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Wild in Aberdeen - City and Shire (7 Viewers)

Ken Hall said:
Better news from Tarland. The log book has been recovered
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Well done Ken, glad to hear it.

Ken Hall said:
There was very little to see apart from the usual, but could I have heard a Grasshopper Warbler reeling? Or is it too late in the year for that? I don't think it was the insect grasshopper, went on too long, and maybe the grass and crops are too long for them? If it was a gropper, that'll be a first for the site.
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I heard that when I was there last week. It's not usually difficult to tell the difference but this one was not so straightforward. Eventually I decided it was just a grasshopper in the grass in front of the hide.

Andrew Whitehouse said:
I've heard Groppers occasionally in early August (unpaired birds I guess), so it's not too let for one yet.
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I think there is often a resumption of singing at this time, but possibly involving birds that have completed successful breeding.
 
Went down to Den of Maidencraig today and talked to an old couple who I also seen the last time I was there, they were very knowledgable about the site, they said they've came down everyday for years. They talked about Roe Deer and the ducks and the horrors of the site. They said they had once seen people throwing things at the Mallard family and other vandalism etc. The pond is really in a state with crisp bags, plastic food packaging and even a shoe. I've taken pictures which the rangers should be getting by e-mail soon ;) Anyway there were lots of Common Blue Damselfly, Peacock Butterfly, Painted Lady Butterfly, Red Admiral Butterfly and Small White Butterfly around today which were beautiful to see. Not much in the way of birds except for a Buzzard (?) which I got an in-flight photo from about 50ft away, the only thing is that the picture doesn't have detail it was so far away it has a silouette and you can just wake out the white underwing. There was also a cute little Mallard family - a very late brood which I got some excellent shots of that I'll upload later. There was also a ticking/popping sound all over the reserve which I think is an insect. No sign of the toads today but it was a bit dry. I also seen some kids that were very knowledgeable according to my evesdropping about wildlife but I later seen them sitting on top of the pond watching fence. :-C Also I seen some Honeybees - which I've never seen before. I got some good shots which I'll upload later but alas a complaint about the state of the pond has to be made. The rangers will probably have to wait until after the Mallard brood fledges though until they can clean the pond non-invasively.
 
TheSeagull said:
Went down to Den of Maidencraig today and talked to an old couple who I also seen the last time I was there, they were very knowledgable about the site, they said they've came down everyday for years. They talked about Roe Deer and the ducks and the horrors of the site. They said they had once seen people throwing things at the Mallard family and other vandalism etc. The pond is really in a state with crisp bags, plastic food packaging and even a shoe. I've taken pictures which the rangers should be getting by e-mail soon ;) Anyway there were lots of Common Blue Damselfly, Peacock Butterfly, Painted Lady Butterfly, Red Admiral Butterfly and Small White Butterfly around today which were beautiful to see. Not much in the way of birds except for a Buzzard (?) which I got an in-flight photo from about 50ft away, the only thing is that the picture doesn't have detail it was so far away it has a silouette and you can just wake out the white underwing. There was also a cute little Mallard family - a very late brood which I got some excellent shots of that I'll upload later. There was also a ticking/popping sound all over the reserve which I think is an insect. No sign of the toads today but it was a bit dry. I also seen some kids that were very knowledgeable according to my evesdropping about wildlife but I later seen them sitting on top of the pond watching fence. :-C Also I seen some Honeybees - which I've never seen before. I got some good shots which I'll upload later but alas a complaint about the state of the pond has to be made. The rangers will probably have to wait until after the Mallard brood fledges though until they can clean the pond non-invasively.
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Sadly there will always be a problem with litter and vandalism in such an accessible site. Have you seen the shopping trolleys in the Den Burn in the woods at the west end? Where is the nearest supermarket and who could be bothered wheeling them all that way just to roll them down a hill?

