Stonefaction's 2010 list. (1 Viewer)

Ok, I'm new around here, so I'm kinda playing catch-up, but here goes anyway, I suppose.....

Got the year off to a half decent start with 58 birds on the 1st January

1. Black Headed Gull (from my window in Dundee)
2. Feral Pigeon (another out the window one....not sure if you're 'meant' to count these, but I do.
3. Cormorant (from the car crossing the Tay bridge into Fife)
4. Buzzard (quite a few of these around between the Tay Bridge and Guardbridge)
5. Pheasant (in fields by roadside en route to Guardbridge)
6. Carrion Crow (as above)
7. Reed Bunting (large mixed flock in roadside bushes near St Michaels)
8. Yellowhammer (in flock with the above...probably other birds in there too but these were the only ones that were instantly recognisable as we passed)
9. Rook (at St Michaels)
10. Song Thrush (while passing through Leuchars)
11. Common Gull (as above)
12. Starling (as above)
13. Red Legged Partridge (3 running along Main Street, Guardbridge)

At the Eden estuary centre, which was busy despite not being officially open...

14. Blackbird
15. Blue Tit
16. Chaffinch
17. Oystercatcher
18. Teal
19. Black Tailed Godwit
20. Linnet (on saltmarsh)
21. Curlew
22. Lapwing
23. Dunlin
24. Grey Heron
25. Herring Gull
26. Great Black Backed Gull
27. Mute Swan
28. Mallard
29. Goldeneye
30. Sparrowhawk
31. Tufted Duck
32. Robin
33. Dunnock
34. Magpie
35. Little Grebe
36. Great Tit
37. Redshank
38. Grey Plover
39. Greenfinch
40. Pink Footed Goose
41. Greylag
42. Goosander
43. Wigeon
44. Red Breasted Merganser

Onto St Andrews
45. House Sparrow (from the car)
46. Rock Pipit (by car park at cliffs at West Sands)
47. Purple Sandpiper (small flock sheltering on rocks, as above)
48. Eider
49. Long Tailed Duck (on Eden between West Sands and Leuchars, seen from dunes)
50. Stonechat (in dunes)
51. Meadow Pipit (as above)

Back into car, and onto Tayport

52. Kestrel (hunting over fields to north of St Michaels)
53. Grey Partridge (small group in field between St Michaels and Tayport)
54. Jackdaw (with Rooks in field)
55. Collared Dove (on lampost in Tayport)
56. Ringed Plover (on shore at Tayport - spotted by my girlfriend)
57. Shelduck
58. Woodpigeon (surprisingly hadn't seen any earlier at Guardbridge)

2nd January. Spent in the hide at Guardbridge, snow showers outside....not very nice day to be out. The first pic shows just how poor the visibility was at some points with the wind from the east coating the windows with snow (Eck looks a bit fed up). Added another 6 species....

59. Redwing (foraging in the dead leaves beside the centre)
60. Bar Tailed Godwit
61. Goldfinch
62. Pied Wagtail
63. Brambling
64. Shoveler

3rd January

A walk through Tentsmuir Forest and along the beach at Tayport to get a few of the commoner birds that we'd missed the previous couple of days. Managed to pick up a lifer for me too.....

65. Merlin
66. Sanderling
67. Woodcock (didn't see it till it took flight...lots of tracks in the snow....grabbed a photo of it's rear which confirmed the ID)
68. Snipe (Saw a few birds take flight as we walked along the beach, but not as noisily as Redshanks etc, so snapped a few photos, checking them confirmed Snipe)
69. Skylark (in field with Meadow Pipits)
70. Fieldfare (feeding along saltmarsh edges)
71. Mistle Thrush (as above)
72. Goldcrest (in trees in Forest)
73. Long Tailed Tit (mixed flock feeding in trees out near dunes at Tentsmuir Point with finches and tits)
74. Coal Tit (as above)
75. Jack Snipe (identified from photos.....birds were lifting before we were anywhere near them contrary to what the books suggested....so wasn't 100% of ID, although the shorter beak suggested we'd got lucky - my first ever Jack Snipe).

