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Scottish Bird

News

No 65 Sept. 2002

Limited-edition print offer: Crested Tit , Abernethy by Chris Rose

Copies of this beautiful signed limited-edition print are available from the SOC. The print
is 28 x 43cm with a generous margin for framing. The price is £30, of which 20% is being
donated by the artist to the SOC. Please order from Caroline at the Club office and add
£3.00 p&p if you would like it posted.

Focusing on the future

For some years, both Council and
Management Committees and the SOC
membership at AGMs have pondered on
the requirements for a new home for
Scottish ornithology and the Club. Last
year the key decision to move out of 21
Regent Terrace was taken. I started in the
new post of Development Manager on
the 2nd of November and by the 28th of
March this decision had been
implemented. Since April 2002 I have
been working on the next stage, i.e.
finding a new building or site to house a
new home for a centre for ornithology for
Scotland and the SOC's administration.

Even before joining the Club as an
employee, I knew that such a modern
centre was required. I had played a
significant part in the creation of the
Scottish Seabird Centre whose focus, I
had hoped, was to provide compre-
hensive interpretation of Scotland's
seabirds, their habitats and, especially,
nesting colonies in the Forth. I could see
from my own research for the project that
there were very few places in Scotland
where you could find details about
particular bird species. There was really
no facility that could provide public

access to comprehensive information
about all Scotland's birds and their
habitats, other than the Library at 21
Regent Terrace, which only opened in
office hours.

I was therefore particularly excited and
proud when I was given my current job,
part of which would be to help create an
updated concept of George Waterston's
original vision. Internal discussion with the
Club's committees made the strategic
decision that such a centre would be a
resource centre, rather than a public
visitor centre. This helped determine
which type of site might suit the Club's
requirements and the likely size and cost
of the development following the sale of
21 Regent Terrace.

It was agreed by Council that a site with
year-round birdwatching potential could
enable the centre to be open at weekends,
as it would attract volunteers. Appeals to
the membership from 2000 onwards had
yielded relatively few suggestions, which
meant that perhaps the search area needed
to be expanded beyond the Edinburgh-
Stirling-Glasgow triangle.

Given the desire for a site which would
appeal to birders all year, a coastal site
seemed inevitable, probably on the Forth

or Clyde estuaries. The coastal strip from
Cramond, eastwards through Mussel-
burgh, Aberlady, Gullane, North Berwick,
Tyninghame, Belhaven, Barns Ness,
Skateraw and down to St Abbs attracts
birders from all over Scotland and from
the north of England and beyond. Most of
these sites are well serviced by the rapidly
improving A1 which will be dualled east to
Dunbar within a year.

I consulted SOC Council before writing
to six landowners in and around Aberlady
and was surprised to get positive
responses from three of them. The first
prospect was a house very near the Bay,
but it was just too small for what we had
in mind. The best prospect was the offer
of a meeting with the Wemyss and March
Estate to look at possible sites on their
landholdings near the Bay and in Gosford
Estate. After a helpful meeting, a site at
the entrance to Aberlady village was
identified that overlooked the Bay from
an elevated position and met many of
our criteria.

This site has a bus stop (from Edinburgh) at
its entrance; it is also on the new John
Muir Way coastal path and is just a few
minutes from the Kilspindie Golf Course
road which is used by walkers on the west
side of Aberlady Bay. The site is also just a
mile from the footbridge into the east side
of the Bay.

Aberlady Bay was well watched by the
likes of George Waterston, Frank Flamilton
and Keith Macgregor (see Keith's article on
p. 1 2) and many other SOC members who
still find interesting birds after going there
for 50 years!

Initial correspondence with East Lothian
Council highlighted the fact that the site
would require special consideration as the
proposed development was outwith the
local plan and is also within the
Conservation Area of the village. After a
helpful meeting with the planners it was
agreed that an application should be
submitted along with any supporting
points which might justify development in
a relatively sensitive area.

