Birding at Loch of Kinnordy (9 Viewers)

[kawwauser]

two familys of whoopers at kinnordy today,as soon as i got out my car i heard them calling,makes a change from the mallards squabbling sounds,they were at the swamp hide ,they flew over to the east hide for a while then returned,
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/whpf2.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/whpf.jpg

i have just got my good lense back from the canon repair centre and was moving between the three hides hoping for some birds in flight,i only had it a short time when i dropped it and didn,t get a chance to really try it out,
the whoopers were first to perform taken from the swamp hide

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl1.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl2.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl3.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl4.jpg

then two mutes

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl5.jpg

a distant cormorant

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl6.jpg

the little birds are a lot more difficult

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/fl7.jpg

all the usual birds were showing gadwall/shovelar/teal/tufted duck/mallard/robin/blue tit/great tit/cormorant/heron/blackbird/rook/common gull/wood pigeon/wren/pheasant/carion crow/chaffinch/moorhen/buzzard
ive not seen the woodpecker for a while and have yet to see goldcrest here,
the east hide was again the main area and the cormorant sitting on the perch had his mate with him,whoever anchored this perch must have done a good job as i imagine these birds would weigh quite a bit,

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/crmrt.jpg

a view from the east hide

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/view.jpg

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

I tend to find the goldcrest at three locations.

1 The bushes on the left, on the way to the swamp hide, just as you get on to the first boardwalk.

2 The fir trees at the entrance to the gullery hide boardwalk

3 In the trees/bushes at the edge of the reserve where the path devides to either kirrie or the lilly pond next to the second bridge.

They have also been seen alot recently in the trees next to the feeding station.

I usually hear the woodpecker/s before i see it/them. Quite often recently, two have been flying together. I saw one last weekend at the top of the fir trees next to the feeding station.

Nice photos of the whoopers.

Darell

 

[kawwauser]

cheers for the info on the goldcrest,ive seen two at the bottom of the sidlaws but there was a two year break between them

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

A very cold day again as i arrived at 7.30 and much colder than when i left Dundee.

It was really quiet when i got out of the car apart from the sound of a group of 25+ siskins flying around and a single greylag goose flying over head.

I had arrived early to do a count of the ducks etc.

From swamp hide....9 greylag geese,14 mallards, 2 teal, a moorhen and that was that. On to the gullery hide and in front of the hide was some water with no birds on!!! Over to the left hand corner were a few goldeneye and some wigeon along with a pair of mute swans with 3 cygnets.

All the action was at the east end where there were lots of teal, wigeon, tufties, goldeneye, goosander, mallard, moorhen and lots of mute swans...38 adults and 6 youngsters in all. Later on in the morning, they were joined by 9 whoopers...6adults and 3 youngsters. There were also 5 cormorants and 4 herons.

I filled up the feeders and took some more photos of a very meal worm hungry robin. A large hare, the size of a dog was seen running through the bushes next to the feeders as well.

At about 11.15, all the ducks went quiet and suddenly started to look in the same direction. Over on the far side at the east end we saw a pair of otters playing together. Ducks rose from the water as they swum by, but they werent interested in the ducks. We lost sight of them for a while until they appeared on the far side from the gullery hide and again disappeared. They appeared again a few moments later and we soon realised there were three. They disappeared not to be seen again.

Soon afterwards, i retired to the car for a few minutes to have a cup of tea. It was 2.5 degrees outside, so the tea was most welcome.

Back at the gullery hide, a pair of goosanders appeared not too far from the hide.

Delia arrived so we went off for a walk around the reserve. First call was the swamp hide with only a few mallard and a couple of goldeneye to be seen. A kestrel was also patrolling the area but disappeared to the other side of the reserve. Walking back towards the car park there weren't that many small birds to be seen. Blackbird, robin, wren, blue and great tits.
From the car park it was along to the feeders, where we caught sight of a red squirrel helping its self to seeds that had been dropped by the birds. In the trees to the left of the feeding station we saw our first goldcrest of the day. Chaffinches galore and coal tits were added to the list at the feeders.

