Birds fae Torry (6 Viewers)

Andrew Whitehouse · Jan 18, 2009

Yesterday the weather was okay but not too promising for anything unusual. Look at ducks and gulls they say, in such circumstances. I looked at gulls and that didn't work, so I looked a bit at ducks instead. Eiders, more specifically. Not surprisingly, I soon found a couple of drake 'borealis-types' in a small group upstream of the 'Banana Pier'. Some pictures of one of these are attached. You might want to check the EXIF data. Can't be too careful these days. The bill colour, as usual, seemed pretty much in line with the other Eiders, but the sails were good. There was another in Greyhope Bay.

There were 3 or 4 Bottlenose Dolphins well into the harbour. I don't normally take pictures of these (and I think you know why) but had a go yesterday. I think I capture the majesterial beauty of these spectacular sea creatures rather well.

Not much otherwise: a Common Scoter north and two Fulmars and a Kittiwake south off the coo. There were quite a few Common Gulls loitering around offshore. If I was Docmartin I'd probably have counted them but I'm not so I didn't.

Here are the pictures (usual quality).

Mark Lew1s · Jan 19, 2009

Had a plod round the usual route yesterday....No saily eiders but I must admit I wasn't looking too hard! 13 Lapwings in Nigg bay was about as good as it got.

Helenelizabeth2 · Jan 20, 2009

Andrew Whitehouse said:
I quite like the Skates Nose and can see why that might have got its name. The Breakwater Pier makes sense because I can never decide whether to call it a pier or a breakwater. I'm interested in the origins of the Banana Pier though. It doesn't really look like a banana, unless you're particularly imaginative.

That is what many Bananas looked like before the EU threw out all the straight ones. You are too young to remember, no doubt.

Andrew Whitehouse · Jan 20, 2009

Helenelizabeth2 said:
That is what many Bananas looked like before the EU threw out all the straight ones. You are too young to remember, no doubt.

Ahh, it's good to be young

. Is life winning at the moment btw?

Mark's post reminds me that I saw 13 Lapwings, funnily enough, at Doonies' Farm on Sunday. There was also a Fieldfare round there. Another was by the Coo on Saturday, which I forgot to mention earlier. Maybe that means I'm getting old after all.

Helenelizabeth2 · Jan 20, 2009

Andrew Whitehouse said:
Ahh, it's good to be young . Is life winning at the moment btw?

Mark's post reminds me that I saw 13 Lapwings, funnily enough, at Doonies' Farm on Sunday. There was also a Fieldfare round there. Another was by the Coo on Saturday, which I forgot to mention earlier. Maybe that means I'm getting old after all.

It is possible to be too old to remember things and too young to remember them all at the same time. I am too young to remember the war, for example.

Life is indeed winning. Although I did see a nice duck last Wednesday - maybe I will trot over to my thread and mention it.

Andrew Whitehouse · Jan 20, 2009

Helenelizabeth2 said:
It is possible to be too old to remember things and too young to remember them all at the same time. I am too young to remember the war, for example.

Life is indeed winning. Although I did see a nice duck last Wednesday - maybe I will trot over to my thread and mention it.

The weird thing is, I do remember the war, even though I'm too young to. How do you explain that!?

Helenelizabeth2 · Jan 20, 2009

Andrew Whitehouse said:
The weird thing is, I do remember the war, even though I'm too young to. How do you explain that!?

Insanity?

Andrew Whitehouse · Jan 31, 2009

Ahh, it's good to be back at Girdle Ness. The sea. The wind. The birds. Except there aren't really a lot of birds still. I actually went out in a rigorous breeze on Thursday but didn't see too much aside from an apparent bouncy castle on the north shore, in non-bouncy plumage. Today was a bit nicer but still windy. The wind was pushing a few seabirds through - several Kittiwakes and Fulmars, a Gannet, 2 Common Scoters and 2 Long-tailed Ducks. There were again a couple of 'mongrel' Borealis-type Eiders, as the scientific community are calling them, on the north shore. A rather sickly Cormorant was languishing on the beach.