At the same time, discussions with the
Estate have established a likely guide price
for the site which is affordable. At the
Management meeting on ~th August 2002
it was proposed that a Property Working
Group be re-established. This group will

1

select the architect and monitor the
specifications and progress of the planning
application and, hopefully, the progress of
the new project.

It is hoped that some external funding can
be obtained to help the Club create a
national centre for birdwatching resources
which can provide useful facilities for
birdwatchers and also educational
materials which will help bring new
people into birding. In order to create a
sustainable centre it will be sensible to
limit its size so that the main running and
maintenance costs can be supported by a
large capital sum, hopefully formed from
the remainder of the sale proceeds from
21 Regent Terrace, and perhaps some
legacies.

What this means in practice is that we
should not spend much more than
£600,000 on the entire project, including
the cost of the land, building costs,
landscaping and design/professional fees.
As regards fundraising, we should try and
raise between £100,000 and £200,000 in
external funds if possible.

Although all the signs look very positive for
this particular site, it would be wise, for
the moment, to continue looking for
alternatives, just in case any
insurmountable snags are encountered.
Members are still invited to suggest sites
which might be suitable, just in case. Let's
face it; if everything in life was easily
predicted it would be boring! However,
the Aberlady site is a good one and has
many potential benefits which I hope to
outline at the ACM and in future editions
of SBN as the project develops. If you have
any suggestions for elements that the
centre should include please contact me
at HQ. I hope these notes are encouraging
and that good progress continues to be
made. Watch this space!

Bill Gardner
SOC Development Manager

A view to Cullane Hill over Aberlady Bay,
East Lothian, from the proposed new SOC
HQ site. Please note that the tide is out! (Bill
Gardner)

From the editor's desk

! am sure readers will agree that there is
nothing worse than the editor being the
main contributor to the publication he or
she is editing. The only way to get round
this, of course, is for members to submit
their own contributions. It is your
magazine, after all, and it aims to reflect the
diversity of interests and activities within
the Club, not just those of the few
individuals who have put pen to paper. I
am very grateful to everyone who has taken
the time to write articles for this issue. They
have certainly lightened the gloomy
prospect that confronted me when, on
agreeing to take on the job of editor for the
time being, I found the "Articles for SBN
65" folder virtually empty!

How to persuade people to write for the
magazine is another matter. There is so
much of interest in Scottish birding circles
that it should be a question of how do we
find space to include everything rather
than how are we going to fill the pages this
month. I would like to see SBN strike a
balance between popular birding and
accessible science. Most SOC members
are amateur birders who simply enjoy
their hobby. Many will be active within
their local branch, so why not report back
on your activities, outings, meetings and
interesting birds that you've seen? There is
also a great deal of fascinating research
undertaken in Scotland, ranging from
long-term studies of seabirds to the
aerodynamics of House Martins. I am
reluctant to approach those professional
ornithologists who, when they're not out
in the field, spend all their time writing
anyway, but I would welcome summaries
or reviews so that the results of current
research can reach a wider audience.

At this exciting but unpredictable time in
the Club's history, SBN must keep
members up to date with birds and birding
in Scotland by recording our activities,
opinions and experiences. It should be
informative and entertaining in so doing.
More contributions - written, photographic
and artwork, are required from every level
of birder to achieve this.

If all else fails, I will do my best to
approach members personally and employ
various means to extract articles and
illustrations from them. It could be you...

From the editor's window

A new Scottish Birdwatching Resource
Centre, incorporating the SOC HQ, is a
very exciting prospect. For me, a major
consideration in locating the centre must
be that it has the highest possible potential
for a good "Seen from the Window" list.
Birders are lucky in that their interest
allows them to make something out of
virtually nothing, and patchwatching, even
on the scale of looking out of the office
window, can make the dullest of working
environments more interesting.

