An early start enabled me to catch up with a Cuckoo calling on the Brownside Braes before the traffic noise could drown it out. Other good birds in the area included a single Swallow plus what appeared to be excellent numbers of breeding Blackbirds, House Sparrows, Jackdaws and Starlings. Whitethroats were showing well and the walk home provided another three of these south of the Leverndale tower as well as two singing Grasshopper Warblers (neither species has been regular at this site in my experience). Another Whitethroat was singing from the burn to the west of Hawkhead Estate. There used to be a breeding territory there but I assumed it had been lost when the new estate was built.