Shetland day 8: Buffy & The Damp Pie Slayer

While we were on Unst on 4th October, news had broken of an American Buff-bellied Pipit back at Grutness on the Mainland. On the morning of the 5th, after a mooch around Hoswick, we headed there for probably the closest and most extended views of any of the rare birds seen during our nine day stay. All the while Shetland entertained us with its unfamiliar place names, and we amused ourselves with word play around them when the birding was quiet. We checked out gardens at Gardins, got Parrot Crossbills at Gott, an Otter at Gutcher and nothing at Noness.

Here's Buffy: the American Buff-bellied Pipit at Grutness...

...and here's the Damp Pie Slayer: Howard at Gott. If the marketing folks at Swarovski Optic, or indeed the Scalloway Meat Company, would like to feature this guy modelling their wares, please contact me to discuss my commission.

The Pipit was sheltering from the strong winds in the lee of a low wall against which we were leaning

'Dark legs my arse' said a gruff voice beside me. It was Bob, passing a caustic comment on the Collins Guide description of Buff-bellied Pipit in winter plumage

We enjoyed amazing views down to about six feet

The settlement of Gord, of which there were two, provided particularly good value: every time we approached we had found Gord; every time we left we had forsaken Gord. When we stumbled across the second one we concluded that Gord moved in mysterious ways, and wondered how we would break the news to the devout that there was more than one true Gord. The pun-making threatened to get out of hand at times, and the less said about the anagram competition based on the 'Cunningsburgh Rustic Bunting', the better (we failed to see that bird on three occasions).

For those who like that sort of thing, the next few photos highlight some identification features as per Van Duivendijk: grey-brown upperparts with only faint streaking...

...complete pale eye-ring, pale lore and distinct supercilium

Centre of tertials and tail-feathers very dark and contrasting with rest of upperparts

Slender, Meadow Pipit-like bill

Breast well-marked with short, well-defined streaks

At a more culturally sensitive level, evocative names like Veensgarth and Halligarth were a reminder of Shetland's Old Norse heritage, while from more recent history, other road signs conjured up images of famous rarities which had graced the islands: the Levenwick Siberian Rubythroat, the Baltasound Cape May Warbler and of course the Uyaesound Siberian Thrush, co-found by my travelling companions the previous year.

One of the best birds seen in our nine day stay on Shetland

Snow Bunting at Sumburgh Head

Like the Pipit, the Bunting was being buffeted by strong winds



Snow Bunting against the dry stone walls of Sumburgh Head

After a couple of sessions watching the Buff-bellied Pipit at point blank range, we headed up to Sumburgh Head again where a Snow Bunting had been reported. A gale was seriously ruffling the feathers of this skittish bird, but we managed to photograph it from the car window. After a scan of the waders at Pool of Virkie, we ended another rewarding day with a trio of Slavonian Grebes at Boddam, home of the Pink Panther (Boddam. Boddam. Boddam, Boddam, Boddam, Boddam, Bodd-aaaaaaam-diddle-diddle-dam...).

Curlew at Sumburgh Head

Shag at Grutness

Slavonian Grebe - one of three at Boddam

The famous Sumburgh Head lighthouse

Shetland day 2: bring your waders

Our base for the first two nights on Shetland was a remote croft at Collaster on the western part of the Mainland. The croft had only been recently made available for self-catering and the owner had been taken aback by the level of interest in the property. He was a good host though, and as well as a warm welcome we found a fridge stocked with an impressive selection of breakfast meat. Keen to get out in the morning, we saved this for an evening fry-up, and while unlikely to appear in the M&S 'healthy eating' range anytime soon, it was an impressive spread.

Snipe

Golden Plover

Several frying pans were needed to hold the meat feast laid on for us: bacon, sausages, black pudding, haggis and saucermeat - a sort of offal-based, sausage-slab affair as far as we could tell, and apparently a Shetland speciality, pronounced by the locals as 'sossermit', almost in a single syllable.

Brambling

Ruff

Before that though there was birding to be done and bearings to be got. We started as we meant to go on, hunting out likely looking patches of habitat and grilling them for birds before moving on to the next. Over the next 24 hours my Shetland education continued, and I started to appreciate the radical differences between birding the archipelago in autumn and birding at home. Whereas in Dorset I might go to an extensive patch of specialist habitat or a nature reserve, up here a patch could be a tiny stand of willows or even a solitary tree.

Great Northern Diver

Great Northern Diver

Similarly, whereas at home I would typically avoid areas of human habitation in search of wildlife, on Shetland, gardens are one of the most likely locations to find the cover necessary to attract birds in an otherwise treeless landscape. 'Walk in the ditch, not in the road' was one of the many rules of the game to be observed and good guidance it was too - over the course of the coming days this flushed out a number of birds - nothing particularly rare, but enough to prove the wisdom of the advice. The poor weather continued, so there was also a bit of birding from the car in that first few days - a good way to see waders in roadside fields.

