Trip reports

Tay Reed Beds & Scone Palace

Sunday, 24 February 2008

It had been a pleasant morning in Aberdeen but when we gathered at Inchture village, between Dundee and Perth, the wind had freshened prompting us to don all the warm clothing we had brought with us. As we chatted a Collared Dove in a tree was displaced by a gang of noisy Rooks. Eventually twenty members assembled to be greeted by Trevor who outlined his plans for the day. RSPB staff Hannah Morton and Graham Craig joined us to lead a tour of the reed-beds. The foresighted pulled on their Wellington boots.

A short drive brought us to a road with a dead end, suitable for leaving the cars. Two brown objects In the middle of a large grass field were resolved by binoculars into sitting foxes. They got up and as they trotted in Indian file towards the river, the lead fox frequently looked back to check the other was following.

Graham Craig had worked on the reed-beds for thirty years, cutting reeds for sale as thatching material. But as the lower labour costs in countries such as Poland had made his business unprofitable, the RSPB took over his leases from the landowners and employed him to maintain the reed beds in a manner to favour birds.

We were told the reed-beds were probably first planted by monks in the 1500s but were greatly extended in the 1800s when prisoners in the Napoleonic Wars were set to work building stone dykes in the estuary. The enclosed land silted up providing suitable conditions for colonisation by reeds.

The reeds used for thatching are cut at the end of a season's growth. Older reeds begin to break down and become friable. When cut on a commercial basis about 60% of the reeds were removed annually but this is now reduced to 15%, in blocks, either by cutting or by rolling flat, the flattened reeds soon decaying. In a good year cut reeds are still sold for thatching, realising a return for the RSPB. The best management regime is still being worked out.

We walked eastwards on a bank giving a view over the reed-beds to the river Tay. The two foxes re-appeared, trotting along a cut edge of the reeds before disappearing into their depths. Four Linnets, a Siskin, a Wren and a Blackbird were seen in the trees at the edge of the bank before three Common Snipe flew out over the reeds. A flock of Linnets came across. Far away, three Curlews probed in a sandbank in the middle of the river. As we retraced our steps the trees yielded Blue and Great Tit, Reed Bunting and Greenfinch. Three Pheasants irrupted from the reeds and flew off noisily. A Buzzard drifted lazily.

For lunch we drove to Scone Place and through the grounds to the bank of the river Tay near Perth racecourse of which this is the centenary year. The sunshine tempted the bold to brave the cold wind to picnic on the grass - the sensible stayed in the cars. On an island in front of us was a large flock of Oystercatchers and several Wigeons, Black-headed Gulls and Curlews. A group of Mallards at the far side were the only birds on the water.

This was probably not the best of days for a visit to Scone Palace as a small crowd had gathered drawn by an event to view the snowdrops and an antiques fair - although it did mean the toilets were open - and, an added attraction, a helicopter giving short rides to the public. So we, and the birds, were subjected to the noise of frequent take-offs, flights and landings for the length of our visit.

We drove back to the entrance to the grounds then returned on foot to where, as we tried to locate a Hawfinch and a Great Spotted Woodpecker both calling, two Long-tailed Tits were seen high in the branches of a tree. With the almost incessant disruption of the helicopter, Trevor was concerned about finding Hawfinches, his target bird.

Chancing on a bird ringer weighing a Chaffinch, Trevor took the opportunity to seek information of likely locations of Hawfinches. We were directed to an area where a number had been seen earlier but was that before the arrival of the helicopter? At the appointed location a solitary Hawfinch perched on top of a far tree.

Wandering through the grounds fruitlessly seeking further Hawfinches, we picked up other species including Jackdaw, Jay, Siskin, Blackbird, Goldcrest, Great Tit, Mallard and Buzzard.

Not only had we dipped on Bearded Reedling but we had to content ourselves with the sighting of that solitary Hawfinch, a rather disappointing view for those who had this as their first sighting of the species. But the magnificent snowdrops were prolific and the coffee and cakes at the Glen Doig Garden Centre much enjoyed. Our thanks to Trevor for both organising the outing and his leadership.
Bill Williams