Wood Warbler

This was a lovely surprise while heading into work this morning! It was frequenting gardens in High Town, and was still present early evening. My first one on the patch for nearly five years.

 

 

Rosie took this photo in this morning's fog. Watch this space for more photos from Collieston Birder...

Overdue Update

Post holidays time to catch up with the local birds. Plenty of activity down on the estuary now, with wader numbers significantly up including Whimbrel, Golden Plover and higher numbers of Dunlin.
A Little Egret has been appearing in various locations and a Roseate Tern has been the main highlight viewable sometimes at the mouth.
In Collieston a Whinchat was seen at the weekend unusually and also some juvenile Wheatears indicating fairly local breeding. Plenty of other newly fledged birds to be seen and the mown fields are full of activity as a result.
Today, a highlight was a badger seen mid-morning drinking at Meikle Loch, though it disappeared fairly rapidly once spotted. Meikle otherwise has a steadily building flock of Lapwing in attendance and is hosting a Greenshank currently, and at least 2 Common sandpipers as well as 6 Dunlin and a number of Ringer Plovers.
Seawatching from Collieston this afternoon yielded about 10 Arctic Skuas, a couple of Bonxie and 20 plus Manx Shearwater.

Worth mentioning elsewhere in Aberdeenshire the amazing record of a Rock Thrush at Scotston near St Fergus. This 1st year bird has now been in residence for some days and is the 1st mainland record for Scotland.

Juvenile Lapwing

Badger, Meikle Loch

Little Egret, Ythan Estuary

Rock Thrush, near St Fergus, Aberdeenshire

No frigate birds here

A short seawatch this evening after 8.00pm gave 30 Manx Shearwaters, an Arctic Skua and a probable Pomarine Skua...though this was already well past before I picked it up unfortunately.
Not bad for less than half an hour, but as the title suggests not a patch on Islay and the Ascension Frigatebird seen there yesterday.

Summer lulling

Well overdue a post, but that is just reflective of the relative calm just now. Plenty of breeding birds to look through, though no rarities among them as yet. The edge on Meikle continues to attract a variety of local waders and some days see good gatherings of hirundines.
One unusual sighting from the immediate Collieston patch area was a Mistle Thursh earlier in the week in the Cotehill area. Normally these are seen in spring and Atumn only. Slightly more curious at the weekend was a White Wagtail apparently interacting closely with some juveniles. Maybe not really surprising given the large numbers passing through in the spring.

White Wagtail, Feu farm area

Lapwing, Slains pools

Arctic Tern, Ythan

Temminck's Stint at Meikle Loch

A Temminck's stint yesterday on Meikle Loch was the star bird. Often elusive , it was first seen in the afternoon and was still present until later evening. This is the first record of this species for a few years, previous records were often around Slains.
As no pictures of this, a few summer highlights-

Swallow

 


 

Reed Bunting

 

Guillemot and Razorbill, Cransdale Head

Pectoral Sandpiper

A balmy weekend, at least in spells, which actually had a quieter summer feel to it. Periods of easterlies and rain so far during this next week have resulted so far in a Pectoral Sandpiper paying visits to Meikle Loch (maybe the same one seen end of the week in the Logie Buchan area in truth) and what looks to be a 1st Summer male Grey-headed (thunbergi) Wagtail on Meikle as well. I think first summer as the throat looks a little paler than I would expect and there appear to be brown tones extensively in the wing feathers.

Grey-headed Wagtail and Pectoral Sandpiper, Meikle Loch

 

 



Pectoral Sandpiper

 

 

The past week had us in Raptors

A few unexpected delights in the last week with a summer plumaged Curlew Sandpiper on Meikle Loch on the 4th, with a single Dunlin. The next day a ringtail harrier was seen very briefly across Cotehill, flying in from high level back onto the moor. Could possibly have been Sundays bird.This was followed by a Marsh Harrier lurking around Cotehill later afternoon.
The highlight was the late appearance yesterday of a Honey Buzzard, again near Cotehill, which appeared to be keen to go to roost though mobbed much of the time by the local corvids.
Meanwhile, as commented on, Long-tailed Skuas have continued to be sighted along the coast, including from Collieston.

Curlew Sandpiper, Meikle Loch