Moray birding (1 Viewer)

[Henry B]

Blackcap

Got a female Blackcap in back garden to-day .

 

[DMKSlater]

Quite a few bits and bodsepoted in the area today:

Male and Female Blackcap in an Elgin Garden.
Waxwings at Findhorn and Kinloss.
Shovelor on Loch Oire.
11 Snow Bunting and 1 slavonian Grebe on Lossie Estuary.
45 Purple Sandpipers at Lossiemouth.

Dave

 

[DMKSlater]

Waxwings

15 Near the bird hide at Findhorn Bay. Check the perimiter fence and telephone wires in this area as birds were perching frequently on these today.

Dave

 

[Jimmycq]

Hello Dave, do you happen to know the code for the hide at Findhorn, I did e-mail the site on the door last time I was up but got no reply, I will be visiting my brother in Forres soon and was hoping to get in a bit of bird-watching. If you do know you could send by private message, thanks


Jim.

 

[DMKSlater]

Hi Jim sorry the delay in answering, think the code is 8019, but to tell the truth it is an appalling hide, best just standing to the side of it and scanning out over the bay ( the last time I went in there I thought I had found a dead body, turned out to be a junkie dossing in a sleeping bag!)

 

[Jimmycq]

Thanks Dave, I agree, seen better hides, the position is not that great either, last time I was up was the day after the Udale Bay hide opened, now that's a hide.

regards
Jim.

 

[DMKSlater]

Red head smew at Loch Spynie, Flock of Waxwings at Cummingston and male Madarin duck still at Cooper Pond Elgin.

 

[jpoyner]

Hi Jim sorry the delay in answering, think the code is 8019, but to tell the truth it is an appalling hide, best just standing to the side of it and scanning out over the bay ( the last time I went in there I thought I had found a dead body, turned out to be a junkie dossing in a sleeping bag!)

You can't even watch planes from it now since they've closed down Kinloss......

 

[DMKSlater]

Smew still at Loch Spynie. Long Tailed Ducks still showing very well in Burghead harbour, 3M 3F there today. 52 Bar Tailed Godwits at roost on sandy beach in front of car park "W" side of Burghead.

Dave

 

[Pitvar]

Smew still at Loch Spynie. Long Tailed Ducks still showing very well in Burghead harbour, 3M 3F there today. 52 Bar Tailed Godwits at roost on sandy beach in front of car park "W" side of Burghead.

Dave

Top tip I was given for the Long Tailed Ducks there is stay in your car! They certainly are used to the vans etc on the quay but disappeared very quickly when a minibus on a tour arrived and people walked around the harbour when I was there a few weeks back.

 

[jpoyner]

Top tip I was given for the Long Tailed Ducks there is stay in your car! They certainly are used to the vans etc on the quay but disappeared very quickly when a minibus on a tour arrived and people walked around the harbour when I was there a few weeks back.

Were they birders or just tourists?

 

[Pitvar]

Were they birders or just tourists?

Not sure but they had binoculars! Two minibuses together.

 

[DMKSlater]

Hi Pitvar, the Long Taileds are very very used to folk now! They actually are now waiting below the quay for food to be thrown to them by the local fishermen (if they have caught any small shrimps or the like the just toss them to sammy the seal, the gulls or now the LTD) The amount of people down visiting the Ducks is amazing and hopefully will increase the awareness of all the seabirds and mammals in the area. As a matter of interest whilst everyone was watching the LTD a male and female common scoter had sneaked in unnoticed and no-one batted an eyelid at these "boring" black ducks!!

 

[jpoyner]

Hi Pitvar, the Long Taileds are very very used to folk now! They actually are now waiting below the quay for food to be thrown to them by the local fishermen (if they have caught any small shrimps or the like the just toss them to sammy the seal, the gulls or now the LTD) The amount of people down visiting the Ducks is amazing and hopefully will increase the awareness of all the seabirds and mammals in the area. As a matter of interest whilst everyone was watching the LTD a male and female common scoter had sneaked in unnoticed and no-one batted an eyelid at these "boring" black ducks!!

I have to agree, there's always a lot of human activity on that quay with fishermen working on boats etc....the birds there get used to it.

 

[Pitvar]

Thanks both, good to hear - they are superb birds and I had a fantastic time watching them - they were too close from the car and when they were pushed put of the harbour by the big group they soon came back in again.

 

[DMKSlater]

Merlin on beach at Hopeman, Black Guillemot Burghead, Ringtail Hen Harrier Dava.
Dave

 

[Ian Hay]

How long do the Long Tailed Ducks stay, will they still be around in late march?

Thanks

Ian

 

[DMKSlater]

Hi Ian, they will be right at the end of the season, however if you can get some close ups the males will be going into breeding plumage. Down to one female in the harbour at Burghead now.

Also in area: Redhead smew still at Loch Spynie, Male Mandarin still in cooper park, elgin.

 

[tystie]

Adult Iceland Gull at loch Oire yesterday ,Mandarin still at Cooper park,2 Black Throated Divers and 1 Red Throated at Cullen beach today,also 7 Black Guillemots near Bowfiddle Rock

 

[warrior1966]

visit to highlands any help please

Hi i am going up to the highlands this weekend and looking for any help on the 2 above i have dipped on crested tits twice will they be on the feeders at loch garten? Also are there any skuasor white gulls around i will be going to the top but not onto any islands.Any help would be appriciated on any of these and other local specialities i am staying in inverness but am mobile thanks ps have posted this on a couple of forums so sorry if i overlap just in a bit of a rush for info thanks