📖 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Ythan Estuary ~ 27/07/2023

 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Sunday 27th August 2023 🌤️18C ~ Wind NW @ 6MPH ~ To end an excellent week Dazza and I took a drive out to the Ythan at Newburgh before enjoying a traditional late Sunday roast at the Newburgh Arms.

One of many juvenile Razorbills.

Arriving a few hours after high tide we began at the boathouse and walked to the estuary mouth. There were numerous Guillemots and Razorbills being carried by the tide and an abundance of Common, Arctic, and Sandwich Terns were diving for fish. The usual selection of young and adult Eider Duck and offshore Gannets, Gulls, Shags and Cormorants and a distant haul out of Grey Seals. A heartwarming sight after seeing so many dead birds along this stretch of coast recently due to avian flu! 

Lots of Guillemots today ~ A great sight after recent sad events along the northeast coast.

Of course, where there are many terns feeding young there is always an opportunity for skuas and today at least a half dozen Arctic Skuas were constantly harassing them.

A light-phase Arctic Skua patrols the sandbank at the Ythan mouth.

A few light-phase Arctic Skuas in the mix today, plus a single Great Skua (Bonxie) made a brief appearance. An excellent 'golden hour' along the beautiful Ythan River.

A Selection of my Arctic Skuas images...

Light-phase

Even Skua's need to poop!

📖 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Red-backed Shrike ~ Longhaven 25/07/23

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Friday 25th August 2023 🌤️18C ~ Wind NW @ 6MPH ~ A quick visit to the Scottish Wildlife Trusts reserve at Longhaven for a Red-backed shrike.

A very confiding Red-backed Shrike along the fenceline at Longhaven.

I drove to the SWT car park and followed the farm track towards the coast. According to reports, the bird had been favouring the hedge within the reserve patch behind the abandoned cottage. As I turned right along the track to head towards the cottage, I saw the bird perched up along the fence.

I spent a half hour watching the bird patrolling the fence line, occasionally dropping down to catch a tasty morsel. Wouldn't it be nice if all local twitches were as simple as this one! But then where's the fun in that!!

Red-backed Shrike

📖 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Lesser Yellowlegs ~ Strathbeg 24/07/23

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Thursday 24th August 2023 🌤️18C ~ Wind S @ 5MPH ~ Today, I went to RSPB Loch of Strathbeg and coincidentally while on route a report of a juvenile Purple Heron sighting. As I was getting sorted in the car park, I ran into the people who had seen the bird fly into reeds from the Dunbar Hide. They were both from Lossiemouth and had come back to their cars to grab lunch. I decided to walk back to the hide with them and spent an enjoyable few hours watching, waiting and chatting.

Marsh Harrier from the Dunbar Hide.

Unfortunately, there was no sign of the heron again but a couple of Osprey's, (4) Common Crane and (2) Marsh Harriers passed the time. The guys had also photographed a juvenile Hobby along the fenceline earlier in the day, not that common a visitor in these parts and a great record for the site. Needless to say, it didn't show again!

Small Copper along the farm track at Strathbeg.

A walk back to check out Starnafin Pools prior to heading off home, recording my first Small Copper butterfly of the year before arriving at the bench. 

Highly cropped image of the Lesser Yellowlegs on Starnafin Pools. 

After settling in and watching some of the many Tree Sparrows that reside here perched along the fenceline a scan of the pools produced a Green Sandpiper, (8) Ruff, (3) Greenshank, a single Snipe and something completely unexpected! The yellow legs of course were unmistakable and from here just a matter of deciding whether a Greater or Lesser Yellowlegs. I've lived in Aberdeenshire now for 3 years and this one was in fact my third Lesser Yellowlegs, making it an annual event but the first self-found. 

📖 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Late August 2023 Update

On the night of Friday 18th August, Storm Betty swept through the UK and eventually, reached northeast Scotland in the early hours of Saturday, bringing with it heavy rainfall and strong winds. As a result, it was expected that by morning, the avid birdwatchers of Aberdeenshire would be out in search of any migrant birds that may have been brought down by the storm.

Pied Flycatcher

Reports of Pied Flycatchers, Spotted Flycatchers, Red-backed Shrikes, Wrynecks and even an Icterine Warbler at Girdleess. Unfortunately, the earliest I could get out and about was on Sunday morning and with clear skies overnight Saturday I wasn't feeling confident. The best I managed was a single Pied Flycatcher at Girdleness, with as expected most species continuing their migration overnight.

Wryneck at Milton Haven 

However, a few migrants did hang around and on Tuesday 22nd I managed to catch up with a Wryneck at Milton Haven Caravan Park near St. Cyrus. The bird did prove a little elusive during my stay but eventually showed quite well, even though the best photograph I managed was the one above!

