Getting better.

Little Owl.

I managed a couple of hours post gale birding at RSPB Hesketh Out Marsh this afternoon with favourable results. Expecting little more than the last visit given the blustery conditions I was delighted to see two Merlins and a ringtail Hen Harrier on the reserve this afternoon, as well as the usual Buzzard and Kestrel. Little Egrets are starting to show again with another on the pool by Karen's Viewpoint and a Raven was frequenting the outer seawall. A pair of White Wagtails and a Wheatear were welcome signs of migration with the afternoon rounded off nicely with a Short-eared Owl near the car park as I made for the car.

Up Periscaup!

See what I did there?

Now that pathetic attempt to avoid yet another Lesser Scaup header photo is out of the way ...... Popped down to RSPB Marshside this morning to see what's been happening while I've been in Scotland.

A quick look on Rainford's Lagoon produced plenty of Tufted Ducks (29 in total on the reserve), a few Avocets and hordes of Black-headed Gulls but no Lesser Scaup. The Sandplant was better with 3 Chiffchaffs, a Wheatear and 2 Sand Martins making their way across the saltmarsh.

A 'wall of defiance' on the Junction Pool this morning: Lesser Scaup squares up to Tufties at Marshside.

First winter drake Lesser Scaup with Tufted Duck. Note how the head shape changes with different postures.

The Lesser Scaup was still present with Tufted Ducks on the Junction Pool, making amorous moves towards one of the females (not all well-received) and his attempts to join the Tufty Club were generally rebuffed. Rimmer's Marsh had dried up a bit since my last visit but was full of birds as usual. A nice flock of 260 Black-tailed Godwits and 947 Golden Plovers graced the reserve, many 'all summered-up'.

Second summer and adult Mediterranean Gulls, RSPB Marshside 30 March 2011.

Apart from several Ruff with the Redshanks I couldn't find much else of interest from Nel's Hide until these spanking Mediterranean Gulls dropped in to bathe with the BHG's.

This pairing will only end in tears .......

This one already has I think (the Shelduck is innocent). See here for more .....

A couple more Lesser Scaup shots? Go on then ......

Solway to Ribble.

Pink-footed Geese and Barnacle Geese at the Wigtown Bay roost (Dumfries & Galloway) 28 March 2011.

Managed to squeeze in few hours birding around the Solway over the last couple of days before heading back to Lancs. Highlight for me was a first visit (since its official opening) to the new RSPB reserve on the Crook of Baldoon on Wigtown Bay. The gathering of Barnacle and Pink-footed Geese was a magnificent sight but there was no sign of the Shorelarks reported a couple of days previously. Migrants continue to arrive with a pair of Ospreys, several Wheatears and 30+ Sand Martins (the latter at Loch Arthur) between Wigtown and Southerness Point. A search of Loch Milton for the grey-backed Aythya I saw distantly over a week ago (subsequently identified as a Lesser Scaup apparently) failed but there were still 30+ Tufted Ducks and 50+ Goldeneye still on the Loch and Great-spotted Woodpeckers were drumming frantically.

Plans of an early pre-departure session yesterday morning at Southerness were scuppered by dense freezing fog, so I headed back to Lancs, stopping briefly on the Solway at Browhouses. Still plenty of Barnacle Geese on the Cumbrian shore, including a white bird that I guessed was a leucistic / albino Barnacle Goose, but with a Ross's Goose knocking around the Solway I suppose you never know. I just couldn't make out the wing-tips at such a distance. The 250 Pink-footed Geese on the sands towards Redkirk Point were a bit easier; at least they were in Scotland!
An evening visit to RSPB Hesketh Out Marsh on the Ribble was a bit quiet with just 4 Avocets and a pair of Grey Partridge. The predicted showers started as I drove away but it's still good to be back on patch again.

Solway Garganeys.

Drake Garganey, Caerlaverock WWT (Dumfries & Galloway) 27 March 2011.

Nice to catch up with my first Garganey of the spring while I was in D&G at the weekend. A species that's definitely in my top 10 and always a delight to see, Garganey appear to becoming increasingly regular at this site on the Solway nowadays.

The view over the Corner Field at Caerlaverock (the Garganey can just be seen in the foreground).

This particular pair could be quite elusive at times, disappearing in the sedges for lengthy periods.

The view of Caerlaverock Wetland Centre from the Farmhouse Tower.

Birds of interest in the spring sunshine this weekend included 500 Barnacle Geese with a single Pink-footed Goose in the Corner Field, singing male Chiffchaff, several Black-tailed Godwits and Whooper Swans.

Female Garganey at Caeraverock WWT.