Hooded Crow

Slavonian Grebe

Catching up

I'm a bit behind with posts so here's some old news from last weekend. I hit the heaths in the hope of adding to the photo year list with my main target being Great Grey Shrike. There were two in Dorset to choose from - one at Morden Bog and one at Godlingstone Heath, but I fancied Studland so headed there first. Steve Smith gave me directions which were spot on, and after a bit of a yomp out to the heathland edge I managed a reasonably close approach before a yappy dog put the bird to flight. Jol and I then watched our sons almost certainly blow their chance of the Dorset Youth Football Under-12s League Division 3 championship in a top of the table fixture against Ringwood, so we went and had another look late afternoon to dull the pain. Returning to the same spot the Shrike was distant but fortunately flew in to not far from where we were standing. A harsh sidelight made photography difficult for Joe and I but it was a great view nonetheless.

Great Grey Shrike (#90)

The light improved later in the day on a return visit

Fieldfare (#91)

After that it was time to scrape the barrel, photo wise, with some distant but tickable Fieldfares, some even more distant but still tickable Slavonian Grebes, a badly photographed but tickable Ring-necked Parakeet at Studland, and a trio of untickable Great Bustards from the Salisbury Plain reintroduction scheme which have been knocking around the Dorset coast for several weeks now.

Ring-necked Parakeet - gaudy but tickable (#92)

Slavonian Grebe in the gloom off South Beach, Studland (#93)

Great Bustards

Great Bustard - the first of the released birds I have seen in Dorset or anywhere else for that matter

 

North versus South

The weekend presented the possibility, at least in theory, of an extreme distance twitch to the frozen north for an American Coot. In the end I decided my shoulder wasn't up to the long drive so I stayed in waterlogged Dorset. North 0: South 1 on that score at least. Having thus 'saved' 24 hours travelling time, I reasoned with the impeccable logic of a frustrated twitcher, there was plenty of time to check out both the developed northern shore and the undeveloped southern edge of Poole Harbour this weekend. Check out below who won the North v South Poole Harbour derby:

GOAL: Cetti's Warbler often talks a good game at Bestwall but isn't often seen. 1:0 to the South.



GOAL: Spoonbill and Yellow-legged Gull at Middlebere - 2 more good birds makes it 3:0 to the South within 15 minutes. It's just like being at Anfield.

GOAL: Hen Harrier at Swineham on Friday night. Not a great shot, but they all count. 4:0 to the South. It really is like Anfield.

GOAL: the North's fightback begins. A bit of a goal-hanger, this Scaup has been in Poole Park for a while now. Getting smarter though with each moulting feather. 4:1.

GOAL DISALLOWED: no-one's quite sure what this Poole Park resident is. Bahama Pintail has been mooted but not a pure one, possibly that or something else having done something shameful with a Red-crested Pochard? Anyway, whatever it is, it's clearly offside.

GOAL: Pale-bellied Brent Goose in among 300 of its Dark-bellied cousins on Baiter Park. South 4, North 2.

GOAL: Slavonian Grebe just off Baiter Park. A good bird anywhere but especially here.

EQUALISER: a first winter Little Gull did a quick tour of Baiter before flying right over the car. Four all.

FINAL WHISTLE: the Little Gull appeared towards the end of the day but as we made for home I relocated it among the fishing boats off Poole Quay. Score draw a fair result I reckon

By the way, if you fancy driving me to Inverness via Durham next weekend while I sleep in your passenger seat, occasionally stirring to hand you petrol money and regale you with anecdotes you've already read on here, drop me a line. 

A real Scottish rarity...

In my last post I promised news of a real Scottish rarity, so here goes: sunshine. It was present for a whole day, and provided perfect conditions for a long day in the field with the camera.

Slavonian Grebe, Loch Ruthven

It started early with an excursion before breakfast which boosted the trip list with a Black Grouse in a roadside birch up Glen Spean, a pair of Goosander and four Grasshopper Warblers reeling along a half-mile stretch of the River Spean.

Slavonian Grebe, Loch Ruthven

After a hearty breakfast back at the Glenloy Lodge, scene of the previous night's encounter with a Pine Marten, I headed up the south side of Loch Ness towards Loch Ruthven. The RSPB reserve there is an excellent place to see breeding Slavonian Grebe from a hide without the risk of disturbance.

Sunshine over Glen Spean

It takes a bit of effort to get there, especially at the moment with the road north east from there to Inverness the subject of a closure, but pretty much every route to it takes you through some excellent habitat, so it's not exactly a hardship.  

Loch Ruthven

As I entered the reserve a tour party were listening to a Grasshopper Warbler and as I passed I jammed in on a Golden Eagle overhead, called by their guide - the birding equivalent of goal-hanging. Fortunately they had already been to the hide or it would have been a bit of a squeeze and I'd now be posting sniffy jibes about dudes who couldn't tell a Slav from a Yugo. Instead there was just a couple who had recently left Speyside, and who told me that Crested Tits were coming to the feeders at Loch Garten - good news as this was where I planned to end the day.

Common Sandpiper on a lochan just north of Loch Ruthven

I had arranged a B&B at Boat of Garten, so headed from Loch Ruthven towards Inverness and down the A9, but took at detour around the grouse moors of Lochindorb before making my way down to Speyside. The Loch itself held a Black-throated Diver and Common Sandpipers picking around the shore.

This Toad was behind the hide at Loch Ruthven

With Black and Red Grouse in the bag, the following day - the last full day of my Scottish trip - I would attempt to see the other two British Grouse species: Ptarmigan and Capercaillie. My next post will tell you how I got on.