Kintyre Birds (1 Viewer)

It might come as a surprise that someone living in South Africa wishes to start a birding thread for Kintyre, but it's not as daft as it seems. My brother lives in Campbeltown, and I visit as often as I can. While I'm there I spend as much time as I can on the birds of the area.

Perhaps I should define Kintyre - I mean the peninsula south of Tarbert, which is a nice, clearly-defined geographical entity. There is a fine range of habitats, from hill and mountain to farmland, forest and sea, and a correspondingly good birding potential.

I visited Kintyre just a couple of weeks ago, and managed, near Machrihanish, some great sightings of fishing gannets, Manx Shearwaters and a pair of Arctic Skuas harassing terns until they regurgitated their catches, which were promptly grabbed by the skuas.

In future notes I will comment on a few special places in Kintyre which deserve special attention from birders. So let me end here with a special plea to birders visiting Kintyre......let us generate a record of birding in this wonderful place which will encourage more and more of us to visit, and contirbute in the fullness of time to our knowledge of Scotland's birds and their movements.

I look forward to reading your contibutions.

Dave

A few photos

I hope this works - this is the first time I have tried to add pictures.

These pics were taken at Machrihanish, Kintyre, in July 2007

Dave

I see that the photo titles are missing -

They show a flock of eiders, a diving gannet, and a wave-skimming Manx shearwater.

Dave

Hi Dave

Thanks for starting this thread - I'm sure many will be interested in your reports from there - I've added it to my Subscribed Threads list

Great picture of the Gannet:clap:

D

Good thread to start as I go there regularly!!

Great place for birds. Variety of habitats.
Hope they do not further spoil it with the planned extensions to the windfactory.

i visited kintyre last week and agree its a fantastic place, not just for the wildlife,the landscape and coastline is awsome...it was our second visit in two years...both times only for the day,which is not enough time to explore..
all the pics were taken around the machrihanish bird observatory except the black guillemot which was taken in cambletown habour..

Delia, thanks for your response to the idea. Unfortunately, since I live in SA, I will only be able to contribute my own sightings at irregular intervals. I am hoping that Kintyre residents and visitors will pick up the thread and run with it, so that in the long term we will all learn more about Kintyre's birds.

Kindest regards,

Dave

John, thank you for your response. The Wind Farms are a concern, especially because of winter's migrating geese, not to mention thie effect on the scenery.

Best wishes,

Dave

Steve,

Nice to hear from you. Kintyre is a fantastic place, on many levels. Your photos demonstrate that clearly, so I will add a few here to reinforce your comments.

The two Machrihanish seals were disputing ownership of one very small rock. Orchids (sorry, i am not to good on British flowers) were growing in the churchyard at A'chleit, on the road from Campbeltown to Tayinloan. The rabbity picture shows the local "Watership Down" near the Marine Research facility at Machrihanish. The brackeny ruin is Kildonan Dun (circa 200 AD) to the right of the road From Campbeltown to Saddell. And finally (and slightly scarily) the Tangy wind farm, referred to by John in his previous comment.

There is no shortage of interest in Kintyre.

Best wishes,
Dave

I spent my honeymoon in one of the Landmark Trust properties near Campbeltown. I seem to remember leaving a list of birds seen in the Guestbook. I remember my wife pointing at a pheasant and saying whats that. I wondered whether I had made a big mistake. 18 years later she is still pretty disinterested in birds but still together

She must have something else going for her, I guess. Do you think she would still recognise a pheasant today? If so, she only has to learn another 300 birds or so and you will be well away

Dave Kennedy said:

It might come as a surprise that someone living in South Africa wishes to start a birding thread for Kintyre, but it's not as daft as it seems. My brother lives in Campbeltown, and I visit as often as I can. While I'm there I spend as much time as I can on the birds of the area.

Dave

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Hi Dave,

A couple of websites worth looking at if anyone's planning a visit to Kintyre:

http://argyllbirdclub.org/

http://www.machrihanishbirds.org.uk/

I've been visiting the area for over thirty years. Usually I'll go to Mull, Islay, Outer Hebrides or other parts of Scotland for several days, then stay with relatives at the top of the Kintyre peninsular for the remainder of my holiday. I can honestly say, no matter where I've been in Scotland at the time, Kintyre and Mid-Argyll are at least equal, if not better. The problem for the one-off visiting birder, it's such a vast area, with very little information about good spots available anywhere. Eddie Maguire's little book is probably the best guide for Kintyre:

http://www.machrihanishbirds.org.uk/merchandise/index.htm

'The Birds of Argyll' is due out at the end of the year too. Click on 'Publications' then 'Birds of Argyll' on the ABC website (sorry, can't seem to link to it direct).


Jonathan

Jonathan,
Many thanks for your comments re Kintyre, and thank you for the websites. I usually try to see Eddie Maguire when I am in Campbeltown, but on my recent visit we missed each other, which was unfortunate. I have Eddie's little book "Birds in Kintyre" and would recommend it to anyone visiting the area. It apparently can be ordered through the website which you have listed above, and it may well be available in the bookshop in Campbeltown .

Thank you also for the info re "Birds of Argyll". Argyll is an enormous area, covering a wife range of habitats, and is well worth visiting by anybody interested in wildlife, mountains, trout, sea and sea lochs, birds and fascinating history going back some 6000 years. I would like to discuss that further, but this is a birding forum so i shall behave! Suffice to say that the "Birds of Argyll" will become an invaluable companion for Scottish birders.

