Sunday 30th September 2012 - Loch of Strathbeg

Just about a 70 minute drive to Loch of Strathbeg and a good few hours were spent in the area.
The car park area was alive with tree sparrow and finches as usual and quite a few Silver Y moths decorated the ragwort on the the walk to the Tower pool.Also en route, plenty reed bunting, yellowhammer and mixed finch flock.
From the hide it was pleasing to see a huge number of birds, certainly the biggest quantity we can recall in recent years, even ignoring the many pink-footed geese.
Unsurprisingly, this helped to draw in a few raptors and a hunting peregrine and marsh harrier ensured the view constantly changed.
Star birds - 2 buff breasted sandpiper which offered fairly obliging views through the scope and a leucistic barnacle goose  in amongst the 200+ barnacle.
The supporting cast included whooper swan, 2 snipe, dunlin, a pair of stonechat, shoveler, restless and distant golden plover and lapwing and all the rest!
The Fen hide area had plentiful wigeon, some gadwall and winter plumaged great crested and slavonian grebe.

Hunting female marsh harrier , more common than they were but still only around 350 breeding females in the UK

Marsh Harrier

Silver Y moth (at Strathbeg), a largish day flying moth and can turn up in big numbers, mainly migrant.

Silver Y (from the garden moth trap - Stonehaven, only 4 moths trapped 29th September including this boy)

Week 24th September - 29th September 2012

Weather and wind conditions at the start of the week meant a few rarities were being found in NE Scotland and beyond.
The pick of these was a Pallas' Grasshopper Warbler at Whinnyfold and Greater Yellowlegs was reported at Strathbeg again.
As well as the megas there was a supporting cast of buff-breasted & pectoral sandpiper, red breasted flycatcher at Newtonhill & Collieston as well as a few records of yellow browed warbler.
Unfortunately, I found/saw none of these being restricted to a quick look after work and could only muster wheatear, redstart, willow warbler, chiffchaff & goldcrest but...if you don't try!

Eider - Girdleness 26th Sept

Linnet, Ringed at Girdleness originally on 22.5.11, photographed 26th Sept

Mute Swan - There were 3 on Loch Loirston a week ago now just the pair.

Brown Rat - one of a small group openly feeding in daylight by the roadside near Catterline

Weekend - 22nd to 23rd September

Clear skies, cold mornings.

Friday's overnight temp was 4 degrees which helped ensure zero moths in the trap by Saturday morning.
As usual for a Saturday morning a weekly trip to Stonehaven golf course was required and the 1st tee had two chiffchaff and willow warbler singing as if it was Spring, Golf was so bad and the pace so slow that we finished at the 12th & when packing up carts etc the buddleia at the 1st tee were alive with quite a few red admiral and at least 1 small tortoiseshell.
Sunday morning was similar to Saturday & we opted to get out into the fresh air to check a few nearby sites to help clear our heads after yesterday's sad events.
We had a single wheatear at Crawton and there were a few skylark mobile and high over Dunnottar Castle area.Only butterfly was a red admiral at Kinneff Old Church.
Beyond that, spent a bit of time trying to take photographs with the new macro lens - not always easy!
Got back to watch the mighty AFC scramble a 3-3 draw with Motherwell and a few more photos taken in garden of the ever increasing siskin population (in between gardening duties). We also had a single red admiral and a buzzard fly over.

A few photos for your delectation:

Common Carder Bee

Hoverfly

Siskin

Young male siskin

Cowie, Stonehaven - Thursday 20th September

Fortunate timing the last few days as the tide has been quite high at around 4.30pm, so checking out Cowie when returning home is almost a daily call right now.
Cowie's claim to fame was assured when a 428 million year old fossil of a land living animal was discovered (Click for news story).
It would be difficult to compete with that and although there are never huge numbers of birds, at high tide, some waders are relatively close to the path and with a bit of care, offer decent picture opportunities.
Tonight, there were 8 teal (not a common duck here) and waders included redshank, dunlin, oystercatcher and turnstone. Hopefully a bit more variety soon. A good sized gull group (mainly black headed & common gull with a few sandwich tern) is generally about 200 yards further North but more distant from the path.
There are always a few rock pipit present and in the gardens nearest the small parking area, tree sparrow are often about.
A few snaps below:

Dunlin

Dunlin

You go first! (redshank and turnstone)

Rock Pipit - The definitive boring drab bird but a welcome sight on coastlines in the UK.

Turnstone

Turnstone

Wednesday 19th September

Working in Altens has some advantages, the main one being its proximity to Loch Loirston/ Lochinch.
Although it's still fairly quiet birdwise a 20 minute tour at lunchtime has gleaned 12 little grebe, 12 wigeon, reed bunting, 3 mute swan - with the male trying to shoo off another bird - possibly last years cygnet.
As winter approaches will be well worth checking on a regular basis and the highlights this week so far a single fox on Tuesday and two on Wednesday.

Imposing Mute Swan

Fox - Photographed at the Gramps (Kincorth)

Fox

 

Weekend 15th - 16th September

Golf at Stonehaven better than last week but more importantly a steady stream of hirundines going South - mainly sand martin. Probably 200+ birds over 2 hours, about a 100 of which were sand martin. a single red admiral the only butterfly seen.

On Sunday, lucky to see 2 hen harrier at an area between Banchory and Aboyne but photo opps only presented themselves at Cowie, Stonehaven later in the day.

At high tide, a smattering of waders and a close in dark bellied brent goose (had them fly over but not had one stopping off before).

Brent Goose (dark bellied) at Cowie, Stonehaven

Dunlin at Cowie, Stonehaven

Falls of Feugh near Banchory - lots of salmon leaping - none pictured!

Grey Wagtail - Forest of Birse

Jackdaw - Cowie, Stonehaven

A typical Stonehaven wader - woodpigeon!!!

Weekend 8th - 9th September 2012

Trying to recollect sightings after a couple of weeks is not easy but Saturday the 8th offered a group of crossbill overhead during a particularly bad round of golf at Stonehaven. A shooting pool near Barras (suggested by Harry B) was investigated and a fair few mallard were present as well as 3 dragonfly species.


Sunday the 9th was a great day all round and included some Angus sites such as the well worn track around St Cyrus NNR, Montreathmont forest, Balgavies loch, Montrose Basin and the like.
Undoubted highlight was the comma butterfly seen at Montreathmont on the 9th. Other butterflies that weekend included 70+ meadow brown, 2 common blue, 2 small copper at St Cyrus. Red admiral at St C as well as Montreathmont and a small tortoiseshell and Peacock at Balgavies.

Cliffs at St Cyrus NNR

The circular walk around the old churchyard at St Cyrus NNR

 

St Cyrus NNR

Comma - Montreathmont Forest, Angus

A few more random shots from the weekend :

Red Squirrel

Osprey with supper