Not the best photos...light was fading fast. (Snipe first, Juvenille Snipe I think for second, and the Jack Snipe in the 3rd one)

4th January

A wee wander along Seaton Cliffs at Arbroath, and then onto the Lurgies at Montrose Basin, then onto a mostly frozen Forfar Loch produced a further 8 birds for the year list.

76. Golden Plover (1 feeding on the grass at Victoria Park, Arbroath)
77. Snow Bunting (sizable flock feeding in fields along the cliffs)
78. Turnstone (down on rocks at foot of cliffs)
79. Moorhen (at Lurgies)
80. Kingfisher (spotted first by girlfriend...I missed it, but got it on our way back to car)
81. Whooper Swan
82. Coot (at Forfar Loch)
83. Pochard (at Forfar Loch

5th January
Back to work but managed to see a small group of Waxwings

84. Waxwing

8th January
Another unusual sighting at work, half a dozen Bullfinches

85. Bullfinch

10th January

Out with the Angus and Dundee Bird Club hunting for waders throughout Angus. Another 8 for the year....

86. Scaup (at Montrose Basin)
87. Gadwall (at Montrose Basin)
88. Knot (at Carnoustie)
89. Greenshank (at Montrose Basin)
90. Dipper (at Craigmill Den)
91. Tree Sparrow (at Montrose Basin)
92. Corn Bunting (large flock in a tree on a farm between Arbroath and Montrose along with 1 Brambling).
93. Wren

3rd pic shows an Oystercatcher grabbing the wing of a Black Headed Gull at Arbroath beach. The gull didn't appear to do anything to provoke the attack either.

17th January

Another 5 to the list, including my second lifer of the year

94. Smew (the female at Linlithgow Loch)
95. Velvet Scoter (small group offshore at Longniddry Bents)
96. Slavonian Grebe (a couple of birds at same place as above)
97. Red Throated Diver (tipped off by another birder that it was around)
98. Shag (same area....we'd only stopped on the off chance that we might see something interesting - 4 new birds)

23rd January
Forfar Loch and Loch of Kinnordy

Forfar Loch usually produces a decent amount of birds no matter what time of year, but I think I got my best ever find (of my own) with the Black Throated Diver. Put the word out on the ADBC grapevine and a few others showed up to see it. It stuck around for a week or so. Got Scaup and Shoveler too.

99. Black Throated Diver
100. Siskin (on feeders at Loch of Kinnordy)

30th January

A trip through to Falkirk to meet up with a crowd of photographers from the website Flickr resulted in another 3 birds added.
A wee detour via Leuchars to see big metal birds (US Navy Hercules) resulted in a Peregrine flying across the road in front of the car. First time I've seen one at Leuchars (although seen plenty at Guardbridge just down the road).

Got Great Spotted Woodpecker at Falkirk (Callendar House grounds). Drew a blank with Jay.

Headed off to Slammanan area to try and get Taiga Bean Goose (another lifer for me). Missed the turn onto farm track and ended up at Slamannan. Just as we were coming down the hill, saw a small group of four geese flying over the fields going in the opposite direction to us. Wound down the window and grabbed a quick photo. Luckily enough, then photo showed the bright orange legs (although it was a bit blurred), and 4 birds were reported on Birdguides from a location in the direction of where these appeared to be heading. Got a flock of Fieldfares in a field near Fannyside Lochs too.

101. Peregrine
102. Great Spotted Woodpecker
103. Taiga Bean Goose

31st January

Crossbills had been reported on the 30th at Montreathmont Forest, so we took the opportunity to see if we could add them to our list. Parked the car, looked up, and got 2 of them. A lifer for my girlfriend, and half decent views for me for the first time.

104. Crossbill

6th February

Went looking for Fulmar at Redcastle, Lunan Bay. Got a couple in the fading light.

105. Fulmar

11th February
A day off work, so took a break from hunting for birds and went for a bit of landscape photography to Rannoch Moor. Still managed to pick up 3 new birds for the list.

