A Wind in the Willows sort of day

This afternoon, Lou & I took a gentle wander through the ancient mixed woodlands of Savernake Forest. Everything is starting to look very green and lush, and the woods were full of birdsong. We spent a very relaxed hour or so sitting on the banks of a small pool, just waiting to see what appeared. We had a pair of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers calling from the surrounding trees, and got a few glimpses of one of the birds. One day I'll get a decent shot of them! There were also plenty of the usual woodland birds; Long-tailed Tits, Wrens, Pheasants, Great Tits, Chaffinches and Wrens, as well as a pair of Buzzards patrolling across the clearing, and a Sparrowhawk on the hunt. Green Woodpeckers were heard, but not seen today. 

The highlight of the day was the huge number of Common Toads congregating in the pool to spawn. More and more kept creeping out of the undergrowth to make their way down to the water, to join the hundreds already there. I had fun playing with different shots, and Lou was in seventh heaven, as toads have long been one of her favourite beasties. 

Male Common Toad

Reflection of a Male

Female carrying Male to the pool

We drove back towards Swindon through the smaller country lanes, passing several Red Kites and more Buzzards. I was saddened to come across an uncommon Grey Partridge which had been freshly struck by a car. There are only a few pairs of these lovely little birds in the area, and I've been on the lookout for them for ages, so such a shame to come across a dead one. However, at least it proves they are around. 

We also found a very promising looking Badger sett, judging by the freshly dug earth around the entrances. We do know of several other setts in the area, but have yet to find one in as good a location for staking out, so I think I'll be back with a few peanuts in the very near future!

Finally, we stopped off so that Lou could have a look at the Water Voles, as she hadn't yet seen any this year. We got some great views of the male swimming along his stretch of stream and browsing on various reeds and stems only feet away from us. I experimented with trying a few different shots looking through the rushes, but can't quite make up my mind whether I like the results or not. No doubt I'll be back again soon for another go.

If only we'd found a mole, we'd have almost a full house of characters for the Wind in the Willows!

Sun, sea and squirrels

I've been out and about a lot this week, trying to cram in as much wildlife watching as I can before the new job starts on Monday.

Spring is now well and truly underway, with the hedgerows heavy with blossom and lots of tender green shoots bursting from every branch. The local wildlife is also in full-on preparation for the breeding season. On a repeat visit to the Water Vole stream, I spent some time watching a pair of Wrens shuttling to and fro bringing lots of nesting materials to their chosen site.

Wren

I was also really pleased to get a slightly different shot of one of the voles, peeping out from within some tree roots.

Water Vole

I've also been back to check on my pair of Little Owls a couple of times - the female hasn't been showing at all, hopefully suggesting she may be on eggs.

On visiting one of the local lakes, I was really pleased to see that a lonely Great Crested Grebe that I've been observing for the last 2 or 3 years, has finally paired up with a mate. It was lovely to watch their courtship dance.

Great Crested Grebe

The pair of Little Grebes on the same site seem to be on the nest already, so I'll be keeping an eye out for their chick appearing in a few weeks' time. The Tufted Ducks also seem to be paired up now, too.

Great Crested Grebe - Pair

On Friday, my friend Phil & I went looking for Dartford Warblers, on a commons near Newbury. However, the weather was against us, and we only got a brief view of one in flight. We did also briefly see a Wood Lark on the ground. Lots of Skylark present, all singing away loudly!

Since our visit to Jo McIntyre's dark-morph Red Squirrel hide earlier in the month, I've been really fancying getting some shots of the 'standard' Red Squirrels in sunlight. As the forecast for the weekend was stunning, Lou & I decided to pay a long-overdue visit to the National Trust's Brownsea Island. In the middle of Poole Harbour, Brownsea is one of the last populations of Reds in Southern England - and it's also an important site for waders, terns and other seabirds. So, it's always a great place to spend a day, especially in the Spring and Autumn. We often combine a trip to Brownsea with a dawn visit to the RSPB reserve at Arne, on the other side of the bay - however today we opted for a fairly civilized departure time of 7.30am instead!

Driving down, we passed a family of foxes, basking in the early-morning sunshine on the embankment on the side of the M4.  Lots of Buzzards and several Red Kites patrolling along the motorway corridor too.

As we drove along the edge of Poole bay, we spotted a flock of 9 Brent Geese very close to the promenade, so I just couldn't resist pulling in to get a few shots of these elegant fowl.

