1272 : Three Miles Out (22/6/24)

Skylark

Ian had messaged me in midweek to say he was free on Saturday afternoon for some birding, if I fancied a change of scenery for a few hours. With it being June, there's not a huge amount of variety to be had anywhere in particular. I came up with a few suggestions in case nothing interesting cropped up between the original message and pick-up time on Saturday. Seawatching at Fife Ness, or Arbroath was my preferred option. Others were a walk out along the beach at Tentsmuir from Tayport to Tentsmuir Point, or a walk at Easthaven to hatton, or even Westhaven to the Craigmill Burn mouth, a trip up one of the closer Angus glens, or a visit to the Tay reedbeds.

I was tempted to do some birding somewhere on Saturday morning but was a bit too tired and the weather was a bit too warm to walk anywhere too far away so I stayed at home instead. Ian messaged me late morning to say he was running a bit late but that he'd message me when he was a few minutes away. Rather than our noon departure it was around 1215 when Ian messaged me and I headed out to meet him. A female Sparrowhawk glided over upsetting the local Feral Pigeons and Herring Gulls as I stepped outside. A Woodpigeon was seen just around the corner and I added Jackdaw to the list before Ian arrived. I'd been reconsidering our options while waiting for Ian to arrive and suggested heading for Tayport, as it was relatively close and there was a reasonable chance of a mix of species.

We headed in the direction of the Tay roadbridge but found a lengthy tailback as we got closer. I suggested we head for Arbroath instead, so we set off in that direction. As we left Dundee, I wondered about the army firing ranges at Barry Buddon as a closer option. A quick check online to see if the range was active confirmed it wasn't, meaning it was open to the public, so we decided to save a bit of time and head there instead as Ian had never actually visited before. We added a small flock of Rooks by the roadside on the way to Monifieth. It was 1305 when we reached the car park just at the eastern end of Barry Buddon. As we wandered in there were a number of smaller birds noted - Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Wren, Yellowhammer, Linnet and Reed Bunting. A distant Kestrel was noted out to the east being harassed by a couple of corvids. There seemed to be a lot of Meadow Pipits around, mostly carrying food back to hidden nest sites. A Swallow overflew, a Magpie appeared in a tree by the cycle path and a pair of Goldfinches were also seen. 

A small group of Black Headed Gulls headed inland over our heads. Both Pied and Grey Wagtails were seen as we reached what I thought was the right junction to take us out towards the lighthouse. Although it turned out not to be, it did prove to be a relatively productive route anyway. An Oystercatcher flew over and the first of the day's Skylarks were spotted hovering over the long grass by the road we were walking out along. A couple of Swallows and a Sand Martin were hunting insects low over the grassy areas off to either side of us. As we left the road to continue on along a dirt track, a male Common Blue butterfly flitted up from the trackside and vanished into the long grass before I could get a photo. Ian picked out a few House Martins zipping around out of the wind behind some conifers. A Fulmar glided and flapped its way over us, despite us being a bit back from the estuary. 

We almost stood on a couple of Small Copper butterflies sunning themselves on the track. Ian spotted a Buzzard over the golf course to the north of us, which drew some unwanted attention from a Carrion Crow and a Kestrel. A Starling flew into a small tree before the behaviour of a vocal Carrion Crow grabbed my attention. The reason for its constant calling turned out to be a Fox in the long grass - the top of its head just being visible when it stopped to watch the crow. We reached a couple of signs which indicated we could go no further - as it was a grenade range. Although it wasn't clear whether the 'keep out' only applied to the longer grass where the signs were, and not the open track through the middle, we decided not to take any chances and instead headed back the way we'd came. A pair of Stock Doves were spotted, as were a few House Sparrows aon the walk back. A probable Fritilary butterfly was glimpsed in flight. Chaffinch, Bullfinch, Dunnock and Lesser Redpoll were all noted as we neared the western end of the range complex and the car park beyond. We had a scan from the edge of the football pitches but Eider and Lesser Black Backed Gull were all we could see. 

I suggested we head along to Balmossie in the hope of a bit more variety. This did actually work out in our favour with 3 Goosander, a lone Canada Goose and a large flock of Mute Swans all off the mouth of the Dighty Burn. A Greenfinch flew past us before we moved back to the more 'out of the wind' sheltered spot by the footbridge. From here, Ian picked out a distant Sandwich Tern and I spotted a small-ish flock of Common Scoters. With time now very much against us, we headed homewards. Ian dropped me off at Swannie Ponds, so I could (hopefully) add a few more species for the day's total. Mallard, Coot, Tufted Duck and Moorhen took the list for the afternoon to 48 species of bird, 2 of butterfly and 1 of mammal. Although I had only really ventured 3 miles outside of Dundee, it had still been an enjoyable afternoon's worth of birding and, as always, it was good to catch up with Ian (our last planned outing had to be cancelled at short notice due to Ian being unwell). It would seem I do need to work on my navigation though - in my defence, it is very difficult to see small detail on an iPhone screen in bright sunshine, but it did result in exploring a new bit of the range complex for me anyway.

Meadow Pipit

Skylark

Fulmar

Fulmar

Fulmar

Small Copper

Buzzard

Carrion Crow, Buzzard & Kestrel

Bumblebee sp.

Pied Wagtail

Dung-Fly

7-Spot Ladybird

Linnet & Yellowhammer

Lesser Redpoll

Lesser Redpoll

Goldfinch

Meadow Pipit

Lesser Black Backed Gull

Mute Swan & Canada Goose

Common Scoter

Sandwich Tern

Birds - Black Headed Gull, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Common Scoter, Coot, Dunnock, Eider, Fulmar, Goldfinch, Goosander, Greenfinch, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Lesser Redpoll, Linnet, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Reed Bunting, Feral Pigeon, Rook, Sand Martin, Sandwich Tern, Skylark, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Swallow, Swift, Tufted Duck, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren, Yellowhammer.

Butterflies - Common Blue, (Fritilary sp.), Small Copper.

Mammals - Fox. 

1271 : Ferry Unexpected (19/6/24)

Rock Pipit

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.

Goldfinch

Eider

Oystercatcher

Canada Goose

Siskin

Starling

Rook

Rock Pipit

Grey Heron

Fulmar

Grey Heron

Osprey

Black Headed Gull

Osprey

Pied Wagtail

House Sparrow

Rock Pipit

Rock Pipit

Sandwich Tern

Bottlenose Dolphin

Grey Seal

Herring Gull

Bottlenose Dolphin & Herring Gull

Bottlenose Dolphin

Rock Pipit

Ringed Plover

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.