On Sunday 18th I travelled northwest towards the Moray coast. My first stop was a little bit closer at Loch of Skene. Shortly before I left home, a report came in from Hugh Addlesee of three Ring-necked Ducks on the loch. I arrived at the eastern end and headed through the woods to the shore. I picked out the three ducks - a female and two males - almost immediately. They were a few hundred metres away but gave good views through the scope. It took longer to find the over-wintering redhead Smew but I eventually noticed it right on the far side of the loch. Two Red Kites and seven Sand Martins were also around.
I then continued north to Portsoy. At this time of the year, this stretch of coast is famous for White-billed Divers. I'd seen them a few times on the boat trips that used to run out of Buckie, but had never had a chance to look from the land. I started scanning out to sea from the harbour and one of the first birds I saw was a surprise: a female Marsh Harrier heading west over the water! The first diver was also a bit unexpected: a very nice Black-throated Diver, just starting to get some white spots on the upperparts. Eventually, I found a couple of White-billed Divers but they were fairly distant. One was mostly still in winter plumage but the other was starting to acquire summer dress. A Great Northern Diver, three Red-throated Divers, two Common Scoters, three Black Guillemots and 14 Long-tailed Ducks were also on the sea.
I carried on a short distance west to the gorgeous village of Sandend. From here, I soon picked out divers. First was a smashing summer plumage Great Northern Diver. Then I found another White-billed Diver, this one a bit closer in than the ones at Portsoy. The white bill can really stand out, even at a distance. Other birds included a Red-throated Diver and nine Long-tailed Ducks. Continuing on, I parked near Findlater Castle and looked out over the sea. There were more divers but I could only identify two Great Northern Divers and two Red-throated Divers. A Wheatear was in a field near the car park.
If you'll allow me, I then slipped over the border into Moray. First stop was Cullen, another lovely village. There were plenty of birds offshore, including another Black-throated Diver, a Velvet Scoter, 21 Long-tailed Ducks, a Red-throated Diver and a Great Northern Diver.
I spent a while at Lossiemouth. The river was busy with gulls and eventually a nice 2nd calendar-year Iceland Gull came in to bathe. It was spooked by a fishing Osprey, which soon found a fish. It or another came back later for more. A White Wagtail was along the river bank, two Bar-tailed Godwits on the mud and a Brent Goose flew west over the top of the dunes. 18 Long-tailed Ducks and two Red-throated Divers were offshore from the West Beach. 22 Sanderling were roosting by the beach.
On the way home, I was passing close by Loch Oire, so I pulled off the main road and stopped by this small, forest lined lake. This instantly produced my fourth Ring-necked Duck of the day, a male that was much closer than the birds at Loch of Skene.
I really like the Moray coast. A very beautiful area and the seas are full of birds.
So a new first for me.
