Not quite Nethy John but there was a handsome male Blackcap in the bushes next to Loch Pityoulish the week before last.
Rich
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Nethybridge (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter RobGreenwood
- Start date
Rich
Sandra (Taylor)
Well-known member
Thanks for putting that up John. Will text my son who's staying in Aviemore this week.
Sandra
I'm going to be on a flying visit up to Scotland early next week and was thinking of nipping in to the Nethy Bridge area. My two targets are Capercaillie and Scottish Crossbill. I'd very much welcome and appreciate any advice on seeing either species that people might be able to offer.
Thanks in anticipation
Adam
Thanks in anticipation
Adam
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gordon hamlett
Well-known member
go to the early morning caper watch at Loch Garten. Please do not go looking for birds in the woods at this time of year - they are very susceptible to disturbance (it is also against the law to disturb a schedule 1 breeding bird at or near the nest and/or lek)
HTH
Gordon Hamlett - author of Best Birdwatching Sites in the Scottish Highlands
HTH
Gordon Hamlett - author of Best Birdwatching Sites in the Scottish Highlands
jpoyner
Well-known member
Good advice from Gordon, there are birds showing at Garten, though not every morning, they should be getting more active every day from now on..
Thanks guys, I'll give it a go. Any advice on Scottish Crossbills? Where's the best area around Nethy Bridge for them?
TIA
Adam
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jpoyner
Well-known member
That's a very difficult question to answer!!
So I'm guessing that you're saying that they can turn up pretty much any where? Are there many about at present?
jpoyner
Well-known member
There are plenty of Crossbills about, though they seem to all look like Common to me at the moment.
Johnny1
Well-known member
I would like to thank Gordon for his excellent book which I recently purchased and will be putting to good use next week with a 7 day visit to the Cairngorms booked. Will let you know how I got on when I return.
gordon hamlett
Well-known member
Sandra (Taylor)
Well-known member
Thanks for posting this report Adam. Thoroughly enjoyed reading it. We go to Speyside every year so know most of the places you mention. Just whet my appetite for our visit in October.
Sandra
Johnny1
Well-known member
Thanks for the plug Johnny, the cheque's in the postHave a great trip.
Gordon
Your welcome Gordon, credit given where credit is due.
Johnny1
Well-known member
Let me start by saying a week in the Cairngorms area is not long enough! a further 7 days would have done nicely. The snow which arrived on the second day messed our plans up a bit and we ended up having to abandon our Findhorn Valley trip, though it was weird seeing swallows flying around in the snow and willow warblers singing their heads off, however it was a lot easier to spot the black grouse in the snow, what wasn't so easy was searching for crossbills and crested tits in the forests as even when it wasn't snowing the snow was continually falling from the trees. We spent hours scouring the woods without seeing a single crossbill and only a brief view of a crested tit, It was during one of these searches that my wife spotted a female capercaillie perched high in conifers...how she spotted it I'll never know (see attached pic) We did visit the caper watch but their were no sightings for the whole week we were there.
Probably the hi-light of the week was our first visit to Lochindorb in the snow with wheatears, meadow pipits, redshanks, swallows and common sandpipers everywhere, on the loch itself were a pair of red throated divers, goosanders, grey lag geese and a very distant black throated diver and of course red grouse were everywhere.
On our second visit to Lochindorb at roughly the same time of day though the weather was better the loch was empty apart from the grey lag geese and on the moors the ever present red grouse and several curlew.
Only 2 buzzards were seen during the whole week, these were the only birds of prey seen all week apart from the ospreys. 4 lifers for me ptarmigan, black grouse, capercaillie and crested tit. Gordons book was invaluable and went with us everywhere, thanks again Gordon
Probably the hi-light of the week was our first visit to Lochindorb in the snow with wheatears, meadow pipits, redshanks, swallows and common sandpipers everywhere, on the loch itself were a pair of red throated divers, goosanders, grey lag geese and a very distant black throated diver and of course red grouse were everywhere.
On our second visit to Lochindorb at roughly the same time of day though the weather was better the loch was empty apart from the grey lag geese and on the moors the ever present red grouse and several curlew.
Only 2 buzzards were seen during the whole week, these were the only birds of prey seen all week apart from the ospreys. 4 lifers for me ptarmigan, black grouse, capercaillie and crested tit. Gordons book was invaluable and went with us everywhere, thanks again Gordon
