• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Eden Estuary News (6 Viewers)

A very nice selection of waders over high tide yesterday evening included a well-marked whimbrel, 3 knot, turnstone, plus the usual suspects. Also patience was rewarded with a group of "commic" terns. All were rather distant but at least 2 were identifiable as Arctic (104 for the year). Nice clear conditions meant gannets were visible at the estuary mouth - which makes a change from recent heat haze!

Rob
 
Quite an interesting few days, with a bit more wader variety. This includes a couple of whimbrel on Thursday evening, 2 grey plovers on Friday (including a pristine summer plumage bird), the first golden plovers of the autumn, the first ruff of the autumn (1 on Saturday morning, up to 21 knot, 6 greenshanks ...
Not many ducks around other than eiders and goosanders but 2 drake scaup have been seen on a couple of occasions along with a pair of tufties. 5 little gulls (3 of them summer adults) were the highlight of yesterday, and tern numbers are increasing with both Arctic and common around.

I have also started mothing. You can read about my incompetence on http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=38778

Rob
 
A fairly quiet week, with few excitements.
Tuesday produced a couple of shoveler, the first for some time. Wednesday's highlight was a willow warbler in the garden - it continues to surprise me how infrequently we see them.
On Thursday morning I was woken at 6 o'clock by a young buzzard calling from a poplar outside the bedroom window. They just never shut up at this time of year! Thursday's lowlight was our 3rd record of grey squirrel and the first for 2 years. No thanks, we don't want any!

On Friday evening I had the frustration of brief views of a skua at the estuary mouth. At least it encourages me to keep scanning, although most will be unidentifiable.
Best waders over the weekend were the 4 ringed plover on Saturday afternoon, otherwise it has been a bit disappointing. It looks as though common sand may slip through the net this year. A young peregrine yesterday afternoon was the first for some time.

Rob
 
No further sightings of the squirrel, which is a bonus.
A few more duck are appearing ,with 7 teal this morning and mallard numbers back over 50. A ruff last night was only the second of the season, with a scattering of other waders including knot, golden plover and greenshank.
Terns have put on a better show this week with at least 120 commic on Monday evening (mainly arctic) and 4 common and 2 sandwich this morning.

Highlight of the week came this morning as I was scanning for late swifts towards Leuchars (saw one). I picked up a small falcon which soon resolved itself as a female merlin heading right at us. It zoomed in over the estuary and went straight into the roosting waders. Unfortunately, one of our poplars got in the way of seeing if it bagged a dunlin. 105 for the year.

Rob
 
Bit of a rush all of a sudden. An arctic skua chasing terns on Friday evening and a snipe yesterday morning, so that's 107. Still 7 behind Jane I see. Common, arctic and sandwich terns were all seen yesterday, but I fear that we won't see little this year. They didn't attempt to breed on the Eden this year, their nesting area having been scoured by storms.
A few interesting waders around - 2 ruff last night, up to 4 ringed plovers, blacktailed godwits now over 50 ...

Rob
 
Edenwatcher becomes a daddy!

It was a quiet week until this morning ...
Sue gave birth to a son (6 lb 2 oz) at 9:40 this morning, after a mercifully short labour. We're calling him Andrew, middle name to be decided. Both mother and son doing fine.

Back to the birds ...
The big tides over the weekend failed to deliver anything too exciting, but there were up to 9 greenshanks and a single ruff (not many of those so far). Common, arctic and sandwich terns continue to be seen, with gannets off the estuary mouth. Canada geese reappeared on their southward moult migration, with 35 on Saturday and 24 yesterday and today.
Passerine highlights have been the odd dispersing willow warbler and a spotted flycatcher.

Rob
 
Last edited:
Congratulations to you and Sue. Interesting name for the nipper as well. Let`s hope he´s soon developing an impressive house list of his own.
 
edenwatcher said:
It was a quiet week until this morning ...
Sue gave birth to a son (6 lb 2 oz) at 9:40 this morning, after a mercifully short labour. We're calling him Andrew, middle name to be decided. Both mother and son doing fine.

Back to the birds ...
The big tides over the weekend failed to deliver anything too exciting, but there were up to 9 greenshanks and a single ruff (not many of those so far). Common, arctic and sandwich terns continue to be seen, with gannets off the estuary mouth. Canada geese reappeared on their southward moult migration, with 35 on Saturday and 24 yesterday and today.
Passerine highlights have been the odd dispersing willow warbler and a spotted flycatcher.

Rob
Click to expand...
Congratulations Rob & Sue. B :)

I was at Port Allen (near Errol) on the Tay on friday (19th), got 5 Greenshank & 2 Ruff in a small freshwater marsh at high tide. Also got 2 unseasonal Whooper Swans on the Tay skulking in an in-river reedbed downstream from Mugdrum near the north shore (seemed to be moulting) - kept slightly apart from the moulting Mute Swan herd. I didn't get great views but neither bird seemed injured. There were 2 nearby half-grown cygnets which briefly showed through the reeds -I was unable to obtain reasonable views & couldn't tell whether they belonged to the Whoopers or were Mute Swan cygnets however the record is intriguing.
 
Thanks everyone. I brought them home yesterday and all continues to go well. I need to get the hang of sleeping on demand though!

It has been a bit of a raptor fest this week.
On Tuesday evening a peregrine was hunting the waders at high tide. Yesterday morning, as I was filling the feeders, an osprey came and caught a flatfish before circling almost overhead - superb. Today demonstrated the benefits of paternity leave. This morning a female sparrowhawk came and perched on the conservatory roof a foot above my head! Better still though was the female merlin that has spent much of this evening perched on a post. Stunning views resplendent in the evening sunshine.