A drive around neighbouring sites on 27th failed to produce anything different from the previous day but on the other side of the Nith at RSPB Mersehead there were still 2000+ Barnacle Geese and at least 2 Twite in the Linnet flock near the Visitor's Centre.

Solway Barnacle Geese

Barnacle Geese at Caerlaverock WWT, Dumfries & Galloway 26 March 2011.

The Corner Field from the Silver & Gold Hide at Caerlaverock WWT. Large flock of Barnies grazing with the Avenue Tower Hide in the background.

Angie and I spent a very pleasant few hours at Caerlaverock Wetland Centre on the Solway last weekend. I particularly like the new route out to the Newfield Hide with its wooded borders, feeders and views over some of the fields previously inaccessible to visitors.
We were able to get good views of Barnacle Geese from here, many sporting orange or turquoise leg rings that were easily read with a telescope. One bird FDS had a transmitter fitted too (left hand bird, photo above). Angie scrolled down some of the ring data on the board and Dr Larry Griffin kindly sent us some info on the birds. FDS is paired with FFA (presumably the other bird in the photo above - it was certainly present). The older birds we reported were AZU (ringed as adult male 4/8/93) and DCB (ringed as adult female 3/7/92 on Spitsbergen at NY Aalesund). The other orange rings were all deployed on the Solway in the last five years.

The rings we read were orange; CHD, BYU, DDC, DDB, CLX, FDS (with transmitter), CCV, FFA and DDZ and turquoise; VXU, VSV, AZU and VLX. Turquoise DCB was present among 2000 Barnacle Geese on 27 March at RSPB Mersehead too.

Aaaaaythyankyou!

Drake Aythya hybrid, Caerlaverock WWT, Dumfries & Galloway 26 March 2011.

Cracking day at Caerlaeverock today with Mrs B. A roadside Wheatear as we left Southerness was a nice start with the spring theme continuing as we arrived at the WWT with a singing Chiffchaff.
The newish route around the grounds at Caerlaverock to the Newfield Hide was very pleasant in the spring sunshine; 5000 or so Barnacle Geese still around the reserve, many of them sporting rings. Angie and I managed to read 14 rings as the Barnacle Geese fed nearby.

Always an interesting read .......

We counted 700 Pink-footed Geese between Caerlaverock and Ruthwell; still 164 Whooper Swans in the fields and female Merlin whizzing through the 'scope view as I counted them. Three Sparrowhawks, a few Buzzards, at least 10 Yellowhammers and two Corn Buntings in the Priestfield - Ruthwell area and Small Tortoishells on the wing and vocal Naterjacks rounding up a very relaxing day on the Solway.

Vis trickle.

Greenland Whitefronted Geese at Tayinloan, Argyll & Bute 25 March 2011.

With a lower cloud base and being positioned in a valley midway along the Mull of Kintyre (mist rolling in from the sea ..... please don't!), I didn't see as many 'flyovers' this morning. Despite less favourable conditions than yesterday I'd guess that bits and pieces were still on the move though as a had another Swallow and my first Sand Martin of the year along the valley. Perhaps the flock of 46 Fieldfares with 22 Starlings was a little more indicative of movement though. They certainly seemed to be intent on crossing the Mull in great haste. Single Redwing to add to last evening's bird and a Woodcock last night may have been migrants.
There were still at least 400 Greenland Whitefronted Geese in the coastal fields near Tayinloan as I made way home (well, the caravan at Southerness) to meet Angie this afternoon.

Solway this weekend then .....

Bit of vismig and Swallows.

Argyll sunrise this morning with Arran in the background.

There was definitely a bit of movement early this morning. The clear conditions with light south-southwesterly wind prompted a bit of movement that I couldn't ignore from my upland vantage point. Granted the dozen or so Fieldfare, 19 Greylag Geese and 10 Brambling with twice as many Chaffinches heading across the Mull of Kintyre isn't going to make Spurn regulars envious, but it was my taste of migration this spring. Those two Barnacle Geese heading south may have been just a little confused though.
There seems to have been a bit of an exodus of Greenland Whitefronted Geese since I was last here if the reduced numbers beside the A83 are anything to go by.
Last but not least a mention for the three Swallows I saw late this afternoon.

Scaup ID: the definitive guide.

Adult Mediterranean Gull at Inverneil on Lochgilp, Argyll & Bute 22 March 2011. Probably my northernmost Med'?

