Sheer Delight for Shearwaters: Bird Report for Late August

First off I have to apologize for the lack of blog posts these past couple weeks. I have been going through some exciting developments in my own life, and so have spent the past week down in England sorting out some personal things. Not that I wasn't doing birdwatching whilst I was down there (they certainly have more Egyptian geese than us!), but it has made me unable to write the weekly blog reports. The timing couldn't have been worse, as now that summer has officially come to a close the Wig has been busier than ever. We've seen hundreds of birds descend upon Loch Ryan, including several wintering species that we haven't seen for months, and no less than three brand new species to the blog! To make up for my absence this article will be nice and long, after all there is so much to cover!

I suppose the first thing to address is the huge influx of birds on the loch. Whilst many of these are species that we see year-round, now is when they are at their busiest - whether they are gathering before migrating or have travelled here from distant breeding grounds. Eider numbers are once again picking up with flocks of hundreds being seen on several occasions. Red-breasted Mergansers have seen a similar increase, as our regular flock of 40 or so has doubled to over 90 birds last week! Moving over to seabirds and we hit a peak count of 119 Black Guillemots, the most we've had this year. Last week we also saw a huge increase in the number of Razorbills on the loch. Our previous counts of small groups of under 10 birds suddenly shot up to almost 400 in a single day, and since then their numbers have remained high. The last species to experience this autumn influx are our Shags. Normally we have pretty solid numbers and can have 20 or 30 sunning themselves out on the Scar or at the pier at Cairnryan. This past week though their numbers shot up to 141 on consecutive days, many of which were all in a singular large group over on the pier. 

A Razorbill cruises across the waves

Another sign of summer's end is the arrival of many species that winter at Loch Ryan. One of our most notable species in the Red-throated Diver, and whilst their numbers are not yet at their winter peak, we have started to see more and more on a regular basis. Perhaps more surprising is the presence of Black-throated Divers out on the loch. Whilst not uncommon during the winter, we normally only see a couple of them when the season fully sets in. So far we've already had 3 birds recorded over the past few weeks, perhaps a sign of even more to come! Finally, whilst we've had no Great-northern Divers or Slavonian Grebes (winter staples) we have had records of Red-necked Grebes. Normally a rare visitor, we certainly have had a lot this year so things must be going well for them somewhere. During winter we see a lot of ducks sheltering on the loch. Whilst many of these have yet to arrive, we have been seeing Common Scoter on a more frequent basis. These have only been small flocks of 10-20 birds, but hopefully as Autumn progresses we will see these numbers rise until there are flocks of hundreds of them out on the water. 

Whilst seabirds like Razorbills are to be expected (they breed out on Ailsa Craig), we also had some surprise visitors that were blown in my the stormy weather a few weeks ago. Normally found further up the coast, a pair of Kittiwakes ventured into the loch, perhaps seeking a little shelter. They are irregular, but certainly not something we haven't seen before. 96 Manx Shearwaters on the other hand was a very unique record. We have had a couple blown into the loch in the past, however a group of 96 was definitely a first. Speaking of firsts, the strong westerlies not only brought in these birds but two brand new species for the blog as well! Sticking with Shearwaters, a Balearic Shearwater was also blown in at the same time as the Manxies.  Ever so slightly larger than the Manx Shearwater, these birds are seen annually around the UK, however as seagoing birds, it is unusual to see them on a sea-loch. It must have been quite a wind blowing because there was one last surprise in store of us that morning. Not only a new species for the blog but the first record for Loch Ryan as well (as far as we know), a Cory's Shearwater completed the Shearwater trio. Distinctly bigger than both the Manx and Balearic Shearwater it is a rare bird around the coasts of Britain. Spending all their lives at sea (apart from breeding), we presume that it was a strong westerly wind that blew it into the loch. Realizing this was a dead-end all the shearwaters swiftly departed. Nonetheless it was a very exciting record and an exceptional mornings birdwatching.  

Last of our seabirds are the gulls, of which we get plenty all year round. Herring Gulls we see on pretty much a day by day basis, but we've been seeing some huge flocks of them recently, peaking at over 400 birds on the Scar at one time. Meanwhile up in our garden, we had the surprise visit of a Lesser-black backed gull. Finally, we wrapped it up with yet another Mediterranean Gull. We've had a couple these past few weeks, and this autumn migration is the best time of the year to see them. 