Double-figure Greenshank along the Ythan during a day out with the RSPB Local Group

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Wednesday 23rd August 2023 ☀️ 16C ~ Wind S @ 3MPH ~ A really excellent day out with the RSPB Aberdeen and District Local Group along the Ythan Estuary. A great selection of waders during our visit which included among others Spotted Redshank, Black-tailed and Bar-tailed Godwit, Sanderling, many Ringed Plover and double-figure Greenshank. During our lunch break at the Snub car park, we were delighted to see a couple of Ospreys. One of them was practising its diving skills, while the other was displaying its wading skills. It was a fascinating experience to witness. Also of note during lunch a Marsh Harrier briefly.

An Arctic Skua tries to encourage this Sandwich Tern to part with his lunch!

However, the most memorable part of the day for some was observing a pair of Arctic Skuas harassing the numerous Arctic, Common and Sandwich Terns that gather at the Ythan mouth during this time of year. It also offered me an opportunity to take many flight shots of these encounters, a selection of which is below. 

A full report of the visit can be found HERE on the RSPB Aberdeen & District website.

This Arctic Skua did perform amazingly well for the group.

📖 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Cairnbulg & Strathbeg ~ 10/08/2023

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Thursday 10th August 2023 ☀️ 22C ~ Wind SE @ 5MPH ~ Today, I had the opportunity to visit Cairnbulg and RSPB Loch of Strathbeg. After yesterday's successful sea watch, I started at the wreck in Cairnbulg. Although my tide timings weren't perfect, the sun was shining and the sea was calm.

Juvenile Stonechat

As I made my way down to the shoreline, I was greeted by a few young Stonechats flitting around the grassland. On the shoreline, a couple of Rock Pipits, Curlews, Dunlin, and Turnstones, but the returning Redshanks outnumbered them all. Another highlight of the area was the presence of many Starlings, a few hundred perhaps including many juveniles, all feeding on the tidal waste.

The wreck at Cairnbulg

I spent an hour watching the sea and was delighted to see another Storm Petrel. This one was closer than the one I saw at Girdleness yesterday. It stayed around the wreckage for a short while before flying low over the waves towards the south. During my short stay a couple of Great Skuas, a single Arctic Skua and (22) Manx Shearwaters before I headed off to RSPB Loch of Strathbeg. 

Common Crane on Starnafin Pools.

An hour spent at Starnafin Pools, produced: 11 Ruff, 2 Dunlin, 2 Greenshank, a Little Egret, Snipe, and a Common Crane. Additionally, two juvenile Common Terns and the usual Tree Sparrows and Meadow Pipits along the fences.

NEW Scottish Life List Since Relocating Permanently to Aberdeenshire in October 2020

📖 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Girdleness ~ 09/08/2023

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Wednesday 9th August 2023 ☀️ 18C ~ Wind N @ 2MPH ~ Today, I went for a walk around Girdleness headland and had my first late summer sea watch mid-afternoon. According to recent reports, there has been an increase in activity along the northeast coast with birds on the move and I was hopeful of connecting with my first Skuas of the year. 

An obliging Dunlin along the harbour path.

As I walked along the harbour inlet, I noticed the usual gathering of Eiders and counted eleven Red-breasted Mergansers, some of which seemed to be from this year's broods. A few Curlews on the rocks, plus a couple of Rock Pipits and several Oystercatchers. To my surprise, a Dunlin suddenly appeared on the path and allowed me to get reasonably close for a few photos before he made off. 

Common Whitethroat along the Battery wall.

It was a pretty quiet walk up to Torry Battery with several Swallows skimming the golf course, one or two Skylarks and plenty of Linnets around the gorse. The best was a couple of Common Whitethroats along the Battery wall.

An Arctic Skua drifting south ~ One of two seen today. 

I spent an enjoyable 90 minutes from the foghorn where there was a decent passage of Arctic Terns, along with a smaller number of Sandwich Terns. Gannets and Kittiwakes drifted by frequently and the odd Bottle-nosed Dolphin could be seen breaching occasionally. On the water, Eider, Guillemot, Razorbill, (2) Puffins and (2) Black Guillemot and it wasn't long before an Arctic Skua drifted south, my first of the year.

Great Skua ~ Just about to take out a passing Kittiwake.

During my 90-minute stay, I managed four Great Skuas (Bonxies) and also witnessed their aggressive hunting tactics firsthand, earning them the nickname "Pirates of the Sea." One of the birds attacked a Kittiwake, and another dove down to capture an unsuspecting Guillemot. (5) Common Scoter (north) and (14) Manx Shearwaters, also northerly were other notables but the best was my first Aberdeenshire Storm Petrol which passed at a distance but was easily recognisable by the white rump, size and gizz.