A Bit of Birding in Suffolk Part 1

After a very complicated visit to Birmingham last week, we had a few days in Suffolk before the looooong drive back to Scotland. Our plans were completely changed over Easter due to someone in the family testing positive for the dreaded 'Vid'. We already had 4 nights booked in Aldeburgh, so we hastily found a B&B for 2 extra nights.

On the way we popped into Ickworth NT and came across our first Egyptian Geese of the year, with goslings!

We found that we were near a reserve that we had visited in previous visit, this is the Suffolk Wildlife Trust's Hen Reed Beds reserve, we paid three visits over the two days. More Goslings, this time Greylag Goose,

Marsh Harrier over the Reeds,

and one of the many Twite that were about.

We also saw our first Swallows of the year here, collecting mud for their nest, as well as Cetti's Warblers, they just wouldn't stay still for a second, so no chance of a photo. Little Egrets put in a few appearances but liked to hide away from us or had reeds in front, so this is the best photo I could manage:

and finally a solitary Lawing:

Oh! I nearly forgot, we had a very very brief sighting of a Bittern as it flew over the reeds! In total just 24 species, but a great place to sit, chill and get sunburnt!

The Shetlands - Part 1

We have just come back from a fantastic week in The Shetlands. This was a guided wildlife tour with Shetland Wildlife (www.shetlandwildlife.co.uk) and our 'guest' guide David Lindo aka The Urban Birder.

I can't recommend the trip enough truly fantastic. We arrived mid afternoon and were picked up and driven the huge distance (5 minutes!) to our Hotel which happened to be at the end of one of the runways, so for a birder and aviation enthusiast, what a location!

We met the rest of our group (13 of us) at dinner. The fun started pretty much straight away and carried on for the rest of the trip a great group. The birding though started straight after dinner, with a short drive to a boat to take us over to the island of Mousa and close encounters with Storm Petrel. Once we alighted on the island we quickly got our first lifer of the trip with a brief fly by by an Arctic Skua. No bird photos for this trip even though it never really got dark It wasn't suitable for photographing our feathered friends.

It was a fantastic experience standing around a Bronze Age Brock at midnight as the Petrels came in to roost, the noise was brilliant and to watch them scramble into the holes in the wall was fantastic!

The Brock on Mousa

So in bed by 2:30am, after a long day (2 flights to get here!)
Next day saw as head out with The Urban Birder for a short birding walk, before loading up the van and and heading for Unst. We did start though by going to Sumburgh Head first and getting close to the Seabirds. We spent a couple of hours where the Puffins put on a good show:

There were plenty of other birds about, especially Fulmar:

Lots of Guillemot:

Gannets flying by:

Some Twite were 'playing' in the fields behind us:

And as we walked back to the minibus, this juvenile Wheatear posed for a while:

We the had lunch just watching all the bird activity before setting off to Unst and the two ferries that would take us there. At the first ferry at Toft I managed my first shot of an Arctic Skua as it flew over:

As we approached Unst, Hugh our 'Leader' said a Lesser Grey Shrike had been spotted around the Airstrip at Baltasound, coincidentally being where our Hotel was for the next 3 nights. so we stopped by on the way and had good views through the scopes, but a bit far for my lens particularly without my monopod (no room in the luggage!), this is the best I could do:

So I'll end part one here, more to follow.

Scotland Trip Part 3

So last full day and we headed of to the RSPB reserve at Loch Kinnordy, where by all accounts there is a Drake Smew present, so after about an hour drive we parked up and a local told us that the Smew was showing from the Swamp Hide, so along we went.

There was a lot of ice on the Loch in front of the hide so sadly all the birds were pretty distant, but the Smew was there along with Teal, Wigeon, Goosander, Goldeneye, Whooper & Mute Swans and of course Mallard, so just for the record:

We then wandered back popping in all the other hides but the Loch in front of those was completely frozen so there was nothing much to see. On leaving the last hide we had a Buzzard land and try to hide in the trees not to far away:

Then a Brambling showed quite well at the feeders:

So after a successful visit we set off to Montrose to visit the Reserver at Montrose Basin, we first stopped at the SWT Visitor Center (to make use of the facilities of course!) Here we had the usual small bird suspects, plus some Tree Sparrows, which are always a welcome sight. We then set off for the hides over the other side of the basin near Dun House. We drove through Montrose and were about to cross the River Esk, when Tina shouted "Waxwings!" so a quick U-turn was called for, luckily there were no parking restrictions and sitting on a TV aerial opposite were 13 Waxwings:

Brilliant! We stayed and watched them for a while and were about to leave when they started dropping down into the garden of the house and feeding, so out of the car and more photo's (I took quite a few, I will add them to the Gallery shortly), but just one more here:

So 2 Waxwing sightings in 2 days, totally unexpected and both in the least likely of places, but I'm cot complaining! So onwards. We parked up and then walked the 2k to the hide overlooking the estuary,which was the best choice as the tide was out and viewing from the other hide would be distant to say the least, , finding a flock of Twite on the way:

The first things to see were 6 Goldeneye, (1m & 5f),

then Redshank, Oystercatcher, BHG, GBBG, Mute Swan, Goosander, Little Grebe, and a Common Sandpiper, but then the stars of the show turned up, first a female Long Tail Duck appeared:

She didn't stay to long and flew off over the other side of the estuary, then moments later the Drake came into view:

A shame that the light was going at this point as these were the best Long Tail sightings we had ever had, he then flew off to join his mate, we watched them for ages in the distance where they were joined by another pair, so 4 LTDs, pretty good. So after refreshments and before it got dark we headed back via the coast path, where we found some Curlew, Shelduck, Pink Footed Geese and a Black-tailed Godwit, well pleased.
Then we trekked back to the car the only addition being some Roe Deer in the trees.

When driving back over Glenshee it was dark and the snow was coming down quite heavily, but the reward were Mountain Hares everywhere, it took us ages to get down to Braemar as we were constantly stopping to avoid Hares and watch the Red Deer that had come down from the mountains for the night, even though it was pitch black I manged to get a Hare in the headlights and take a very shaky photo:

So Saturday arrived and time to leave, we weren't coming straight back to the Black Country though, we were returning via Edinburgh, so we called in at Loch Leven (Vane Farm) RSPB just north of Edinburgh for a first visit.
The weather was terrible, drizzle and murk, and the reserve was pretty quiet and all the ducks etc were staying way out in the Loch, we tried all the hides, only one had any decent sightings. Goosander, Whoopers, Heron, Greylag:

We were entertained if that's the right way of putting it by 2 wardens rescuing a Sheep stuck in the bog, at one time we thought someone would have to go and rescue them as they kept sinking to their knees in the mud, but they managed it.

We popped back to the excellent Cafe at the Center for lunch and courtesy of the scopes up there, watched two Short Eared Owls hunting along one of the tree lines, so it was worth the visit just for that. (The lunch was pretty good too!)

So endeth the Scottish trip, bringing our year tally to 85 and 59 for the trip.