Brent Goose

Fortified by a bacon-roll, and armed with pockets full of hazelnuts, we hopped on the first ferry of the day over to Brownsea. We were greeted by a drip-drying Cormorant, right by the landing dock on the island.

Cormorant

We started off with a visit to the Dorset Wildlife Trust reserve on the North End of the island, which includes the man-made lagoon, now an internationally important site for wintering and breeding birds - particularly waders and terns.  Many of the winter migrants have now left, while it's still slightly early for some of the more unusual summer visitors to have arrived yet. However, there were still lots of good birds to be seen; albeit a little too far back from the hides for much in the way of photography. We saw many Shellducks, Greylag, Canada and Brent Geese, Gadwall, Teal, Mute Swans, Black-backed and Lesser Black-backed Gulls and large flocks of Black-tailed Godwits, now starting to colour up nicely. Other waders included Avocets, Knot, Dunlin, Turnstone, Redshanks & Spotted Redshank and Greenshank. Apparently a couple of Sandwich Tern have returned earlier this week, but we didn't spot them; at the moment, the nesting scrapes are mainly occupied by very vocal groups of Black-headed Gulls and some Mediterranean Gulls.

Walking round towards the Villa, I spotted a Water Vole swimming through the marsh; Brownsea is actually where I saw my first ever Water Vole, a few years ago now! At the bird feeders in front of the Villa, we had a good range of woodland/garden birds, including Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Blue Tit - and a Siskin. We had a quick look at the Salt Marsh hide, but the reeds and rushes are not yet high enough in front of the hide to attract the Bearded Tits etc, so we didn't linger.

Moving back to the National Trust side of the Island, we went into squirrel search and photograph mode. Things started off a little slowly... While we quickly located four foraging in a valley close to the visitor centre, our efforts to coax them closer with a judicious trail of hazelnuts were completely foiled by the attentions of one of the island's Peacocks! Having wandered over to see what we were up to, he quickly sussed that we had food and decided that we were his new best friends. He quickly hoovered up most of the carefully-placed nuts and the squirrels scarpered - while Mr Peacock seemed to be insisting that we should instead be taking his portrait!

Male peacock - Taken with my phone

Wandering on through the woods, we saw at least a dozen Red Squirrels, but didn't get anything more than record shots! We also saw several pairs of Green Woodpecker, all of which seem to be staking out nest holes. 

Eventually, in mid-afternoon, all of the hazelnut strewing-around finally paid off, when we got a pair of very tolerant squirrels foraging along a fallen tree. Sadly, by this point, the sun was largely off the area, but you can't have everything. We were both having fun snapping away - attended by the same Peacock, who'd clearly decided he was onto a good thing! We also made several families very happy indeed by helping them get a close view of the squirrels; maybe one of those excited little boys will be the next Chris Packham?

Waiting for the ferry back, we spotted a group of Turnstones zipping around on the rocks. Always nice to watch these funny little clock-work birds in action. All in all, a most enjoyable day out.

To finish the day off, Lou rescued a pair of Toads from a busy road while walking the dog this evening, so we released them back into the marshy woods behind Coate Water, where hopefully they'll have a better chance of not ending up laminated to the tarmac...

Woodland and Water Voles

I finally start my new job next week, so I'm making the most of the opportunity to cram in a few more days of wildlife watching while I've still got a bit more free time to spare.

After a frosty night, today dawned sunny and clear, so my friend Tony & I decided to take a run out to Savernake forest to see if we could track down the elusive Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. There are known to be a number breeding in the area, but although I've heard them several times, I've yet to have a really clear view. Today wasn't to be the day either, with no sign or sound of them whatsoever. It was still very pleasant to spend the morning walking through the ancient woodland though, with lots of other wildlife activity. Walking along the main path, we watched a female Muntjac Deer picking her way through the understory.

We saw almost the full range of tits; Great, Blue, Long-tailed, Coal and Marsh -as well as lots of Nuthatches calling & hopping around up in the canopy. We also flushed a pair of Wood Ducks (descendants of escaped birds) from the pond. A pair has bred here a few years back, so it'll be interesting to see if this pair stick around. 