The present SOC premises at Musselburgh,
whilst functional and comfortable, are
sadly lacking in the ornithological
department. For a dedicated patchwatcher
and sedentary twitcher like myself this is a
distinct failing. In the couple of months I
have been in and out of the office, my
"window list" has struggled to only 15
species, five of them gulls. A number of
factors contribute to this less than
impressive total. Firstly, I am not always
positioned to be able to see out of one of
the two windows in the office. Secondly, i
even if I was, this wouldn't necessarily
make much difference as the glass is
frosted and the blinds are often lowered to
keep out such disagreeable intrusions as
daylight. Only when the windows are
opened to release the great volume of hot
air generated by the industrious staff, can
we hope to see any birds. Even when the;
windows are open, however, the outlook,
from them is not the most inspiring.1
Starting from the most distant aspect and
working inwards, the view comprises: sky
(predominantly grey), the red-brick wall
and almost flat corrugated roof of a
supermarket, a few straggly shrubs, a wire-
mesh fence and, for the 20 metres or soi
nearest our window, a carpark inhabited
by a selection of posh cars, many with
personalised number plates. (In case you
think that your subscriptions have been
put to inappropriate use, please note that
SOC staff park their vehicles (if they have
one) at the other side of the building).

tei

Pile
tei ao

Some of the larger species of birds on our
"window list" have seen fit to decorate the
most expensive cars in a way they deem

appropriate, but more often than not the
only evidence of local birdlife is the
clamour of gulls queuing up on the
supermarket roof, ever hopeful of a
massive trolley pile-up or a ruptured
carrier-bag en route from the fish counter.
Being so close to the shore, it is not
surprising that Redshank, Curlew and
Oystercatcher have made their way onto
the list, and these can be detected even
through a closed window if they call
loudly enough as they fly over. With the
window open, I can hear Linnets
twittering on a regular basis, the chirps of
House Sparrows, an intermittent aerial
Greenfinch and the odd Blackbird trying
to make himself heard above the muffled
roar of traffic. A Dunnock in song was
something of a recent highlight, so you can
see just how bad it is here.

Of course, some windows are better than
others. Back home, my desk is strategically
positioned to optimise the view of a
corner of our East Lothian garden and the
birdtable. I haven't yet got round to
adding up the number of species on my
"window list", but the likes of Great
Spotted Woodpecker, Goldfinch and
Yellowhammer brighten many an
otherwise dull day spent at the computer.
More surprising, perhaps, have been Red-
legged Partridge, Jay, Lesser Whitethroat,
Icterine Warbler and Hawfinch (my best
birdtable tick). If I broadened the list to
include birds seen from the other window
in the room, then I could add Goshawk,
Yellow Wagtail, Black Redstart, Wood
Warbler, Pied Flycatcher and Common
Crossbill.

I don't hold out much hope for anything
so glamorous from the ground-floor of
Harbour Point and, unfortunately, there's
not a great deal we can do about it. Given
that the owners of the smart cars parked
just under the window would probably
not welcome a feeding station with its
associated birds and their by-products, we
have to make do with our sparse selection
of urban and marine species. So let's hope
the SBRC soon becomes a reality and we
can add some more exciting birds to the
office list. Having said that, you may not
like the thought of the staff spending much
of their working day peering hopefully out
of the window. But then a happy staff is a
productive staff. Honest. And there's
nothing that makes the workers happier
; than a good twitch from their desk. Roll on
1 the Med. Gull on the supermarket roof...

Mike Fraser

Wigeon
(Keith Brockie)

The Reluctant Writer

You will notice in SBN 64 that there is a
request for articles, so when the SOC
office staff bludgeoned (they are like that)
me to write one, the question was, what
could I possibly write about? Birds on the
move, from the train (though with the
speed and delays of some trains just now
that might not be so difficult?). One's
favourite bird? What does one like to read
in SBN? A comment on some or all of these
might make an article? Perhaps...

