Saturday 26 January 2019

Peregrines and Red Kites

You don't have to be a pretty, or colourful bird to get on this blog, just try and oblige by appearing in range or being classed as an interesting find. Failing that on some days you might make it when I see nothing else or subjects are far away!

Both the Peregrines were present at a well known nest site in Aberdeenshire, but none of the Ravens were there when we had a short visit on Friday. Both Peregrines were almost on the cliff top taking it easy in the sun. 300mm with 1.4 TC


Male Peregrine


Female Peregrine, sitting about 5 metres below the male. I can't hold the blooming camera still enough for these long shots! Maybe Olive would carry my tripod, then you'd see photos here of pigs flying!




I used to think Fulmars didn't arrive on the cliffs till February but I've been seeing birds inshore and on nesting sites since just before Christmas, sometimes in numbers



Red Kite (with wing tags) in Glen Lethnot. It flew from the roadside but it took me too long to get out of the car and I ended up with this distant photo. Two other kites were seen and a Merlin which I didn't expect to see



Just an hour after reading a report of an Ivory Gull in Dumfries, albeit one rescued and taken into care, I glimpsed a white bird fly from behind a fish curers premises in Arbroath. It of course turned out to be a very white pigeon, and not ringed as most are


In contrast to the pigeon, one of the Carrion Crows at West Links, Arbroath where they favour the paddling pool area and are becoming less cautious as winter goes on


I can't resist these delicate looking Redshanks


One of perhaps six different Rock Pipits, this one was paler than most, and had pink legs as did a few of the others


Low sunlight on a colourful Starling

Wednesday 23 January 2019

Make hay when the sun shines

Another balmy sunny day so I dragged Olive out to top up her tan! The plan was to find Stock Doves in the East Haven area or Craigmill Den and we did both. Also on East Haven beach, and in front of the car park was the Little Egret but it quickly flew off when someone approached.



Stock Dove, one of around twelve near East Haven, then again in the trees at the bottom of Craigmill Den





Feral Pigeon for comparison


Woodpigeon


Still at or near East Haven, a Common Gull


Redshank, quite a few at East Haven in front of the car park


Sanderlings feeding alongside the Redshanks





An unusual find by Olive, hibernating Ladybirds tucked into a crevice in Rosa Rugosa



I wonder if this Ringed Plover has been at Victoria Park in Arbroath since late autumn. I'll have a closer look for the one with the yellow flag to confirm if I can


The almost obligatory Rock Pipit photo



This House Sparrow has been struggling a bit but seemed better today after getting more peace to feed. Photo from my garden while waiting for Olive to put on the many layers it takes to stand around watching me, watching birds


Olive's pet Robin


One of the twenty or so Starlings that risk my feeders in between the relatively frequent Sparrowhawk visits. I think there's only one, the male now

Tuesday 22 January 2019

Back to birds, back to reality

(Baby) It's cold outside, and who would have thought that a one time innocent song would fall foul of political correctness and #me too!

I managed about an hour waiting for the tide to rise at Rossie Spit before mild hypothermia won and my hands stopped working. Still it was worth it watching the Wren, while the 22 Shovelers drifted closer, then further away and never close enough for a photo of any worth. Earlier at Boghead and Ethie I looked without success for Corn Buntings, instead I saw Reed Buntings, Yellowhammers, Tree Sparrows, a Redshank and two Mute Swans.



Wren, (Troglodytes troglodytes). Photographed in the shadiest, coldest place at Montrose Basin


Mostly hidden as it foraged in the wet undergrowth


Each time it reappeared it announced its arrival by calling constantly, perhaps scolding me for sitting in its patch


Black-tailed Godwits (with Curlews), there were around 40 birds, often hidden behind a bank


Dunlin, a crop from a large flock that arrived as the tide rose


Knot, Rossie Spit


Bullfinch male in a wee bit of better shade



Reed Bunting male at Boghead


Yellowhammer at Ethie, one of 30 or more in a flock near some of the wild bird cover

Monday 21 January 2019

Lunar Eclipse - some success

I didn't think I'd see this Blood Moon Eclipse but for some reason I woke around 15 minutes before the totality and rushed out into my garden and took a few photos, actually lots of photos after I'd mucked up the EV! I'm not happy with these but what should I expect when the subject is 220,000 miles away!


Super Blood Wolf Moon 21/1 2019





Full Moon on Sunday evening about 8 hours before the eclipse which might have accounted for my wrong settings later on



Back to normal business, a Lesser Redpoll male at Montreathmont Forest


Rock Pipit at Inchcape Park in the late sunlight


Mallard eating bread despite signs at Keptie Pond requesting only seed, lettuce etc


The original sunset photo taken by Olive and her first published photo on this blog. iPad photo (device of the devil)


Sunday 20 January 2019

Blood Moon, "Maybes aye, Maybes naw"

Looks like another ten years before I get another chance to photograph a "Super Blood Wolf Moon", I did get the last blood moon but the weather forecast for early Monday morning isn't looking good. I'm going to try a time-lapse with a trail camera but even if the clouds clear I'm not hopeful of having the best position to get what I want.

Here's some of the previous photos, some planned and some by accident when I wasn't aware of the pending event!


This one on 28/9/15 at around 0211 hrs


The same morning between 0012 hrs and 0211 hrs


This was only a partial moon and the photo was taken a few days after the best point. I stumbled on this as I drove home from an ADBC evening at Panbride on 20/9/2016


Goldcrest, could have been a really good one on a sunny day but it wouldn't perform in the light



I had a Little Egret on my Webs count at East Haven this weekend, a first in six years. This one is from the Bank of Scotland Hide as it wasn't worth carrying a camera when I did my Webs


Song Thrush at Keptie Pond


Dunnock, not skulking about in the undergrowth for a change

Wednesday 16 January 2019

White-fronted Goose and Treecreeper

It's taken a while but eventually I re-found the Greenland White-fronted Goose previously seen at both Balgavies and Murton. The goose and all of the greylags looked to be scared off by the ongoing and noisy groundwork's at Murton where new path surfaces, what looks like new viewpoints, and a ramp for wheelchair users are being built.

I wonder though, if by creating viewpoints, will that reduce the birds using and nesting on the home pond/scrape. I'd venture that the home pond is one of the best places to easily see many waders which won't tolerate disturbance. My list is; Little Ringed Plover, Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Lapwing, Greenshank, Redshank, Oystercatcher and Snipe, not to mention many wild fowl species. Time will tell.

Others from Montrose Basin and Arbroath. Water Rail seen at Bank of Scotland Hide, no Kingfisher though, one Twite at Mains of Dun, and no sign of the Black Redstart at Inchcape or in and out of Gayfield where green-keepers were working.

Dipper video, cropped from a UHD original, click here


Greenland White-fronted Goose, easy to find if it's not sleeping. Note, the workmen appear to have lunch between 1200-1300, this might be the best time to look


A comparison between a Pink-footed Goose and a Greylag, also Murton


The previously seen hybrid goose



One of two Treecreepers seen together at the Lurgies on Monday


The same one



Nine Black-tailed Godwits from the Bank of Scotland Hide, Montrose SWT Centre


Not sure that they were so brown, likely the light and distance the photo was from, they were near the boundary fence


There were two Little Egrets briefly until one chased the other away



One of two Dippers on the Brothock Burn between the sea and E&O Fish


Grey Wagtail at E&O 


Grey Wagtail (different one) near the Old Brewhouse


Olive chose this sunset taken from my house on Monday


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