On leaving Savernake, we took a little drive through some of the back roads around Aldbourne. It was a good morning for raptors, with 6 Red Kites, a dozen Buzzards, and 3 Kestrels all spotted in the course of a couple of miles. Lots of Red Legged Partridges scurrying around too. We stopped for Tony to have a looked at a pair of Brown Hares and were both surprised when one lolloped towards him, ending up almost at his feet!

After dropping Tony off, I decided to head out again, this time on the hunt for Water Voles. The population in the local area seems to be holding strong - fingers crossed - and there are several streams and waterways where there's a good chance of seeing them, with a little patience. 

I was rewarded with some good views of this cheeky chap at the second site I checked today. I'm hoping to work with these entertaining little rodents a bit more over the coming months - got a few shots in mind!

Day of the Dippers

After getting a tantalizing glimpse of my first pair of Dippers in Scotland last week, I've really been itching to have a better look at these amusing little birds - and to have a chance for at least a record shot or two!

So, today I joined my friend Phil Morgan on a Dipper quest in South Wales. We started off at the National Trust's Aberdulais Falls - a well known site for Dippers. There was certainly no difficulty in tracking down the birds; we had views of a pair on the falls pretty much instantly from our arrival. We also spotted what I think was another individual distantly further up the gorge.

Dipper displaying

It's a great place to get close view of the Dippers - although not ideal for photography, as you are looking down on the birds from above. We also spotted a pair of Grey Wagtails, who seemed to be setting up home inside the wall.

There was quite a bit of work underway at Aberdulais today, and one of the workmen kindly pointed us in the direction of another local spot where he had seen Dippers in the past, so we headed off to check it out. While we didn't see any Dippers ourselves, it did look like there could well be a pair in the area, as there were lots of tell-tale poo-speckled rocks mid-stream. It's a very pleasant spot to visit, though - I enjoyed wandering through the woods, with lots of Grey Wagtails and a couple of Nuthatches to look at.

Our final destination for the day was at another site where Phil has had good luck in the past - and we struck gold, with a pair busily coming and going. I was really chuffed to be able to get right down level with the water to get some eye level shots at last. Today's overcast skies and dull conditions made for slow shutter speeds, but I'm still pleased with these after striking out in Scotland. Think I may have been bitten by the Dipper bug now though - will definitely have to go back on a brighter day in the next few weeks.

Thanks again Phil for a great day out!

Crested Tits, Crossbills, Capercaille & back to the Coast

Finally getting around to finishing off the trip report for our last couple of days North of the border last week. Apologies go to our avid readers in Cults in particular for the delay in producing the last installment!

We'd originally planned to retrace the same route up Deeside, through Glenshee & Perthshire back to Edinburgh after our few days in Aberdeen. However, tantalised by seeing other people's fantastic shots of Ptarmigan on snow, we decided to take the super-scenic route back with a detour through Aviemore & a flying visit to the Cairngorm.

After a hearty full Scottish breakfast to give us strength for the day, we set off up Deeside as far as Balmoral Castle - again passing good numbers of Greylag Geese feeding in the fields around Muir of Dinnet. 
A final pass through the moorland around Bridge of Gairn was rewarded with some more great views of Red Grouse displaying.  

Red Grouse

We then continued along the same road through Tomintoul and the Lecht towards Aviemore - passing several Roe Deer, large flocks of Lapwings, several groups of Curlews and some distant Mountain Hares along the way. I'd been hoping that there might be some better snow-cover remaining at the Lecht for another chance of getting the Grouse on snow, but it was pretty much all gone apart from a few compacted patches. 

Nearing Aviemore, we spotted quite a lot of large winter visitor waterfowl grazing in the fields along the Spey - mainly Greylags again, but also several groups of Whooper Swan and some Pink-footed and Canada Geese. 

Just outside Grantown on Spey, I was absolutely flabbergasted to spot a female Capercaille walking through the pine trees, not too far back from the main road. I nearly crashed the car in my shock, but as we were in a stream of fast-moving traffic there wasn't anywhere to pull over for some distance. We had to go a couple of miles further down the road before coming to a place where I could turn round, and by the time we'd made our way back, there was no sign of the bird. While I'm gutted not to get even a record shot, it was an incredible feeling to see one in Scotland. 