Anyway; let's sort out this Scaup nonsense once and for all. It's easy: two forms - The Northern Scaup (pronounced "Scorp") and the Southern Scaup (pronounced "Scope"). However there are Lesser and Greaters so I decided to seek expert opinion and was told to contact some local birders, known as 'HOM's Finest' (because they hardly ever go there) - a Cockney Wide Boy (couldn't understand a single word he said but sold me some lady's tights); Batey - a photographer who spends a lot of his time around schools (hmpph) and playing golf and finally, local super hero, mild-mannered Clark Grahamson. None of the HOMos could provide me with any robust identification criteria and remembering the old name 'Lesser Escape' I decided that a visit to the local duck brothel was in order.
First stop was Out of Focus at Martin Mere where optics expert Len Scloth had a lot to say on the matter, but like his products failed to throw any light on the subject. I did find out that there is still an illegal trade in Scaups from dealer Jack Ronseal (does exactly what he says on the tin), mainly on Facebook.

So here's what to look for in case you are offered one on the black market (Ebay):

(Northern) Greater Scorp or (Southern) Greater Scope. Note head bulge, vermiculations and much larger bill that you'll be nailed for.

Lesser Scorp (or Scope) with trouser button for size comparison.

Most records are from England and for some reason thy appear rather scarce in Scotland. Beware that hybrids between the two do occur known as Spotted Scorps.

Had a bit of time on my hands today ........

HOM and away.

Corn Bunting at RSPB Hesketh Out Marsh, 21 March 2011.

Strolled out to the Ribble with Andy Bate from Hesketh Out Marsh today. Bit quiet but 32 Eiders out on the Ribble is a good record on this part of the river. Single female Merlin was the only raptor today; no sign of any harriers at all. Of course plenty of waders were on the move, avoiding the 10 metre tide waters - 300+ Oystercatchers, 50 Black-tailed Godwits and 20 Golden Plover being the pick of the bunch.

Drake Eider at Hesketh Out Marsh / Banks Marsh East, 21 March 2011.

Eight Pintail and a pair of Gadwall were the best of the dabblers as there were very few Wigeon or Teal to look through. Plenty of Skylarks on the wing in song and at least 3 male Corn Buntings jangling away in the hedgerows.

STOP PRESS.
After a phone call from Churchtown's very own Andy Bate, I visited Crossens where a Bean Goose had been seen. No sign by the time we got there but it was a good show with Pale-bellied Brent Goose, Eurasian Whitefronted Goose and at least 3 Barnacle Geese with several thousand Pink-feet. A ringtail Hen Harrier was quartering the outer marsh too.

"Blether"

Blether (ble-thir). Dialect, chiefly Scot.

1. Person who chatters incessantly; one who babbles on and on ("That wee yin 'o yours is an awfy blether gettin").

2. To engage in conversation, long winded and idle talk (as in "Ah met yer granny doon the toun, we hud a richt guid blether the gither").

3. Birders in a hide!

Back home for a long weekend and mighty glad to get out today after a day indoors yesterday, catching up on paperwork. Today's weather was nowhere near as good though and ideas of a high tide watch at RSPB Hesketh Out Marsh were 'shelved' in favour of Marshside this morning.
I was particularly keen to see the interesting male Aythya discovered on Rainford's Lagoon yesterday and must admit to my heart sinking a little when all I could find were a few Tufted Ducks there this morning. So I was relieved to find the bird dozing on the Junction Pool with some more Tufteds straight after my 'mini-dip', even if it wasn't revealing any features as it loafed on a grassy island. The nice vermiculated mantle and restricted black area on the nail of the bill looked interesting but as it appeared to be going nowhere and doing nothing for the foreseeable future I decided to join others on the sandplant as the 9+ metre tide covered the saltmarsh.
Several thousand Pink-footed Geese wading through the saltmarsh (several neck-banded birds here), fleeing the tide, included an adult Eurasian White-fronted Goose and thousands of Knot and smaller numbers of Bar-tailed Godwits and Grey Plovers passed by. A female Merlin whizzed by a couple of times and 13 Eiders bobbed about offshore. Meadow Pipits were constantly dropping in but no Water Pipits - surely they are out there somewhere?
We dashed up to Crossens as the geese made their way onto the grazed marsh. Being much easier to sift through we picked up a couple of Barnacle Geese with the Barnacle x 'Canada-type' hybrid, a couple of Greylag Geese and thanks to Martin McDerby for the call regarding the Pale-bellied Brent Goose, expertly picked up shortly afterwards by Graham. Ruff and 4 Whooper Swans were added to the list before the lure of the quacker had us scuttling back to the reserve where there were plenty of Avocets, Black-tailed Godwits and several hundred Golden Plover.
I spent over an hour with the Aythya, now very active and diving frequently on the Junction Pool with Tufties. It reminds me very much of this bird bird Angie and I found on Auchenreoch Loch (Dumfries & Galloway) a couple of years ago. I was troubled a little by anomalies with the Auchenreoch individual so I contacted Keith Vinicombe (Aythya hybrid expert and almost anything feathered really) who kindly took the the trouble to have a look at my photos and notes and realising my concerns commented:

