Tuesday 21st February

Took advantage of some briefly favourable weather to take a trip to Mersehead RSPB Reserve on Sunday morning, although the sun had pretty much disappeared by the time I got there.

The volunteer at reception spoke of some twites having been seen in the treetops near Meida Hide, which immediately caught my attention.  But first I took a quick look at the feeders and bird table behind the office to see what was going on.

On the bird table - greenfinch, sparrow, yellowhammer, chaffinch

There were a few greenfinches around and a female yellowhammer that had me thinking how hard she would be to distinguish from other species on a fleeting sighting. No sign of a tree sparrow though.

So I decided to head for the narrow wooded area near Meida Hide.  However, scanning the trees revealed nothing but tits and chaffinches apart from one single treecreeper quietly going about his business.  Nearer the hide there was a rookery that was far from quiet as the occupants circled around the place. The only other thing to catch my attention was a greyish roe deer casually wandering along the woodland edge thirty yards away but it must have picked my scent and moved off more sharply.

There wasn't much to see from the hide either.  I did pick out a couple of tufted duck (a few of those around just now) and someone else saw a pintail.

Then, heading towards the shoreline, I thought I might have seen what I was looking for as there was a dead tree to the left of the path that had several finch-like birds sitting in its bald crown. The only thing was that they looked to me more like linnets.  It wasn't too easy to tell as it was becoming misty but I was fairly confident I had got it right. One or two birds had some slight reddish colouration and all the ones i checked had grey beaks and grey heads.

The wind was also getting up so I decided against a walk along the beach in the hope of spotting a little egret and doubled back.  The tide was out anyway, which I always think diminishes the number of birds about. I couldn't contact the linnets again but did see a song thrush on the edge of the wood and a couple of reed buntings in the hedgerow.

And of course there was loads of barnacle geese.

16th February

Signs of spring approaching already on yesterday's bike ride.  Heading for Crocketford via Troston, there was some definite warmth in the hazy sunshine, so much so I nearly took my gloves off. A nice run to Troston itself with some lovely scenery but, on a tight schedule, I held off taking photos until the murk resumed. Mistake!

Still a lovely day and a couple of blue tits were showing a bit of interest in each other, plus quite a few tits and finches playing around the trees and the odd meadow pipit on the moorland.

But the best sighting was a resplendent male stonechat on a hedgerow near Drumcoltran Tower, already looking his best and almost as bright as a bullfinch.  I was hoping to see a few yellowhammer in the area, but no joy - just a few tufted ducks on Loch Milton.

Tufted Ducks (male and female)

Then today I actually did see a bullfinch quite close up in the trees on the brae near home.  I went home for my camera but of course he moved on before I got back.

Saturday 11th February

How time is slipping by and there's not much to report really. Spottings over the last week have mainly related to waterfowl.

Last weekend I discovered that my sister is living but three hundred yards from a carp fishing venue - Burradon Pond, which may help to restimulate my lapsed interest in fishing.  A couple of people were actually fishing for them on a relatively mild day but the main wildlife activity for me was some minor aggression from this mute swan.  Judging by the muck on its breast, it may already have a nest on the go.

Mute Swan

I selected this week's bike ride down the Nith as a possible chance to see an egret but the weather was cold and the banks more or less deserted except for a small group of barnacle geese at reasonably close range.  It struck me that I haven't really noticed that barnacles have quite a pronounced eye stripe.  I wondered how much longer they will be hanging round before heading back to Svalbard. This one looked very well-feathered.

Barnacle Goose

The other side of Bankend there was another field full of pink-footed geese, now readily identifiable for me and also at reasonable range, so I took advantage of the opportunity of a photo in which, interestingly, the one on the left does seem to have strikingly pink feet.

Pink-footed Geese

After that I'd had enough of braving the chill wind, put the camera away and enjoyed a speedy run home from Ruthwell with it blowing from behind.

Thursday 2nd February

Not much happening on the last two Wednesday's bike rides to Gatehouse and Kirkcudbright, when weather conditions of various kinds made it difficult to identify anything beyond the odd bird of prey.

Yesterday there were birds areound but the whole of the morning was misty and driech until I actually got near Kirkcudbright itself, when it became brighter for a time.

Dee Estuary near St Mary's Isle, Kirkcudbright

Sparrowhawk imprint

However events in the garden have provided some compensation. At the end of last week, a massive thud from the sun room heralded a bird impact on one of the windows.  I assumed a blackbird or starling and went in search of a corpse but none was found.  Instead there was this large imprint on a central window that can only have belonged to a sparrowhawk.  From the right angle, I could even see the imprint where it's eye hit the window as it turned it's head to one side.  You can only wonder if it managed to survive.

The local estate is a good area for hunting sparrows and it's not the first time one has left it's mark on the sun room. A sparrowhawk was seen perching in the bush that holds the bird feeder some time ago, just a few yards from the house. My mother collected a similar tattoo on her kitchen window some years ago. They must be pretty filthy to leave so much muck behind!

I also noticed the local coal tit investigating a so-called bird box hung in the pear tree next to the sun room.  It gave it a good look over, but surely will be wiser than to try nesting there.

Yesterday, he was nosing round in the heavily prined silver birch in the front garden, so there must be a few insects around already.

