Week ending: 18th January: Broadwood Loch, Musselburgh

It was to be a week of changing weather condition so I was ready to dash out of my car whenever the rain stopped. Thankfully I was quite lucky and managed to accumulate a pleasing set of sightings.

Tuesday, 13th January: Broadwood Loch

The week started with dull, wet weather but the Sun made a welcome appearance in late morning and early afternoon. I headed for Cumbernauld, to Broadwood Loch where a wee Smew was still frequenting and there also were infrequent reports of a Bittern lurking in the reedbeds.

Cloud	Rain Prediction

On arrival I found rather a lot of Mute Swans on the water by the car park.

Just in front of my car there was a flock of about 16 Moorhens milling around a patch of grass - probably where a handful of seed had been tossed. A couple of adult Mute Swans and one juvenile were in the same vicinity.

Moorhen...
Mute Swan	...Juvenile

At the start of my circuit of the loch I photographed a drake Goldeneye that was displaying as it followed a female. There was still some ice around the edges of the loch and Coots were picking their way across it. Drake Goosanders were courting reluctant females that occasionally snapped at their suitors. From the east side of the loch I scanned for any sign of the Bittern standing in the reeds on the opposite side of the loch - but to no avail.

Goldeneye...
Coot	Goosander

I also searched for the Smew  and I found it near a few Canada Geese and Goosanders. I also captured a opportunistic shot of a Mistle Thrush  that looked down on me as I passed along the wooded northwest corner of the loch.

Canada Goose	Female Goosander
Smew	Mistle Thrush

After snapping the Smew I got some nice views of some Wigeon and Tufted Ducks that were very close to the loch edge.

Drake Wigeon	...Female
Drake Tufted Duck	...Female

At the wee island just off the west side of the loch there was a trio of Cormorants standing on its banks. Near them on the water a few Wigeon were quarrelling. Between there and the car park I managed a couple of decent shots of a Long-tailed Tit  and a Robin.

Cormorant	Wigeon
Long - tailed Tit	Robin

Thursday, 15th January: Musselburgh

A couple of days later, after listening to a fairly optimistic weather forecast for the Edinburgh area I decided to visit Musselburgh

Cloud	Rain	Tides

Below is the view of Arthur’s Seat as seen from east side of the mouth of the River Esk at Musselburgh.

The tide was high but there were birds on the water:

Wigeon paddling upstream.

A large Carrion Crow was walking along the stoney shoreline while Goldeneyes passed. I headed for the West Scrapes (my “preferred” name for the “new” scrapes) via the path and seawall around the shore. Just before the path that leads to the hides I got great views of a winter plumage Great Crested Grebe  and also a Shag.

Carrion Crow	Goldeneye
Great Crested Grebe	Shag

At the first hide I looked back towards Edinburgh.

I was relieved to find that there were several species of birds on show on the scrapes. For example, some snoozing Ringed Plovers  on a shingle bank.

Mallards and a few Shelducks  were on the water and at the edges of the water I could see Bar-tailed Godwits . Notice the Knot  standing on the left side of the shot below. A lively Pied Wagtail paused for a second to get its picture taken as I moved between hides.

Mallard	Shelduck
Bar - tailed Godwit	Grey Wagtail

From the third hide I could see a group of resting Redshanks with some teal and Wigeon and an Oystercatcher.

A pair of lovely Gadwalls  passed in front of the hide….

….. joined by a dabbling Shelduck and a few Wigeon. A few Canada Geese grazed on the bank of the moat…,

Shelduck / Gadwall	Wigeon
Female Goldeneye	Canada Goose

….the wide view of the geese shows the scrapes looking east towards Fife on the horizon.

On my way back to the car I snapped a Robin at the Cadet Hall and a couple of Turnstones were foraging on near side of the river just past the hall.

Robin	Turnstone

Before driving to the East (“old”) Scrapes I photographed a line of Redshanks dozing on a concrete breakwater on the opposite side of the river.

After parking in the Levenhall Links car park I walked to the scrapes and was pleased to get relatively close views of Lapwings, Teal and a few Dunlin. At the north end of the scrapes a lone Grey Heron was standing motionless, while a Curlew appeared at the near edge of the scrapes and trod its way along and onto the grass to search for invertebrates. Right in front of the hide, a foraging Oystercatcher walked past probing the same damp grass with its long orange beak.

Lapwing	Teal
Dunlin	Grey Heron

Curlew	Oystercatcher

It was a fairly successful week with 28 bird species during the two outings. My favourite shots were the Smew, Long-tailed Tit and Robin at Broadwood and the Shag. Shelduck, Gadwalls and Teal at Musselburgh. Next week is to be dull, wet and windy, and that’s ok - I like a challenge.

