Urban Dippers and tyre fitting

   
While waiting for new tyres to be fitted to my car, I spent more time than expected walking around parts of Arbroath, their website said arrive 10 minutes early, I did, the guy said it will be 90 minutes which I could handle, it took 130 minutes.

I'm still waiting

Making the most use of the time, I found the Dipper pair I've photographed before, searched the harbour for any strangers, checked at Inchcape for rare gulls and Keptie Pond for the female Mandarin which can't be far away?

I've included some "facts" from Google Bard below in the inverted commas, and left out others!

"Dippers are the only birds that can walk underwater. They do this by using their wings to push themselves down and their feet to hold on to rocks."

"They can stay underwater for up to 30 seconds and are found in Europe, Asia, and North America."

"Dippers build their nests on cliffs near waterfalls, they eat insects, fish, and small crustaceans. They are an important part of the ecosystem, as they help to control populations of insects and fish."

"Dippers are a beautiful and unique bird that is a joy to watch."

Male Dipper on the Brothock Burn in Arbroath

The female Dipper which is paired with the male above,they will be nesting soon

The female is in the foreground and has a Caddis grub in its beak, one of their favoured foods

The male again

Jackdaws are being seen less in groups and more in bonded pairs as nesting gets near. 

"Jackdaws are one of the few species of birds that can recognise individual humans. They have been known to form strong bonds with their human keepers and can even be trained to perform tricks."

My Great Grandfather kept a tame Jackdaw, hence his fisher by-name was Jack Da, and my Granny was Jess Da (Cargill). I'm not sure why my Grandfather was Joe "Whitie" (Shepherd) but I'll try and find out?

Lesser black-backed Gulls are now spread across Arbroath with some at Keptie Pond, on the rocks at the harbour and I saw another at the bus station, this one was on Angus College.

"Lesser black-backed gulls are able to communicate with each other through a variety of sounds, including calls, whistles, and squeaks. They use these sounds to warn each other of danger, to attract mates, and to care for their young."

A showy (most are) Rock Pipit on the rock armour at Inchcape Park. 

(Disappointing returns from Bard when I asked for an interesting fact about Rock Pipits).