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| Gadwall |
With just 3 more species needed to reach my target figure of 84 species before going back to work on the 8th, I needed a plan to give me a reasonable chance of getting a trio of new species on Sunday. The weather forecast was decent enough which was likely to be a help, but the question was where to go. Riverside Nature Park could potentially throw up enough new birds, but it could also be very quiet and give me absolutely nothing. Targetting particular species at different sites was another option but these were likely to mean most of the day would be spent walking between sites rather than actively birding. I decided a return to Balmossie looked the most promising with Grey Plover, Meadow Pipit and Red Throated Diver looking like my best chances of additions. I decided an early start at Broughty Ferry would increase my chances a little and planned to be out over an hour before sunrise to ensure I was at 'The Ferry' for sunrise, thus hopefully avoiding the majority of dog walkers.
At 0735 it was still rather dark outside though bird silhouettes could be seen against the sky. A Robin was heard singing and a Herring Gull glided overhead as I stepped outside. Blackbird was the only addition between there and Baxter Park. Carrion Crow and Wren were noted as I passed through the park but it was the bottom end of Craigie Drive before I found anything else new for the day - a Blue Tit in a tree by the shops. At the Stannergate there were a few Goldfinches calling away unseen, and a few Rabbits. A Dunnock perched up on the wall for a few seconds before disappearing over the other side. Offshore I could see a mixed flock of Black Headed Gulls and Herring Gulls. I found a couple of Common Gulls among their number and soon picked out the first Red Breasted Mergansers of the morning further out on the water.
A Grey Heron was stood, all hunched up, a hundred metres or so to the east and there were a few Oystercatchers nervously feeding among the pebbles. A pair of Goldeneye were a bit of a surprise among a handful of Mergansers. Less of a surprise were a Cormorant fishing close to shore and a few Turnstones flipping weed and stones on the narrow strip of beach. I spotted the heads of Ringed Plover near the same slipway at the sailing club sheds as before, adding another species for the pre-dawn list. A Curlew strode purposefully along the water's edge and the first Eider of the day was picked out on the river. In the 'bay' by the bend just before Douglas Terrace was a drake Goosander, which was unexpected given the time of year.
A few House Sparrows and a Woodpigeon were seen as I wandered along Douglas Terrace and a Redshank was feeding down on the beach along with a few more Turnstones and Oystercatchers. Starlings were already noisily making their presence known from the chimneys. A skein of Pink Footed Geese arrived overhead from the direction of Fife as I scanned out from the steps at Beach Crescent. I checked the seaweed at the end just in case there was a Black Redstart there, but there wasn't. However, I was just about to find my first new addition to 2024's haul for the day. In the water just off the bottom of the slipway at the harbour next to the castle, I caught a glimpse of something small as it dived under the surface and waited for it to show again. When it did, my suspicions were confirmed. It was a Little Grebe. As this was a slightly unexpected addition, it meant I could now afford to miss out on 1 of the other decent possibilities and still hope to reach 84.
Feral Pigeon and Rock Pipit were noted around the general area at the castle and from the beach beyond I added an overflying Siskin and a Shag. I wandered slowly along the edge of the dunes, nervous of a Shar-pei dog which kept stopping to check me out while the owner wandered on ahead oblivious. I eventually had to shout to him when it decided it was coming over for a closer check. Needless to say my concerns were not taken particularly seriously as 'he's friendly' was the reply. I told him I'd been told that before only for the dog in question to behave aggressively towards me despite the owner's assertions on how their pet was 'friendly'. Thankfully, our paths were diverging at that point anyway and I headed up off the beach while dog and owner continued on along the shore.
Disappointingly only a Pied Wagtail had been noted along that strecth of dunes and sand with no sign of any Meadow Pipit. I knew I would have another chance later on my walk back but it did already feel like the pressure removed by finding the Little Grebe was back on again. I needed Grey Plover and Red Throated Diver to be around, or something much less likely to put in an appearance. There were a few Redwings in the trees along the road bordering the nature reserve and a small flock of Bar Tailed Godwits were seen in flight. As I reached the end of the Esplanade, I ran into the massed ranks of the local RSPB outing, including Keith. This did slightly increase my optimism with more scopes, binoculars and eyes now to be searching for birds my chances of a Grey Plover being found felt like they had increased a little.
A pipit flew over while I chatted to Keith but neither of us could decided if it was a Rock Pipit or a Meadow Pipit. Dunlin, Knot and Wigeon were the only new birds for the day's list until I spotted a very distant Kingfisher among the rocks by the burn mouth. There was no sign of any Grey Plover however, so I left the group for a closer look along towards the burn mouth. This failed to add anything else but I did see the birder I'd spoken to previously in the same area who was doing the WeBS count. He stopped for a quick chat and I asked him if he'd found a Grey Plover. He hadn't but he said he would let me know if he did. I wandered down to sit on the rocks at the bottom of the 'ramp' down to the beach and he continued on westwards to continue his counting. A little later I was joined by a lady with 2 small whippets who I've chatted to before down there. Just as she arrived I thought I heard my name being called but it was very faint. We had a quick chat before I heard my name again and this time I was sure of it. I hurried up the ramp and saw the WeBS counter gesturing for me to get along to where he was.