This Sparrowhawk is on the lookout for something - probably food!

Our garden has been host to all sorts of exciting birds and mammals in the past, but these past few weeks its really turned up a notch. In particular, the numerous House Sparrows and Starlings seemed to have attracted some birds of prey into the garden. It began with a juvenile male Sparrowhawk, who was posing for pictures high up in a tree as it scanned for prey. It must have liked what it saw since it stuck around for quite a while, and even returned the next day. It has some competition now though, as we also had a Barn Owl pass by over the garden. We used to see a lot of these birds in our local area, but in the past few years they have been very scarce. Not only was this a really nice record, it was great to see it from the comfort of home as well. 

Moving back to the Wig, and the shore is bursting with all sorts of waders. With so many species stopping by on their passage, we get different species on a day to day basis. Species like Oystercatcher, Curlew and Ringed Plover can be seen regularly, but over the past weeks, we've seen Ruff, Sanderlings, Dunlins and Redshanks. The list doesn't stop there, we've also had Whimbrels, Black-tailed Godwits, Golden Plovers and even Lapwings down on the shore. This is a great time to get down and practise your wader identification, especially since many of them are transitioning between breeding and winter plumages. 

We're approaching the time of year in which its not only waders and gulls which grace the Scar, but geese as well! Many different flocks of geese stop by at the Wig on their annual passage, and many more roost up at Loch Connell. Already we've seen a steady increase in our Canada and Greylag Geese numbers, with over 100 and 300 birds respectively. It was only very recently that we had our first Pale-bellied Brent Goose. Now up to four birds, we often see small flocks pass us by, and maybe once again a group will winter with us here on the Wig. 

A Meadow Pipit, or Mipits as we affectionately call them

I've already covered so much, but somehow we found yet another new species for the blog that I just have to talk about. Meadow Pipits are scarce visitors to the Wig, despite many birds being UK based all year round. We get a few more at this time of year as more come south for winter, resulting in a mighty 13 recorded last week. Alongside them was our 3rd new species of the week, a pair of Tree Pipits! A very unusual species for us, we saw these birds whilst they were on their typical migration to Africa or southern Asia. Whilst not an irregular record for the UK, they normally don't stray this far west on their migration. Or perhaps they do and we just miss them, as they can be hard to spot and travel in small numbers. Either way it was another great record for the week which we were very happy to see. 

I could keep going on with the many more species which we've seen, but given that this article is twice the average length, perhaps I will save those for another week. As you can see, late August has been such a bountiful time for birds, and this will continue into much of September. We expect to see even more species arriving for winter, so be sure to get out and see some of them for yourselves.

[All photographs were taken by and belong to Stephen Grover, please ask for permission if you wish to use them.]

An Early Autumn Abundance: Bird Report for 03/08/20 - 09/08/20

Summer may be coming to an end but we're still getting some excellent weather, and some great birds to go along with it. We've seen a lot of birds over these past few weeks, but amazingly we are set to get even more as Autumn and Winter approach. Many of our wintering birds have started to arrive already, whilst many summer species are just preparing to leave. With so many birds around, there is always something exciting to see, and we expect to only get more as Autumn rolls around. 

This week I thought we should start with some smaller birds, after all, they're often overlooked in favour of larger, easily recognizable birds. I myself have the bad habitat of lumping them all together into "small brown jobs" that will go unidentified unless they helpfully land nearby. We start off with Linnets, of which we saw small (14-22) flocks throughout the week. A bird we haven't seen in a while is the Rock Pipit. They breed locally, however since they prefer rock cavities for nests, they are often further up on the coast.  Another such returning species is the Wheatear. Normally they are returning from breeding grounds in Greenland, however the few birds we saw were British birds. They will all be making their way to Africa soon enough, and we expect to see more of them in the coming days.  To make way for these species we have to see some leave, and fortunately, we were able to get a glimpse of a Reed Bunting before it moves to a warmer habitat. 

Rock Pipits can be quite hard to spot when they remain still

Scaling up a bit, and this week has been good for ducks. Eiders are a staple on the loch, and once again they have been gathering in their hundreds. Another wintering species is the Red-breasted Merganser, which normally breeds in freshwater lakes before redistributing across the Uk. Winter will see many more ducks arriving on our waters, and so in the coming weeks we'll keep our eyes peeled for Common Scoter, Goldeneye, and Long-tailed Ducks. Up at Loch Connell there has been a good variety as well, alongside regular Mallards and Teal, our first Tufted Duck has made its way back to the Loch.

