starling, Swallow, Swift, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Woodpigeon.
Mammals - Bottlenose Dolphin, Grey Seal, Grey Squirrel, Rabbit.
