Are the Good Old Days Gone? Bird Report for January 2025.

There was a time, not so long ago, when logging 50 species of birds, or more, in a day seemed easy for me to achieve without having to even try. That was yesterday, as it were. Today, it appears that considerably more effort is required should target chasing be a priority. Fortunately, that is not the case for me, nor has it ever been. It is a general but relevant observation that I make, without trying to be overcome by nostalgic sentimentality. This month more than 50 species were logged on five days, with a daily average of 25.

More than 200 Pale-breasted Brent Geese were recorded on 23 days during the month, either at the Wig or in grassland adjacent to the track leading to the wartime observation hut at the Scar. Flocks of over 250 birds were noted on three days, with a peak count of 316 on the 2nd. Consorting with them on the 1st were two Dark-bellied Brents, and a single bird on the 2nd. A hybrid Barnacle X Canada Goose was at Loch Connell on the 26th, where it mingled with its common compatriots, Canadas’. Whooper Swans were logged on five dates across the month, with a high of 36 at the Wig on the 24th. 

Two Dark-bellied Brents on a field beside the Wig.

                                                    One especially dark-flanked bird (on right)

My only record of Shelduck was of a singleton at the Scar on the 20th. Observations of Pintail were registered at Loch Connell on three dates: two females on the 5th and one on the 19th, with two ducks and a drake on the 26th. Also at this freshwater site were 268 Teal on the 5th, and 44 Wigeon on the 26th. The highest count of the latter, however, was 115 at the Wig (a place they had been absent from for much of the month) on the 31st. 

On a page in a guide book, or when seen as a digital image on a screen, Common Scoters and Eiders are very different looking birds, especially so the males. But out in the field - when the effects of weather, waves on the water, plus where the distance from the subject may be considerable, - identification becomes more complex. Other, more subtle factors then come into play. Inevitably, however, it is the observers’ experience that determines the threshold of the confidence level we each set ourselves. So then … drake Common Scoters are black and male Eiders are white and black. Right! Now throw into the equation female and immature types (plus eclipse plumages for good measure), add a little distance (which tends to reduce a persons perception of colour and patterns into a uniform toned shape on the water), and suddenly the potential for confusion becomes rife. The consequence of this in my case is that many small flocks, and individual birds, that are seen are never entered into the daily log because of the ‘uncertainty’ associated with them. My highest ‘confirmed’ count of Common Scoter was just 79 on the 21st, and that of Eider, 247 on the 8th. A very reasonable 60 Goldeneye were registered on the 20th, whereas my peak count of Long-tailed Duck was 12 on the 28th.

Loch Connell frequently holds several species that I rarely record elsewhere on my patch. Here on the 5th was a Pochard, a female Scaup, and 12 Tufted Duck. A drake Velvet Scoter was at Wig Bay on the 22nd, but I did not see it thereafter. Goosander on the freshwater loch, Connell, peaked at 24 on the 5th whereas the maximum count of Red-breasted Merganser on the sea-loch was 75 on the 21st.

Red-necked Grebes are mid-way in size between the smaller Slavonian and the larger Great Crested. However, when seen on their lonesome, with no other birds for comparison, they can give the impression of being large or small. Fortunately their general shape and bulkiness are usually sufficient to enable identification, with plumage details of secondary importance. This month, all sightings were of birds seen in the company of their aforementioned cousins, along with Red-throated and Great Northern Divers. Singletons at the Wig were registered on the 3rd and 21st, and an impressive - and notable - six birds (a party of four, with another two close by) on the 20th. 

Red-necked Grebes with Slav' and Red-throated Diver

Slavonian Grebes were recorded on 21 days across the month. It probably would have been more if not for the intervening weather effecting the presence of birds and viewing conditions. Nonetheless, my peak count for the species was a very satisfactory 43 birds on the 29th. Several of them were noted showing ‘transitional’ plumage, moulting from winter to summer dress. There was just one record for Black-throated Diver: a singleton on the sea-loch on the 22nd. Great Northern Divers were observed on 12 days, with a high of 3 on the 14th. The peak count of Red-throated Divers was 69 on the 20th, though generally the number of birds was far fewer with, I suspect, the weather strongly effecting their presence.

The fields beside the Wig held 178 Curlew on the 6th - a good count for this species. Golden Plovers were, not unexpectedly, scarce, with a high of just 24 birds at the Scar on the 28th. Grey Plover was more frequently sighted although fewer in number - two, to be precise - and with probably the same birds accounting for all registrations across the month. The cold and blustery weather undoubtedly accounted for the presence of over 80 Lapwing at Loch Connell on the 19th, and 46 there on the 26th. Back to the Wig there were 206 Oystercatcher at the Scar on the 22nd, a surprisingly high count of 14 Redshank on the 2nd, and some 80 Ringed Plover on the 27th.