"As for the 'tuft', Lesser Scaup does show this - our Chew bird certainly has it and it can look very obvious. At other times, you can't see it at all. It depends on how much the crown feathers are raised. If they're raised right up, then the crown looks peaked, if it's completely lowered the head can look flat or even rounded, but I think if it's half way, the more elongated crown feathers form a slight tuft over the indent at the back of the crown. It's certainly nothing to worry about."

'Uber Twitcher' Andy Bate joined me on the way back from Penrith for a look at the duck before the drizzle got the better of us and I headed off for a bacon barm on the way home. And I thought I'd expertly avoided tricky Aythas the othere evening at Milton Loch. They just won't go away, will they?

On a roll.

A bacon roll, that is.

Loch Ryan, Stranraer 17 March 2011.

Bit of a mixed bag today. Plenty to keep the wildfowl enthusiast happy here in D&G at the moment, even from the car. A quick stop on the A75 near Newton Stewart this morning to check a flock of 850 Pink-footed Geese yielded little and the 20 or so Whooper Swans I saw last week were still in the same field before the Wigtown turn-off. Green Woodpecker (rare in western Dumfries & Galloway), 2 Magpies (rare in most of D&G) and a male Reeve's Pheasant (!) were the unexpected on the Rhins today.
I made a bit of time to check Loch Ryan after work this afternoon. It was low tide so my timing wasn't good but that couldn't be helped today. I counted 97 Pale-bellied Brent Geese on the eastern shore at Broadstone Road and 360 Scaup off Bishop Burn on the western side but the gulls were well spread out over the exposed sands of the sea loch. Apart from a couple of Black Guillemots they were the only birds of note for me on the loch today.


A feeding flock of 16 Whooper Swans near Dunragit were the only birds I stopped for on the way back to Southerness this evening. The return journey on the A75 passing Luce Bay and crossing fringes of Wigtown Bay alongside the River Cree (where the Pink-feet had made their way onto the saltmarsh) has to be one of my all-time favourite car journeys, especially on a sunny late afternoon with a stop at "The Tea Pot" (above) on Skyreburn for a bacon roll.

First Wheatears.

Inverary on Loch Fyne, Argyll & Bute 15 March 2011.

So that's it then. No more late winter - early spring is here. I saw four male Wheatears near Creetown on a sunny Dumfries & Galloway morning. Hard to believe after waking up in freezing fog on Southerness Point but there you go, that's the UK for you.
This 'migrant rush' had my head spinning, so on my way back to Southerness I stopped by some of the lochs near Castle Douglas in hope of a Sand Martin. No such luck but some nice views of displaying Goldeneyes on Carlingwark Loch and you can get so close to Goosander there for some reason. Nice to hear singing Treecreepers in the woods there too and 40 Whooper Swans just outside Castle Douglas near the A75 was a very welcome sight.
Auchenreoch Loch was a little quiet but Milton was better with plenty of Wigeon, Goldeneye and a single Pochard. March has always been a rewarding month on the lochs in D&G for us and the Tufted Duck flocks are always worth scrutinising. A distant Tufty-size, grey-backed male Aythya sp. in the by-now murky conditions had me wondering for a while. But it was just too far off and I couldn't make out head-shape or colour, mantle vermiculation definition or bill detail and it didn't flap its wings (for wing bar analysis). As it swam further out behind an island I decided it was about to become a hassle I could do without for the time being and left for the caravan. There's been quite a few Aythya hybrids at large in this area of late but you never know.

West Loch Tarbert yesterday (Argyll & Bute). Greenshank on the shore there yesterday near Kennacraig.

Goose tracking.

Papps of Jura from Tayinloan (Argyll & Bute), 14 March 2011.

No Sand Martins, Wheatears of Chiffchaffs for me yet. Western Scotland is still in the grips of winter at the moment but the longer days have allowed time for a bit of 'local' birding after work. Still some Greenland Whitefronted Geese along the coastal A83 road this afternoon; 360 at Tayinloan and 382 a little further north near Lenaig. Despite flat calm conditions I couldn't find anything of note on the sea but the Ronachan Bay area was better with some smart drake Eiders, a female Scaup and a few pairs of Red-breasted Mergansers. There were at least 10 Great Northern Divers off shore with 3 Red-throated Divers too.