Anyway, its good news that the Mallard family is still there. I had been worried that the gulls might have had them for supper. But then I guess the gulls there are quite well fed already - carry outs, rubbish and all sorts of human discards. On the other hand, you found some caring and interested people at both ends of the age spectrum. We are not alone. o:D

I hope the rangers take notice of your complaints. If you want any back up, let me know. I just happen to have a folder in My Pictures called rubbish photos. Not that they are bad photos (I don't do bad photos o:) ) but they are pictures of rubbish I have found over time. One day I'll do something with them.

Sorry for the rant, but I'm still fuming at the vandalism at "my" hide at Tarland.

Have a brilliant day tomorrow. If you get to Strathbeg, be sure to look out for Margaret (green Ford Ka). Tell her I sent you!

All the best

Ken
 
Ken Hall said:
Sadly there will always be a problem with litter and vandalism in such an accessible site. Have you seen the shopping trolleys in the Den Burn in the woods at the west end? Where is the nearest supermarket and who could be bothered wheeling them all that way just to roll them down a hill?

Anyway, its good news that the Mallard family is still there. I had been worried that the gulls might have had them for supper. But then I guess the gulls there are quite well fed already - carry outs, rubbish and all sorts of human discards. On the other hand, you found some caring and interested people at both ends of the age spectrum. We are not alone. o:D

I hope the rangers take notice of your complaints. If you want any back up, let me know. I just happen to have a folder in My Pictures called rubbish photos. Not that they are bad photos (I don't do bad photos o:) ) but they are pictures of rubbish I have found over time. One day I'll do something with them.

Sorry for the rant, but I'm still fuming at the vandalism at "my" hide at Tarland.

Have a brilliant day tomorrow. If you get to Strathbeg, be sure to look out for Margaret (green Ford Ka). Tell her I sent you!

All the best

Ken
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Yes I have seen a shopping trolley, the nearest is around a mile away (either Westhill Tesco, Lang Stracht Lidl or Berryden Sainsbury's I think), totally pointless. I also seen a man walking his dog today with the poop bag full walking straight past the bin - it makes me wonder why the pond is so brown :-C
Looks like I'll be going on Saturday now since my parents are babysitting tomorrow so my mum says we'll fit it in with a visit to a friend in Newburgh which I've heard also has some good birds so fun all around B :)
 
TheSeagull said:
Oh and I seen either a Sandwich or Little Tern on Lang Stracht today, is this possible?
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By far the most likely tern over the city would be Common, which can quite often be seen flying inland to nesting sites along rivers. The other two would be quite unusual inland, but Sandwich is much commoner on the coast. What made you think it was Sandwich or Little? They're fairly different looking.
 
Newburgh is on the Ythan estuary, arguably the best birding place in Aberdeenshire for waders, gulls, terns, ducks and lots more. High tide on Saturday should be about 4 o'clock so try to get your birding there done before about 2 o'clock or after 6. Around high tide, a lot of the birds go off to roost. The best places for you might be at the end of Inch Road or at the beach. Your friend in Newburgh should be able to direct you.

About your tern on Lang Stracht: Sandwich or Little are the two least likely. Common Tern would be possible, as they nest on flat roofs at some of the Westhill industrial estates and travel to the sea to catch food for their young. Did you see the colour of its bill? Red, black or yellow?
 
Sandwich and Little are just the two closest illustrations in my field guide, basically it was a small with a typical gull/tern appearance except it's head and neck were black but intead of the head being totally black it stopped before the eye so it looked like a black waning gibbous moon.
 
TheSeagull said:
Sandwich and Little are just the two closest illustrations in my field guide, basically it was a small with a typical gull/tern appearance except it's head and neck were black but intead of the head being totally black it stopped before the eye so it looked like a black waning gibbous moon.
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Nice description! Common Terns can start to develop a pale forehead at this time of the year as they turn towards non-breeding plumage, so I think that's still a likely explanation.
 