Back at the Wig, and we're beginning to see more of the seabirds leaving their nesting site on Ailsa Craig. Last week we had a Guillemot, and now we've supplemented that with a pair of Razorbills. Whilst still seabirds, Black Guillemots are not unusual to see around the Wig, and this week we recorded 12 on a single day. Finally, Gannets are still fishing in the Loch in good numbers, with a max count of 69 birds on Wednesday. 

Waders are a constant around the Wig, and it seems that we get many different species on a day by day basis. Curlews remain here all year round, however many also migrate and so that may explain our recent boost in records, with regular sightings of over 40 birds in a day. Alas, our Whimbrels seem to have completely left us now for the warmer shores of Africa, but at least you don't have to worry about muddling them up with Curlews any more! We've also seen good numbers of Ringed Plover and Turnstone this week, with maximum flock sizes of 60 and 19 respectively. Finally, back up Loch Connell we've seen a surge in Lapwing numbers, with a mighty 17 birds recorded this past weekend. 

As always there are some stand out species that are particularly interesting, or irregular and so always exciting to see. Swifts have been very scarce around the Wig this year, but not so over in Stranraer. This week we had a record of 24 Swifts above the hospital, an impressive count indeed. Back on the Wig we had a female Sparrowhawk, and then later in the week a juvenile Mediterranean Gull.  

Catching a hedgehog in your garden is such a delight

Recently we added Hedgehog to our garden list, and this week we've expanded it further with yet another mammal. On quite a few evenings we've seen the rapid movement and distinct fluttering forms of bats. Thanks to our handy Bat-detector which measures the frequency of their sonar calls, we were able to identify them as Pipistrelles. There are many bats that roost in different locations around the village, but we don't often see them over our garden, and so to record 5 was a lovely surprise. 

That about wraps it up for this week. As always this was just a selection of the many things we saw, and going into the coming weeks I am sure that we will see plenty more exciting birds as well.

[All photographs were taken by and belong to Stephen Grover, please ask for permission if you wish to use them.]

Flying High: Bird Report for 27/07/20 - 02/08/20

Another month has sped by, and with it, the summer days are starting to dwindle. Whilst this will mean more cold and wet days for us, for the birds this is a very exciting time, as they undergo their autumn migration back to their wintering grounds. Many species will winter here in the UK, and even those that are heading for warmer lands in the south will pass through us, so there's the possibility of a lot of exciting records. We didn't have to wait long for something to turn up, as this week we had a bunch of rarities, including two new species for the blog!

Before we get to those, I thought we should have a look at what we've been seeing in our garden this week. We can get a great variety of species, it all depends on the weather (and whether we remember to put some bird food out!). Alongside staples like Jackdaws, Robins, and House Sparrows, this week we saw a Coal Tit, a juvenile Willow Warbler, and a Carrion-Hooded Crow Hybrid. These latter two species are almost genetically identical, meaning that this hybrid bird will also be able to breed. Normally the two prefer the aesthetic of their own species and so don't normally mix, resulting in a distinct separation between the two all across Europe. We still occasionally see the odd hybrid, and this one is practically a garden regular at this point. 

Our Hybrid Crow obligingly poses on posts regularly

Down on the Scar we are starting to see the impact of the migration, as many of the species that bred here are now few and far between. This is perhaps most notable in our Terns, of which we only had 6 Sandwich Terns this week. Of Common and Arctic Terns we've seen no sign of for the past few weeks, however in their place we found something very exciting. A single Roseate Tern is a rare visitor for us, and so an exciting occasion. Seeing three in one go however was truly a spectacle, a first for us in our 12 years here. These had most likely come across from Ireland, taking a break before continuing the journey down to Africa. Even if they were no longer in their pink breeding plumage, they were still a fantastic sight to see, and a great species for this blog. 

Whilst breeding birds may be disappearing from the Scar, newly arrived waders are quickly making up their numbers. This week their numbers included Black-tailed Godwits, a Redshank, a small flock of Dunlin, and our first returning Common Sandpiper. We'll be keeping a close eye on waders going forwards, as we get large numbers wintering here, which can turn up all sorts of surprise records. 

