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| Whitethroat |
Weighing up my options for my midweek day off, on the 13th of May, it appeared that Riverside Nature Park provided my best chance of adding something to my #2026Dundee150 list. A Lesser Whitethroat or a migrant wader appeared to be my best bet, though my suspicion was that even these were likely to be only a very slight possibility. However, it was a case of the old "nothing ventured, nothing gained" once again, so Riverside Nature Park it was. An early start rather fell by the wayside though I was still able to get out the door before the hour hand hit 8, though only just.
Swifts had finally arrived and one of these was first onto the list for the day, followed quickly by more standard fayre - Feral Pigeon, Goldfinch, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Starling, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Chaffinch, Blackbird, Magpie, Blue Tit, Jackdaw and Woodpigeon. Long-tailed Tits were heard along North Somerville Place as I took a different route, having needed to find a postbox somewhere between home and the park to post some important mail. Great Tit and Carrion Crow were found as I crossed Dudhope Park. Things proved very quiet between there and Riverside, where a few Rabbits were on the grass by the railway line. Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, Song Thrush, Chiffchaff, Whitethroat, Linnet and Greenfinch were all noted before I reached the Nature Park just after 0900.
First onto the list there were Blackbird, Blackcap, Robin, Great Tit, Whitethroat, Chaffinch, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Magpie, Blue Tit, Goldfinch, Dunnock, Willow Warbler and Skylark, all in the lower half of the park. There were a few Rabbits around and I soon added Linnet, Woodpigeon and Reed Bunting as I headed round to check the bay. Keith and Mark were already there, scanning the river out to the west. Cormorant, Shelduck and Common Sandpiper (unseen prior to my arrival) were quickly noted before the first Ospreys headed in our direction. Oystercatcher, Black-headed Gull, Grey Heron, Swallow, Mute Swan, Curlew, Great Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull and Lesser Black-backed Gull were added over the course of the next half-hour or so.
Mark and Keith both headed off and I went for a bit of a wander in search of a rarity or two. Song Thrush, Chiffchaff, Wren, Moorhen and Swift provided rather scant consolation though. I bumped into a local birder i hadn't encountered before, Jim Walls, and ended up wandering round with him for an hour or so, though as expected further additions to my #2026Dundee150 list proved to be elusive. I did manage to get a rather unexciting selection consisting of Starling, Rook, Siskin, Feral Pigeon, Mallard, Long-tailed Tit and Common Gull as well as having an enjoyable chat with Jim, who was familiar with some of the areas along the northern edges of the city, near where I grew up, and around roughly the same time-frame. Jim had to head off around 1130-ish and I headed for Balgay Hill on my way homewards.
Oystercatcher was seen en route with Stock Dove, Sparrowhawk, Bullfinch and Nuthatch found at Balgay. I spent a wee bit of time looking for insects, finding a new (to me) Soldier Beetle species - Cantharus obscura, and a couple of flies infected with fungus. Unfortunately, the weather hastened my departure from the hill, with a few heavy showers passing through in quick succession - though the trees did provide adequate cover, allowing me to stay dry. Needless to say, once I made it home, there were no more rain showers for the rest of the afternoon. My total number of species for the day was a slightly disappointing 49 species of birds (consisting of 43 species at RNP, and 29 outwith) and 1 of mammals (seen both at the park and outwith). Not a classic day's birding by any means but I've certainly had worse ones.
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| Goosander |
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| Shelduck |
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| Salticus scenicus |
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| Blackcap |
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| Song Thrush |
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| Curlew |
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| Osprey |
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| Osprey |
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| Whitethroat |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Curlew |
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| Black-headed Gull |
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| Osprey |
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| Osprey |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Syrphus (hoverfly) sp. |
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| Mining Bee sp. |
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| Cantharus obscura |
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| Fly sp. |
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| Tachinid Fly sp. |
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| Fly sp. |
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| Fly sp. (infected with fungus) |
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| Orange-legged Furrow Bee? |
Birds (outwith Riverside Nature Park) - Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch,
Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lesser
Black-backed Gull, Linnet, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Nuthatch, Oystercatcher, Feral
Pigeon, Song Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Stock Dove, Swift, Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon.
Mammals (outwith Riverside Nature Park) - Rabbit.
Birds(at
Riverside Nature Park) - Black-headed Gull, Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue
Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Common Gull, Common Sandpiper, Cormorant, Curlew, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Goosander, Great Black-backed Gull,
Great Tit, Grey Heron, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Lesser
Black-backed Gull, Linnet, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan,
Osprey, Oystercatcher, Reed Bunting, Robin, Feral Pigeon,
Rook, Shelduck, Siskin, Skylark, Song Thrush,
Starling, Swallow, Swift, Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Mammals (at Riverside Nature Park) - Rabbit.
