Monday 21st November

Rather slim pickings over the past few weeks, but here's a summary of what has happened.

Last Wednesday, did a windy bike ride to Crocketford and back through the Glenkilns. Three long-tailed tits passed through a tree on the cycle track and a red kite was sailing around just South of Crocketford. On the way back there were good sightings of three more kites and a buzzard.

Squirrel on Guard

Stopped on the hill where red squirrels and tits often come down to feed, but few did.  The one squirrel that did turn up seemed more intent on guarding the feeders than eating itself, though it did take a couple of bits of apple.

The following day, I followed up news that waxwings are in the Dumfries area, but didn't see any in the obvious areas of Dock Park and St Michael's Churchyard though the latter already contained plenty of yewberries and the blackbirds and thrushes were making merry.

On Friday I travelled to Alnwick and paused briefly at Bolam Lake where a couple of male goldeneye were visible.

Unidentified

At the coast over the weekend there was not a whole lot to see.  However the rocks at Alnmouth contained some sanderling and redshank, plus these waders (right) which I haven't been able to identify. I'm wondering if they were juvenile plovers.

Also unidenitifiable were some large brown-looking diving birds that we at first mistook for seals, but they were too far off to even hazard a guess at.

At home my favourite coal tit is still busy and was picking minute grubs out of the pear tree today.