30th October
Gullane, Port Seton, Musselburgh
It was either east or west this week with the weather being similarly
ordinary on both coasts. I opted for the east as there had been various
reports of Waxwings at Gullane and of Snow Buntings at Musselburgh. So
Dalkeith Morrisons for breakfast. Sad to say we have to report a 6.5
brekkie. Food both undercooked and overcooked depending on which side
of the plate you ate from, tables dirty and cluttered with the previous
customer’s remnants and a 15 minute wait. Not good, especially from a 9.5+ venue. Off to Gullane first. The Waxwings were
showing on one specific tree in a garden next to a park on Goose Green
Road. When we arrived they had just decided to leave. We walked the
road round the houses, on to the beach and back round again. Still not
showing. A Mistle Thrush and a Song Thrush arrived to feed on the
berries instead. I spotted a large ' V ' approaching. They were very
high up but I took a record shot of what I believed to be Bean Goose on
their way somewhere to the east of us.
Gullane |
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Mistle Thrush |
Song Thrush |
Black Brent Geese |
Waxwing |
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We
were almost leaving when a couple of Waxwings made an appearance and
began feasting on the berries. The light was reasonable, but time was
catching up on us and it wouldn’t be long before the light was gone.
So, Waxwings in the bag, it was off to Musselburgh via Port Seton. The
tide was high when we arrived at Port Seton but there were plenty of
birds hanging around on the quickly disappearing rocks.
Port Seton |
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Starling |
Herring Gull |
Juvenile Cormorant |
Oystercatcher |
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Redshank |
Sandwich Tern |
Wigeon |
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Time to head to Musselburgh, as the light was fading fast. We parked up
at the scrapes and headed straight for the sea wall where the Snow
Buntings were last seen. As we headed past the boating pond, a family
of Blue Tits flew into the trees close by, followed by a family of Long
Tailed Tits. At the sea wall, the sea was quiet but I managed to catch
a Red Breasted Merganser as it flew past and a Long Tailed Duck feeding
quite close to the sea wall. We turned to head back to the car when
John spotted a small flock landing on the sea wall ahead of us. His
first thought was Snow Bunting but they were in fact Twite as a nearby
scoper confirmed. I decided to head back down in their direction as
they hopped from the sea wall to the grass and back again. I snapped at
one as it posed on the sea wall and immediately recognised it as a Snow
Bunting. It seems the small flock was a mixture with both Twite and
Snow Buntings flying together.
We headed back to the car for tea and a bun. A very successful day out
as we bagged the two birds we had gone looking for.
Musselburgh |
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Blue Tit |
Long Tailed Tit |
Red Breasted Merganser |
Long-tailed Duck
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Twite |
Snow Bunting |
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23rd October 2016
Troon
The weather in the east was forecast to be wet and windy so I decided 'west was best'. I'd read a recent SOC Ayrshire Branch newsletter,
The Stonechat, that sang the praises of Troon so I thought we'd check
it out. I was also keen to check out my new Sigma 600 mm zoom lens and
1.4X teleconverter. I was delighted to discover that Troon had a
Morrisons with a cafe. Breakfast there was a 9.5+ as service was quick,
food was piping hot and the toast was extra thick. Delicious! We
started our quest from the south beach car park adjacent to the
supermarket. The beach was pretty quiet when we arrived but I spotted a
Starling quite a way off nestling in seaweed. A Carrion Crow flew in
quite close by probing a shell. Lots of Oystercatchers were flying past
as they fled from dogs and their walkers and a Curlew scurried off too
as it saw us.
Starling |
Carrion Crow |
Oystercatcher |
Curlew |
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Mute Swan |
Grey Seal |
Cormorant |
Redshank |
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I
thought I'd try for a very long shot of a Mute Swan minding it's own
business in the bay. These shots were all with the new teleconverter
attached. I wasn't too impressed though with the image quality so I
removed it for the rest of the trip. We drove to the car park at the
end of Harbour Road. This gave a magnificent view of the sea and rocky
shore. Immediately we spotted several Grey Seals bobbing in the sea
just beyond a small colony of Cormorants drying their wings in the
stiff breeze. We clambered over the very rocky shore in an attempt to
get closer to the Seals. The rocks held Redshank, Herring Gull,
Starlings and Pied Wagtails, and of course the ever-present noisy
Oystercatchers. An Eider flew by quite close, heading north and I
eventually got a nice shot of an elusive Robin which had given me the
run-around for a bit. As we supped our well-earned tea and buns, Danish
with the toffe Apple sauce, autumn sunshine pouring down on seals
paddling
with Ailsa Craig in the background I thought, "What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon?"