I apologised to the lady and quickly explained why he was likely shouting for me and she said she'd catch me up. I ran along and was rewarded by views of a Grey Plover a bit further along on the beach stood next to a Dunlin through his scope. I thanked him and as he knew who I was, I asked him his name. It was Ron Lawie, who I follow on Twitter and who I bought a Leica scope from a long time ago. We chatted for a bit longer before again going our separate ways. Thanks to Ron, I now only needed one more species to reach that figure of 84 that had been looking tricky to reach when I left home earlier. I went back down to the edge of the beach and spent a while checking the birds as the tide rose higher before moving on westwards again. Unfortunately, though not unexpectedly, most of the roosting waders and birds on the water just offshore were moved on by a succession of dogs, some actively chasing the birds back and forwards along the beach while their oblivious owners checked their phones, or chatted amongste themselves, ignoring what their dogs were getting up to.
I did manage to add a Great Black Backed Gull, a Mute Swan and a flock of Mallard. The wind had increased enough to be noticeable and there was now a bit of a 'bite' to it. My feet were cold and scanning and rescanning the river for anything resembling a Red Throated Diver seemed to be getting increasingly fruitless, though I did manage to add a few Sanderling (with a few Dunlin and Ringed Plover) along the water's edge. Out on the river, I found a pair of Long Tailed Ducks in flight but everything else seemed to be a Wigeon, an Eider or a Cormorant. I decided to find a spot among the grass in the dunes opposite the nature reserve. I was beginning to think that with every step to the west, my chances of finding a Red Throated (or other) Diver diminished further. I hunkered down in the dunes. The protection from the wind was just enough to take the chill off a little but I knew I was beginning to get desperate. I might have to rely on the Meadow Pipit after all.
After a few minutes of scanning from my new perch, I spotted a two-tone bird out on the water. It looked good for a Red Throated Diver and despite the frustrating limitations of the OM-1 on distant birds on days of low light, I managed to get enough on at least 1 photo to confirm my shaky views through my small Svbony scope perched atop a monopod. I had reached my target figure for week 1 of the year. Mission accomplished. I decided to head into the nature reserve to warm my feet up a little. It was remarkably busy with plenty of birds around - Great Tit, Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Bullfinch, Robin, Blackbird, Redwing, Song Thrush and what I suspect was the same Great Spotted Woodpecker as seen on my previous visit, clipping something from the same tree before smashing it open against the trunk. There was also a flock of Long Tailed Tits flitting around among the trees and bushes. I had a chat to another lady who told me of the birds that visit her feeders in her garden.
I then checked the dunes again in the hope of also finding the Meadow Pipit but I was out of luck. I did manage better, though just as distant, views of what was probably the same Red Throated Diver seen earlier from nearer the castle. I wasn't surprised to find that there was no sign of the Little Grebe where I'd seen it earlier which did rather justify my early start. As I neared the end of Douglas Terrace I picked out a circling Sparrowhawk a bit to the northwest and watching to dive down out of sight beyond the houses. With little hope (or need) of adding anything new along the river, I decided to head inland for the walk homewards. I was hoping that doing so would be a bit warmer than walking into the rather icy wind.
Although the walk back proved to be rather birdless for most of the journey I did add Coal Tit and Magpie on Albany Road. The walk up through Eastern Cemetery added a Goldcrest to the list and to add a few more species I decided to continue on to Swannie Ponds. The species I was expecting to add were the regular Tufted Ducks, Moorhen and Coots and I found all 3. However, I wasn't expecting to find a drake Teal swimming around near the island. In addition, as I was photographing the Teal, a drake Gadwall swam into view. Most likely the same bird which had been found on Hogmanay and which I thought I saw, but then couldn't re-find in the pre-dawn gloom on the 1st. Number 85 for the Dundee150 list and a nice wee bonus bird. I headed home happy with the day's efforts having managed a total of 62 species of which 4 (in bold) were new for my Dundee150 list. Onwards to 90 next (3/5ths of the overall total...then 100 for 2/3rds etc...).
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Little Grebe
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Redshank, Knot, Turnstone & Dunlin
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Pink Footed Goose
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Grey Plover
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Grey Plover
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Bar Tailed Godwit
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| Disturbance! |
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Mute Swan
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| Wigeon |
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Bar Tailed Godwit
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Herring Gull
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Bar Tailed Godwit & Dunlin
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Red Throated Diver
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Great Spotted Woodpecker
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Great Spotted Woodpecker
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Long Tailed Tit
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| Redwing |
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Red Breasted Merganser
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Red Breasted Merganser
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| Eider |
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| Curlew |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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Grey Heron
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| Teal |
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Grey Wagtail
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Tufted Duck
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Birds - Bar Tailed Godwit, Blackbird, Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Common Gull, Coot,
Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Gadwall, Goldcrest, Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Grey Plover, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kingfisher, Knot, Little Grebe, Long Tailed Duck, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted Merganser, Redshank, Red Throated Diver, Redwing, Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Sanderling, Shag, Siskin, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Teal, Tufted Duck, Turnstone, Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals - Grey Seal, Rabbit.
