A good number of bird species were in song in the Pollokshaws sunshine this morning, most notably Dunnock, Starling and Coal Tit. Feral Pigeon squabs were begging for food under the railway bridge over Kilmarnock Road.

Beecraigs Loch held an interesting range of waterbirds this morning including Little Grebe and Goosander as well as the usual Greylag Goose, Tufted Duck, Coot, Moorhen and Mallard. Two Ravens were near the car park with a Peregrine mobbing a Buzzard not far away. Notable birds at Linlithgow Loch consisted of a Slavonian Grebe (apparently there were two present) and a drake Pochard. No Little Grebes and only one Great Crested Grebe were surprisingly low counts. Perhaps the usual birds are still on coastal waters.

It was bitterly cold at RSPB Lovhwinnoch today. However an Oystercatcher and four Black-headed Gulls on the nesting rafts suggested that spring wasn't too far away. Birds on Barr Loch and Aird Meadow Loch mainly consisted of Tufted Duck, Goldeneye and Goosander. Noisy Groups of Greylag and Canada Geese were on surrounding fields. 

Today, the south side of Glasgow experienced some of the heavy rain that the east of Scotland has endured for the last two to three weeks. Water birds in the park seemed unconcerned but passerines were few and far between. Tufted Duck numbers were high at sixteen and there was a noticeable increase in the number of adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls on the Boating Pond.

With time to spare this morning I decided to walk from Hamilton to Motherwell via Bellshill. Best feature of the walk was the dramatic scenery along the South Calder Water with the 33.5 meter Jerviston Railway Viaduct spanning the Calder Vale. Best birds were two Ravens over the Old Holm Forge Bridge. Plant highlights were Scarlet Elf Cups, Teasel, Bulrush and Goat Willow. 

The most interesting finds during a long walk through Queen's Park to the Gorbals and back via Pollokshields were actually botanical: Winter Jasmine in flower and Yellow Brain fungus growing on the stalk of a small shrub. The boating pond in the park held single Cormorant and Goosander. Nearby, a Chaffinch was singing strongly. Other notable singing birds were a Song Thrush in the park, a Collared Dove in Strathbungo and a minimum if eight Dunnocks at various locations. Later, two Grey Squirrels and a Brown Rat were in Pollokshaws.  

Another busy family day meant natural connections had to be severely curtailed. However a short walk in Queen's Park while waiting for a restaurant table produced a good total of five Moorhens on the upper (small) pond.