Herring Gull |
Pied Wagtail |
Eider |
Robin |
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16th October 2016
Musselburgh, Port Seton
The weather across the central belt wasn't looking great, but the
forecast showed little glimmers of hope in the east. According to
social media, the Surf Scoter was showing near the sea wall at
Musselburgh so, off to Musselburgh with breakfast at Morrisons in
Dalkeith. When the Cook/Chef came out to the 'pass' to announce to the
queue that she was on her own with no prospect of a break and that our
brekkie would be up to 20 minutes in the making we decided to stay and
tough it out. The delay was a lot less than 20 minutes and a 9.5+
brekkie arrived piping hot in about 10 minutes which was about the
norm. We decided to park at the scrapes and head straight for the sea
wall and hopefully, the Surf Scoter. The light was changing from ok to
dismal by the minute. As we left the car John spotted a Grey Heron
flying low across the pond. We hadn't walked 5 yards when some Canada
Geese announced their arrival on their way to the scrapes. Decision
time. We stuck to our guns and continued to the sea wall in the hope of
spotting the Surf Scoter. The sea wall was empty apart from 6 or 7
Cormorants spread out over a wide area feeding and a lone female
Red-breasted Merganser.
Grey Heron |
Canada Geese |
Cormorants |
Female
Red-breasted Merganser |
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We
continued along the sea wall for a while and eventually spotted the
Surf Scoter near the mouth of the Esk about 400 yards out. The light
was dire, and a 400 yard shot in poor light wasn't worth the effort. We
decided to head back to the scrapes. It was high tide and the scrapes
would be well populated. We arrived at the scrapes in time to hear and
see around 80 Greylag Geese landing at the scrapes, scattering Gulls,
Oystercatchers and anything else in their way. It took a little time
scanning the ponds before I spotted the Grey Plover and a Greenshank.
The Dunlin, Shelduck and Shoveler were a bit closer and easier to spot.
I reckoned the rain was on its way in so we decided to take a run up to
Port Seton where the light might be a bit better.
Greylag geese |
Grey Plover |
Greenshank |
Dunlin |
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Shelduck |
Shoveler |
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Good
shout. The light was better but not great. The Terns were absent which
was a bit disappointing but I managed a few good shots of the usual
suspects parading themselves on the rocks. Decision time again. Tea and
a bun at Port Seton and home or a quick return visit to Musselburgh for
the Surf Scoter. The Scoter won.
Port Seton |
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Great Black- backed Gull |
Herring Gull |
Redshank |
Turnstone |
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We
parked up and went straight to the sea wall. Squadrons of
Oystercatchers, Curlew, Redshanks and Wigeon flew past quite low on
their way to the scrapes, every few minutes. The Cormorants were still
there along with some Shags and a Red-throated Diver. A few small
flocks of Eider had appeared and I managed a nice shot of an eclipse
male enjoying a meal. As we reached the mouth of the Esk it was obvious
the Surf Scoter had moved towards the sea wall a good bit and I managed
to get a reasonable shot of my first Surf Scoter. Time and the weather
were catching up on us and it was time to head back to the car park for
tea and a bun. As we turned right for the car park John spotted a
Long-tailed Duck in the company of some Velvet Scoter. Not a bad day
overall considering the low light. The Morrisons/Asda danish debate
will have to wait another week. Morrisons brought back the 3 for 2
pricing policy on the Apple Lattice, so that is what we had with our
tea, lush.
Back to Musselburgh |
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Oystercatcher |
Curlew |
Redshank |
Female Wigeon |
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Shag |
Red-throated Diver |
Surf Scoter |
Eclipse Eider |
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Long-tailed Duck |
Velvet Scoter |
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9th October 2016
Pow Burn Prestwick
The weather was to be marginally better in the west so we decided to go to Pow Burn, Prestwick
since it had been a while since our last visit. The site is next door
to the airport and the landing aeroplanes are always exciting to
observe. Breakfast was at the Kilmarnock Asda again and since the food was actually warm this week we both agreed to upgrade our rating to 8.5. At
Pow Burn we parked the car at the far edge of Preswick Golf Course and
immediately spotted a small flock of Long Tailed Tits flitting around
the trees adjacent to the road. The light was perfect and some lovely
shots of these little beauties were in the bag. If my memory serves me
right, we have never encountered Long Tailed Tits here. It was a
pleasant surprise. We crossed the bridge over the burn and spotted a
lone Curlew, again, in good light. John looked ahead with the
binoculars and spotted what looked like a pair of Little Grebes a bit
further round the bend. I managed to catch one as it surfaced with a
fish. The other Grebe turned out to be a juvenile female Goosander.