I do not know if anyone has tried
birdwatching from the train, but when
going to London recently and travelling at
about 120mph (luckily keeping to the
timetable), I can say it is very difficult.
Small birds on telephone wires might be
House Sparrows or Chaffinches from their
outline and it's certainly a favourite spot
for Woodpigeons, which also fly alongside
with Swifts, gulls and Carrion Crows.
Unfortunately, my seat was between two
windows with a large structural divide.
This meant I had to crane my neck to see
through the window behind to spot any
bird that might be coming our way, then
try to quickly follow it in the next window
as it flew out of sight. There must have
been birds amongst the trees and bushes,
but these became a green blur. It was
possible to see House Martins, Swallows
and Starlings near Berwick-on-Tweed
station, a Kestrel hovering after that and
some Mallards on the River Ouse in
Cambridgeshire. On the return journey it
was mostly gulls, crows and pigeons again,
even from a First Class seat!

One's favourite bird might be influenced
by where one is at the time - in the hills or
mountains, a Peregrine or Golden Eagle;
Dotterel or Ptarmigan on the tops. At the
coast - fishing terns, Razorbills and
Gannets, waders such as godwits, Snipe
and sandpipers, and Ringed Plovers
feeding busily on the shore. In woodland -
Willow Warblers, Goldcrests, Spotted

Flycatchers and Tawny Owls. Elsewhere,
Goldfinches, Dippers, Long-tailed and
Tufted Ducks, Wigeon and the elegant
Smew, Golden Plover and Swifts in flight.
And then there are the species seen in
other countries - bee-eaters, Hoopoes,
rollers, trogons, hummingbirds, motmots
(who thought of that name?!) and the
elusive Indian Pitta. If I had to put my
money on a favourite bird in Scotland, the
attractive Long-tailed Tit would get my
highest bid, I think.

What do I like to read in SBN? What is
happening in the SOC, such as any news
from Council and, most recently, the
developments and move to Musselburgh.
Some of the letters can be controversial
and amusing, and the book reviews can
give fleeting or detailed opinions of what a
book is about and if it might be a "good
buy". One review of a bird guide certainly
caught my eye and I was glad to purchase
it on the basis of what I'd read. It is always
good to see reports of the unusual, and
there are always notices of different
happenings. The photographs and artwork
are always enjoyable, too.

There are some excellent birding articles;
the one by Highland Ringing Group on
doing just this in the States (SBN 63: 1-2)
was most interesting. This was not about
Scotland (which some members may
prefer), but birds are birds anywhere and
knowledge of them can never be
dismissed. After all, "our" Ospreys are
sometimes here and sometimes in Africa.
The killing of migrant birds in Cyprus is
certainly relevant to us all. Some of the
articles are instructive and their statistics
prove a point even if they are a bit
daunting for those of us who are not
scientifically minded.

Finally, I'm not sure if my own thoughts
should be included in SBN, but maybe
they will encourage others to put pen to
paper. The editor awaits!

Sue Goode

3

SOC NEWS

Many thanks to all those energetic
volunteers who help the Club around the
office. We are particularly grateful to the
team who packed the bulging envelopes of
the June Scottish Birds, Birds of St Kilda and
SBN mailing. The stalwart stuffers were: Jill
Andrews, Rosemary Davidson, Liz Fraser,
Sue Goode, Frank Hamilton, Keith
Macgregor and Joan Wilcox.

Nominations for Council

Two nominations for Council have been
received. They are Richard Daly and Jimmy
Maxwell, both long-standing members of
the Club. Their "pen portraits" are given
below. Voting for the new member of
Council will take place at the AGM at the
annual conference.

Richard Daly. A retired CA and group
finance director, Richard is currently Vice-
chairman and Treasurer of the Central
Scotland Branch of the SOC, of which he
has been a member for some 27 years. FJe
is also a member of the BTO, RSPB, Cornell
Laboratory of Ornithology, and the Wildlife
Art Society. He began birdwatching in
Motherwell when 10 years old. He recalls
his first bird through binoculars was a
Linnet, confirmed by the Observer's Book
of Birds !