Must dash, bath time for Andrew...

Rob
 
Good stuff today.
It began with 2 juvenile little gulls and was swiftly followed by a fine little stint (our first for nearly 2 years). Next came a sanderling (only our 2nd ever) so that's 109 for the year. Other goodies today were drake scaup, 2 ringed plover and a knot. Black-tailed godwit numbers are over 100 once again.
Interested by your swans Steve - have you been back for another look?

Rob
 
edenwatcher said:
Good stuff today.
It began with 2 juvenile little gulls and was swiftly followed by a fine little stint (our first for nearly 2 years). Next came a sanderling (only our 2nd ever) so that's 109 for the year. Other goodies today were drake scaup, 2 ringed plover and a knot. Black-tailed godwit numbers are over 100 once again.
Interested by your swans Steve - have you been back for another look?

Rob
Click to expand...
Hi Rob,
Hope the family are well.
Brief visit to Port Allen today (28/08/05). Weather pretty crap & not much about though I did eventually find the two Whoopers again. Views were pretty poor as the birds were keeping their heads down due to the wind & rain but no sign of any cygnets however. I did manage a couple of images but they're pretty poor due to the driving rain, low light levels & the distance of the birds:
 

Attachments

  • Tay-Whooper-1.jpg
    Tay-Whooper-1.jpg
    35.6 KB · Views: 148
  • Tay-Whooper-2.jpg
    Tay-Whooper-2.jpg
    31.2 KB · Views: 124
The sanderling was still around this morning, though I haven't seen the stint since Saturday. A male peregrine was around before lunch and the female merlin has been putting on a tremendous show. Yesterday she caught and ate a linnet and she was back again late this morning.
Red-breasted mergansers are now outnumbering goosanders again, but other ducks are in short supply.

Rob
 
The merlin was back again this morning, tucking into some unfortunate small passerine. Hope she stays around for the winter.
Next comes a question of conscience. On Tuesday a flock of 35 Canada geese turned up briefly, with a single barnacle goose among them. Also present was a very dodgy white farmyard goose. So do I count the barney for the year list?

On Monday evening a single swift passed through - the first for some time.

Rob
 
All the hail the weekend and the opportunity to bird the rising tide!
First the loose ends however: the mixed flock of geese was still around on Thursday evening and a pair of scaup appeared yesreday evening.
Today has been excellent with over 50 species seen. There has been a bit of an influx of dabbling ducks with 12 wigeon and 59 teal today. Pride of place goes to the waders with 16 ringed plovers, 2 grey plovers (one in full sum plum), 2 turnstones, an unusually high count of 65 knot, 12 greenshanks, 104 black-tailed godwits, 2 bar-tailed godwits and, best of all, 5 curlew sandpipers (110 or is that 111 for the year).
Other notable records for today include a great spotted woodpecker and a massive record count of 133 great black-backs.

Rob
 
edenwatcher said:
All the hail the weekend and the opportunity to bird the rising tide!
First the loose ends however: the mixed flock of geese was still around on Thursday evening and a pair of scaup appeared yesreday evening.
Today has been excellent with over 50 species seen. There has been a bit of an influx of dabbling ducks with 12 wigeon and 59 teal today. Pride of place goes to the waders with 16 ringed plovers, 2 grey plovers (one in full sum plum), 2 turnstones, an unusually high count of 65 knot, 12 greenshanks, 104 black-tailed godwits, 2 bar-tailed godwits and, best of all, 5 curlew sandpipers (110 or is that 111 for the year).
Other notable records for today include a great spotted woodpecker and a massive record count of 133 great black-backs.

Rob
Click to expand...

The fog came in quite quick on Sunday. Only 1 Merg by the time I got to the hide at Gaurdbridge.
 
It certainly did. Cleared briefly yesterday afternoon - saw at least 4 curlew sands, then 2 girls walking a dog came from the riding stables on to the saltmarsh and flushed everything. Having waited all day for it to clear I was rather p*ssed off! Fog is just as thick again now. Ho hum.
Well done with the comma.

Rob
 
A super day yesterday, with 54 spp. despite the disturbance caused by the Leuchars airshow (to me if not the birds!). Two were new for the year, a kittiwake and a flock of 10 or so common scoters (112 or 113 for the year). The merlin showed well again in the morning and there were some excellent waders, highlighted by a record count of 12 curlew sandpipers. Also present a ruff, a couple of knot, grey, golden and ringed plovers, greenshank, the highest count of blackwits of the autumn so far (161) and a couple of barwits. Wigeon numbers were up to 47.
It looks like being another 50+ day today.

Rob
 
tom mckinney said:
54 spp in a single day. That's just 10 less than my entire local patch list in 3 years watching!
Click to expand...

You need a better patch, Tom.

Sign of the times, I guess, but a couple of Spotted Flycatchers in our village today were a patch tick, after 3.5 years(!). Now seen 133 around Newtonhill. Just worked it out while looking at the washing up.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 3 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

lark o'dell
Cornwall - no binoculars vacation
Replies
0
Views
556
lark o'dell
lark o'dell
S
Independent Colombia (Santa Marta and Central / Western Andes) July 2023
2
Replies
21
Views
3K
Pierreornitho
P
Dortmundbirder
Northern Ecuador September 2022
2 3
Replies
45
Views
6K
Dortmundbirder
Dortmundbirder
katastrofa
Human carnivory as a major driver of vertebrate extinction
2 3
Replies
56
Views
3K
Andy Lakin
A
wolfbirder
GRAN CANARIA - 2- 6th February 2024
2
Replies
34
Views
2K
Mike Crawley
Mike Crawley

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 7 (members: 0, guests: 7)
Back
Top