Birding at Loch of Kinnordy (2 Viewers)

[delia todd]

Go on then I'll ask......................................piece of willow????................(cricket bat?)

LOL that's how I read it!

There was a board saying the footpath to the East Hide was closed so I didn't dare take it especially with the Police present.

Oh? Wonder what's going on there then. It was closed for ages last year, when they upgraded the path for walkers from Kirrie. hmmmm.

I called in on my way back from SpecSavers to have a check. It's actually a bridge that is dangerous and that's way beyond the East Hide. It's blocking access to Kirriemuir (and presumably the Lily Ponds, but I'm not too sure about that... there's a bridge just before you turn left to go to them, but there's possibly another bridge beyond that).

So I had a wander down to the feeding station. The trees are getting green and there were lots of birds singing, including my first Willow Warbler of the year. I could just hear him between the burst of song from the Chiffchaff LOL.

The car park was just about full, so I guess there was plenty to see from the hides... I didn't go in the Gullery Hide as I really needed to get back home.

 

[Greybags]

Go on then I'll ask......................................piece of willow????................(cricket bat?)

burnie - afraid so.

delia - thanks for the update. Next time I'm there I'll make a point of heading to the East Hide since its accessible.

 

[delia todd]

Nowt wrong with cricket!

 

[burnie]

Two Cranes photographed near the Loch very early this morning, also a Wood Sandpiper in the Bogbean.

 

[delia todd]

Oooh!!! Hoping to get there on Friday. Keep your fingers crossed for me!!

 

[burnie]

A Hobby has been seen hawking after dragon flies today at the Gullery hide.

 

[delia todd]

Oh WOW!! Nice one that.

 

[burnie]

I saw one years ago on the out skirts of Inverkeilor, I got in a right row for not reporting it, I had no idea they were so rare up here, I used to see them regularly down south.

 

[delia todd]

I saw one years ago on the out skirts of Inverkeilor, I got in a right row for not reporting it, I had no idea they were so rare up here, I used to see them regularly down south.

Yes, I was told to sit in a certain area (can't remember where exactly now), beside a pool on a bit of moorland in the Aviemore area and I might see one.

But no luck for me unfortunately.

So the only view I've had of one remains a mile high sighting at Titchwell!


Oooops.... did this hours ago and forgot to post it!!!

 

[delia todd]

Went to Kinnordy for a couple of hours yesterday, first visit since early spring.

Went my usual route up the Airlie Castle road, stopping at the road end where the closed bridge is. So we wandered down to the bridge where I too the first picture. Searched hard, both sides hoping to see Dipper or Kingfisher, but had no luck on that score.

We had a slow run along the Kaims of Airlie road, stopping every time we saw a brown blob fly across the road. But had no luck identifying them. Eventually, approaching the double bend, saw some Bullfinch at the side of the road. Stopped there for ages hoping they'd come down again but they didn't, so no picture sadly.

Had lunch overlooking the west end hoping there might be some raptor action, but got a large number of gulls flying through. Bit too distant for me to identify, possibly mixed. Little else moved so set off to the reserve car park. Mute Swans and Shoveler were the main ones we could see on the water.

Really pleased to see a large flock of Lapwings fly around. I kept hoping they were going to come down to the bogbean islands, but they didn't (wouldn't have seen them anyway, they're so overgrown now with some very tall growth. Never seen it like that before.

Two of the swans even seem to co-ordinate they preening moves, doing the same thing at the same time LOL.

After some time absorbing the atmosphere from the Gullery (now sadly misnamed of course) went down to the feeding station. Got all the usual tit suspects there except woodpecker. Heard a Treecreeper but couldn't see it.

It was a rather dull day weatherwise. I do feel the place is being rather sadly neglected by the RSPB. Someone had been along and cut the reeds back on the LHS of the G. Hide, allowing a clearer view that way, and the feeders had obviously been refilled recently. We topped most of them up. But the site seems rather unloved now.

You can see the remains of one of the rafts is now forming an island. Don't know where the other went. They really only tried that for one year, before they stopped maintaining them - it can take a while for birds to get used to new things, can't it. The way they were designed wasn't going to stop the otters or corvids getting to the eggs!

Rant over, I'll still make visits there!

Edit: ooops forgot my pictures LOL

 

[delia todd]

And the last two from the feeding station, see the two cheeky Tree Sparrows who have just snuck in there LOL; they weren't in the previous shot!!!

 

[burnie]

I find it too overgrown too and so it seems does a lot of the wildlife, I wonder if the Beavers being there has stopped any maintenance being done now.

 

[delia todd]

Don't think it's anything to do with the beavers Burnie.... I think it's more lack of interest from the RSPB really.

Twenty or so years ago there was a resident warden, who stayed in a cottage on the estate. Through the spring and summer months he was joined by a couple of paid students. They looked after Kinnordy, the Tay Reed Beds and Stonehaven.

When he left to go to Orkney, they had another resident - a lovely lady plus the summer students. Then it all changed and there was no longer a resident warden. It, along with the Tay Reed Beds (I think), was reduced to once a week cover from Loch Leven. Not nearly enough I think.

The loch will probably revert to being a marshland.

 

[burnie]

When I first went there nearly 20 years ago there were RSPB folk there at weekends, but I haven't seen anyone there for years, though someone does turn up as the chicken wire was put round the bits they didn't want to end up as Beaver food.

 

[delia todd]

I probably met you there then. I used to go in about twice a week, very often. Did you ever meet Mike? He'd sit in the Gullery Hide for hours, recording everything he saw. He really had quite a list. He used to walk in from Kirriemuir. Then he had to move to Arbroath so didn't manage up very often after that.

Weekends is when local volunteers were there. One, Darrell, who started this thread, used to take guided walks, others were in the hides to welcome visitors, tell them what was around and where. They also tried to get them to sign up for RSPB membership, by handing out leaflets.

It really was a buzzing place then. There was a couple from Alyth who always did a stint on Christmas day and had nice warm mince pies to hand out.

 

[Ian Bell]

I used to enjoy visiting Kinnordy but It has gone downhill and I have not been back,since early this year.I doubt the RSPB would neglect a Reserve like this,If It was south of the border.So much potential but no thought plan

 

[delia todd]

Yes... agree with you Ian.

I've met no end of people there, many from abroad too, who have had it on their trip list as a place to visit.

It can't be anything to do with the beavers, as they're at Loch of the Lowes and things are running much the same there as always.

 

[burnie]

Loch of the Lowes is not RSPB though is it? We first joined the SWT there when we lived in Perth, when we moved to Angus we joined the ADBC for a while, but dropped out due to work getting in the way, now retired we re-joined this year, but health issues mean we have hardly been out, hope next year is better.
Not been a member of the RSPB for a while now, but I do remember the Kinnordy days as you said, as a 6 foot 4 inch tall bearded Englishman(with Scots distant ancestry) I did rather stand out a bit.

 

[delia todd]

No, it's SWT.... I just brought them into it as having beavers doesn't seem to have affected the work they do there.

Sorry, I just can't recall seeing you there.

 

[kawwauser]

i remember mike i used to get envious of his lists he stopped keeping lists after he took up photography i havent seen him for a few years the last time i bumped into him was near friockheim looking for a wte eagle which was perched up a tree