He is a regular visitor to North America,
particularly the Canadian Rockies and New
England where, with his wife Avril, he takes
to the trails to observe and paint birds and
other wildlife. The knowledge acquired
over the years has led him to give illustrated
talks on the birds and wildlife of the
Canadian Rockies.

Having a life-long interest in bird and
wildlife art, he returned to his hobby of
wildlife painting at the end of his financial
career, encouraged by his friend, artist
Darren Rees, and by a week spent with
John Busby sketching seabirds on the Bass
Rock and Craigleith.

Jimmy Maxwell is a retired teacher/
lecturer in music. He is married and lives in
Hamilton. He has been a member of the
SOC (Clyde Branch) for as long as he can
remember and has contributed to its
publications. He strongly believes in its role
as the central agency of ornithological
experience, thought and action in Scotland.

He is also a member of the BTO and
entirely approves of its recent association
with the SOC, e.g. in joint conferences and
research. A member of the RSPB, he
helped to found the Clyde Area Members
Croup and has held almost every position
>n its committee over the last 25 years.

iis special interests are birding here and
broad, a Willow Tit project (seven years of

conservation and behavioural study),
promotion of the RSPB's Baron's Haugh
Reserve (including a website updated
weekly), and giving talks to a large variety of
interest groups. He also enjoys hill-walking,
caravanning, sailing, wild flowers and
insects, and ensemble playing (violin).

Annual Conference

The Annual Conference and AGM will take
place at the Balavil Sports Hotel,
Newtonmore, on 1 st- 3 rd November 2002.
The programme includes talks on a variety
of interesting topics, plus the opportunity
for members to hear about progress in the
Club's search for a new home and other
exciting developments. Full details may be
found on the enclosed information leaflet
and booking form. We hope as many of
you as possible will come to what is always
a very lively and enjoyable event.

Regional Committee
Meeting

On Sunday 11th August 2002 represen-
tatives from 10 of the Club's 14 branches
met at Vane Farm RSPB Reserve for the
second Regional Committee meeting.
Development Manager Bill Gardner and
Vice-President Mark Holling also attended.
The weather was kinder than it had been in
March, but the relentless rain for most of
the day limited the birdwatching in what
little free time there was available.

Angus Smith in the chair guided us through
a busy agenda covering terms of reference
for the group, future organisation of the
indoor meetings programme, the annual
conference and the spring conference held
jointly with the BTO, branch website
proposals, membership recruitment at
branch meetings, branch finances and local
projects such as branch hides. Bill gave a
short presentation on the proposals for a
new HQ and Scottish Birdwatching

Resource Centre. Significant decisions were
made on next year's spring conference and
discussions took place about how money is
raised at meetings with some new ideas to
be documented.

Future meetings will be held in March and
August each year. All members are
encouraged to speak to their branch
representatives to glean more details and to
funnel ideas into the group. Those
members who do not have a local branch
should not be concerned; reaching these
members will be the subject of a
forthcoming meeting.

Our Development Manager, Bill Gardner,
received his MBE, for services to the Scottish
Seabird Centre, from H.R.H. Prince Charles,
Duke of Rothesay, at Holyrood Palace on
2nd July 2002.

SOC Regional Committee Meeting, Vane Farm, 7 7 Aug 2002. L-R, Standing: Stewart Neilson,
Bill Gardner, Angus Smith, Brian Smith, John Wills, Al McNee, James Whitelaw. Sitting:
Duncan Watt, Vicky McLellan, Ian Thomson, Joan Howie. (Mark Holling)

*||

St Kilda

As announced in June's SBN (64: 17), the
SOC is considering chartering Bob
Theakston's Poplar Voyager from Oban for
one or more one-week slots next year to
visit St Kilda. The provisional dates can
now be confirmed as 24-31 May, 21-28
June and, due to several requests, 9-16
August 2003.