The vast majority of gulls that are seen either on, or about, Loch Ryan are (in alphabetical order only) Black-headed, Common and Herring. The first mentioned, and especially the latter, are conspicuous birds in the town of Stranraer; the Common Gull, though present there, is easily passed over but is certainly obvious in the wider countryside during the winter. Like most gulls, this medium-sized species is readily logged by birdwatchers but not so regularly counted compared to so-called ‘key’ species, such as Red-throated Diver, Scaup and Slavonian Grebe, of which Loch Ryan supports nationally significant numbers. I confess, I tend only to count what I consider to be significant numbers of Common Gulls - based on many years of study - on my local patch. I logged 228 birds at the Scar on the 15th; not an especially high count, granted: but the largest concentration I had observed during the month.

With the exception of Black Guillemot, auk species are scarce on Loch Ryan during the winter. It will come as no surprise then when I report that just three Guillemot and two Razorbill were my only records, on the 20th.

Male Bullfinch in the garden

Of the passerines (the so-called, perching birds), the following are worthy of note. On the morning of the 4th a Black Redstart was watched for several minutes in the car park at the Wig, so constituting my first known record of the species at this location - an exciting find and a delight, I am sure, to all those who saw it. Seven Bullfinch were logged on the 4th, and four in my garden on the 8th, and six, also in my garden, on the 20th. Some 95 Chaffinch were observed during a walk through the Corsewall Estate on the 30th, including a flock of approximately 75 birds. A Hawfinch noted flying low over the Wig car park was, like the Black Redstart before it, an unexpected find. Four Lesser Redpoll turned up in my garden on the 3rd, following a long absence of entry into my logbook. Great to have some back! Siskin numbered 28 in a garden near to my own on the 23rd - my highest count of the species for a while. A party of 60 Skylark over the Wig fields on the 15th fortunately did not go undetected, making up for the otherwise paucity of sightings this month. 30 Twite, also on the 15th and at the Wig fields, were a welcome addition to the log. Lastly, 92 Woodpigeon observed feeding within a grassland on the 2nd might not seem a particularly large flock by anyones standard but it turned out to be significantly the highest count of the month.

This article and the accompanying images was provided courtesy of S. Grover.

Grey Days Have a Silver Lining - December 2024

On account of poor weather, or viewing conditions, on most days of the month the total numbers of all birds recorded was noticeably down on what otherwise might have been expected. In spite of this there was still much of interest to see. For those local rarity orientated birders among the readership highlights included Black-throated Diver, Black-necked Grebe, Dark-bellied Brent Goose, Pacific Diver, Red-necked Grebe, Surf Scoter and Velvet Scoter.

Good numbers of Canada Geese were in the vicinity of Loch Connell throughout the month, peaking at in excess of 320 birds on the 23rd. Pale-bellied Brent Geese were daily at the Wig, and on several occasions were observed in the grassland adjacent to the Wig track, where they both rested and grazed. Over 200 birds were regularly noted, whilst in excess of 300 were registered on five dates spread across the month. The peak count of birds came on the 18th when an impressive total of 532 were logged. Of particular note was the general lack of juveniles present in all flocks. A Dark-bellied Brent was seen associating with various flocks of its cousins, from the 22nd onwards. Its kin, however, did not always take kindly to the presence of an interloper within their ranks and on several occasions other flock members were seen to harass and chase the bird.

After a seemingly long absence from my patch Shelduck made a welcome return, when two birds arrived at Loch Connell on the 29th. The same site, not surprisingly, hosted the most Teal, with a peak count of 164, also on the 29th. Here, too, but on the 15th, were 117 Wigeon. Greater numbers of this species were to be found on the sea-loch, at the Wig, with 150 there on the 11th. I recorded relatively few Common Scoters on Loch Ryan this month, with 82 being my highest tally on the 14th. However, other species of scoter were also present, including a fine-looking male Velvet Scoter on the 1st and an female-type Surf Scoter, feeding close inshore at the Wig on the 16th. A respectable 49 Goldeneyes in Wig Bay was registered the 15th and over 260 Eiders on the 24th. Long-tailed Ducks, as usual, were highly mobile, making an assessment of their true numbers difficult. A party of 12 males was at the Wig on the 18th, whilst on other dates females and immatures were also observed. A Pochard was at Loch Connell on the 1st but not thereafter, whilst two female Scaup were also present here on the 23rd, and one on the 29th. More regular at this site were Tufted Ducks, with 12 birds on the 29th being the highest count. Goosanders, also, favoured this site, peaking at 20 birds (on the 29th). Loch Ryan, of course, was preferential for Red-breasted Mergansers: 75 were logged on the 2nd.

