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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Birds fae Torry (2 Viewers)

No sign of Andrew down the ness today? Again, good passage of Little auks, with about 700 north between 9:00 and 12:00, Little gull and a Black throated diver. Other folk had SEO, Glaucous and Iceland gulls.

Purple sandpiper numbers were low......about 90.

Mark
 
Andrew Whitehouse; said:
I see you've found the bold function Dr G ;).

Today was a damp one here in Aberdeen, raining pretty heavily till about 2pm with not much wind. The undoubted highlight of the day was a large barrel, slowly but inexorably drifting along the Dee and out to sea. A really excellent record. There didn't seem to be too much else moving and the best bird from the flat during the rain was a Red-breasted Merganser on the harbour.

I had a barrel off the west coast today - was yours a nasty blue plastic one, or a proper wooden one?
 
I had a barrel off the west coast today - was yours a nasty blue plastic one, or a proper wooden one?

Mine looked like a metal one, I think. A bit of a dull grey brown. Possibly slightly rusty.

I spent most of Sunday on the train, so didn't get out for any seawatching. Likewise with today. But now I'm back for more.
 
On the edge of the Torry 'hood, I noticed a Pink Foot with the farmyard yokes on the Dee by the rowing club at the QE2 bridge. Never seen one on the deck in the City before - is it out of a lock up?.
 
Just in case folks have been concerned, I have done a bit of birding in Torry this week, although after the previous week's wacky zaniness it's all been rather pedestrian.

On Wednesday, a Peregrine flew over the city centre and a Snow Bunting flew north over the harbour. Another Snow Bunting did exactly the same thing today, and seemed to land somewhere near the North Pier. Purple Sandpipers have been feeding on the North Pier, with 5 yesterday and 28 today. On my morning's amble around the Ness, one Siskin flew inland and a pair of Stonechats were on the north shore. A Red-throated Diver was on the harbour with another going north. There was quite a strong northward passage of Gannets and, in a final fling, a Little Auk went south.

I've got some fancy new recording kit, so tried to do a bit of sound recording but was thwarted by the strong winds and peculiar reticence of almost every bird on the Ness to utter a sound. Even the Oystercatchers were being unusually coy. I haven't listened to see if I've anything worth sharing with you lucky people. I suspect it'll just be the sound of waves and wind, with the odd distant bird. I don't want Dr G thinking I'm no good at sound recording either.
 
I've got some fancy new recording kit, so tried to do a bit of sound recording but was thwarted by the strong winds and peculiar reticence of almost every bird on the Ness to utter a sound........ I don't want Dr G thinking I'm no good at sound recording either.

So what kit do you have?

Have been tempted myself to sound record as my daughter has dismissively cast aside her Sony MiniDisc player(meant to be good for recording birdsong/calls) in favour of an Ipod-read the Sound Approach to Birding and was simultaneouosly attracted and repelled from trying-did not realise that so much plastic/subsong existed but also realised that sound recording could be a really good way of tuning in to species. Yesterday kind of brought it home-was doing a tetrad for the birdatlas- a fairly quiet area of hill/moorland and then I latched on to a dipper singing for a couple of minutes-a lovely quiet plaintive song-would love to have recorded that. Can't decide if I should ask Santa for a mike or just concentrate at getting better at the basics....But again how many local species would I get get useful recordings from and is the effort worthwhile, especially on the coast with the wind etc?

And as for your pics they can be very good as per the Purp Sands in the gallery-but I guess your recent less good examples can be explained ny the fact that you have just got a bit distracted by the sin of listing(all be it local) and by local rarity hunting and that your usual good standard of photography has slipped a tad in you excitement of the chase.....

But I realise as being the exemplary custodian of all good birding standards all will right itself in time;)
 
What I was trying to use today, and I think it's a good set up, is a Fostex FR2 LE recorder with a Sennheiser ME66 mic. I did some better recordings a couple of days ago, when it was a bit less windy and it gives a good clean recording. I've got some other mics, including a Telinga but I need to get an adapter to attach them to the recorder!

I'd recommend getting a Remembird recorder, which records fairly well and is easy to use. It's also got a voice recorder on it as well. You may have noticed the one stuck onto my bins!

The Telinga Pro4 is maybe also worth a look - it's the one I got. It's £389 from Wildsounds and would fit into a minidisc recorder. I'll let you know what it's like once I sort out the adapter!
 
Have been tempted myself to sound record as my daughter has dismissively cast aside her Sony MiniDisc player(meant to be good for recording birdsong/calls) in favour of an Ipod-read the Sound Approach to Birding and was simultaneouosly attracted and repelled from trying-did not realise that so much plastic/subsong existed but also realised that sound recording could be a really good way of tuning in to species.