By this time, we were in dire need of caffeine & cake, so we paid a visit to the Potting Shed Tearoom at Inshriach Nursery. This is a great place for a coffee stop if you are even remotely interested in birds, as the tearoom has a really nice viewing area looking directly out over their wildlife feeding station, which attracts a constant stream of birds and the odd Red Squirrel or two - with the added bonus of excellent cake too! We enjoyed watching the dozens of Chaffinches and Coal-tits on the feeders, as well as Greenfinches and Great Spotted Woodpeckers.

Arriving at the Cairngorm, I was disappointed - but not really surprised- to see that here too, the snow cover had receded up the slopes. I did pick up a group of Ptarmigan on a ridge to the far left of the funicular railway, but too far up to tempt me to try an ascent, I'm afraid! Ah well, got to leave some challenges for next time, after all.

We then stopped into the Scottish Heather Centre, as we've found their wildlife feeding station to be good for woodland birds when we stayed in the area a couple of years ago. However nothing at all was moving during our (admittedly, very breif) visit this time - although we could clearly hear Crested Tits calling in the pines around the grounds. Chatting to the owner, he hasn't seen any come down for a few months, so he thinks the mild winter has meant they are less interested in visiting feeders.

Before hitting the road again, we decided to stretch our legs with a quick walk in one of our favourite spots - in the beautiful RSPB Abernethy forest around Loch Mallachie. Almost immediately, we were surrounded by Crested Tit calls on every side, and we had fun watching them flitting around high up in the pines - too high for much in the way of photos, sadly. (Guess I'm just spoilt after my close encounters in Spain last month!)

Crested Tit - Spain

We also had a small flock of Scottish Crossbills, although again they were staying in cover at the top of the trees. 

Lou stumbled across (almost literally) a very obliging Common Toad - always a fun challenge to shoot 'macro' style subjects using a 500mm lens! 

Common Toad

The highlight of the walk was hearing the unmistakable sounds of a male Capercaille clacking away somewhere in the depth of the forest. We didn't manage to work out where the call was coming from, but it was quite a thrill all the same. 

Back in Edinburgh on Friday, the weather had changed back to cold, grey and drizzly - with strong winds. It wasn't a day to tempt us to go too far afield, especially knowing we had the long drive home the next day. We did take a drive down to the coastline at Crammond, where we found the sea was very rough and few birds were visible out on the water - except a few gulls on the front. However we did come across a huge flock of over 200 Curlews in a sheep field just back from the bay -accompanied by a single Ruff. If it wasn't for the farmer driving through the field as I was setting up I could have managed some close shots of them.

Moving on through Leith Docks, we noticed there were quite a few more birds sheltering in the harbours, so we decided to pop down to Musselburgh again to see if we could pick up the Surf Scooter.

Arriving at the Fisherrow Harbour, we thought we had completely struck out, as there wasn't a single bird to be seen. However a quick scan through the bins showed a few waders huddled on the spar at the mouth of the River Esk further along the bay, so we headed in that direction for a closer look. It turned out to be a good call, as we discovered lots of the waders and waterfowl were sheltering just slightly upriver - including Greylag & Canada Geese, Golden Eye and Dunlin. We didn't find the Scooter, but I was very pleased to be able to finally get really close to a group of Goosanders, as they've been a bit of a bogie bird for me in terms of getting a decent shot!

Goosander -Female

Goosander - Male

So, overall we had a really good time in Scotland - always good to combine seeing the clan with some top-quality wildlife action too!  

Grouse, grouse, grouse....oh, and a deer or two

Today's target species was Black Grouse, so we were up and out well before dawn - much to Lou's disgust!  It was very cold, calm and clear overnight, with temperatures down to -4 degrees by the time we got out into the countryside - ideal conditions for getting some good activity on the lek. 

We spent several hours from 6am onwards in a Glen in the Balmoral Estate, where we've previously observed good numbers of Blackcock. Driving up the foot of glen, a pair of Roe Deer bounded across the road in front of us, into a stand of Scotch pines. Moments later, we passed two magnificent Red Deer stags crossing a heavily frosted field, just before sunrise. It was quite a privilege to get such a close view of such mature stags - a 16 pointer and a 14 pointer respectively. It would've been even better if the light levels had been just a bit higher, but I'm not going to complain!

Red Deer Stags 

As we entered the main glen, I was surprised to spot a Mountain Hare relatively low down, on a knoll close to the river; very visible in it's white winter coat amongst the grass & heather. I was able to get quite close to it - and when it did spot me, it wasn't particularly bothered - slouching off very nonchalantly into a burrow. I was interested to see this behaviour, as I hadn't realised that Hares used burrows at all. It quickly reappeared back in the same spot - clearly a favourite place to sit. There were also a small group of Red Deer does on the far bank of the stream and several Curlews and Lapwings flew past. 