Week ending: 11th January: Strathclyde Country Park, Hogganfield Park LNR

With another freezing cold week in prospect I wrapped up well and stayed local.

Monday, 5th January: Strathclyde Country Park

Monday started sunny, but frosty, as can be seen from the following picture looking south down Strathclyde Loch:

As I crossed Park road there was a Fieldfare  surveying the scene from high in a roadside tree. From the path behind the fairgrounds I snapped Velvet Shank fungi that were growing on the trunk of a Silver Birch tree. Further along the path a wee Goldcrest  caught my attention as the bird hopped around a leafless bush. A Woodpigeon that was perched high in a tree watched me as I crossed the road bridge over the South Calder river.

Fieldfare	Velvet Shank
Goldcrest	Wood Pigeon

The mouth of the South Calder was iced up and proved a slippy walk for a Mute Swan. Carrion Crows found something to peck at in the icy puddles. Normally flighty Redwings  were a bit more tolerant to risk eating haw berries as people passed the bushes, but they must have been desperate for food in the cold spell because I was able to send much closer than usual to get the shots below.

Mute Swan	Carrion Crow
Redwing...

 A beautiful scene - but there were no birds to photograph at the north end of the iced-up loch.

Wednesday, 7th January: Hogganfield Park LNR

A couple of days later, I awoke to find the sky was blue, but it was bitterly cold. I headed for Hogganfield, expecting the loch to be iced over. However, my past experience was that the area of water next to the car park was usually not iced over and usually concentrates a fair number of bird species, making bird photography - a walk in park (apologies!). The picture below confirms my suspicions. 

The Mute Swans were gathered in their usual numbers but there were fewer Whooper Swans.

Mute Swan	... Juvenile
Whooper Swan	... Juvenile

Goosanders and Goldeneyes  were also in the mix …

Drake Goosander	...Female
Drake Goldeneye	. ..Female

There were plenty of Mallards and Coots, standing at the edge of the “pool”, ….

and paddling in the “pool”.

as were some Canada Geese. A Grey Heron was standing stationary at at the edge of the ice sheet, surrounded by Tufted Ducks and a few flapping Goldeneyes.

Canada Goose	Grey Heron
Tufted Duck	Goldeneye

A dozey drake Mallard bobbed in the choppy waters that were disturbed by all of the bird activity, while the female Mallard was one of the active birds. At the edge of the ice were other res    tless birds such as crabbit Coots and a nervous juvenile Moorhen.

Drake Mallard	...Female
Coot	Juvenile Moorhen

The wee pond at the east side of the park looked beautiful in the low Winter sunshine - but it was completely iced over - so no birds.

I was a bit disappointed not to have photographed anything at the east side of the park. However, at the start of the north side of the loch my mood changed when I noticed a Buzzard perched on a tree by the walled houses. After photographing the Buzzard, I watched a Mute Swan flying low over the ice, probably seeking a liquid water surface to land on. A little further along the road a lovely Robin was sitting on a low bush by the lochside, watching me as I passed.

Buzzard...
Mute Swan	Robin

Also watching me were the people-tolerant Feral Pigeons that were sitting on the railings beside the car park. At my car I noticed there were birds foraging in the grasses below the trees: some Woodpigeons, a Blackbird and a Song Thrush.

Feral Pigeon	Wood Pigeon
Blackbird	Song Thrush

Thursday, 8th January: Strathclyde Country Park

On the the next day I went for walk in Strathclyde Park. The weather was dry but it was still cold and the sky was overcast. and light was poor, but I took my Coolpix P950 with me anyway, just in case. Straight away I found a Grey Heron that was hanging about the banks of the River Clyde. I crossed the footbridge across the river and turned left onto the footpath on the Hamilton side. I found a couple of fungi: Turkeytail and (possibly) Bitter Bracket . I then had a surprising find - a Redpoll  that was foraging on the steps that lead to the Hamilton Road. (NB: Ornithologists once categorised these birds into into 3 species but since 2024 they are now considered to be a single species.

But the best was still to come. After snapping the Redpoll I crossed the Clyde Bridge to re-enter the Park’s main entrance. On the path that leads to the Watersports Centre there was, most unusually, a Roe Deer . As I was slowly manoeuvred myself behind a tree so as not to spook the deer, three more Roe Deer joined appeared. Of course I photographed them…

 …. several times, before calmly walking past them. My final shots of my short but enjoyable trip were of a flock of Greylag Geese that were grazing on the grassy slopes.

Greylag Goose...

There were around thirty geese in the flock.

 I was pleased with my efforts this week - 29 species photographed - with my favourites being Buzzard, Redpoll, Bitter Bracket fungus and the Roe Deer. Next week is to be much milder but with lots of rain possible. I’ll get my brolly out.

