Tag: Common Tern

Garden bird list and birds of Gardening Scotland

earlier today I posted a few pictures from the Isle of May trip http://www.wbist.com/archives/2899, but a friend on twitter @RoseCottageFife wrote a much more in depth and informative piece about here trip to the Isle of May here:Ā http://rosecottageeastneuk.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/the-jewel-of-forth-nature-lover-day.htmlĀ and thereā€™s the Isle of May Blog from 15th of May announcing they do have puffins:Ā http://isleofmaynnr.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/yes-we-do-have-puffins.htmlĀ ā€“ I would love to spend time out there as aĀ scientistĀ orĀ conservationist, only problem is I have no degree in either!!! Ā Silly me forĀ pursuingĀ computers and photographyā€¦ Maybe they need a professional photographer!? Ā Would love that, Iā€™ll bring my own food!

My bird list today, thereā€™s 2 lists as I went to Gardening Scotland and managed a few sightings there:

Garden list:

  1. Blackbird x 1 ā€“ singing very very early! My wife has started putting earplugs next to the bed so that when they start at 3.30am she can dull the sound a bit.
  2. Blue Tit x 2 ā€“ going into nest box
  3. Carrion crow x 4
  4. Coal Tit x 1
  5. Dunnock x 3
  6. Jackdaw x 2
  7. Magpie x 1
  8. Woodpigeon x 2

At Gardening Scotland:

  1. Moorhens
  2. Oystercatcher
  3. Rook
  4. Starlings
  5. Swallows ā€“ a few nests around the buildings there.

These are the photos to go with the Isle of May post from the 29th of May:Ā http://www.wbist.com/archives/2804Ā hope they give you a bit of an idea to what the trip was like:

 

Tern on Post

Guillemots

Puffins Isle of May

Razor Bill

Razor Bill Isle of May

Tern in flight

Female Eider on nest

Rock Pipit

Rock Pipit

Guillemot grooming

Razorbills

Puffins with the Bass Rock in background

Below are comments that got lost when the website went down.Ā 

2 responses to Photos from Isle of May, 29th of May 2013. Scotland UK.

  1. Wes Donze said on June 3, 2013

    excellent photos ā€“ very good selection

    • KiwiGav said on June 3, 2013

      Glad you liked them, I hope to get a few from last year up, I felt they were better, it was a brighter day and a lot more birds about, the storms and spills of whatever it was down south seem to have taken their toll on the birds up here.

Wildfowl & Wetland Trust London Wetland Centre Bird list for 22nd of May 2013.

I was hoping to have this list up a lot earlier today as itā€™s from 22nd of May however I was so busy doing theĀ http://www.saverscene.com.au/finance/Ā Ā (now closed as I move into gardening as a profession) updates for Australian best savings, credit cards and due to the fact many Aussies have to pay for bank accounts the best free bank account offers it took longer than expected as their saving interest rates are going the same way as the UK ones.

Now to birds thanks to the suggestion of Wes and the ease of getting to the WWT ā€“ Wildfowl & Wetland Trust in London Wetland Centre ā€“ see their twitter account here: Ā @WWTLondonĀ I managed my best bird list for the UK this year, sadly I didnā€™t have my camera and my legs didnā€™t hold out for a long time, it was still great getting 28 different species at the WWT London and finishing it off with a kestrel at Luton airport for the longest list of the year so far!

2 new birds were on my list for life, and they were both cracking views, there was a pair of reed warblers nesting almost directly outside the Observatory which gave amazing views, they came right up to the reeds in front of the windows. Ā The other new bird was the Little GreebĀ I had amazing views of it feeding in clear water under the bridge just before you get to the Wildside hide, Ā Fantastic to see!

The bird list for May 22nd from WWT London Wetland Centre:

  1. Feral Pigeon
  2. Reed Warbler
  3. Mallard Duck ā€“ with young
  4. Moorhen
  5. Coot ā€“ with chicks
  6. Woodpigeon
  7. Starlings
  8. Carrion Crow
  9. Jackdaw
  10. Egyptian Geese
  11. Mute Swans
  12. Cormorant
  13. Grey Heron
  14. Blackbird
  15. Pied Wagtail
  16. Common Tern ā€“ new for the year
  17. Tufted Duck
  18. Lapwing
  19. Swallows
  20. Magpie
  21. Robin
  22. Black-headed Gull
  23. Great Tit
  24. Little Grebe
  25. Canada GeeseĀ – new for the year
  26. House MartinĀ – new for the year
  27. SwiftĀ – new for the year
  28. Greylag Geese

1 more bird seen at Luton airport, hovering over the grass:

  1. Kestrel

Fantastic day of birding, canā€™t wait until I can walk for longer times and see more, I would often get 40 to 50 species at Musselburgh east of Edinburgh.

Whilst looking for bird sightings as Iā€™d thought Iā€™d seen something that Iā€™m used to up in Scotland but wasnā€™t sure, I came across this Open University site:Ā http://www.ispot.org.uk/Ā fantastic service and great for finding if a bird has been seen in the area!

 

Below are comments that got lost when the website went down.Ā 

2 responses to Wildfowl & Wetland Trust London Wetland Centre Bird list for 22nd of May 2013.

  1. Ā 

    Wes Donze said on May 24, 2013

    Excellent list ā€“ glad you managed to get there and have some good sightings including the 2 new ones for you

    • KiwiGav said on May 25, 2013

      Wes, I really appreciate the suggestion, was great, wish I could have made it to a few more of the areas, next time! Iā€™m sure my feet have to get better soon, looking at two more operations, hopefully after that Iā€™ll be out and seeing loads of birds.

      The ridiculous thing is Little Grebe is so easy to see around my area in Lothians, if you go to the right place, Iā€™ve just not been able to drive so havenā€™t got there yet. Going to try and get a lift from a fellow birder and watch them more intensely, the view through the water was great, but after that it was gone.

      sorry if Iā€™m rambling a bit just back from a wedding at Edinburgh Zoo, great fun!