Trip reports

RATTRAY HEAD

Thursday, 22 May 2008

We met - some by the ruined chapel - and some, as originally agreed, another mile further on at the Rattray Head car park - until all seventeen participants met up on this uncharitably cold late May day. On the recce a week previously, Corn Bunting, Reed Bunting, Sedge Warbler and Great Crested Grebe had all featured at the first stop overlooking the east shores of the Loch of Strathbeg, but today the cold wind and threatening drizzle dampened initial hopes. Even by the cottages at the end of the road there seemed little other than Linnets, and more Linnets on the blazing gorse bushes, apart from such as Jackdaw, Lapwing, Wheatear, and the odd Buzzard to keep up our interest.
Passing by the recently flooded area to the left of the path towards the beach there was initially little evidence of last week's Ringed Plover - till we saw her sitting on eggs injudiciously close to the path. Once on the beach, the profile was again different - only a few Kittiwakes, one Eider, and no sight of last week's Great Northern Diver - but the display of Gannets was spectacular - so many more than previously - diving, gliding, or just journeying - and gradually against the reluctant wind so many more treasures revealed themselves - Herring Gull, Fulmar, Cormorant, Common, Arctic and Sandwich Terns, Turnstone, Sanderling, Red-breasted Merganser - and so many Ringed Plovers.

Stopping again by the chapel we did see Great Crested Grebe, Corn and Reed Bunting - and a Marsh Harrier - but failed to sight again the "G" plover seen earlier - so whether it was "Grey" or "Golden" remains a mystery. At this stage we were met, as previously arranged, by Mark Stevens from BBC Radio Scotland's "Out of Doors" programme, who was persuaded that we were ready to escape from the biting damp wind to the comfort of Starnafin for lunch.

There we met various RSPB staff - along with a school party from Kingswells - all adding to the increasing thrill of finding exotics such as Little Stint, Little Gull, Bar-tailed Godwit and Garganey, amongst the more mundane range of duck, gull and other damp loving types. Outside, the resident Tree Sparrows shared their feed stations with Great and Blue Tits, Greenfinch, Dunnock and Wren - though no Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen or heard this week.
At the Tower Hide the high spots included Ruff, Wood Sandpiper, Whooper Swan and a male Hen Harrier in addition to a wide range of ducks - Teal Mallard, Tufted, Gadwall, Shoveler, Wigeon and Shelduck, and other birds including Heron, Greylag Goose, Coot and Moorhen. The return over the field failed to find other than the sound of Yellowhammer - and all day we failed to see a Robin. But despite this the day yielded an impressive final tally of 73 species, many common, but including a good crop of enviable rarities. Thanks especially to Tim Marshall for providing sharp eyes and expert instant identification.
Paddy Grant