Luke and I went out to Maidens Harbour this morning, along the coast between Maybole and Turnberry. It was -1c but felt colder due to the stiff breeze constantly blowing into our faces.
Stopping the car near a small pond near Maidens we saw 2 Whooper Swans, with about 10 Tufted Duck. We first heard and then saw a flock of Curlew dart past us over the pond, I love the call of the Curlew. Back in the car we made our way to Maidens. On the way half a dozen Fieldfare were on the ground. Oystercatchers we in abundance on the grass areas aswell as the beach. Also there were groups of Dunlin and Redshank feeding in the sand. We arrived when the tide was fairly close, but soon noticed 
how it was on its way out as the birds got further away from us. Sightings of another two Curlew on the beach, along with Little Ringed Plovers. Out in the bay I saw my first Red-Breasted Merganser, a lovely looking bird, bobing up and down on the water. Two Shelduck flew in on the water, their bright red bills looked beautiful against the grey water. A lone Rock Pipit was exploring amongst the old fishing nets. It was getting too cold 
for comfort so we decided to call it a day. On the way home we saw a Buzzard perched on a pole, got good views as it took off, and swooped low over the snow covered field. Not too bad...26 species in 2 hours. Birdlist; Buzzard, Oystercatcher, Red-breasted Merganser,Dunlin, Little-ringed plover, Rock Pipit, Curlew, Rook, Jackdaw, Crow, Mute Swan, Whooper swan, Tufted duck, Black-headed gull, Fieldfare, Song thrush, Blackbird, Redshank, Robin, Wood pigeon, Colared dove, Pheasant, Shelduck, House sparrow, Tree sparrow, Chaffinch.
Welcome back, Mark! Great to read your blog, even if from far northern climes, and see your great photographs. Good luck to both you and Luke with the new birding and we hope that the whole family has well and trully settled in the Celtic north.
ReplyDeleteBob Wright and the Axaquia Bird Group