Long Tailed Tit |
Curlew |
Little Grebe |
Female Goosander |
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Redshank |
Peacock Butterfly |
Michaelmas Daisy |
Painted Lady |
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John
spotted three Grey Herons on the bank but I could only get a distant
shot although I did manage to get a nice shot of some Redshanks on the
opposite bank.
We moved off around the path bordering the burn
and as I trudged through the bracken to see if I could get closer to
the Herons, I spotted a lovely example of a Peacock butterfly feeding
on Michaelmas Daisies. A few minutes later an even nicer Painted Lady
showed itself. We planked ourselves down and waited for some more nice
insects to arrive.
Common Dronefly |
Common Nettle Tap Moth |
Moth - Golden Plusia |
Shaggy Inkcap |
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A
Common Drone fly was first to arrive, followed by a Common Nettle Tap
moth. Nearby, I spotted a newbie for the site, a moth - Golden Plusia We
started the return journey back along the golf course driving range
back to the car for a cup of tea and a bun. We didn't get too far when
we came upon a patch of Shaggy Inkcap mushrooms- another new species
for us.
Shaggy Inkcap |
Stonechat |
Robin |
Badger? Poo |
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Nearby
a pair of Stonechats seemed to chirp in celebration of our find.
Further on though a lovely Robin bathed in the October sunshine sang
its heart out at the top of a tree. We came across a
curious animal dropping packed with berries, probably Badger poo. At
this point on our return journey I managed to capture a decent shot of
the three herons we saw earlier.
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The
great Danish pastry debate will have to be put on hold for a while as
this week's Danish from Asda was a delicious custard and strawberry,
not our usual toffee apple sauce, and we really should only compare
like with like. A great walk this week with great
light, some great shots, some newbies and a very busy airport nearby
with some heart stopping moments in-between. A trainee pilot adjusting
his flight path in a Cessna on his final approach would probably go
unnoticed but a Canadian Air force Hercules doing it twice in the space
of a minute, 100 feet above your head, goes a long way to proving adrenalin is brown coloured!
2nd October 2016
Doonfoot
The weather was to be fine across the central belt, so it was off to
the west coast for a change. We decided on Doonfoot as we hadn't been
there since October 2015
so a visit was well overdue. We dined at the Kilmarnock Asda. A
disappointing 7.5. It's a buffet style breakfast with everything ready
on the hotplates. No waiting of course but some items where slightly
overcooked or not as hot as we would like. We parked at the northern
end of Castle Walk and headed over the dunes to the beach. I noticed
that the little pond which, in the past, has given us a good few shots
was completely empty. On the beach were the usual Redshanks and Gulls
but I spent too long waiting on a Curlew which posed with its beak
tucked under it's wing while keeping a solitary eye on us. Eventually
it flew off, banked right and flew low over a Mute Swan which I managed
to catch. A loud thrashing noise from behind us drew our attention to
another Mute Swan having a hell of a bath. The light was behind it but
I think I managed to capture the scene quite well. The same swan swam
by us a few minutes later with its wings raised in an aggressive pose
and headed towards the two Whooper Swans nearby. Nothing came of it so
we headed down the beach towards Greenan Castle.
Redshanks |
Curlew |
Mute Swan |
Whooper Swan |
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Nothing
was showing on the shoreline and after a while we moved back towards
the dunes and the path to avoid the incoming tide. I spotted a cracking
Robin in great light and managed to shoot it before it flew off. I
decided to head back to the car and bring it up to the car park near
the castle and left John deep in conversation with a local walker. I
thought it would be a good idea to check out the little pond before
getting in the car and was rewarded with some very well lit Teal in
eclipse plumage. Well done me! As we walked towards the castle we both
felt it was rather quiet until a flock of Linnets suddenly flew up in
front of us. We both saw the Sparrowhawk and an unfortunate Linnet
barely in front of it flying by at speed. Within seconds both were
down. We backtracked a few metres but all we could see was the
Sparrowhawk nipping in and out of the trees and making off. No time to
process what was happening never mind getting the camera into position.
Directly below the castle I managed to spot a White Wagtail foraging on
the beach. As usual, it looked like a Pied until closer examination.
Robin |
Teal |
Teal |
White Wagtail |
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There
are always Rock Pipits here below the castle and they duly obliged. A
lovely specimen of a Carrion Crow almost posed for a photograph so I
duly obliged. As we turned to head for the car park I caught a low
flying Goosander flying south at some speed. The journey back to the
car for tea and a bun was disappointing as I only managed to spot a
solitary Nettle Tap moth. The only thing left was to discuss the merits
of the Asda Danish and the Morrisons Danish over a cup of tea.
The
jury is still out and we reckon it will take another 2 or 3 examples of
each before a considered opinion can be made. It’s only fair!
Rock Pipit |
Carrion Crow |
Goosander |
Common Nettle Tap Moth |
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