From the east hide it was all the usual ducks and swans with goosander present in good numbers. From here it was off to the lilly pond. Delia wanted to see siskins and redwing, with treecreeper and bullfinch on mine for the walk. The first bird we found was a great spotted woodpecker and then a large flock of long tailed tits. Not far from the sleus bridge we spotted a treecreeper flying across the path just in front of us!!!! We could hear some kids up ahead and knew that the bird population for a few hundered yards was going to be decimated for a while....we were right. Apart from a dunnock at the second bridge and a jay flying into the woods near the lilly pond...nothing!!! On the way back we did see four buzzards. One flew over head and i did manage to get a photo....nearly fell backwards trying to take it tho.

The walk back was also very quiet with the only noticable addition to the list being bullfinches, just before we arrived back at the east hide. Well that was both birds off my "wanted for the day list". No siskins to be found and although i'm sure i heard redwing, we didnt see any. Delia thought i was just keeping her on her toes when i said i thought i could hear the redwing!!!!

Back at the feeding station the red squirrel was still hunting for snacks while the birds continued to empty the feeders as quickly as they could.

We waited for the starlings to come back to roost and at 4pm, on the dot, they started to return. It was slightly different to last week as they landed in the reeds after only forming small clouds. It was still worth staying to watch tho.

Another good day, even though it was cold. Even colder when looking at the snow on the far away hills through the scope and bins. I think the thermals could be coming out next week!!!!

Other birds seen were lapwing 50+, sparrowhawk, reed bunting, pheasant, lots of common gulls, fieldfare and pink feet although not as many as usual. I did hear water rail from both gullery and swamp but didnt see any.

pic 1 is of the siskins this morning...the ones you didn't see delia!!

pic 2 woodpecker

pic 3 red squirrel

pic 4 I promise you those are the otters...two on the left and one on the right.

pic 5 starlings again.

Darell:t:

 

[delia todd]

Nice photos there Darell - love the Starling one.

Here's my first attempt at digibinning:-O

Off back there shortly to er... pick up some LP

D

 

[delia todd]

The loch was iced over today!

In a field just outside the reserve were 2 Magpies... I've seen more in the area this year than the last 10.

D

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

Kinnordy is covered with snow at the moment, so be careful if you are thinking of venturing that way. I'm glad you got your stick back delia!!!!

Darell:t:

 

[delia todd]

Oh go on! Tell the world Darell:eek!:

There was no sign that it was going to snow at lunch time.... really strange as my higher loch was ice-free today, as was Lintrathen when I passed.

D

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

I was on duty this afternoon at kinnordy and it was very grey and overcast. There was also quite a strong breeze blowing through but it wasn't terribly cold.

Most of the leaves are off the trees now, so it is possible to see anything lurking in amongst the bushes.

As i walked from the car towards the gullery hide a couple were watching a pair of red squirrels, who had got the peanut feeder from its branch and onto the ground. They had got the top off and were helping themselves to the few nuts that were left.

From the hide it was the usual suspects that were there. It seems to be the same 40 or so speices that are here every week at the moment tho its always worth scanning the area for anything unusual. It was around this time last year that we had a red head smew which stayed for a few months.

Mallard, teal, goldeneye, goosander, wigeon, moorhen, gadwall, shoveler, heron, mute swans and 6 whoopers were present.

Along at the swamp end there were mallard, 3 goosander and 9 whoopers.

After filling up the feeders i went along to the east hide. Between the two i added 10 bullfinches, treecreeper, blue tit, great tit, coal tit, chaffinch, robin and wren to my list.

At the hide i only added a cormorant to the list although the mute swan count was 42 which included 6 cygnets.

I went off for a walk towards the bridges and saw 4 mistle thrushes a sparrowhawk, 13 siskin, blackbirds and goldcrest.

Hundereds of common gulls passed through the reserve around three o'clock and when i saw a group of 6 starlings flying around i thought the masses might start to join them earlier than usual, but it wasn't to be. A few moments later it really started to get alot darker so i called it a day. Although i'd only been there a couple of hours, there was still plenty to see.

No photos this week...too dull for decent ones.

