Some good birds around my home square today consisted of five Stock Doves (plus one in song), a hunting female Sparrowhawk, a singing Song Thrush and two singing Nuthatches, around thirty Redwings and a noisy flock of Goldfinches. Mid afternoon, around 40 Winter Gnats were leking over the path beside the Rosshall Park gatehouse.

A Red Fox limped through the garden this afternoon - it seems to have been badly affected by mange.

A single Stonechat and at least ten Turnstones were the highlights of a windy walk along Barassie shore this afternoon.

Thursday, December 28, 2023

Today was again very wet, so few birds were about during a short walk through Pollokshaws. As the afternoon progressed, up to 45 Jackdaws gathered overhead, presumably preparing to go to roost.

It was wet and windy in Edinburgh today. Birds on the edge of Holyrood Park included Greenfinch and Chaffinch.

Today saw a huge improvement in the weather with clear skies all day. Plenty of birds were in Barshaw Park including a few Redwings, a singing Stock Dove and three Gull species on the pond.

Four Redwings in the trees immediately outside the estate were the only notable sightings from today's local walk.

In spite of the wet weather recently I've been hearing a few Coal Tits most days (after virtually none over the past two months). This afternoon, a Cormorant flew over the M74 adjacent to Strathclyde Country Park.

Today was another dreadfully wet day, and consequently birds were thin on the ground. However a walk along to Lochar Park produced an unusual folicose lichen on a fallen branch.

A shorter walk today so fewer birds on the day list. However a single Redwing was a good record as I had come to the conclusion that they had all moved out of the area 

The high winds overnight had subsided a little when I went around my home square this morning. The bird total for the walk was 31 which included six Bullfinches, Raven, Lesser Redpoll, Kingfisher and Treecreeper.

A Mallard and a Goosander were the only birds on the Kelvin next to Kelvin Hall today. The river was high and in full spate, probably explaining the absence of other species.

A single Common Gull was among the Black-headed Gulls on Barshaw Park pond today. Despite the dreadful weather, plenty of Starlings were singing from the treetops in Kelburn and Whitehaugh.

Conditions for today's delayed WeBS count in Greenock could hardly have been worse. However the poor weather had brought in two "new" species (for this winter) in the form of single Goosander and Goldeneye.

On an extremely wet and windy day, a single Stock Dove along the river path was one of the few species braving the conditions.

I was in the Borders town of Innerleithen for a non-birding event this lunchtime. However heading back to the car I heard a Kingfisher on the Leithen Water. Later, birds along the River Tweed and the Eddleston Water in Peebles included Grey Heron, Goosander and 53 Mallards.

The drake Ring-necked Duck which has been frequenting Bingham's Pond this winter was asleep in the reeds when I visited today. However its dusky flanks, white "spur" and peaked head were easily visible. Mandarin Ducks were absent from Jamestown and Balloch but Kingfisher, Little Grebe, Grey Heron, Goldeneye and Cormorant were some compensation. Of the 34 Black-headed Gulls on the Leven near the slipway, only three were first winters. Up at Hillhead of Catter Farm, two Greenland White-fronted Geese flew in but I couldn't see the rest of the flock. Finally, Dawsholm Park held at least sixteen Ring-necked Parakeets preparing to go to roost.

A Kestrel was disturbed from what I assume was its prey on a grass verge in the Cardonald Park business park this morning. It flew up onto a lamp-post but was then spooked again by passing traffic and flew off. 

I enjoyed a fairly local "away day" today, heading to Saltcoats and Ardrossan following an encouraging weather forecast of calm, dry and bright conditions. The conditions proved to be ideal for finding birds offshore with Black Guillemot, Red-throated Diver, Red-breasted Merganser, Eider and 118 Common Scoters all showing well, if distantly. Nearer at hand there were good numbers of Dunlin (228), Ringed Plover (50) and Purple Sandpiper (15) around Saltcoats Harbour.

On another wet day in south Cardonald, all the local corvids were alarmed about something mid-morning. At least forty Jackdaws congregated noisily in two trees near  the top of Dundee Drive and lots of Carrion Crows and Magpies joined the general clamour over a wide area stretching down to the river and across to Pollok Wood. I was unable to see what was causing the alarm. Later, two pairs of Carrion Crows got into a fight on the grass at Moulin. At first, two birds pinned another down on the ground, but the latter's mate arrived and proceded to wrestle with one of the attacking birds. This led to the unusual sight of two violent struggles going on side by side. Once the fighting ended, all four birds adopted threat postures with one pair slowly forcing the other pair to walk walk away. Also of note today was an adult Herring Gull (about ten seem to be wintering locally) being pursued by a begging juvenile. I had assumed adults and juveniles would have split up by now but apparently not.

I took advantage of a slight improvement in the weather to walk along the Black Cart from Porterfield road to Renfrew Golf Course. Birds on the river included Goldeneye (the males in a variety of stages of moult), Mallard, Teal and Cormorant. Odd Redshanks were scattered along the muddy shores that had been exposed by a relatively low tide. Most interesting non-bird record concerned two small Elder trees covered in profuse groth of Jelly Ear fungus.

The heavy rain of the past 48 hours had given way to drizzle overnight. There has definitely been an increase in birdsong recently with Woodpigeon, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Wren and Robin all noted singing around Crookston Castle today. 

Today was extremely wet again. However both Starling and Collared Dove were singing when I ventured out this afternoon.

Among the 27 species seen on today's walk around my local square, a Cormorant flying upstream was most notable, being my first local bird of the winter. A singing Mistle Thrush was early, but I had an even earlier bird last week. 

In spite of the heavy engineering work going on to build the new bridge, the centre of Govan was alive with birds when I visited today. Feral Pigeons and Black-headed Gulls made up the majority of the individuals present but twelve Long-tailed Tits arriving from the Partick side of the Clyde were also of interest. The resilence of urban wildlife was exemplified by the local Mute Swans which were loafing on the Kelvinmouth slipway as they habitually do, in spite of the deafening noise of the pile driver operating just a few metres away.

The 28 species recorded around my home square today included six Rooks (again wintering locally), a single Stock Dove, two Nuthatches and four Moorhens (enticed out of cover by grain put down on the path).

A frosty Pollokshaws held few bird species today. However I came across a big group of 20+ Mallards on a bend of the Auldhouse Burn which I hadn't noticed before.

The most interesting birds encountered during today's walk through one of my neighbouring 1km squares ("Cardonald") were nine Rooks feeding on the grass in Corkerhill Cemetery. I have recorded the species breeding here, albeit in small numbers and not every year. I wonder if these birds are wintering locally with a view to reoccupying nests in the early spring?

The lone Mistle Thrush at the entrance to our scheme continues to defent its Holly trre against all comers (including Redwings, Blackbirds and Magpies). It seems a huge amount of energy to expend - all that chasing and rattling - but presumably it is worthwhile in terms of energy expended versus energy source protected. New birds in my home square this weekend (presumably brought in by the wintry weather) have included Siskin and Redpoll. The Little Grebe on the river is probably the one that has been around for a while, although I rarely see it.

The most notable of the birds observed on Linlithgow Loch this morning were two Great Black-backed Gulls. Also interesting were fifteen Cormorants fishing together in a "flotilla" beneath the palace. The final bird of the day was a Great Spotted Woodpecker showing well in Beecraigs Country Park.

The Black-headed Gull flock which seems to be wintering around the Moulin playing fields numbered 34 individuals today. The birds presumably get rich pickings from food discarded by the pupils of the nearby high school. However I suspect they may go hungry over the weekend when the school is closed.