Regards,
Dave

Good birding spots

The Machrihanish Seabird and Wildlife Observatory is as fine a place as any to get your Kintyre birdwatching off to a good start.

Drive from Campbeltown to Machrihanish (A83, then B843), and carry on straight throught the little village until, just after the last cottage on the right, the road bends sharply left. On your right hand side, over a low wall, you will see a little bay with a seaweed-littered beach. Normally you will find eiders, Common Sandpipers, Redshanks and the like busy about the shore - this, of course will vary with the season of the year. This bay, however, becomes a magic place in a winter storm, when the gales blow onshore and the seabirds and sea ducks run for shelter.

Carry on past a white bungalow on your right, and turn right throught the first gate. A rough dirt track will take you through short, rabbit-and sheep-cropped grass and reeds past the Marine Research facility run, I believe, by Stirling University. This area can yield wheatear and twite. Turn to the right after passing the marine research buildings and you will see the Seabird observatory in front of you. Between Spring and Autumn ( I think roughly March-October) it is often manned, usually by Eddie Maguire, who is a fount of knowledge on Kintyre birds. Should the Observatory be open, you will be very welcome.

The Observatory is on Uisaed Point, at the southern end of the great bay north of Machrihanish, and is at it best a) during the migration seasons and b) if strong onshore winds are blowing. I have also had some wonderful otter sightings on the half-submerged rocks immediately in front of the observatory. Be warned! When the wind is blowing this can be one of the coldest places on earth. It can get pretty wet too!

I would be interested in any news of sightings here. Eddie's own list includes some astonishing ticks, and I just wish I was able to spend more time there.

You can expect waders, ducks, seagulls, terns, skuas, divers, shearwaters, gannets, guillemots, razorbills, occasional puffins, and sometimes even the little twites sit on the rocks in front of the observatory feeding on the flowers of the sea pinks (thrift?). And if you get really lucky, you may find a rare gull or tern, or a surprising shearwater or petrel.

The pictures show the Observatory, and the little bay with the white bungalow as seen from the Observatory.

Go ahead and visit the Observatory, and let us hear about your sightings.

Best Wishes,

Dave Kennedy

Please note that the road from Campbeltown to Machrihanish is the B842 then B843, NOT the 'A83 then B843' as stated above. The road starts in Campbeltown opposite the White Hart Hotel. Bear right on the B843 at the little village of Stewarton, just outside Campbeltown.

Dave

hi dave
i meet eddie 2 years ago in this wonderfull hide..and what a hide it is!.. the best i have visited..bought the book and he signed it..(which i cannot lay my hands on at the moment!)..very friendly people who man the hide and well recommend a visit to all who travel here,as its only about 15 minutes or so from cambletown..
we drove down the main road on the west side of kintyre from tarbet to here and travelled back on the minor roads on the east coastly line (well recommend this stretch stunning!!)
atb
steve egg

seggs said:

hi dave
i meet eddie 2 years ago in this wonderfull hide..and what a hide it is!.. the best i have visited..bought the book and he signed it..(which i cannot lay my hands on at the moment!)..very friendly people who man the hide and well recommend a visit to all who travel here,as its only about 15 minutes or so from cambletown..
we drove down the main road on the west side of kintyre from tarbet to here and travelled back on the minor roads on the east coastly line (well recommend this stretch stunning!!)
atb
steve egg

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Hi Steve,

You're right about the seabird observatory - every birder should pay a visit just for the experience!

The west coast road can be pretty amazing too, especially in stormy conditions - absolutely spectacular. Sunsets, with Islay and Jura in the foreground, are wonderful. The thousands of grey geese in winter aren't bad either!

Jonathan

Thanks, Steve and Jonathan, for those ringing endorsements! Hopefully it will encourage people to visit and see for themselves. You are right about the hide, it is splendid, and gave me my best-ever otter sighting a while ago. Maybe I'm just blind, but it remains the only place I have ever seen twites.

Kindest regards,
Dave

Finding the Seabird Observatory

The smaller-scale map shows part of the lower Kintyre Peninsula, including the road from Campbeltown to Macrihanish (red circle). The large-scale map shows Uisaed Point, to the west of Machrihanish. The Observatory is the tiny square immediately north-west of the cairn on Uisaed Point.

Hope that all helps.

Regards,
Dave

Maps did not attach.....stand by on this one

Dave Kennedy said:

The smaller-scale map shows part of the lower Kintyre Peninsula, including the road from Campbeltown to Macrihanish (red circle). The large-scale map shows Uisaed Point, to the west of Machrihanish. The Observatory is the tiny square immediately north-west of the cairn on Uisaed Point.

Hope that all helps.

Regards,
Dave

Maps did not attach.....stand by on this one

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Hi David,

Have a look at Streetmap.co.uk. Search for the area you want (Machrihanish in this case) then click on the exact place you want to indicate. Streetmap will then place an arrow there. If you want to link to the map in a post simply copy the url that can be found at the bottom left hand side of the page.

http://www.streetmap.co.uk/streetmap.dll?G2M?X=162795&Y=620945&A=Y&Z=4

I find this method easier than attaching maps.


Jonathan