There were just two sightings of Black-throated Diver on Loch Ryan: singletons on the 1st and 11th. Observations of Great Northern Divers were more plentiful, being logged on 19 days across the month and with a maximum of four birds on the 30th. A bird showing all the features of a Pacific Diver was noted at the Wig on the 22nd. It was a disappointing month for Red-throated Divers on the sea-loch, with the highest count of just 11 birds on the 24th; the weather (affecting visibility) undoubtedly had a significant part to play here.

A surprise find was a Black-necked Grebe at the Wig on the 20th and again on the 30th. On the last date, side-by-side comparison with a 'Slav’ served only to emphasise the smallness of the former species. The size distinction was further reinforced when a Great Northern Diver surfaced close by, dwarfing both grebes. As mentioned in previous postings of this blog Great Crested Grebes are occurring in ever increasing numbers at Wig Bay, reflected by a tally of 42 birds on the 8th. I had just one record of a Red-necked Grebe: a singleton at the Wig, also on the 8th. Wintering Slavonian Grebes are something of a Loch Ryan speciality. The same prevailing weather conditions that influenced my sightings of Red-throated Divers were also responsible for the relatively few 'Slavs’ I logged: a high of 29 birds was registered on the 11th.

Parties or flocks of Golden Plover are generally infrequent at the Scar during December thus 159 birds on the 11th was noteworthy. By comparison much smaller numbers of Grey Plover are only ever recorded: four was my highest count at the Scar on the 1st. In many ways the ‘unpredictability of/associated with/ birdwatching’ is one of its great attractions. In the October posting of this blog I intimated that Lapwings on my local patch were on the way to becoming consigned to the pages of history. Well, this month they were, seemingly, back with a vengeance, even if only on a small scale. 50 were at Loch Connell on the 1st and another 41 there on the 29th. The Wig shoreline does not often harbour many Snipe but at high tide beside the car park, on the 3rd, an impressive gathering of 27 birds was logged. On the same day 51 Turnstones were upon the Scar.

In the wintertime on Loch Ryan Black Guillemots are typically widely dispersed: 58 was a respectable count on the 11th. On the same day a lonesome Razorbill made an appearance.

An adult male Hen Harrier at Loch Connell on the 1st burned an unforgettable memory to the hard drive of my brain. I watched the bird for several minutes quartering a swamp of Reed Sweet-grass. Its effort and persistence paid dividends when it dropped like a stone to the ground, returning into view moments later clutching a hapless Teal (a very large prey item) within its talons, then struggling to carry its prize to the bough of a collapsed willow where it began to consume its hearty breakfast. On the 14th I saw another bird - an immature male - come in off the sea-loch before heading overland in the direction of the freshwater loch (Connell).

Bullfinches made an impressive entry in this month’s logbook, being registered on no less than ten days. Two birds were in my garden on the 6th and the 20th, the remainder of observation were all of single birds. A noteworthy 74 House Sparrows were in my garden on the 2nd, followed by 79 on the 11th. Long-tailed Tits are infrequently sighted on my patch so a record of 10 on the 6th and 13 on the 30th were welcome additions to December’s tally of species. The fields beside the Wig held noteworthy flocks of 42 Skylarks on the 5th and 54 on the 24th. Also of note were seven Song Thrushes along the track leading to the hut at the Scar, on the 3rd and 11th, with a further 22 birds logged during the journey home on the latter date.

A murmuration of Starlings can be a spectacular spectacle, of that there can be no doubt, especially when on a grand scale. The town of Stranraer has only a small evening roost of this species but nevertheless the mass of swarming birds swirling in all directions in the sky is available for those who wish to experience the view. But out in the sticks, at Kirkcolm, comparatively small diurnal flocks is perhaps the best a birdwatcher can hope to see: winter flocks here, seen feeding in the fields, may not be large but it is important (or so I believe) to log them just the same: 350 above the Wig fields, on the 6th, was a more than reasonable quantity.

These days I rarely note many Treecreepers on account of their calls (like that of Goldcrests) being almost beyond my hearing, whilst visual sightings are subject to the vagaries of chance and luck! Two birds entered into the logbook on the 6th were thus much appreciated, as indeed was a flock of 36 Twite seen feeding in a field bordering the Wig, on the 24th.

Poor weather, particularly when prolonged, does seem to dampen a person's spirit somewhat and dull their appreciation of the bounty that is ever present. If, reader, your December passed with similar grey days then I hope that this posting has heightened to you better prospects for the New Year and the nature that you might be able to experience.

The contents of this blog were provided by courtesy of the author, S. Grover.