Last week saw a juvenile Peregrine practicing its hunting technique on small birds, well this week it decided to increase the difficulty level. Gannets are not normally a prey option (unless they are exceptionally hungry), after all they are larger than Peregrines. They certainly make for large targets however, and so this young bird was practicing its swoops and dives whilst the Gannets carried on in relative safety. 

Moving up to Loch Connell, we've had quite a few unusual records this week. Whilst the water seemed initially bereft of anything beside Mallards, eventually we picked out the small shape of a Little Grebe. Meanwhile, in the surrounding fields a flock of 182 Greylag Geese rested for a while. Amongst them was a very surprising bird and brand new species, a Bar-headed Goose. These natively inhabit much of Asia and are famed for being one of the highest-flying species, crossing the Himalayan Peaks on their migration. Because of this and their striking appearance, they are relocated and bred in captivity. This bird is therefore probably an escapee who then joined up with the first other geese it found. Nonetheless, it is still a very interesting record, and a good example of why you should always check your flocks of geese, you never know what they might turn up!

It certainly helps when rarities are this obvious!

Finally, we have an assorted mix of species from all over the Wig that I couldn't squeeze into their own paragraphs. These include birds out on the loch like a Guillemot and a Red-throated Diver, as well a Whitethroat in the hedgerows, and up in the woods, a Spotted Flycatcher. Mammals have been staying somewhat hidden this week, but we still managed to surprise some Roe Deer, whilst up at Loch Connell a lone Fox was seen running through the fields. 

And so with that, another month comes to a close. July marks the end of summer, and though you wouldn't always know it, it's often our quietest season of the year. From here on out the Wig is going to be bustling with activity, and we'll be sure to tell you all about it.

[All photographs were taken by and belong to Stephen Grover, please ask for permission if you wish to use them.]

The Approach of Autumn: Bird Report for 20/07/20 - 26/07/20

Whilst we might still be having the sunny days of summer, autumn is fast approaching, and beyond that, many birds are preparing for winter. This week we have had a noticeable amount of returning species, whilst our summer birds have become scarcer and scarcer. Whilst we are sad to see some species go, autumn and winter see the greatest amount of birds on our shores, and so we are looking forward to the interesting records we hope to get in the coming days. 

I thought the last blog was bursting with raptors, but somehow we managed to record even more this week. Alongside our regular buzzards, we also had several sparrowhawks, including a female, and an adult-juvenile duo on the edge of the estate. Peregrines have been exceptionally active this week, with records of sightings (and calls) on five of the seven days. Many of these were likely the same juvenile birds from before, indeed one was seen practicing its hunting techniques as it repeatedly chased down birds around the Wig. 

Golden Plovers are truly majestic birds

It certainly had its choice of waders to hunt from, as this week we've had a variety that rivals our peak winter counts. Oystercatchers are present all year round, but we're also seeing our Curlew numbers rise up again, with small flocks of 20-30 birds recorded daily. Redshanks have only recently returned to the Wig; it was very nice to see three Greenshanks alongside them, as well as a lone bird up at Loch Connell. We also had some small flocks of Dunlin, Sanderling and Turnstone throughout the week. Ringed Plovers have also been building in numbers recently, with a peak count of 40 birds on Thursday. What was very exciting to see was the presence of some Golden Plovers. Whilst we have seen them at Piltanton previously, these were the first Golden Plovers recorded on the Wig this year, and we look forward to having several more when winter rolls around. 

Last week we had the rare pleasure of seeing a Yellow-legged Gull, and I'm happy to say that individual bird may still be about since we had another record this week. We had many of our regular Gulls as well, including Black-headed, Common, Lesser Black-backed and Greater Black-backed Gulls. However one rarity just wasn't enough, and so we complemented it with an adult Mediterranean Gull. Normally we see juvenile birds, and once autumn is upon us we shall hopefully see more of these handsome birds. 

Elsewhere on the loch Eiders have been gathering in large flocks again. This week our highest count was 393 males and 3 females, so it was easy to miss the small flock of Common Scoter that took an early respite here. Keeping up the larger numbers, the Greylag Geese have been starting to flock together, with 180 and 360 at Soleburn and Loch Connell respectively. These are tiny flocks compared to the many thousands we have had in previous winters, but they are a sure sign of more Geese to come. On both occasions, we also saw some Canada Geese mixed in. At Soleburn the small flock of 14 were likely traveling past with the Greylags, whilst the four up at Loch Connell (adult and 3 juveniles) are summer residents having successfully bred here. 