1. The bouncy castle. With the recent easterlies, I like to think it might be a Norwegian, or even Russian, bouncy castle. Anyone any thoughts on subspecific ID?
2&3. It's been a cruel sea the past few days.
4. So crueld in fact that the Shetland ferry apparently got damaged yesterday (this according to my ship advisor) and was heading off this morning to Norway to get repaired.
5. One of those funny Eiders, again. I know you love em.

Andrew Whitehouse · Jan 31, 2009

1. Recent strong winds have resulted in some unusual pin placements on the golf course.
2. The rocks by the coo have recently developed faces. I think we need names for them. Any suggestions?

MKinHK · Feb 1, 2009

Rocky & Rocky II?

Andrew Whitehouse · Feb 1, 2009

MKinHK said:
Rocky & Rocky II?

That's a good suggestion. They kind of look a bit like Sly Stallone too. And possibly have similar acting capabilities.

Ken Hall · Feb 1, 2009

has to be Andrew and Mark surely? Nobody else spends so much time loitering around the Coo.

Andrew Whitehouse · Feb 1, 2009

Ken Hall said:
has to be Andrew and Mark surely? Nobody else spends so much time loitering around the Coo.

Hmm, I think these days we could equally well call one of them Ken. Nobody else finds as many rarities around there these days

.

Moraybirdlover · Feb 1, 2009

Lovely clear photo of the Eider!

The rocks look like Aberdeen's answer to Easter Island!

Ken Hall · Feb 2, 2009

Just thought I'd take a turn round the Ness today before the weather gets any worse. Only the gulls seemed to be enjoying it. A few Turnstones and Oystercatchers were toughing it out on the rocks at Greyhope Bay, dodging flying lumps of foam. The Eiders were sheltering in the lee of the breakwater with more further up the navigation channel where there were also a few Red-breasted Mergansers. Life may have come to a standstill in some parts of the UK, but you'll be pleased to know that the supply boats to the offshore oil installations remained unaffected. Takes more than a puff of wind to stop them. And snow? What snow?

Ian Bell · Feb 4, 2009

Ken Hall said:
And snow? What snow?

Have a look out your window today Ken ? :-O

Ken Hall · Feb 5, 2009

Ben Nevis said:
Have a look out your window today Ken ? :-O

Morning Ben. Yes, I did, and it was picture postcard perfect, so I went for a shuffle along our little road and got good close views of a couple of Jays. Not your everyday Ness bird eh? o

Ian Bell · Feb 5, 2009

Dont start me off on Jays..! My "bogey" bird for EVERY year.

Mark Lew1s · Feb 6, 2009

Some evidence of hard weather movement today down the ness with Fieldfare into double figures and 4 reed buntings in various places. Lots of snow as well!

Andrew Whitehouse · Feb 7, 2009

Snowiness at the Ness

As Mark says, it's all gone a bit snowy here over the past couple of days. Yesterday I planned to get out but the snow came down thick and fast during the middle of the day. It eased off by mid-afternoon and, as quick as you could say 'Farmer Giles!' in a country accent, I'd got my green wellies on and was trudging through the white stuff. Like Mark I managed four Reed Buntings, two in the allotments and two on the south side of the golf course. Quite a good bird here. There was also a Linnet in Greyhope Bay and three Goosander along the river near the Victoria Bridge. There wasn't too much else and offshore nothing was moving. A very large roost of Common Gulls was gathered in Nigg Bay at dusk.

Today was less snowy and yesterday's was beginning to melt. A brisk northerly wind kept things fresh. I didn't see any of Mark's Fieldfares yesterday but today saw ten at various spots. A good congregation of 13 Rock Pipits and 3 Skylarks were picking amongst the snow melt in Walker Park. My first Meadow Pipit of the year at the Ness was near the new pier. Offshore a Razorbill went north and there were a few Guillemots were on the sea. More impressive was a huge flock of Common Gulls feeding about half a mile out. I guess the snow has forced them from the land and they're finding what they can on the sea. A couple of Bottlenose Dolphins were around today, the first I've seen for a week or two.

Some 'winter wonderland' shots:

Birds fae Torry (6 Viewers)

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