 

[kawwauser]

i was at kinnordy last tuesday 13/11/07 my computers been playing up so i haven,t posted it,there was a cloud of smoke which looked like it was covering the west side of kinnordy and may have temperoraly moved the birds on,the trees between the car park and the swamp hide were deserted, the swamp hide had 2 male goldeneyes plus 1 female
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/ge.jpg
four mallards were swimming in the background,the gullery hide had 15 whoopers 2 mutes 2 wrens mallards and wigeon,siskins were in the trees to the right and i heard my only robin of the day here,the feeders were jumping ,female pheasant below,chaffinch,blue tit,great tit,coal tit all in good numbers,1 greenfinch,1 treecreeper and the great spotted woodpecker was trying to hide high up in the tree to the right of the feeders,the east hide was again the main area 3 cormorants 1 heron wigeon,teal,coot,mallard,2 male shovelars,1 goosander,1 greylag goose,whoopers,mutes,there was 2 ducks with the mallards which look like they be some sort of ornamental birds
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/dck.jpg
goldeneyes were landing in groups looking a bit like flying auks
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the mute cygnets were also trying their wings
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from the east hide to the lily ponds i had 3 buzzards,small group of reedbuntings,1 mistle thrush,1 jay 1 treecreeper,a flock of 30+ redwings flew over the lily ponds landed on some trees on the other side waited till i passed then headed for the bushes beside the lily pond,a red squirell climbed a tree on the path and i took a pic of it although it was in a very dark shaddow,on the original pic all you could see was total black i lightened it using cs2 and this came out
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/sql.jpg
im very impressed at what these computer programs can do,heading back to the east hide i had 3 male bullfiches plus one female,1 goldcrest:t:,plus the large flock of tits/chaffinches were on the move,near the car park the red squirel ran up a tree near the feeder,it climbed about 15 feet,came back down about 5 feet gave a few grunts then climbed to the top
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/sqg.jpg
leaving kinnordy heading on the meigle road i slowed down for what i thought was dog walkers ,as i passed i saw it was falconers,two had what looked like foreign hawks all brown birds, 1 looked like a very large goshawk,i didn,t want to disturb them but would be interested to know what species they were,anybody know ?

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

Saturday 24th November

I arrived at 1pm and it was windy and cold. The sun did come out for a while but it clouded over and rained a bit, then the sun came out again and that was the pattern of the weather while i was on the reserve. The water levels were very high again after all the rain this past week.

The squirrels were trying to knock the nut feeder down with no joy as i went towards the gullery hide. The seed feeder there, hasn't been put back up yet due to the fact that, as quickly as its filled and put up, the squirrels knock it down and help themselves. The peanut feeder is alot heavier and not quite so easily pushed along the branch and off. They have their own feeder along at the feeding station but still prefer the ones at the gullery hide. They are loveable rogues tho!!

Once in the hide, there were a group of 38 gadwall outside in the immediate area but were soon spooked by something and they flew off to the east end. There were four greylag geese on the bog bean along with numerous mallard.
wigeon, shoveler, tufties, goldeneye, moorhen, goosander, cormorant and mute swans were also present.

Along at the swamp end there were a few mallard, a couple of goldeneye and at the back, a group of 19 whoopers. The number of whoopers changes daily at the moment. Yesterday there were 2 and today 19, so none of them have decided to stay here for the winter, though many will do. I think we had about 100 wintering on the loch last year.

There weren't that many small birds around today. Blue, great and coal tits were out in force along with chaffinches. I saw a reed bunting, blackbird and bullfinches but little else. Not even a robin or wren.

Teal were nowhere to be seen today until they all took to the air in mid afternoon. Alot of them had been in amongst the bog bean in front of the gullery hide. Others came from all directions and suddenly there were 300+.
They were edgy all afternoon and continued to take to the air in large numbers for a reason i don't know. There had been a kestrel and sparrowhawk but i didn't see a peregrine or the otters.

There were shooting parties on the farmland opposite the reserve and i didn't see a single pheasant...keeping their heads down!!!!

A flock of 40+ lapwings also came over and disappeared as quickly as they had appeared.

Todays photos

1 Group of bullfinches next to the feeding station
2 Red Squirrel waiting patiently for me to leave the area so he could try his luck with the feeders again.
3 Teal taking to the air
4 Flypast of some greylags against the late afternoon sky
5 Alot of extra water on the way to the swamp hide

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

Sunday December 2nd

Today it was sunny but very,very cold. The frosted areas that were in the shade remained frosted over all day. The water in front of the gullery hide had a thin layer of ice which also remained all day. I was glad i had wrapped up warm and the flask of tea helped with the de-frosting of the body!!