That sounds like a Common Tern from your description, Calvin. Well done. ;)

I've just got news that I am going to visit my Grandad down in Suffolk in late September/October time. He happens to be very near Norfolk, which we all is a fantastic county for birds, especially at that time of year. I am pretty sure that we will spend quite a lot of the trip birding, which makes me feel rather excited. o:)

By the way, can I just ask if any of you are disappointed by the disappearance of Slain's Pool? I know it has been gone for a few years now, but wasn't it just fantastic?:king: My Dad and I once saw 70 Ruff and a Little Ringed Plover on there once, and it turned up quite a few rarities whilst in existence. I'm quite surprised that there hasn't been some sort of protest against the farmers who are draining it to let it come back into existence again, as it really was a great little pool...
 
Just thought I'd let you know that my Den of Maidencraig mammal is still unidentified:
"I have had a look at the rangers archive of mammal records for Den of Maidencraig and the only ones we have recorded over the last few years are deer, foxes and moles - obviously not what you spotted by the pond. I have had a look at the management plan too, which mentions the presence of wood mice, voles and shrews. There has not been a detailed mammal survey carried out so it may well be that there are other mammals present too.
You could have a look on North east of Scotland Biological Record Centre website ( www.nesbrec.org.uk). You can pick a point on the map and do a species search although this function is down today (I have just tried it ) hopefully it will be up and running again next week. This will give you species recording sent in by members of the public who may have spotted something we haven't. It is a good place to send you own records into too."
I think some of us should start doing surveys of these places instead of leaving it to the rangers, so far I have seen these at Den of Maidencraig:
Common Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Common Toad
Mallard
Teal
Willow Warbler
Grasshopper Warbler
Blue Tit
Carrion Crow
Red Kite
Sparrowhawk
Buzzard
Kestrel
Common Blue Damselfly
Peacock Butterfly
Small White Butterfly
Red Admiral Butterfly
Painted Lady Butterfly
Woodpigeon

and Unidentified Mammal of course.
 
copied from the RSPB web site: latest sightings (today) at Strathbeg. Sounds like a visit should be worthwhile.

"A Little Egret arrived yesterday and despite seeming to head out to sea in the afternoon, it has returned to the Visitor Centre pools this morning. There is also a typical spread of autumn passage waders, with the Pectoral Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Black-tailed Godwit, two Greenshank, four Ruff and several Dunlin amongst the hundreds of Lapwing, Golden Plover and Curlew. Wandering around in the background are half a dozen Pink-footed Geese and one Barnacle Goose, probably birds that did not migrate this year.

Some late breeding birds still have families, with a brood of seven very young Moorhen chicks seen this morning, whilst the Lesser Redpoll family have taken to their usual late-summer habit of perching on the wires in front of the Visitor Centre.

A juvenile Peregrine and a female Marsh Harrier (a wing-tagged juvenile was seen yesterday) have both been seen from the Visitor Centre today. The White-tailed Eagle was seen earlier in the week, with sightings on the 2nd and 3rd, whilst an Osprey was seen again on the 4th August."
 
Luckily I'm going on Sunday (I know I know, first Friday then Saturday now Sunday :smoke:) anybody know what non-bird species you can see there?
 
I'll have to check that out!
Anyway spent an hour wildlife watching at Den of Maidencraig where I seen the Mallard family, lots of Roe Deer playing, lots of little toads and a HUGE frog. :-O I also heard a Grey Heron but couldn't see it.
Just spent the past half hour roaming the streets with a camera looking for hedgehogs, in the end only seen one running into bushes never to be seen again :-C I was also getting some very suspicious looks from people :-O Strathbeg on Sunday, might go to Tarland tomorrow but I have a wedding to attend :smoke:
Oh and for anyone that might want to know apparently Scotstown Moor (another local nature reserve) has some Long-Eared Owls!
 
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I had a wander from Blackdog to Donmouth this afternoon. The scoter flock was all about half way down off of Murcar and in amongst it I found three Surf Scoters (sorry Joseph!). Two were adult drakes but the other was a 1st summer, with a white nape but no white on the forehead and a duller yellow bill. Several Velvet Scoters around too.
 

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