Black Grouse

A week in the Cairngorm National Park and on the Moray and Nairn Coast gave us some excellent birding, with a couple of life ticks for me, but with very few photographs for the blog. The problem was the weather, it was just too good, warm sunny days, calm seas and virtually no wind. The sea ducks, that we had hoped to find sheltering in the coastal harbours, were long gone or were far out to sea and the geese also seemed to be starting their migration early.

We did manage to see one hundred and sixteen different species over the week. That included  White-billed Diver, Black Grouse, Crested Tit, Twite, American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Ptarmigan, Iceland Gull, and Surf Scoter. However most were a long way off and the scopes got more use than the cameras. 

The notable missing bird for the week was the Snow Bunting, which is normally present either on the coastal sand dunes or around the car park at the Cairngorm ski lifts. We could not find them anywhere although there was one reported the day after we left.

Fortunately we had stopped off at Seahouses Harbour before we crossed into Scotland and the Eider we found there proved to be the only close encounter we had with sea ducks all week.

Eider

Female Eider

The harbour also had a few Great Black-backed Gulls, this one with the remains of a crab.

Great Black-backed Gull and crab

First stop in Scotland was at Musselburgh. Lots of birds including Velvet Scoter, Long-tailed Ducks, Goldeneye, and Bar-tailed Godwits but no Surf Scoter that we could see and no opportunities for photographs. So it was onwards to our base for the week at the Grant Arms Hotel at Grantown on Spey.



It was nice to find the Black Grouse. This is a bird I used to see regularly when I was out walking on the hills, but it seems to be a lot rarer these days. This is  actually the first I have seen since I started keeping records four years ago. The pictures are poor but this is not a bird that is easy to approach when out in the open. We did not want to spook them so we took our pictures at a distance, hence the massive crop, and left them in peace.

By contrast the Red Grouse is a much easier bird to photograph. These shots were taken at Lochindorb where the birds were close by the road.

The last of our target birds in the Grouse family was the Ptarmigan. Dismissing the soft option of the Cairngorm Funicular we trudged up the route to the northern corries. Last year we had seen a number of birds around there but this year, with the snow line higher, we found only one. Dave heard it calling and after a search he found it, distant, on the other side of a deep snowfield. Last year the birds came close but this one was staying put, happily feeding on the heather shoots.

Ptarmigan

They are a great bird to find, the walk may have been hard work but the celebratory beer that evening tasted all the better for it.

We had two visits and spent about a day and a half looking for Eagles in the Findhorn Valley. Slim pickings is probably the best description for the birds found. On the first visit we had one decent flyby from a juvenile Golden Eagle from which I failed to get any decent pictures. My best efforts are shown below.

There were a couple of other distant views of Golden Eagles and one possible sighting of a White-tailed Eagle but it was to far off to be able to confirm the identification.

The shot below shows the closest we got on the second visit.

It's taken using a 500mm lens and 1.4 extender with the birds at least a mile away. Blown up a bit bigger you can identify the lower bird as a juvenile Golden Eagle. The upper bird, Dave identified using his scope, as a peregrine which was one of a pair harassing the eagle.

There were Dippers in the river but they did not show for a picture so to keep me occupied I ended up photographing a Mistle Thrush and a Pied Wagtail that kept us company on our vigil and a couple of the local Buzzards.

Not quiet as tuneful as a Song Thrush but better than nothing

Pied Wagtail

 

Buzzard

Buzzard

More to follow in part two of the blog headed as Crested Tits.

Greenshank and Others

Today was about catching up with a few of the birds I had missed out on over the past few weeks. Top of the list was the Little Gull. There have been plenty of reports of the bird but I had failed to connect with one despite visiting all the right places. So today was a visit to Wyckham Farm at Steyning to see if I could find the birds reported there.

I had a quick look for the Siberian Chiffchaff but I am not sure I would recognise it if I saw it. There were a few suspects about but they all had too much yellow showing to be the Siberian. Still it's always good fun trying to get any of the little brown things in focus long enough to get a picture.

There were gulls on the field as reported but unfortunately they were all Black-headed. I walked on and came back about thirty minutes later to find two more promising suspects flying with the Black-headed gulls.

Little Gulls - showing black underwing and bill

The birds stayed very distant but I still managed to get a couple of record shots.

Little gull

Little Gull

Next stop was the Nore stream. The Spotted Redshank was there as usual but this time it had a Greenshank along for company.

Spotted Redshank

Greenshank

keeping an eye out for aerial attack

Posing for another picture

I think that Greenshanks are one of the most impressive of the waders and this bird looked in great condition. I always expect them to be a lot more flighty than the Redshanks so was really pleased to get these shots although they do not really convey the quality of the bird on the day.

Flushed with success I then headed off to East Head to see the Snow Buntings. No luck this time. There were a few birds about but the sand was really whipping across the head. It was uncomfortable for me so it must have been difficult for the small birds. The majority of the birds were hunkered down on the exposed sand spits but the Sanderling seemed oblivious to the wind and driving sand and were still running around on the waters edge.

Sanderling

There were also Meadow Pipits feeding on the more sheltered eastern side of the head.

Meadow Pipit

And, one final picture. The red orbital rings on this Great Black-backed Gull caught my eye. They apparently indicate a bird in full breeding plumage.

Great Black-backed Gull

Perhaps the fish head is a little treat for some prospective partner.