I could hear the whoopers as soon as i got out of the car. In the book, inside the gullery hide, there had been over thirty yesterday so i was looking forward to seeing them all. In front of the gullery hide it was really quite quiet. A few teal over to the left with some mallard and goldeneye. The water levels were even higher than last week and it looked like the bog bean had been shaved. It was the water level, with not much bog bean above it. I could see lots of mute swans around with wigeon, gadwall and tufties over to the east.

I headed to the swamp end towards the racket the whoopers were making. Along the path i found a flock of 40+ long tailed tits high up in the trees and, in the trees next to the board walk there was a flock of 30+ siskins. From the hide, the whoopers were over on the far side and i counted 72, which was the most i had seen so far this winter. There were some teal, shoveler, mallard, goldeneye and a pair of male goosander. The sisikins were still in the same trees on my way back but had been joined by another 20 or so and making quite a noise themselves. Robin, wren, blackbird and woodpigeon joined the list along with blue,great and coal tits.

It was time to fill up the feeders, which attracted three red squirrels to the scene at both the gullery feeder and the feeding station further along the path. I also put some dried meal worms on the dead tree stumps along the path and they didnt seem to last very long. At the feeding station, the squirrels still seem to prefer the nuts in the bird feeder to the ones in their own. Chaffinches, dunnock and pheasant were also present underneath the feeders waiting for any scraps that might fall their way.

After a cup of lovely hot tea it was time to go for a walk towards the lilly pond etc. After the east hide there were again a large flock of long tailed tits with blue and great tits amongst them. As i approached the first of the bridges it was the hight of the water that surprised me. The right hand side of the stream was over the banking and heading for the fields. There wasn't very much birdlife around but it was lovely and sunny with lovely golden brown leaves on some of the bushes. The new bridge towards the lilly pond was completely white with frost and with the sun shinning brightly through the bushes, the whole area was really beautiful. A photograph wouldn't have done it justice so i didn't take any. On my return journey i found a group of 5 bullfinches between the two bridges. They weren't there minutes earlier when i had walked the opposite way, wondering if i was going to see any.

Back at the feeding station the squirrels were still busy helping themselves while the level of seed in the other feeder had fallen considerably.

A further cup of tea helped to warm me up again before i headed for the swamp end again to get some more photos of the whoopers. At around 2.45 i decided enough was enough so i headed for the heated seats in the car....bliss!!!!!!

This weeks photos

1 Siskin
2 Whoopers along at the swamp end
3 Female goosander in front of the gulley hide
4 Thin coating of ice in front of the gullery
5 Male teal along at swamp

Darell:t:

 

[delia todd]

I spent about an hour at Kinnordy yesterday afternoon.

Driving past the swamp end I counted 65 Whoopers, but there could well have been a few more hidden.

Otherwise much as Darell reported from Sunday. However, I popped out onto the board walk at the Gullery hide for a puff and a pure white bird flew over the top of me. Eh!? not the jizz of a gull? Then I could just see it hovering between the branches... shot back into the hide but couldn't get the scope far enough round but it was definitely a Kestrel.

The Starlings started to arrive about 3.20. First about 20, eventually joining up with more until there were about 500 before dropping into the reeds. After that several more groups came in, each forming flocks of about 100 before they too disappeared, so I suppose there were about 1000 birds in all.

D

 

[Dormouse]

Whoopers

I'm reliably informed that there were about 80 Whoopers at the reserve yesterday. They seem to hang around in the swamp lochan, and some have even been up on the area that was recently cut at the back of the swamp lochan. There were also a few greylags in with them yesterday, resting on the bog bean in front of the hide.

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

I arrived at 8.20 this morning, just as it was getting light enough to see what was around. Very windy, grey, raining, very cold...i think you get the picture.

I decided to start at the swamp end and couldn't hear the sound of whoopers...maybe they were still asleep. What i did hear though was the chattering of the starlings who were still in amongst the reed beds. I bet they were drawing the short straw to see who would be the first to test the cold winters air!!

As i neared the hide, i could start to hear the sound of whoopers and teal. There were 70+ whoopers on the far side and when something spooked them i was able to count heads 72. Out in the bog bean there were 127 teal, 40+ wigeon, mallard, a couple of shoveler,a goldeneye and a pair of mute swans with three cygnets. The teal became very restless and at that point 1000+ starlings took to the sky and off for breakfast at some field diner. Over head, a few skiens of pinkfeet passed over the reserve 400+ and a little while later a group of 5 greylags flew past the hide and along to the east side of the loch.

