Some last-minute list-building around Musselburgh Lagoons produced excellent views of Velvet Scoter and Snow Bunting...




2011 summary below. Happy New Year when it comes!

2011 was another year thankfully full of memorable bird sightings. Early in the year, Slavonian Grebes displaying on a flat calm Clyde were hard to beat. However prolonged views of a Greenshank at Kinneil and 12 Hawfinches at Scone were also noteworthy. An early spring visit to a Stirlingshire moor gave fantastic views of lekking Black Grouse and a flypast Hen Harrier. An early April camping trip to Strathspey was not so memorable for the bird sightings (Grey Partridge on the way home through the Sma’ Glen was probably the highlight) as for the perfect, starlit skies. Another Strathspey trip, a month later produced lots of good birds including roding Woodcock, drumming Snipe, fishing Osprey and Sand Martins, Goldeneye, Common Sandpiper and Red breasted Merganser on the Spey, as well as stunning views from the Duke of Gordon Monument (with Redstart and Cuckoo in the woods).
Other trips this year included:
Islay for Chough, Twite, several Corncrakes ( finding five during a walk around Portnahaven was particularly notable) and Stonechats
Slovenia for thunderstorms and lots of Spotted Flycatcher
Yorkshire for breeding Mandarin, Yellow Wagtail, Peregrine and Little Owl
Mallorca for Stone Curlew, Hoopoe, Wryneck, Kingfisher and impossibly blue seas.
It is always good to see something unusual, and some of the best rarities this year have been a pair of Garganey at Barr Loch and a Grey Phalarope at Stevenston Point. However it is equally pleasant just to see good birds in the places where they belong. Some of the best examples have been Black Guillemots at Greenock, Green Woodpecker at Lang Craigs, squabbling Fulmars on Salisbury Crags, singing Yellowhammers around Arkleston Farm, Smew at Linlithgow and Lochwinnoch, an Arctic Skua at Gosford Bay, a Tawny Owl beside Loch Eck, Purple Sandpipers at Saltcoats Harbour, Greenland white-fronted Geese at Gartocharn, Stonechat at Luce Bay, Greenshanks and Green Sandpipers at Barons Haugh, Jays and Nuthatches at Rozelle, Red Kite and Red-legged Partridge between Braco and Comrie, Black Grouse, Nightjar and Barn Owl in Galloway, Cuckoo, Whinchat and Raven in Glen Finlas and a group of Ravens at the top of Ben Lomond. One of the best local trips this year was ironically not one of the best for birds; a beautiful winter’s day spent walking in the hills above Comrie.
Birds that “got away” this year included possible Merlin at Hillington, possible Wood Sandpiper at Balgray Reservoir, possible Goshawk at Bishopton and possible Honey Buzzard in the Trossachs. My final bird list for the year was 176 – five less than 2010. I’m disgusted to have to admit that omissions included Golden Plover, Corn Bunting and Red Grouse (!).
Thankfully some commoner birds proved particularly noticeable in 2011. Raven was perhaps my bird of the year with frequent sightings in Greenock, Paisley and south west Glasgow. In the second half of the year, a single bird seemed to be roosting on the tower at Leverndale Hospital and regularly commuted over south Cardonald. The early part of the year saw Waxwings appearing at various sites in south west Glasgow including Cardonald and Ralston. Other birds which appeared in the area around the time of January’s cold snap included Redshank and Goldeneye. Kingfishers seemed rare in the area for much of the year, but there was a rash of sightings in the last quarter. Bullfinches became regular visitors to the back garden, while Hoodie hybrids popped up at various sites. 2011 was also a good year for Grasshopper Warbler, Cuckoo, Spotted Flycatcher, Jay (Ardmore, Mugdock, Sallochy, Rozelle) and Stock Dove (or am I just getting better at spotting them?). A national influx of unusual geese late in the year allowed me to connect with Tundra Bean Geese near Bishopton and Barnacle Geese outside Irvine.
Some additions to my lists for regularly-watched sites included Teal and Redpoll in Murdieston Park, Greenock, Stock Dove and Great spotted Wood pecker at Ardmore Point, a Pied Wagtail Roost at Silverburn Shopping Centre and Water Rail, Mute Swan and Coot all new along the White Cart Water between Cardonald and Paisley. Other sightings along the cycle-path this year have included a police car (on the path), someone collecting windblown wood and two Chickens in a yard. In previous years, other unusual sights have included a canoeist (stuck on rocks), a serious (as opposed to opportunistic) fisherman (complete with waders), plenty of horseriders (but also a single white horse being loaded into a horsebox), a camper (brave soul), somebody harvesting Wild Garlic and plenty of motorcyclists (Bah!).
New breeders at new sites (for me) this year have included House Martin and Sand Martins nesting in Govan, Sand Martin nesting in Paisley, Tufted Duck successful at Murdieston and Blue Tits fledging from my back garden (actually not that new). Atlas tetrad work in South Lanarkshire was also productive, with Spotted Flycatcher particularly evident.
Non-birds this year have included frogspawn at Ardmore in March, froglets successfully emerging from the garden pond, clouds of Red Admirals and other insects above Dunblane, a Brown Hare in woods at Castle Loch and an excellent radio programme from Raasay on the poetry of Sorley McLean.
Wishes for 2012 would be a lowland White-tailed Eagle, a garden Nuthatch, local breeding evidence for Raven, some good upland species (Golden Plover, Red Grouse, Ring Ouzel, Golden Eagle and Merlin), those Scottish Bearded Tits (if there are any left) and maybe a couple of Scottish reptiles in the form of Common Lizard and Adder (after I narrowly missed one of the latter in 2011). Oh, and good health and happiness for self, friends and family.