Mountain Hare

Slightly further along the glen, we had our first Black Grouse sighting, just as the sun started coming over the hills. Several birds landed in the scrub close to the road, before flying back across the river to the main lek, where about a dozen males were displaying. From the car, we watched them lekking for about half an hour, although once the sun started to hit the lek, the activity very quickly dwindled away & the birds flew up into the treeline.

Black Grouse

Moving further up the glen, we passed lots more Red Deer - with large numbers of young stags browsing on the grass on the banks of the river, and other groups visible on the slopes on either side of the valley. 

We parked up & set of up the footpath towards the loch, passing a second distant Black Grouse lek  on the marshy area just below the foot. Also grazing on this area were yet more Red Deer stags - a herd of over 170 stags of various ages (yes I did count, I'm sad that way). They were remarkably unbothered by us walking past them; normally I'd expect them to be off at top speed.

Our path also took us past a third Black Grouse lek, next to a stand of Scotch pines. I was able to get a few shots of the birds displaying from the path. In total over 50 Black Grouse seen. The most I have seen in one morning and it certainly looks like the numbers are finally increasing.

Black Grouse

We also spotted at least 10 Goldcrests feeding in the pines, plus several owl pellets on the ground - but no sign of the owl itself.

Walking back to the carpark, we had a very close encounter of the deer-kind, as most of the huge herd of stags decided to cross the path & make their way up onto the slopes directly in front of us. I really enjoyed the chance to play with the strong light & shade contrasts.

Red Deer Stag - 14 point

After a quick pit-stop for much-needed bacon rolls & coffee in Ballater, we drove through the Red Grouse moors around Bridge of Gairn. However, there was a lot of raptor activity, with at least 8 buzzards patrolling overhead - plus several ravens - so the Grouse were mainly keeping their heads down! We did spot a few little red-eyebrows peeking over the heather, but there was little displaying going on. We did have a very nice pair of Song Thrushes, though.

Red Grouse - Male

As we were fairly close, we decided to drive on to Glenshee for another look at the Snow Buntings. I was also hoping for another chance at the Red Grouse on snow... and perhaps even the elusive Ptarmigans. However it was not to be, as the snow cover has really shrunk in the mild weather over the last few days, so both the grouse & Ptarmigans had moved further up the slope. We did find an obliging Snow Bunting though, much to Bill's delight.

Snow Bunting

Red Grouse - Female

On the way back to Aberdeen,  we had a bonus - very brief - glimpse of an otter swimming upstream in the Dee just outside of Braemar. We made another pass of the Red Grouse moors and were rewarded with some better sightings - including one splendid specimen which was just too close for my lens!

Red Grouse - Too close :)

Driving back, we again spotted good numbers of Greylag geese in the fields around Muir of Dinnet - however today they had been joined by several Pink-foots and a solitary Barnacle Goose too.

Garden birds, Guillemots, gulls and guano

Louise's parents' garden in the outskirts of Aberdeen provided a few additional species for our list for this week's Scottish trip over breakfast this morning. The feeders are visited by a constant stream of birds - mainly tits, Robins, Sparrows, Chaffinches, Blackbirds and Sparrows - and furnished the first sighting of a Dunnock for this week. We also enjoyed watching the clan of Wood Mice skittering around across the steps & in the undergrowth. I may have to get the camera out later in the week & see if I can get a few decent shots of them, as they are rather charming little critters.

It was another beautiful, clear sunny day here in Deeside - although the biting wind did make it feel quite wintery still. We spent most of the day on the coast, visiting a few different local sites which are good for a wide variety of species. 

We started off with a visit to the RSPB Fowlsheugh reserve, on the cliffs outside Stonehaven. The name translates as 'Bird Cliffs', which is certainly accurate. If you visit during the peak of the nesting season, the cliffs are absolutely jam-packed full of birds and the noise - and smell- is quite unforgettable. The main species here are Razorbills, Kittiwakes, Fulmars and Guillemots - although there are also other gulls, plus large rafts of Eider Duck on the sea below. 