Siskins flew overhead on my way back to the gullery hide where it was the usual suspects out in front although a water rail flew from one side to the other to give us a change of bird. A large flock of long tailed tits also felw in front of the hide on their way to the bushes and trees to the right of the hide.

The birds were patiently waiting for the feeders to be replemished while a red squirrel waited at the gullery feeder for his share of peanuts.

The whoopers were starting to get restless and a group of 25 took to the air for some exercise before landing again infront of the gullery hide. For the next couple of hours a lot more came over from the swamp end in twos and threes and families.

Along at the east hide there were goosander, tufties, wigeon, 34 mute swans, the greylags, cormorants and herons. We took a stroll along to the plug area and saw afew moorhens along with another large flock of long tails...probably the same ones as earlier.

Just along from the east hide towards the plug area, there is a tree that is both sycamore and maple...aparently a cross between the two. It was pointed out to me a few weeks ago by a couple who had been asked to go and have a look at it to confirm its "type". When i saw it, it still had some sycamore pods on it, but higher up were the few remaining maple leaves. A good one to try and spot next spring/summer.

A very cold and drab day and i didnt stay to watch the starlings coming back from their ventures.

Darell:t:

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

I left work at mid-day and travelled back through Dundee in lovely sunshine. As i left Dundee, i couldn't see the sidlaw hills so i knew the weather wasn't going to be very nice on the other side of the hills. As it turned out, although it was a bit misty with blue sky trying to get through, it wasnt as cold as it had been recently so was really quite pleasant.

I went into the gullery hide, sat down, looked to see what was present and as i looked towards the east end, i saw what i thought was the wake of a goosander. I waited for it to come up for air and this body came up out of the water...an otter followed by another two. They were playing around and eventually moved westwards. Hannah came into the hide and we watched them for a good ten mins. They disappeared behind the reeds but came back out a few moments later and climbed up onto one of the dead branches that the cormorants usually sit on. It was fantastic to watch but too far away to get decent photos due to both the distance and the dull weather. This is the second time i've seen them recently so it looks like they will hang around. Hopefully they will head off in the spring before all the birds start to nest and produce eggs and youngsters. Who knows, but i'm sure part of this years success with the black headed gulls was partly due to the lack of disturbance from otters.

After that it was off to fill up the feeders. Coming out of the gullery hide i could hear and see the trees full of bird life. Bullfinches, siskin, chaffinch, long tail tits, robin, dunnock, blue and great tits and high up in one of the fir trees....gt spt woodpecker.

At the feeders, the birds were trying to get food from the feeders as i was putting them back on the branches. Coal, blue and great tits were there in large numbers and were joined by a flock of long tailed tits who flew high in the trees...20+. A pheasant waited for any scraps as did the chaffinches.
A group of 5 whoopers flew across and on to the loch as i filled the feeders and a robin waited very patientley for me to put some dried mealworms on his feeding log.

Along at the swamp end, a pair of cormorants sat on the perches while the bog bean and reed beds seemed to be alive as the sound of teal and mallards dabbling filled the air. Outside the hide, the long tailed tits had headed that way and were joined by a flock of siskins. Whoopers dominated the swamp end and i counted over 60 and there were still more at the gullery area. Moorhen and shoveler were also present.

Back at the gullery hide i saw a bird that had been absent for ages....a coot!!! Not rare i know, but they bred here in large numbers this year and then disappeared. Goldeneye, goosander, wigeon, heron, tufties,mute swans, common gulls, lesser black back, buzzard and a pair of greylags were also present with gadwall over at the east.

The reserve is open all the time, so if you want some exercise and fresh air over the festive period, then i can't think of a better place to go than kinnordy. Lots to see and if the water freezes over, the ducks etc usually congregate at the east end were there is usually a small area that hasn't frozen. I will be around some of the days as will Hannah.

I am hoping to get up to the reserve next weekend but if i don't because of christmas shopping....haven't started yet, i hope you all have a great christmas and new year.

Darell:t:

This weeks photos

1 Got this bluetit outside the gullery hide just as it was about to leave the scene.

2 This was my best attempt at the otter. You can see it on the branch if you look really carefully!!!! I know its an otter!!

