No, not the last choice on most peoples list, just perhaps my last. I have to say from the warmth of a libation it was enjoyable, I suggested to my son we do a munro and take his new dog, a cross between a poodle and a jack russell. he said good idea, today 19/5/12 was set as the day, weather to be good, the Munro was an easy one, well I should say easier, because leaving the track alongside Loch Turret at loch Uaine was a bit of a fuss, one the wee dog tried to leap over the …
May 20th by ThePath under Bird Watching, Miscellaneous
Tags: ben chonzie, loch turret, munro, Oreo, photos, walking
Dad suggested that we do an “easy munro” on Saturday (19-5-12) and take my wee 9 month old Jackadoodle pup Oreo. I agreed as I was keen for Oreo to achieve mountainous heights and test her resolve; being half poodle, a pup and a bit spoiled I did wonder if I would have to carry her at some points. I also want to climb Ben Nevis again later in the year with Oreo and thought it would be good training.
Well she made me proud despite chasing a lamb beside Loch Turret earlier and with the odd frustratated whimper Oreo fought …
May 16th by Ian under Bird Watching
14/5/12Â I was due to fly midday, so having captured a car I had time to explore part of the island, but the event of the morning happened right outside the Sella Ness camp. I heard a bird song that I did not recognise, but yet I did. Phrases of this bird song were familiar, I had put it down to a Wren, but I was not confident as I know a wren’s song intimately and this was very different. The song was coming from overgrown grass around a container on a sub-based area, the fact I could hear this …
Apr 23rd by Ian under Bird Watching
Was watching on station by 8.30 am, on the 22/4/12, female Osprey on eyrie, male nearby but not on sentinel position. Four clamouring Jays fly by making a grunting noise, not the usual “someone is being murdered in the woods” noise. Song thrush is the dominate singer, chiffchaffs and chaffinches the chorus, wrens the sopranos.
The pics are the male osprey at about 10.00 am, showing off his now revealed yellow ring on his right leg, while clasping a large (trout?), I could see the female on the nest cup making begging noises, while the male was nearby beginning at …
Picture of this years Male osprey clearly showing a ring on left leg and clutching a flatfish, taken on Osprey diary 2012, 1 but I thought the camera didn’t work as the batteries gave out during the shot. This week, Ospreys doing nought but being alert, I was there a few days ago and just as I pitched up the female rose off the eyrie and the male soon joined her. My first thought was human interference, and not me, but scanning around there was nobody. They both settled again and I spotted the culprit, a third Osprey flying low …
Aside Post
First Swallow, I got one while scoping in a hail storm on the 17th April, my daughter in Aberdeenshire got one the day before, mind you she lives within dung smelling distance from a farm.
I have been trying to see/ hear another since, but nothing.
Flew back from Shetland on the 10th at 12.15 pm and was watching a sitting tight Osprey by 4.30pm. No sign of a mate, but there must be as she/he would not be sitting tight. Scanned around the the other large trees for other osprey eyries but as ever none visible, will have to have the luck to see other ospreys landing with fish to locate what I feel sure must be there, other eyries.
Next day I was on station about 10.30 am and she was sitting and he was doing his sentinel from the highest tree nearby. Knowing …
Aside Post
While chopping logs in the garden, had a female sparrow hawk visit, without prey, and an hour later the first for this garden a tree creeper, on the peanut feeder, then to the Sorbus trees, as I was pointing a camera at it, then of course it flew. One of the most difficult birds to photograph in my opinion.
Dec 27th by neilgd under Bird Watching, Travels, my Friends travels
PART 2
I had not intended to wait a year as per Ian’s comment for Part 2, but somehow here we are a year on!!
We stayed for four days at Bird safari Camp in our en-suite tent along with a number of other travellers wanting to escape the Christmas hype and do some birding instead. The camp was everything that we had hoped for with wonderful friendly staff, fantastic food all overseen by the boss lady Binta.
Mornings were spent on early walks at 7am with our guide Lamin who was expertly knowledgeable on all of the birds by …
Dec 17th by neilgd under Bird Watching, Travels, my Friends travels
I have just returned from an eleven day birding trip in Ghana with Ashanti African Tours (www.ashantiafricantours.com). The eleven days were fully packed with birding and travelling the significant distances between the main birding sites. On arrival on Saturday night at Kotoka International Airport in Accra I was met by my two guides for the 11 days and transferred to our hotel at around 11pm. After checking in, the guides informed me that breakfast the next day was at 4.30am, leaving the hotel at 5am; this was the case for the remainder of the trip except for a …
Nov 10th by Ian under Bird Watching, Miscellaneous
On leave from the Shetlands, the mist at home lifted, the sun came out and I wheezed up Kinnoul hill in Perth. Heard long tailed tits with blues and greats, a pair of jays and a buzzard. Saw ravens, longtailed tits, jackdaws and a peregrine that obligingly went into a stoop over Barnshill and disappeared from my view. Meanwhile I was snapping with my panasonic DMC FZ7 and my Canon EOS 550 D, you can see the comparison above, the canon shots are on top and the brighter less real shots are the panasonics below. The canon camera to my …
Nov 5th by Ian under Bird Watching, Travels, my Friends travels
Tags: sullom voe, wintering merlins
I will post about the Shetlands project separately, I want to give you a flavour of the island from a brief respite of time off. On a Sunday I dropped the guys off and took the pool car for a drive in the reduced daylight we get up here. First I was obliged to watch a boring GP from India, kinda glad its going to Sky sports next year as I don’t subscribe, therefore the link of “must watch” will be broken.
Going from Sella Ness (home) I stopped at a community woodland walk by an old quarry before you …
Sep 6th by Ian under Bird Watching, Travels, my Friends travels
I am retyping this from the original which is a paper I helped compile for a years worth of birdwatching on Dubai’s creek. I was not alone and the observations are from a small but determined party of enthusiasts who got up early on a Friday (holy day) and often took to the mud to cover the whole creek. The period was 1981 to 1982 and I believe shortly after I left the area it was declared a national park, good vision from the Maktoums. I am doing this in response to a search of my site for Dubai birds, …
Adults Ospreys may have gone, did see two juvs on the eyrie, and later one on the eyrie branch, it was making begging calls, but eventually flew off. On scanning the reedbeds I did pick up an Osprey on the other side of the river, one from “my” nest ? who knows. It’s time we had bird rings that emitted bar codes that smart phones could pick up, now that would advance bird movement study.
No juv or adult harriers in evidence so could also be gone.
End of another nesting season, comes round so quickly! however the weather was …
Aug 7th by neilgd under Bird Watching
Tags: Fulmar, Herring Gull, Kittiwake, RSPB Fowlsheugh, Stonehaven
Last weekend I decided that I would pay a visit to the RSPB Fowlsheugh reserve on the east coast of Scotland near Stonehaven.  My aim was to see some auks and in particular some Puffins – it was late in the season and as such possibly too late.  Indeed it was too late and no auks were in evidence, however some great views of  Herring Gull, Fulmar and Kittiwake were had, including juveniles of all three species.  A great view of a Sedge Warbler was also had on the walk back to the carpark.…