Tree Pipits were singing as we arrived at Delifeure to sow wild flower seed on behalf of Speyside Fields for Wildlife. Singing Chaffinch and Willow Warbler added to the soundscape as they have done at almost all the sites I've visited over the past 48 hours. At ground level, a Common Lizard scampered away through the grass. The majority of the walk back to Grantown-on-Spey was along the banks of the Spey. Commonest birds remained Willow Warbler and Chaffinch. On the river, Mallard, Oystercatcher, Common Sandpiper and Gulls (Common, Herring, Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed) were ubiquitous. Some of the Mallards had broods in the shallows and it soon became apparent that the gulls were there to snatch any duckling which broke cover. I saw one taken by a Lesser Black back. Barnacle Goose was a less common but nevertheless notable feature of the walk. At least ten adults on the river at Easter Pollowick had three broods of goslings between them. Another four adults were on the bank (possibly on nests) and two were later seen flying upriver near Cromdale. Other geese included three feral Greylag Geese on the river and several pairs of wild birds, especially around Cromdale church. Goosanders were here and there in ones and twos, mostly female-types except for a single male. One female just upstream from the Barnacle Goose site had ten ducklings, all of which scooted away with their mother at my approach. Goldeneye were thin on the ground with three females together, then a couple of single females, a single male and finally a female (with an unusually large amount of white showing in its wings) shepherding a single duckling along the shallows. Most notable among the waterbirds was Red-breasted Merganser with a single male (transitioning to eclipse plumage) resting on a rock (and potentially protecting a brooding female) and a pair which flew up and down the river twice. Grey Wagtails (including a male gathering food) were at two sites but were greatly outnumbered by Pied Wagtails (including an adult feeding two fledged young). Common Tern was the biggest surprise of the day. A single bird was circling over the river, calling intermittently before alighting on a rock. It continued to call and in due course a second bird (presumably the male) arrived with a fish, fed the first bird then displayed briefly before heading away again. I concluded that this was a pair which might be preparing to breed locally. I will let the local recorder know. With heavy rain falling, the remaining part of the walk (through Anagach Woods) produced few good birds, although a Crossbill called overhead. Two Swifts in Grantown-on-Spey were screaming over the town centre, in spite of the rain.

Impressions of Strathspey in May:

Many plant species are flowering or completing their vegetative phase. Daffodils however have completely "gone over".

Pine pollen is everywhere. Even in the centre of Grantown, the puddles are ringed with the tell-tale creamy-yellow deposit.