I think you've already seen this excellent thread Mark ;):

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=66742

My interest in recording stemmed specifically from trying to identify crossbills from sonograms on a budget, rather than getting great quality recordings, but I have been pleased with the quality of recordings you can get with the Sony MiniDisc. My kit cost little more than £100 too, unlike Andrew's £700+ ;)
 
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I think you've already seen this excellent thread Mark ;):

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=66742

My interest in recording stemmed specifically from trying to identify crossbills from sonograms on a budget, rather than getting great quality recordings, but I have been pleased with the quality of recordings you can get with the Sony MiniDisc. My kit cost little more than £100 too, unlike Andrew's £700+ ;)

Life is hard when you're not on a cushy research grant like Dr W. ;)
 
Life is hard when you're not on a cushy research grant like Dr W. ;)

But you should see how hard I have to work ;). And it's all for the benefit of the greater society, obviously.

I had a quick shufty round the Ness this afternoon. The highlight was a drake Red-breasted Merganser on the harbour. Also 3 Red-throated Divers. Lots of gulls came into roost on the breakwaters and around the harbour but they were distinctly lacking in anything enticingly white-winged.

The weather looks like being quite 'useful' over the next few days. In fact it's exactly the sort of weather we were hoping to get all autumn. A bit late maybe, but it'll be interesting to see what we get.
 
It was a bit of a rough day here yesterday, and I probably should have gone out and looked for late wind blown migrants. But I stayed indoors instead. I did manage a good house tick though, a Merlin flying over the roof tops in the city centre. Out to sea there was a steady stream of Gannets and also 1 Common Scoter, 2 Velvet Scoters and a Red-throated Diver north.
 
After things had gone a bit quiet for a week or two, Girdle Ness was back to being good today. I had a bit of a look from the flat this morning but the only moment of excitement was a surprise Calmac ferry leaving the harbour. Then I received a text saying the Hugh Addlesee had a female King Eider off the Lighthouse so I understandably headed down that way.

The Queen was soon located in amongst the small flock of Eiders. I got to see it in flight a couple of times and it eventually came closer in. In flight I was quite struck, as were others, by the contrastingly white axillaries. Queen Eiders aren't quite as spectacular as Kings but they are rather lovely all the same. I hope that:
a) This one sticks around all winter
b) She comes into the harbour and gets on my house list
c) She pulls
I took a few pictures but haven't had a look at how good they are yet. Some of you, I suspect, will have already formed your own opinions.
After a while it was soon apparent that floods of Little Auks were heading through, mostly a fair way out. After less than an hour counting I got to about 475 north. Also there was 1 drake Goldeneye north. I was rather startled by a small passerine landing almost at the feet of my tripod at one point, and was even more surprised to see it was a female Black Redstart. It dashed off onto the rocks and soon disappeared around the corner.

On the way back I counted 142 Purple Sandpipers on Greyhope Bay, so no change to the Totaliser.
 
Queen Eider

I took a few pictures but haven't had a look at how good they are yet-my breath is baited and await pin sharp pics of the axillaries;)

On the way back I counted 142 Purple Sandpipers on Greyhope Bay, so no change to the Totaliser.

Totaliser- wot's that? Can you explain? ;)

And after all the recent Aberdeen one day wonders hope this bird has the decency to stick around for a while for the general good. But then maybe all the fleeting recent local sightings are all just divine intervention for all you dedicated local patchers and a lesson to the fiendish twitching hoards.....
 
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How's this for pin-sharp axillaries? Not bad eh. I'd normally claim that most of my pictures are 'record shots' but that won't be necessary with these. Works. Of. Art.

And the Queen Eider is now officially a two-day wonder. After getting back from Glasgow for a gig that got cancelled at short notice because the artist was 'unexpetedly ill' (and no it wasn't Amy Winehouse), I managed to get out to the Lighthouse at dusk for some more views today. So Part A of the three-point Queen Eider plan detailed above is in progress. But she still seems to be content with a 'little bit of the other' with drake Common Eiders at present, so no King Pin wooed into town as yet.

Not much else today except a drake Red-breasted Merganser on the harbour and a female north off the Lighthouse. I forgot to say that yesterday I saw a rather dark looking argentatus type Herring Gull on the pier. Also a couple of male Stonechats hopping about on the golf course like pipits. It's been a bit bracing these past few days (see picture 5). Proper winter weather.
 

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Hi, Andrew,

My spies tell me that your Calmac ferry was Hebridean Isles, in Aberdeen for her annual overhaul since 11th November. She was en route back to Port Ellen, Islay, and then to Kennacraig to resume her normal Kennacraig - Port Ellen/Port Askaig service.
Well done with the Queen Eider - be nice if she trolls in a mate.
Best wishes
Dave Kennedy
 
Hi, Andrew,

My spies tell me that your Calmac ferry was Hebridean Isles, in Aberdeen for her annual overhaul since 11th November. She was en route back to Port Ellen, Islay, and then to Kennacraig to resume her normal Kennacraig - Port Ellen/Port Askaig service.
Well done with the Queen Eider - be nice if she trolls in a mate.
Best wishes
Dave Kennedy

I should have recognised it, having been on that boat to Islay myself!
 

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