My second big day out of the year saw me again try to double up site visits. Now, as a farmboy who's a bit scared of the seaside, and who's a big bit scared of heights, a trip to the seacliffs at RSPB Fowlsheugh was an odd choice. However, this offered me the chance for razorbill, guilemmot, and even puffin. It was also my first visit to what we know as a 'seabird city' and i had (high) hopes of a birding spectacle, regardless of the targets.
Its amazing, how my inner terror of heights was overshadowed by the sheer number and volume of birds. Kittiwake screamed from overhead and down below, a herring gull glared balefully from the path (i gave it a wide berth) and once onto the cliffs themselves, the number of guilemmot and razorbill was breathtaking, especially as they were lifers. No puffins, but the spectacle of everything else more than made up for it. I uploaded a few photos at the time.
From there, i moved to an inland/ wetland site at RSPB Loch of Kinnordy. There, got osprey almost immediately (!) plus chiffchaff, snipe, and sand martins. 4 year ticks, in a beautiful, tranquil place.
Roll on a few weeks, and my birding mojo is well juiced. Some good birding at my local patches at Baron's Haugh and Cathkin Marsh, plus some ad hoc ticks in and around my home area (my local patches both involved a 20 minute drive, thus stretching the definition of 'local') had restored my joy of birding life.
Today found me and my seven year old son going out for our first hill walk. I had been cajoling him for a while to have a day away from playing footbal (he's Toad of Toad Hall...) and come out with me. We travelled to Ayrshire, to a relatively easy hill, as a gentle intro. There, and without making any effort, we got skylark, oystercatcher, curlew, mipit, carrion crow, wheatear, red grouse, and best of all, a short- eared owl being harried by an odd couple- a curlew and a skylark. A lifer, and one of the best sights I've seen in a long while.
All too often, 'birding' and 'life' are mutually exclusive concepts in Green Sand's world. These past few weeks, though, have shown just how magical Birding Life can be.
Its amazing, how my inner terror of heights was overshadowed by the sheer number and volume of birds. Kittiwake screamed from overhead and down below, a herring gull glared balefully from the path (i gave it a wide berth) and once onto the cliffs themselves, the number of guilemmot and razorbill was breathtaking, especially as they were lifers. No puffins, but the spectacle of everything else more than made up for it. I uploaded a few photos at the time.
From there, i moved to an inland/ wetland site at RSPB Loch of Kinnordy. There, got osprey almost immediately (!) plus chiffchaff, snipe, and sand martins. 4 year ticks, in a beautiful, tranquil place.
Roll on a few weeks, and my birding mojo is well juiced. Some good birding at my local patches at Baron's Haugh and Cathkin Marsh, plus some ad hoc ticks in and around my home area (my local patches both involved a 20 minute drive, thus stretching the definition of 'local') had restored my joy of birding life.
Today found me and my seven year old son going out for our first hill walk. I had been cajoling him for a while to have a day away from playing footbal (he's Toad of Toad Hall...) and come out with me. We travelled to Ayrshire, to a relatively easy hill, as a gentle intro. There, and without making any effort, we got skylark, oystercatcher, curlew, mipit, carrion crow, wheatear, red grouse, and best of all, a short- eared owl being harried by an odd couple- a curlew and a skylark. A lifer, and one of the best sights I've seen in a long while.
All too often, 'birding' and 'life' are mutually exclusive concepts in Green Sand's world. These past few weeks, though, have shown just how magical Birding Life can be.