Week ending: 4th January: RSPB Baron’s Haugh, Dalzell Estate, Motherwell

With seasonal festivities taking up my time for most of this week, I was pleased that a window of opportunity appeared on Friday. I was lucky that the weather was bright and rain-free but it was very cold (with a frosty sub-zero temperature in the morning).

Friday AM, 2nd January: RSPB Baron’s Haugh

I chose to visit RSPB Baron’s Haugh, my local reserve and was soon walking west out of the car park, following the footpath through the wild fields that would take me down to the hides that overlook the Haugh. It wasn’t long though before I came upon a group of Goldfinches …….

…..that were feeding on tall seed-heads in grassland beside the path. Also seen In the same area were a very sociable Robin, a Blackbird and some Redwings  munching haw berries.

Goldfinch	Robin
Blackbird	Redwing

…. and there were lots of berries.

Below is the view of the Haugh, seen from the path from the car park.

I eventually reached the Marsh hide only to find that the water on the scrapes was largely, but not entirely frozen.

Coots, Mallards and Wigeons were standing on the ice, while Gadwalls  and Teal found a small area of ice-free water. A couple of Moorhens were foraging in the reeds near the hide.

Coot...
Drake Gadwall	Female Gadwall
Teal	Moorhen

Other ducks on the ice were Wigeons, Mallards and Teals. The Coots were particularly active. A young Black-headed gull was following its parent - who was checking out the skies.

Drake Wigeon	Female Wigeon
Drake Mallard	Teal / Coot
Black - headed Gull	1st Cycle Black - headed Gull

Away to the left of the scrapes, I saw that a line of four Whooper Swans  had been able to penetrate the ice there. Lapwings flew in as I photographed the swans.

The Lapwings settled and began preening.

The Whoopers seemed happy enough dipping in the cold waters. Next I left the Marsh hide and headed for the Causeway hide. I came across a Dunnock that was on the path. There was also a couple of fungi, Turkeytail and Blushing Bracket, just of the main path to the next hide.

Whooper Swan	Dunnock
Turkey Tail	Blushing Bracket

A pair of Carrion Crows were calling to each other from a high branch of a tree near the gate into Causeway hide. A drowsy-looking Magpie was soaking up the sunshine as it dozed in a Hawthorn bush. As I neared the hide I also noticed a frozen Gorse bush was still in flower. The low Sun cast long shadows along the path.

Carrion Crow	Magpie
Gorse	Causeway Hide

Again, unsurprisingly, I found the Haugh waters were mainly iced-over…..

…… but some Teals. Mallards and Coots had discovered some ice-free water far to the right of the hide. There were many more birds in front of the hide, mainly Lapwings and Teals. They were back-lit by the low sunshine which made photography problematic. 

Drake Teal	Drake Mallard
Coot	Lapwing

I decided to check the River Clyde to see if there were any birds on what I expected to be water with little or no ice - and that’s exactly what I found, as the picture below of a line of merry Mallards shows.

A pair of Mallards were having a great time diving near the breach in the bund that connects the Haugh with the river, when the river is in spate. In the same area a lone drake Goldeneye was repeatedly diving for food. On my way back up the hill, by the alternative path west of the fields, I got a distant record shot of a Great Tit. And at the top of the hill I found a wee nippy Goldcrest that was foraging on tall herbs for food. After tracking it for quite a few minutes and after quite a few failed attempts I managed a few pleasing shots.

Mallard	Goldeneye
Great Tit	Goldcrest

Friday PM, 2nd January: Dalzell Estate, Motherwell

After a short break in the car for tea and biscuits, I decided to make a brief visit to the neighbouring site, Dalzell Estate, which is literally a stones throw away from Baron’s Haugh Reserve. As I walked from the car, a cheeky Magpie strode beside me. I, of course, photographed it and continued into the Dalzell Estate. I immediately got a nice shot of a Grey Squirrel. That wasn’t the last one I saw. Some people believe that Grey Squirrels hibernate, but that’s untrue. As I walked through the wooded paths of the estate I frequently heard the calls of Nuthatches and it wasn’t long before a Nuthatch  appeared on a tree bough above the path I was on. Although it was back-lit, I managed (with the assistance of Photoshop) to produce a couple of reasonable shots of the wee bird.

Magpie	Grey Squirrel
Nuthatch...

The forest paths of the estate make it a very pleasant place to walk, and a great place for birds - like woodpigeons, to live. I’ve also found lots of fungi there, such as the Candlesnuff fungus shown below. My final shot shows the view looking north, up Manse Road from the road end.

	Wood Pigeon
Candlesnuff Fungus

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