A Sparrowhak being mobbed by a corridor over Strathbungo was the highlight of my afternoon walk today. 

Two Great Black-backed Gulls sailing over the retail park car park was the highlight of a short trip to Irvine today.

Monday, December 29, 2025

Some highlights from a short walk in Newton Mearns this afternoon we're displaying Collared Doves, two Redwings and four Greenfinches. 

A short walk along the Clyde at Braehead turned up a couple of interesting birds, namely a flyover Raven and a possible wintering Greenshank, calling from a hidden position then flying off distantly. The latter is an extreme long shot given the date and site, but the call sounded right. 

A brief birdwatch in Balfron this afternoon turned up the "usual" village-edge bird species. 

Two Grey Wagtails were wiith the "usual" Grey Heron at Shawbridge today.

Thursday, December 25, 2025

A Christmas day walk through Queen's Park found the Mute Swan count on the boating pond up to fifteen but a notable absence of Tufted Ducks. 

A single drake Goosander was on the river near Auldhouse Park today while a Mistle Thrush sang nearby. Number three son reports at least 46 Ring-necked Parakeets in Maryhill.

I managed to escape the Christmas shopping and go for a walk along the burn behind the Silverburn centre. Best birds were a Grey Wagtail, three Pied Wagtails and single pairs of Mallard and Moorhen.

A long walk around Dumbreck, Bellahouston and Hazelwood was notable for plants rather than birds. Several Hazel trees had well-developed male catkins and I managed to find one female flower. A small patch of Heather and a thriving Cotoneaster were other highlights. 

A walk around the Craigton area of Glasgow produced a reasonable bird list (for a heavily populated monad with very little green space) of sixteen species. Best birds was a singing Song Thrush. 

Quite a long walk from the centre of Glasgow to Queen's Park via Richmond and Malls Mire Parks produced a good bird list of 40 species. Highlight was a Kingfisher flying along the Clyde.

I spent ninety minutes today surveying the birds in the northern two thirds of Pollok Country Park. Some of the highlights were single Buzzard and Sparrowhawk (the latter being chased by a crow), a large flock of mixed tits (I think they thought I was coming to feed them), three Jays, three Nuthatches and five Stock Doves. Non-bird sightings included two Roe Deer (I rarely see them since I moved from south Cardonald to Shawlands), ten Grey Squirrels, two cap-forming fungi (a Flammulina species and Common Inkcap) along with several bracket species, emerging Snowdrop shoots and my first flowering Rhododendron of the "spring".

An appointment in Priesthill this morning presented me with an opportunity to survey the birds in that heavily built-up part of southwest Glasgow. I planned a circular walk which would take in the only significant green space in the monad (Priesthill Nature Reserve), the vegetated edges of the railway line and the gardens of the few pre-war villas among a sea of post-war housing and its modern replacements. The number of bird species was relatively low for a one hour survey (22), but the number of individual birds counted was a very respectable 350. Highlights were four Rooks among high numbers of other corvids, four finch species (Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Siskin and Redpoll) and song from Robin, Wren and Song Thrush.

A rainy walk in the south east corner of Pollok Park didn't promise much but eventually yielded a good bird list (22 species) and some interesting records, namely: a Treecreeper feeding very close to the riverside path;  eight Bullfinches feeding together on Hawthorn buds; two Nuthatches mobbing a Grey Squirrel; a Sparrowhawk sailing over the field south of the weir; a flock of fourteen Redpoll; single singing Wren and Mistle Thrush. Nearby, four Rooks (including two first winter birds with retained feathering at the base of the beak) were feeding together under the swings in the Leckie Street Play park .

Today was a grey day in Pollokshaws with Grey Wagtail and Grey Heron the highlights of my walk. A flock of five Rooks over Shawbridge reminded me that I must watch out for breeding activity in early spring (especially around Ashtree Park).

Monday, December 15, 2025

A train trip to Edinburgh to see family allowed little time for birdwatching. I only managed to tick off some common birds in Princes Street Gardens and on Calton Hill. 

Today proved to be another very wet day. Birds were mostly keeping a low profile in Maxwell Park but nine Tufted Ducks on the pond seemed unperturbed.

On an extremely wet day in south Glasgow, the Ring-necked Duck was hardly discernible among its Tufted Duck cousins on Queen's Park Pond.

Friday, December 12, 2025

With a trip to Hamilton planned, we managed to stop off at the James Hamilton Heritage Park. Highlights there, apart from the glorious weather, were five Little Grebes at the west end of the loch. In Hamilton, a walk up Cadzow Glen found two Dippers in song. 

Some good birds were encountered during a walk from Gilmour Street to Greenock Road in Paisley today: a pair of Teal and a Kingfisher on the White Cart and a confiding Treecreeper in Fountain Gardens. Later, five Pied Wagtails were feeding together in a corner of the new retail park in Barrhead. 

Two Mute Swans were on the boating pond in Elder Park, Govan this morning. 

A quick walk around Queen's Park revealed a lovely, drake Ring-necked Duck on the boating pond. It is presumably the same individual reported from Victoria Park and Maxwell Park recently.

Monday, December 08, 2025

A Dipper, plunge-feeding in the river at Carmichael Place was the highlight of a damp walk around Langside. Five Goosanders, the males in breeding plumage, were nearer Cathcart.

Plenty of birds were active in a rainy Cowdenknowes Park this morning. Two Goosanders on Town Dam were the most notable.  

Birds noted singing during a walk around Langside and Mount Florida today consisted of Blue Tit, Wren, Starling, Song Thrush and Robin. Jelly Ear and Red Fox were the non-bird highlights. 

Coal Tit and Bullfinch were among the birds calling in Langside today.

A good walk around the area this morning turned up a surprise in the form of two Collared Doves near the railway line in Strathbungo. 

Birds in the Mauldslie Bridge area this afternoon included Buzzard, Kestrel, Jay, Raven, Nuthatch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Heron, Goosander and Grey Wagtail.

Six Tufted Duck were on Queen's Park boating pond today. 

A rainy walk around the Waverley Park area found at least four Starlings singing from rooftops.