Sunday 22nd January

I had to put my car into the garage in Locharbriggs on Monday. Having arrived ridiculously early, I took a little walk along the cycle track, spotting several tits clearly that were clearly unperturbed by passers-by. They must be used to all the dog walkers. I thought it would be possible to see a bullfinch at this time of year, and sure enough, just after I turned back to return to the main road, one turned up quite close by in the trees. It would have made a good photograph, if only I'd taken the camera!

On Wednesday's bike ride to Loch Arthur, I went via Beeswing and, again with time in hand, decided to take it really slowly and keep my eyes open for wildlife. Typically, there was very little to see beyond a couple of jays in the distance and some swans on the loch itself.

After lunch I cycled back along the road North of Kirkgunzeon with a couple of the others to come across a field full of hundreds of geese.  My guess was that they would be greylags but I wasn't totally sure.  This time I did have the camera and, on observing the photos this morning, started to have more doubts.  In fact others more knowledgeable than myself confirmed that they were pink-footed geese.

Pink-footed geese

Apparently one good tip is that, if the head and neck are noticeably darker than the body, the bird is likely to be a pink-footed goose. What started me wondering was the beaks.  If you look closely, you'll see there is some grey on them.

The conversation on cycling onwards turned to the subject of birds that are seen less these days,and as usual I mentioned the kestrel.

Later I stopped at Lochrutton Loch, disturbing a number of ducks that I couldn't identify as a result, and saw a couple of cormorants and a heron in flight.  Then, heading to the A75 roundabout, what should I come upon but a kestrel, flapping and hovering around the trees.

On the train to Carlisle on Friday, I noticed another flock of geese in a field, behaving in a similar manner to those pictured.  I wonder if they were pink-footed geese too. 

Wednesday 11th January

A rather windy bike ride to Castle Douglas a week ago did not produce much.  The most interesting sighting was two red kites playing around right above the town garden centre just as all the cyclists arrived.  Otherwise, the predominant bird was the robin.  Also wrens, a few goldfinches, and a couple of young buzzards sitting close to the road.

Redshank Steps Out

Malcolm in Northumberland is getting more interested in birdwatching, so there were more interesting results on my latest visit last weekend.  A dog walking trip to Alnmouth Beach on Sunday soon produced redshank, turnstone, sanderling, pied wagtail and rock pipit.  A visit to Warkworth a couple of days later also provided a brief sighting of a seal.

Later on Sunday we visited the pond at Low Newton in somewhat fading light and quickly managed to sight a pair of tufted ducks away from the coots and mallard.  A number of ducks on the far side looked like wigeon to me but an experienced bird watcher from Yorkshire thought they were teal. The photographic evidence isn't conclusive.  Just before the onset of dusk there was a single litle grebe (a first sighting for me) and some whooper swans feeding on the farmland opposite.

The Monday found us trying new pastures at Stag Rock just North of Bamburgh.  This time it was the

Purple Sandpipers - I hope!

brightness that caused some confusion and we spent some time trying to identify a group of birds that we eventually decided were just some unusually quiet and rather plump oystercatchers.

My identification skills with ducks and waders are still somewhat uncertain but I'm fairly confident I managed further first sightings of common scoter and purple sandpiper.  Also apparent were turnstone, sanderling, curlew, herring gull and a couple of stonechat on the edge of the beach.

There wasn't much more swimming further out in the sea apart from a small number of eider and one slight disappointment was the non-appearance of any long-tailed duck. Nevertheless, a rewarding visit to the area for both of us.

Later we briefly went to Fenham Flats opposite Lindisfarne around twilight, just as the geese moved off en masse to roost. They were probably pink-footed geese but far to far off to allow any identification.  So the only new thing we saw was several groups of shelduck, but always a favourite of mine

Monday 2nd January

I managed a mid-festive season walk last Thursday and decided to try one of the walks between Moniaive and Dalry I have noticed while cycling.

Unfortnately the experience was marred by the weather, which although reasonably clear around Dumfries, turned to light drizzle and a fairly substantial mist at my eventual selection, the Margree Circular.

In any case there seemed to be fairly little to see and all I managed to spot in the first hour was one large buzzard disturbed in trees near a lochan and a couple of wrens. As I continued round the forest path, a coal tit started an amusing game of hide 'n' seek as it kept fleeing along the trackside ditch and trying to hide behind any vegetation it could find.  But every time it lost nerve when I drew level and flew on again.

Then there was a small flock of finches in some sparse trees, though the light was so poor it was not possible to pick out any colouration on them at all beyond the white rump in flight.  I supposed that they were bullfinches, though brambling may have been a possibility.

Shortly after this it became apparent that the occasional signposts for the track had become completely non-existent, so there was no way of confirming whether I was on the right road at junctions.  With conditions deteriorating and darkness approaching, I decided to retrace the whole of the route covered so far, at which point the walk became a minor safety exercise and all attempts at spotting were abandoned.

Although the walk was a relative dissapointment, there was one noteworthy feature of the day.  On the drive towards to Moniaive I saw a red kite hovering over the road just a mile or two out of Holywood. Kites have been seen in the Lochmaben area but this is definitely the furthest East I have ever seen them.