Spent a bit of time in Govan this morning and managed to find two active House Martin nests on buildings in Napier Drive. Two Sand Martins and two Swallows were feeding nearby, but I was unable to locate their nests. A Whitethroat was singing at Govan Graving Docks.

A walk along the Union Canal from Wester Hailes to Fountainbridge produced some interesting records including three singing Chiffchaffs (but no Willow Warblers), several Mallards with young (some possible second broods), a pair of Mute Swans with seven cygnets, a Bee-mimicking Hoverfly sp. on a canal-side umbellifer and a Swift visiting a hole in a tenement in Polwarth.

Two House Martins over central paisley, two swallows over the eastern edge of Barshaw Park and a House Martin over Oldhall were the highlights of a busy day.

Two or three House Martins were again visiting houses in Cardonald Gardens.

Lesser Black-backed Gull chicks were out on the rooftops in Port Glasgow first thing.
This evening, at least two Oystercatchers were alarm calling near Tesco store in Silverburn Shopping Centre, suggesting that they may have had young somewhere. A Pied wagtail was giving its soft roosting call nearby.

Seven Swifts were high over south Cardonald at 21:30 today, screeching and feeding in the simmer dim.

Monday, June 19, 2017

The heady scent of Privet flowers in the sun in Cardonald today took me back to my childhood in West Pilton when summers were long and every garden had a privet hedge.

A two-hour walk through the west end of Glasgow again failed to locate any Swifts, although Kingfisher, Grey Wagtail and Stock Dove were all present along the Kelvin (as were several singing Chiffchaffs but no Willow Warblers).