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| Goldeneye |
I usually try to make an early start on January the 1st to maximise my chances of seeing (or hearing) as many species as possible on the first day of the year. The forecast for first thing this year was a bit wet. Not majorly so, but just enough to make me get out of bed, take a look outside (hearing a singing Robin in the process), and then go back to a warm bed for another couple of hours. This did mean that I was unlikely to get close to the 60 species or so, that I usually attempt to get. With 5 days off before going back to work, I had set myself a target of 75 species. I knew this was achievable, without being too easy, but the later than usual start on the 1st was likely to hinder my chances at least a little.
It was around 1115 when I finally headed out. This would only give me around 5 hours of useable daylight to play with. My second species for the year was a Herring Gull, soon followed by Magpie, House Sparrow, Woodpigeon and Feral Pigeon. Carrion Crow, Wren, Blackbird and Jackdaw were added as I headed for Swannie Ponds where I hoped to add another few. Most of the expected species there were around - Black Headed Gull (& Herring Gulls), Common Gull, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Mute Swan, Goosander, Moorhen and Coot. In addition, there were Long Tailed Tits in the trees and a Pied Wagtail wandering around on the path. As I set off for Eastern Cemetery, a Curlew overflew and a couple of minutes a surprise Great Black Backed Gull passed overhead going in the opposite direction.
The walk down through the cemetery got me a few of the smaller birds - Blue Tit, Goldfinch and Chaffinch, as well as a few Rabbits. A trio of Oystercatchers headed over noisily as I exited the main gate onto Arbroath Road. At the Stannergate, a flock of Fieldfares headed over westwards. Out on the river I picked out a few Eider, a Cormorant and a couple of Red Breasted Mergansers as I walked on towards Broughty Ferry. On the shore the first Redshank and Turnstone of 2025 were seen. A Grey Seal was spotted bobbing around out on the river from Beach Crescent. There was a small group of Greenfinch in the trees by Castle Terrace. Collared Dove was seen a little further on and a Goosander sped past upriver.
I detoured into the nature reserve where Redwing and Goldcrest were found. A pair of Stock Doves landed in the same section of 'wildflower meadow' where I'd seen the 100 or so Linnets on Christmas Day, but they flew off when they saw me. A few Linnets flew past. I scanned ahead of me along the shore towards Balmossie. I picked out a few Wigeon just offshore. Continuing on towards Balmossie, I soon found some Ringed Plover down on the beach, along with a few Dunlin (and Turnstones). There was no sign of any Sanderling, Knot, Bar Tailed Godwits or Grey Plover which was a bit disappointing. The only additions along by the burn mouth were a flock of Starlings and a couple of Goldeneye. I was joined briefly by Lainy and Adam who were on their way to Arbroath to look for Little Gull and Purple Sandpiper.
They headed off, and I set off back towards home. As I was about to wander back up into the nature reserve for another look around, I heard the sound of Pink Footed Geese and quickly turned to see a westbound skein, which was a bit of a bonus given that most of the 'local' geese seemed to have moved on again. Bullfinch and Great Tit were seen in the trees in the nature reserve. I detoured around the castle area to avoid the 'dookers' and associated crowd at the harbour there. This meant I missed out on the usually reliable Rock Pipits there. However, as I walked back along Douglas Terrace, I picked up a small bird in flight and grabbed a few photos. It then swung back round and landed on something sticking out of the lower part of the wall. I stuck my head through the railings and looked back to see a very welcome Rock Pipit.
The light was beginning to fade as I reached the Stannergate but I decided to continue along to City Quay in the hope of adding a few more possibilities, such as Grey Wagtail, Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Kingfisher or Little Grebe. I did succeed in getting a Buzzard and a Dunnock but failed to find any of the rest, though a Redshank on one of the Wild Shore pontoons was a wee bit of a surprise. I made it home around 1615 having managed a slightly disappointing total of 49 species of birds and 2 of mammals, leaving me another 26 to reach my first milestone target of 75 before my return to work. The forecast for the remaining days was looking quite windy with a chance of showers and temperatures around freezing or below. Not ideal, but I was hoping an early start on the 2nd might deliver a few more species, though I hadn't quite finalised my route for the day, and the subsequent days routes would depend to a degree on what I found on the 2nd.
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| Fieldfare |
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| Oystercatcher |
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Common Gull
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| Turnstone |
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Black Headed Gull
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Pied Wagtail
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| Greenfinch |
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| Goosander |
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Stock Dove
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Ringed Plover
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| Wigeon |
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| Redshank |
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| Wigeon |
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Ringed Plover, Dunlin & Turnstone
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| Dunlin |
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Ringed Plover & Dunlin
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Ringed Plover
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| Dunlin |
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| Redwing |
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Pink Footed Goose
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| Bullfinch |
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Rock Pipit
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| Dunnock |
Birds - Black Headed Gull, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Buzzard, Carrion
Crow, Chaffinch,
Collared Dove, Common Gull, Coot, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunlin, Dunnock, Eider, Fieldfare, Goldcrest,
Goldeneye, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black Backed Gull, Great Tit,
Greenfinch, Herring
Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Linnet, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pied Wagtail, Pink Footed Goose, Red Breasted
Merganser, Redshank, Redwing,
Ringed Plover, Robin, Feral Pigeon, Rock Pipit, Starling, Stock Dove, Tufted Duck, Turnstone,
Wigeon, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals - Grey Seal, Rabbit.
