Out and About in February & March

In this post I share some of the more interesting sightings I have had in Scotland during February and the first half of March.

In early February I took my thermal scope out for a spin looking for snipe. I was pleased to find a couple of Common Snipe but also two of the rarer Jack Snipe. This was in the fringes of the marshy pools at Ashfield just north of Dunblane. These elusive creatures are almost impossible to see without a thermal imager unless of course you nearly stand on them and they fly up giving you a jump-scare.

There was also reports of a Mandarin Duck at Doune Ponds. Whilst not a native bird it is gorgeous and there is a reasonable self sustaining population now so I went for it and this is the attractive male, a female and another male joined later in the month.

Another bird I look for in winter is the Hawfinch and these have been pretty reliable at Holmehill in Dunblane the last few years. You have to go early in the morning to stand a good chance. I would love to photograph these birds on the ground but so far just distance tree-top shots.

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I have taken a couple of trips to Hogganfield Loch in north Glasgow during the last month. This time there were plenty of Goosanders, Tufted Ducks, Gadwall and Goldeneye to be seen. The last of these were too distant to photograph.

But perhaps the star attraction was the wintering Whooper Swans which I found in good light and attracted close in to eat bread from the children. The children asked what I was photographing and I was able to explain that some of the swans were different and were truly wild birds from Iceland. In some you can see the red-stained heads and necks from their iron rich feeding grounds in Iceland.

On my second visit in early March the Great-Crested Grebes were starting to perform in fine breeding plumage.

I do enjoy Grebes as a family but one looked different on the loch and this was my main target for the day. The last few years a Red Necked Grebe has wintered here and indeed this was it. The bright yellow at the base of the bill and its smaller size are the quickest tells on this bird. I have seen it the last few years but it did something I have never seen before, it climbed out onto one of the breeding platforms and had a good stretch. A beautiful bird.

Once back at the car I noticed the Coots were out of the water and I had been wanting to photograph their wonderful feet for sometime.

On the way back from Hogganfield I popped into Broadwood Loch for the drake Smew which is still overwintering here. It was too distant to get good photos with the camera so I just took a couple with the phone through the scope.

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Back at home and Frogs are starting to get active around my pond. I found a pair in the act and the resulting spawn was soon on display. I really do enjoy having a pond and the wider range of nature this brings to the garden.

News came in on Bird Guides that a Shorelark had been seen off Barns Ness. I needed this for my Scotland and UK list (having only seen them before in Morocco in the High Atlas) so it was a great excuse for a drive east.

I arrived and a few birders were looking with scopes at a particular area of the beach. By the time I walked over to them they said the Shorelark had just flown off after they had seen it for about 10 minutes. They headed home and it looked like I had to find it myself. During the first hour or so nothing showed other than a few Skylarks and Reed Buntings.

But then a smaller lark appeared and bingo, here was the Shorelark. It lived up to its name too patrolling the beach picking insects from between the rocks and seaweed. Great to add another bird to my Scottish list.

On the way back I popped into Musselburgh and soon found a half dozen Twite feeding in the grass and drinking from a nearby puddle. If a dog walker disturbed them they flew up to a nearby railing but soon returned. To get a good photo I lay down to be close to eye level. A couple approached me to ask what I was looking at (they had binoculars) so I explained that these were Twite. They had never seen this bird before and seemed to enjoy it. They said they thought they were just Sparrows, an easy mistake when you are first starting out.

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My good friend Rick and I planned a day together in March and there were several birds reported on Bird Guides that we felt linked up in a nice circuit from Glasgow to Ayrshire. We met early at Hogganfield where Rick was able to see the Red Necked Grebe for the first time this year.

We saw the Grebe quickly (I had seen it the week before so knew where to look) so 20 minutes later and we were in a Housing Estate in Hamilton where a Siberian Lesser Whitethroat had been reported. This would be a species tick for Scotland and a sub-species life tick for me. We couldn’t believe our luck when it was literally the first bird we saw getting out of the car and it offered lovely views. A long way from home.

We carried on to Ayrshire where a Ross’ Goose had been reported with Canada and Pink Footed Geese. We parked up the car and again were straight onto the bird. It was a very distant white goose among others (the pink legs and smaller size were just visible). Scope only pictures with the phone but a record of a first for Scotland for me. It doesn’t really count at probably a released or escaped bird.

We continued south to a gravel pit where an American Wigeon had been reported. After a brief walk in we got the scope out and Rick exclaimed he was on the bird, literally the first one he put the scope on. It was half ten and we had already seen 4 of our 5 targets for the day. It was too far for a photo, so here are a couple of bad shots from another sighting in 2022.

Rather than finish early we decided to divert to the coast. At Troon Harbour Rick found 3 Great Northern Divers far out, then in the harbour we added Black Guillemot. These were both year ticks for me. However, it was the mixed flocks of waders in beautiful light that really shone.

Our fifth target of the day was a Lesser Scaup but we couldn’t find it but still a wonderful day’s birding.

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Back at home I took the weekend at the middle of March to find out what was around. I have known Green Woodpeckers were around Menstrie but I had never seen them in Scotland (only heard). I took Saturday morning specifically to look for them and I was rewarded. The first migrant chiffchaffs were everywhere and singing their names proudly to proclaim they had overcome their long journey. But before long I was hearing the yaffle of Green Woodpecker too.

After only about 10 minutes of following the sound, I had them in sight. I went back in the evening to take some record shots although the light had faded

After lunch the light was beautiful and I decided to try some photography and in particular to focus on the river birds – Dipper and Grey Wagtail – which were quite visible along the Menstrie Burn. The first bird I saw was the Dipper and it required quite good fieldcraft to approach from downstream slowly and mainly move when the bird was underwater. I was quite happy with some of these shots.

Next up I wanted to photograph the Grey Wagtails. These were closer to the Scout Hut bridge and I felt it best to actually sit under the bridge so I could hopefully hide from the birds and the many people who were about who inevitably ask what you are doing with a big camera. Before long the bird came closer and into range.

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On the last day of the weekend I headed up to the moors around Comrie. I knew there wouldn’t be much about yet but was keen to see what was there. I quickly added Red Kite to my year list. And then was delighted to find four Black Grouse displaying half-heartedly in the early morning. The following photos were all taken from inside a car on the public road (the birds were not disturbed).

On the way back I saw what might well be my last Fieldfares for this winter and delighted to briefly catch two Crossbills on Sherrifmuir.

I mentioned earlier that I have been seeing and hearing my first Chiffchaffs of the summer. Shouldn’t be long now until Blackcaps and Sand Martins and Swallows appear. Enjoy the migration, do try and get out and see what is about.