106. Canada Goose (at Loch Earn)
107. Hooded Crow (at Loch Tulla)
108. Twite (a pair flying past at a frozen Lochan Na Achlaise)

12th February

Another day off work, so took a trip to Loch of Strathbeg to try to add a few raptors (Sea Eagle, Hen Harrier) and Bittern to the list. Drew a blank on them all, but did get a couple.

109. Barnacle Goose (in with Pinkies)
110. Treecreeper

13th February

Back to Forfar Loch. Picked up first Great Crested Grebe of the year, and got better views of Scaup.

111. Great Crested Grebe

14th February

A romantic walk in the countryside (ok, a couple of local country parks - Monikie and Crombie) with my girlfriend (and the Angus and Dundee Bird Club) produced a couple more...

112. Stock Dove (spotted at Monikie by Gus Guthrie)
113. Grey Wagtail (also at Monikie)

Also treated to the sight of a Goldcrest feeding on the ground.

Got word that the Kinnordy Bittern was showing well, so raced off to try and see it. Went to the wrong hide, but in the fading light caught the briefest of glimpses of a sizable bird flying into the reeds to the right of the swamp hide (an area the Bittern had been seen in before). Too brief to be 100% sure, so it's not going on the list....woulda been another lifer for me too.

20th February

Decided to try a wee walk up a local big hill to get Red Grouse. Got a couple of bonus birds too.

114. Red Grouse (two flying away from us on Auchterhouse Hill)
115. Raven (two seen flying off hill)
116. Lesser Redpoll (couple feeding in trees at foot of hill with Siskin, Goldfinch and Chaffinch).

21st February

A run round Fife in the car failed to produce many of the hoped for birds, (lots of unusual seaside birds at Kingsbarns - Robin, Dunnock, Wren, Goldfinch all feeding on the beach, as well as Linnet, Rock Pipit and Pied Wagtail) but a stop at Vane Farm finally wielded one of the Sea Eagles, as well as a drake Smew (my first), and a Canada Goose.
Onto St Andrews where we picked up a wee group of Common Scoter just offshore at the harbour.

117. White Tailed Eagle
118. Common Scoter

27th February

I can be quite indecisive, so a half-planned trip to Scone Palace for Hawfinch was postponed for something a bit more local. Ended up at Clatto Country Park, on the outskirts of Dundee. Blowing a rather chilly gale into our faces, but we got good views of Goosander and Goldeneye. On our way back around the reservoir we stopped to get a few photos of birds feeding by the side of the loch, and were rather surprised, and rather pleased, to spot a first winter Iceland Gull among the Black Headed and Common Gulls. My first 'proper' rarity spot.
Headed down to Camperdown Park and picked up a Jay feeding on the grass, and a large flock of Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush and Redwing. My girlfriend also got her first Treecreeper of the year (she'd been a wee bit far behind me at Strathbeg to see the one there, although she was just in the process of asking if we'd seen one in 2010 when I spotted that one).
Stopped off at Monifieth beach later and got Lesser Black Backed Gull (also reported at Clatto....not sure how I missed them there....distracted by the Iceland Gull, I suppose).

119. Iceland Gull
120 Jay
121. Lesser Black Backed Gull

28th February

Another 3 seen in Fife. Sat in the hide at Guardbridge with the tide as high as I'd ever seen it there didn't bode well, but picked up a pair of Pintail and also saw Gannets out off the estaury mouth (really easy to pick out even at that distance).
With a bit of light still remaining it was off to St Andrews to see if there was anything of interest around. Got a wee flock of Common Scoters then picked up a Guillemot just beyond them with my new scope (just bought that morning).

122. Gannet
123. Pintail
124. Guillemot

That brings things up to date.....just need to remember to keep this updated as the year progresses. Last year's total was 168 (my best ever....I don't drive so my average was usually around 130-ish), so I'm hoping to surpass that....here's hoping I'm well on course for that.

4th March

A day out in East Lothian. Gosford Estate delivered on Nuthatch, but no Red Necked Grebes offshore. Barns Ness Water Pipit was a no-show too. Found a male Blackcap in bushes at Aberlady though.

125. Nuthatch
126. Blackcap