Fulmar hovering on the updraft

Although it's still very early in the season, there are already good numbers of cliff-nesting seabirds accumulating and the prime spots on many of the ledges have already been claimed by amorous avians. The winding cliff-top path & high level ledges offer the possibility for some quite intimate views of the birds, so I spent quite a while crouched close to the edge shooting Razorbills, Guillemots and Fulmars. A bit of a triumph of will for me, as I'm very uncomfortable with heights, so being anywhere near the edge does bring me out in a cold sweat! I spent quite a bit of time shooting the birds in flight, catching them as they took off and landed just below me.

Razorbill

Many of the Razorbills were still moulting into their full breeding plumage; we spotted several with whitish heads. There were good number of Guillemots already present - both on the ledges, and in huge rafts out on the water. We spotted an enterprising pair of Ravens harassing the smaller Guillemots and driving them off their ledges. Presumably this is a tactic that is very successful once there are eggs and chicks to steal, but that is still several weeks away. 

Black-backed Gull

We did observe lots of courtship behaviour, particularly in the Razorbills and Fulmars - with plenty of displaying, beak-clacking and calls. Although the numbers of birds are far from what they will reach in peak season, the noise levels were already pretty loud - with the lower-range almost 'purring' calls of the Razorbills sounding almost like an outboard motor. 

Guillemots

When we last visiting at this time of year, we were lucky enough to see two of the small number of Puffins which nest here. However there was no sign of them today -  it's probably a week or so to early.

Although the seabird colony is the main attraction, the fields and gorse-filled gully through which a burn runs are also good for a variety of farmland species. We had good views of Yellowhammers, Sky Lark, Linnets, Rock Pipit and Meadow Pipit, a Wren and Dunnocks, as well as a quarrelsome trio of Buzzards.

Rock Pipit

Driving back towards Aberdeen, we stopped for a quick scan across the Loch of Loirston, which was fairly stuffed with waterfowl - including a group of eight Whooper Swans. Clearly the migration back to their summer breeding grounds is well on the way! Also present were Goldeneye, large numbers of Wigeon, Tufted Duck, plus Mute Swans, Coots and Mallards.

Whooper Swans

We then moved on to the mouth of Aberdeen Harbour, where there is now a large resident population of Bottlenose Dolphins. We spent quite a while watching them hunting and playing around the harbour entrance, spotting a couple of calves alongside the the adults. To boost the mammal count was a solitary Grey Seal, bobbing around in the middle of the channel. There were also lots of birds present - including more Eiders, Cormorants and Shags, Shell Duck, Oystercatchers and a Curlew. I also spotted an Icelandic Gull, amongst the more commonplace species.

Bottlenose Dolphins - Mother and calf

Driving back along the Dee, we spotted a good number of Goosanders on the river - plus several Little Gulls perched on rocks close to the bank.

To finish the day off, Bill (Dad-in-law) and I popped down to the Inchgarth Reservoir, as a Long-tailed Duck had been reported there over the last few days. We did get some distant views of it, but not close enough for photography. Again, lots of Oystercatchers, Wigeon, Goosanders and about 8 Goldeneye were present; the male Goldeneye were displaying nicely. We also spotted a Little Grebe.

Altogether a very pleasant day - although all the sea air has knocked me out. May have to have an early night tonight, as we are planning to be out early tomorrow for Black Grouse & Red Deer (fingers crossed!).

The white stuff - Snow buntings, grouse & other beasties

Yesterday wasn't brilliant weather-wise; while England basked in glorious sunshine, in Lothian we had drizzle and grey skies through to outright downpour for most of the day. However, we did grit our teeth and head over to the coast at Musselburgh as planned, to see what seabirds & waders were around. On the plus side, there were some really good birds present - including Red-breasted Mergansers, Slavonian Grebes, Common Scooter & one very elegant Surf Scooter -as well as the more typical Redshanks, Spotted Redshanks, Eider Ducks & Oystercatchers... There were also lots of gulls present - including Glaucous & Mediterranean Gull, as well as the more common Herring Gull, Black-Headed Gulls, Little Gulls, Common Gulls and Great & Lesser Black-backed Gulls. 

Slavonian Grebe - for reference

On the downside, the tide was really low, so all the birds were quite far out - so coupled with the horrible light conditions, not much hope for photos of the more unusual birds. Weather conditions being what they were, we really weren't tempted to linger waiting for the tide to rise - but I may pop back at the weekend, depending what we see on some of the other coastal sites we're planning to visit during the course of the week. 