3 Coal tit on the coconut shell outside the gullery hide

4 Long tailed tit outside the swamp hide

5 Robin waiting for meal worms

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

Amongst the whoopers is this adult which has a nasty wound on its chest. I noticed it last weekend and watched as the bird fed normally and didn't seem too bothered by it. Its' head is in a bit of a mess too.

Any ideas how it would have got an injury like this?

It was busy and paying alot of attention to the wound this afternoon.

 

[kawwauser]

i headed for kinnordy today ,the weather was very dull ,plenty of fieldfares on the way,arriving at kinnordy i noticed all the leaves have gone ,i haven,t been here for a few weeks but the last time i was there the birds still had some cover in the trees,here is a pic taken then of a reed bunting just east of the east hide watching one of the last remaining leaves
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d91/kawwauser/reedblf.jpg

the whoopers were very vocal as were the wigeon,all the water birds were standing about rather than feeding and i only saw two groups of ducks in flight(mallard/teal)two dunnocks were feeding beside the gullery hide and i counted three robins,one redwing landed in the tree beside the car park,visibillty was poor and i only took pics for id purposes, i was looking out for the injured whooper but couldnt see it,when i got home and checked the pics i found it,it was in a group at the east hide ,im thinking maybe a power line done the damage,hitting a power line head on would damage the forehead and underbelly,at least it survived,the usual small birds were present tits/chaffinch but in less numbers,a single jay was calling beside the east hide but i couldnt locate it untill a buzzard flew from the fir tree and the jay also flew ,it was sitting two trees from the hide

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

I will be at Kinnordy this sunday if anyone would like to go for a walk around 11am. I aim to go round to the lilly pond to see whats round there. Havent been that far for a few weeks.

Darell:t:

 

[kinnordyvolunteer]

Sunday 23rd December

It wasnt too cold when i left Dundee at around 8am. It wasnt til i got to the Forfar area that you could see that the frost had been really bad last night and when i got to kinnordy.....BALTIC!!!

I went into the gullery hide, openned a window to find the entire loch frozen solid apart from a patch of water along at the east end where all the ducks and swans had gathered together.

There had been reports earlier this week of a swan trapped in the ice next to the gullery hide. I have now put up notices in all three hides informing people of the number for the local SSPCA. Unfortunately there were three dead swans today. One along at the east end and two at the swamp end...one has obviously hit the wires.

The only bird in front of the gullery hide was a crow skating between the bog bean. Along at the swamp end there were 17 whoopers standing on the ice and the numbers rose steadily to about 36 before i departed. A young mute cygnet and a pair of goldeneye were the only other birds on the loch at that end. A water rail was spotted to the right of the hide while a wren made its self seen and heard over to the left on the bog bean.

At the east hide there was a flock of 40+ long tailed tits in the trees just outside, while on the loch there were 10 whoopers, 40+ mutes,8 greylags, teal, mallard, wigeon, goldeneye, common gulls and some crows. Going past the feeding station towards the car park i spotted two treecreepers next to the feeders, goldcrest and all the usual suspects waiting for food, so it was back to the car to get some seed and peanuts. As usual, the birds were on the feeders before i could get them back on to the branches. A flock of siskins were present in the trees next to the feeding station while a great spotted woodpecker flew westwards. I found him again at the top of the tallest fir tree at the gullery entrance. Also in the bushes were a pair of dunnocks, 4 bullfinches and a robin. Pheasants waited patiently at both feeding stations for any scraps going.

Back to the swamp hide for another look and added a black headed gull, moorhen and buzzard to the list. I also saw a sparrowhawk on the far side of the loch hunting over the hedgerows. Woodpigeon, heron, fieldfare, redwing, rook and jackdaw were also added.

From the gullery hide and looking east we saw a pair of male goosanders among the ducks along with an odd looking mallard type duck with a white chest front. Ive seen a pair of them here over the past few months. Standing on the ice was a great black backed gull and in the water next to it was a herring gull.

Mid morning, the sun did come out for a while and managed to raise the temp a little bit. The patch of water increased in size as some of the ice melted but it soon got colder again.

After a welcome cup of tea and some lunch it was off along the path to the lilly pond. It was really quiet with only kestrel and reed bunting being added to the list. We did see more siskin between the two bridges and bullfinches on the way back and that was that. I didnt wait to add starling to the days list....the warmth of the car was too inviting!!!!

Photos from today will follow...have lost my card reader but am sure to find it in that safe place soooooon!!!