RSPB Outing and More

Friday's RSPB Glasgow Group outing to Irvine Harbour and Garnock Floods proved to be really enjoyable with bright sky, almost no wind and NO rain - so a big thank you to Judith and Mike for being pro-active and changing the date!

At Irvine Harbour we spent time at the boating pond where we got excellent views of a range of gulls and wildfowl. We were a bit surprised that the most common duck was Wigeon .....

 

We then explored the nearby bushes and trees before making our way back to the harbour and eventually harbour/river mouth .....

 

 

We had lunch at the harbour/river mouth from where we spotted 2 Long-tailed Ducks, a few Common Scoter and 4 Razorbill. After lunch we headed off to the Garnock Floods, a new location for most people ....

 

 

The amount of surrounding litter and fly-tipping was disappointing but we added to our list which by now had reached c50 species.

 

On our way home we stopped off at Fairlie and Hunterston Lagoon and am pleased to say we saw the drake American Wigeon that had been reported over the past few weeks. 

 

Hunterston Lagoon - 13 March 2015

 

It was on the far side but I managed this really poor record shot - the cheek colour appears to have been distorted by the bright sunlight and extreme zoom ....

 

 

At the end of another excellent day, I logged 56 species onto the BTOs BirdTrack records system.

 

Other News

 

I have previously posted about the ringed Greenfinch we found dead in our garden. We have had a response and can advise that the bird (1st year, female) was ringed on 11-Nov-2012, nearby in Glasgow.

 

On a happier note, recent sightings from Greater Glasgow, courtesy of SOC Clyde Grapevine:

 

Saturday 14 March 2015
An adult Mediterranean Gull in full breeding plumage at the Balgray Reservoir gull roost.

 

Friday 13 March 2015
A pair of Stonechats at Cathkin Marsh, near East Kilbride; nearby, a single Tree Sparrow at Highflat Farm.

 

Thursday 12 March 2015
A male Brambling in a Mugdock village garden, also two Stock Doves.

Wednesday 11 March 2015
Six Tree Sparrows at West Millichen Farm.
A male and a female Blackcap continue to come to feeders in a Sween Avenue, Cathcart, Glasgow garden.

Tuesday 10 March 2015
An adult Mediterranean Gull on River Clyde opposite Glasgow Harbour.

Monday 9 March 2015
A single Barnacle Goose with about 900 Pink-footed Geese at West Millichen Farm.
A male Peregrine over Battlefield, Glasgow.