As always we get loads of different records across the week, far too many to go over every species individually. Its definitely worth pointing out a few more though, such as the Jay and Great-spotted Woodpeckers we saw on the Corsewall Estate. We also had a Raven, whilst up at Loch Connell, we saw the illusive Moorhen. Finally, we rounded out the week with a Lapwing and a trio of Reed Buntings. 

Hundreds of these Caterpillars can be found on Ragwort around the Wig

Finally a quick look at our mammals and insects. This week was good for butterflies, and we saw a Small Tortoiseshell, Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Common Blue, Peacock, Small White, Red Admiral and a Green-Veined White. On the Moth side, we had several Six-spot Burnets, and hundreds of Cinnabar moth caterpillars. For mammals, we had Bottle-nosed Dolphins in the loch for the 4th week running, whilst closer to shore a Common Seal lazed in the receding tide. To top it all off we had a plucky Hedgehog venture into our garden, who would return later in the week under cover of darkness. 

All in all its been another great week around the Wig. It won't be long till August is upon us, and with it, the seasons roll around into Autumn. This means another mass migration, and so hopefully amongst the passage of birds we will get some exciting species.

[All photographs were taken by and belong to Stephen Grover, please ask for permission if you wish to use them.]

Predicting the Week: Bird Report for 13/07/20 - 19/07/20

Its been a lovely summer so far, and this week has kept up the trend of blue skies and sunshine. Much like the weather, our birding has also been very good this week. We've had quite a few irregular species, including returning species, fledging birds, and even a rare gull record. 

Last week when I was looking at our gulls, I mentioned the offhand possibility of seeing Mediterranean or Yellow-legged Gulls. I did not expect to be so prophetic, as one of the latter turned up on the Scar this past Tuesday. We had additional records of a Yellow-legged Gull on Thursday and Friday, but as they were all adults, it is likely that they were all the same bird that had decided to stick around for a while. It could still be about, however, in amongst the Herring Gulls, it is very tricky to spot. It takes practiced eyes to pick them out (so neither of mine!), but its still good to see one so early in the year. Hopefully we'll get even more as winter rolls around!

A Great Crested Grebe, the crest is a little wet though!

Speaking of early birds (no worms for these sadly), some more wintering species are starting to appear. Previously we've seen some waders on our shores, but this week we've had some early arrivals on the loch as well. Red-throated Divers are normally a wintering species for us, indeed Loch Ryan is considered nationally notable for the numbers which we get. Some are just a little too keen to spend time with us however, as a lone diver was recorded this week. Another such species that we haven't seen in a while are Great-crested Grebes. Whilst they do breed locally within the UK, they prefer fresh-water lochs and so they disappear from our shores for this brief period of time.  

Over the past few weeks, we've seen a lot of juvenile birds across many different species. This week it was the turn of our raptors, and we started it off with a juvenile Buzzard. Still very much a young bird, it was making a lot of noise, no doubt wanting food and attention! This was then later supplemented by a pair of juvenile Peregrines. We have Peregrines breeding in our surrounding areas, so it's possible that these could be local birds. Regardless, they are always nice to see. 

As always there is lots to hear around the wig, and birds cry out from up above in the sky, behind the hedges, and amongst the treetops. This week's singers included Willow Warblers, Song Thrushes, and five Skylarks. We also had records of a Whitethroat, Nuthatch, and even a singing Meadow Pipit, something we've not heard these past few weeks. Finally, whilst not as vocal as these others, it was also really nice to see four Stonechats, a male, female and two juveniles, so perhaps a whole family. Later in the week a male was seen carrying food, so there must still be hungry mouths to fill somewhere!

A juvenile Meadow Pipit, looks very similar to a Tree Pipit

In my second instance of foresight, my previous prediction of regular dolphins came true! Increasing their numbers, this week we had five Bottle-nosed Dolphins within the Loch. Whether they come in to feed, or just to ride the waves along the bows of ships we're not sure, but we're certainly happy to be seeing them so often, and in good numbers too. 

That about wraps it up for this week. It certainly was surprising to see many of these wintering species this early in the year. Perhaps that is a trend we will see in future years, but so long as they keep bringing up more interesting birds, I guess we cant complain!

[All photographs were taken by and belong to Stephen Grover, please ask for permission if you wish to use them.]