Here is the report of my adventures yesterday, copied from my Nature Diary in my website. Lots of good healthy exercise, but not too many birds. And I'll have to repeat it another three times - can't wait. :eek!:
5th November 2009. 2 TTVs.
It’s time again for another round of Timed Tetrad Visits (TTVs) for the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) Bird Atlas 2008-2011. The tetrads I have volunteered for this time are all in upper Deeside, and consist mainly of open heather moorland, some pine forest, and lots of burns and streams. Two of them are on Balmoral Estate, in the foothills of Lochnagar, and since I have to go through one to reach the other, I can cover both in one day.
My route started up a steep track, through rocky pine forest, before levelling out and crossing the moor. A few Blue and Coal Tits called in the forest, and a Blackbird sounded its alarm call. A couple of Crossbills flew over. Out on the moor, it was quiet. There was scarcely a breath of wind, and the mist hung low over the tops. Away to the west, I could see patches of fresh snow on the higher Cairngorms. A Carrion Crow barked his displeasure at my intrusion. After a bit of searching, I spotted him, perched on the skyline. Somewhere to my right, a couple of Buzzards were having a mewing match. Then a small flock of Meadow Pipits flew over, calling, before going to ground and vanishing in the heather. I crossed from my first tetrad to my second, all the time reaching further into the hills.
Away in the distance, I could see Gelder Shiel and Bothy, snug in their little stand of pines and larches. I watched through the binoculars as a Range Rover went slowly along the track towards the buildings. Nine Carrion Crows came out of the trees and drifted away across the hillside. The Range Rover came back and passed me. It is nearly half a century since I have been to Gelder Shiel, and arriving there certainly brought back memories. Memories of some scary winter climbs and times on Lochnagar came flooding back. If I’m honest, I don’t deserve to be here today to talk about it. The bothy is now in the care of the Mountain Bothy Association, and gone are the rough cobbled floor and the pony stalls. Now there are bunks, tables and chairs – almost comfortable. The Gelder Shiel itself was locked and shuttered as always of course, since it is one of the Royal Family’s picnic places. I did notice though that there are now solar panels on the roof. As I had my lunch, the crows returned from their trip across the moor and a couple of small birds flew over the trees. I had expected more there. Maybe come next spring there will be.
I retraced my steps for a few hundred metres, and turned off onto another track, before following a narrow path along the stream bank. I was half hoping for a Dipper, but there was no sign of one. A couple of Red Grouse shot out of the heather and flew away cackling. Surprisingly, they were the only ones I was to see all day. The path went past the ruins of two ancient houses. They were surrounded by flat grassy areas by the water’s edge, probably used as summer grazings in days gone by. Two crows sat in an old birch tree. One of them was a Hooded Crow, or at least a Carrion x Hooded hybrid. I couldn’t approach close enough to be absolutely sure. The path deteriorated, and then vanished in a bog. I pressed on, managing to stick my foot into a wet hole. Cold water, soaked up to my knee. Another flock of Meadow Pipits appeared and flew around calling, before landing. By now I was back in my first tetrad. I wanted to spend some more time in the forest, but a towering deer fence was in the way. So I followed along it until I came to an equally high gate. It was padlocked, the wooden bars slippery as soap, and covered in wire mesh. I climbed over carefully, out of consideration for both Her Majesty’s property, and my own safety. The woods were silent and apparently birdless. One more gate later, and I was back on the track by which I had set out, and heading back to the car and a welcome cup of tea.
On the way home, I came across two huge flocks of Fieldfares, totalling some 630 birds. One flock was in a grass field doing nothing very much, and the other was more scattered, raiding rowan trees, constantly on the move. I reported them as Roving Records and got the inevitable “unusually high count” message. Considering the impressive arrival and movement of winter thrushes in Deeside over the last couple of weeks, I don’t think the count was unusually high at all. Still, I suppose these things have to be highlighted, in case of errors.