Bob Swann, the Greylag Goose sightings co-ordinator has kindly sent me the report for neck-collared bird NXT I saw at Tayinloan on 2 March. With sightings from the north and east coasts of Scotland in 1999 and 2000, it appears NXT took a liking to the west side thereafter, mostly reported from Islay and the Kintyre peninsula. Many thanks Bob.

Wintry weather over West Loch Tarbert, Argyll & Bute 13 March 2011.

Also just heard from the WWT about the Pink-footed Goose PZL I saw near Southerness on Saturday. A male bird ringed on 16 December 2007 at Loch of Lintrathen (Angus), PZL spent the rest of the 2007/08 winter in Aberdeenshire and Moray. Seen again in Aberdeenshire on 26 September 2010 it must have been amongst the many thousands of Pink-feet displaced from eastern Scotland by the big freeze later in the winter (cf. large numbers on the Solway and in Lancashire) as it was sighted at Pilling (Lancs) on Morcambe Bay on 30 January 2011 and is now in Scotland again.
Many thanks to Kane Brides and the WWT species monitoring team at Slimbridge for getting this information to me so rapidly.

Weekend off and Greenland Whitefront V3A.

Still in the grips of winter up here in Scotland with snow and sleet carried in by a freezing easterly this afternoon.
We spent a very pleasant day off in the Southerness Point area (Dumfries & Galloway) yesterday despite the wintry conditions. A morning walk around the point was rather uneventful apart from a few Yellowhammers and Mersehead RSPB was seriously lacking in Barnacle Geese. Plenty of Tree Sparrows from the information centre there but little else. An afternoon drive around the peninsula and along the Nith Estuary was much better. The visibility was very poor at the Drumburn viewpoint was very poor but the fields between Southerness and New Abbey held plenty of Pink-footed Geese including 982 near Loch Kindar and 678 at Powillimount. I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've seen more Pink-feet than Barnacle Geese on the Solway (there were only 68 Barnies with the Pinks at Powillimount) and I counted 80 Greylag Geese with the Pinks at Kindar too.
Neck banded Pink-footed Goose PZL was in the flock at Powillimount; which reminds me ......

I'm grateful to Kane Brides for sending our V3A Greenland Whitefonted Goose sighting from Islay to the appropriate people and many thanks to Larry Griffin and Tony Fox for sending me the goose history data. V3A, an adult male first caught at Loch Ken (Dumfries & Galloway) on 26 February 2008 , is fitted with a satellite transmitter. It wintered at Loch Ken 2008/9 and 2009/10 but now appears to have shifted to Islay. Tony kindly sent me a list of resighted collared Greenland Whitefronts and although not as widely travelled as some other reported individuals, all sightings are very much appreciated. The previous sighting of V3A was in December 2010 at Loch Ken and there are relatively few reports of Greenland White-fronted Geese changing wintering site within winters (Loch Ken - Islay 2010/11).

Not twitching ......

Adult Mediterranean Gull at Loch Ryan, Dumfries & Galloway 10 March 2011.

If I'd have seen it the day before it would be twitching, OK ......? No, not the Med' Gull; the Ring-billed.
With a bit of spare time to spare yesterday I headed down to Loch Ryan near Stranraer. The Ring-billed Gull had been missing for a day from Bishop Burn so I tried on the more sheltered southeast corner of the sea loch first. A fine adult Mediterannean Gull was my reward here with a flock of mainly Black-headed Gulls and a few Common Gulls. The water was far too choppy for seaduck or grebe sightings so I headed round to Bishop Burn on the east side of Stranraer after watching some nice Pale-bellied Brent Geese for a while.

Twenty or so Pintail, some Wigeon and 100+ Scaup were around Bishop Burn when I arrived but very few gulls. A quick check near the snack bar where there were more gulls failed to produce the target bird but I eventually located the adult Ring-billed Gull back at the burn with the arrival of a large flock of gulls arriving from inland fields as the tide ebbed. Unusually 'skittish', the gulls headed out to sea, where they were almost impossible to scrutinise but I did relocate the Ring-billed Gull on the beach hear the snack bar once again. A very distinctive adult, with a crisp ring on the bill, good size, pale grey mantle and head streaking; this individual was easily picked out as it consorted mainly with Black-headed Gulls, rather than Common Gulls.
No chance of a photo in the westerly hooley on the exposed shore of Ryan but I will get another opportunity next week with a little luck.

Day off tomorrow; staying in Scotland. Now if a goodie turned up back on the home Ribble patch, would that be twitching?