We did get some good views of some of the waders, particularly a mixed flock of Bar-tailed & Black-tailed Godwits feeding along the shoreline,

Godwits 

Today, we were greeted by a lovely sunny morning; ideal conditions for our drive up further North  to visit Louise's parents in Aberdeen. Rather than go the most direct route, we like to drive up through Perthshire & Glenshee, as there are lots of possibilities to see some of Scotland's most iconic species along the way. 

We had a particularily good day today; coming up through Perth, we set a wee challenge to guess how many new species (for the trip) we would see by the time we got to Aberdeen. Lou was conservative & guessed at least 6, while I was more ambitious at 10. How wrong we both were...

Within a couple of miles of starting the count, we'd seen flock of White-fronted Geese and a large herd of around 25 Fallow Deer (sadly on a very sharp bend of the road where we couldn't stop), plus a Roe Deer doe & her half-grown fawn. Entering the main Glenshee pass, we quickly spotted a juvenile Golden Eagle kiting along the  ridge line. We watched it land on an outcrop with a Mountain Hare corpse, before getting harassed by a pair of Kestrels & taking off again. 

Red Grouse - Male

Driving further up into the pass, we soon started seeing lots of Red Grouse - now starting their mating displays in earnest. We parked up by the Ski-lifts & walked back along the road, with some great views of pairs of Grouse on snow along the way. I love their funny whisking calls - and the males bright red eyebrows! I was really pleased to be able to get close to a trio on snow, all clucking & chirping away to each other.

Red Grouse - Male

We did also see a group of 3 Ptarmigan, but they were very high up on the slopes & as the snow was rather soft and rotten, we decided it wasn't a good idea to attempt to climb up to them (this being after I'd already gone knee-deep in a drift creeping up on the Grouse!)

Red Grouse - Female

There was a lot of evidence of Mountain Hares, with lots of tracks in the snow all over the area. However, it did take up a while to track one of the actual beasties down. After spotting a few distant individuals high up on the slopes, we finally spotted one crouched down on the edge of a culvert above the road. Lou also found some rather grisly evidence of what the Golden Eagle's are eating...stumbling upon a collection of four Mountain Hare corpses in one spot. To make matters worse, she insisted on bringing home a couple of the (rather whiffy) skulls, which are now soaking in a bucket of bleach - much to the disgust of her parents, who thought she'd outgrown that sort of thing long ago!

Mountain Hare

Returning to the main carpark, I was really chuffed to get some fantastic views of a very confiding group of around 14 Snow Buntings. These are really stunning little birds, and although we have seen them before, getting such close views was a real first for me - made even better by them being on snow!

Snow Bunting - Pair

Driving down the valley towards Braemar, we saw a couple of groups of Red Deer stags up towards the snowline. More surprisingly, we also spotted a beautiful pair of Roe Deer- just past the Ski centre. We have seen them further down the glen by the treeline, but wouldn't have expected to come across them quite so high up!

Roe Deer - Buck with velvet on antlers

After a quick stop to refuel on Scotch Pies & Irn Bru, we carried on along Deeside - passing a number of Lapwings doing their display flights to ward off the attention of a trio of Buzzards. Just past Braemar Castle, we were surprised to spot a solitary Whooper Swan on the River Dee. The lonesome beastie also seemed rather bemused to be there, as it was honking most mournfully.

Whooper Swan

We turned off towards Bridge of Gairn to visit another Red Grouse moorland - where we had some more good views of the birds including display flying. An added bonus was spotting a first for me; a pair of Dippers on the fast-flowing river through the glen. I didn't manage to get any shots, but it was lovely to see them & hopefully we may stop by again on the way back to Edinburgh later in the week. We also had nice views of a pair of Mistle Thrushes.

Red Grouse - Display flight, male is below the higher female

Back on the main Deeside Road, we also had a good view of a male Goosander just outside Ballater, as well as a flock of Greylag Geese by Cambus o' May.  We also spotted various waterfowl on small ponds & lochs close to the road - including Coot, Tufted Duck, Mute Swans, Mallards, and Grey Heron plus Pied Wagtails, Carrion Crows, Jackdaws and Rooks.

All in all, we added a further 17 species to the trip list during the course of the day - a pretty good total, I'm sure you'll agree!