For August, Stuart Murray (well-known
expert on the island and author of the Birds
of St Kilda ) adds: "Apart from Guillemots, all
the seabirds are still present and I have
always found it a good weather month.
More importantly, it's the best month for
cetaceans. On my last trip in August 2001,
we had Great Shearwaters and Common
Dolphins around the bows at the same
time."

If you are interested in any of these trips,
please contact HQ. The cost will be about
£800 per person for seven nights full board
on the 10-berth Poplar Voyager. We will
need enough people to show an interest
before we can proceed further and finalise
any one of the trips. Bookings must be
confirmed by the end of October. For more
information on the boat, please see
www.poplar-charters.co.uk.

St Kilda is a World Heritage Site, renowned
for its remarkable landscape, wildlife and
history. We are sure that many members
will want to take the opportunity to visit this
unique and remote part of Scotland.

200 Club

Winners from Oct 2001 to March 2002
were:

Oct 1st £30 A. Inglis; 2nd £20 Sylvia
Laing; 3rd £10 Dr J.M. Horobin.

Nov 1st £150 Dr D.M. Shepherd; 2nd £75
Mrs M. Draper; 3rd £50 J. Lamb;

4th £30 Dr Hissett, 5th £20 A.D.

McNeill; 6th £10 B Etheridge.

Dec 1st £50 S.N. Denny; 2nd £30 JP
Martin Bates; 3rd £20 S. Howe; 4th
£1 0 Miss M. Spires.

Jan 1st £30 W.C. Prest; 2nd £20 I.

Balfour Paul; 3rd £20 Miss S. Stuart.

Feb 1st £30 Lt Com. Spragge; 2nd £25
Mrs Ablett; 3rd £20 Miss S. Stuart;

4th £10 Mark Holling.

Mar 1st £50 Mrs Ingham; 2nd £30 S.

Howe; 3rd £20 R.Tozer; 4th £10 J.
Jackson.

All who joined on 1st June for the 200
Club's fourteenth year are warmly thanked
for their continued support which is very
gratefully acknowledged by Council. If you
are an SOC member and over 18 and
would like to join, please contact me at
Rosebank, Gattonside, Melrose, Rox-
lurghshire TD6 9NH.

Daphne Peirse-Duncombe

Launch of the Scottish
Raptor Monitoring
Scheme

Scotland is home to 1 3 species of birds of
prey and four species of owl which breed
regularly. The populations of many of
these are significant on a national and
international basis. Within the UK, some
raptors like Golden Eagle, White-tailed
Eagle and Osprey are almost confined to
Scotland. For others, like Hen Harrier and
Merlin, Scotland is home to the largest
proportion of the UK population. Some
species, such as Common Buzzard, are
currently increasing in many areas.
Eurasian Marsh Harrier is a recent
colonist in Scotland; Red Kite is re-
establishing itself following re-
introduction programmes in three areas
of the country. There is evidence of local
declines of widespread species such as
Common Kestrel and Eurasian
Sparrowhawk. We have very little data on
the breeding numbers of Long-eared
Owls; Eurasian Hobby may become a
regular breeding species in the short-
term; the enigmatic European Honey
Buzzard may be more widespread than
we think. We have very little data on
wintering numbers or non-breeding
populations of most species. Illegal
persecution by a small but active minority
is a constant threat to most species and
continues to restrict the numbers and
ranges of several raptors including Hen
Harrier, Golden Eagle and Goshawk.

The dramatic and exciting image of
raptors draws visitors to Scotland, and for
many birdwatchers in Scotland they
provide a focus for their activities. There
are few who cannot feel that a day's
birding is not enlivened by the discovery
of one of these spectacular birds. Scotland
and its people should be proud of this
heritage and promote our raptors and
their fortunes to a wider public. To date,
the SOC has played a small but consistent
role in this promotion and publication of
raptor-related information, mainly
through its publications.

On 24 June 2002 representatives of seven
Scottish conservation and birdwatching
organisations, including the SOC, signed
an agreement to develop and manage a
Scottish Raptor Monitoring Scheme,
which will help provide robust
information on Scottish raptor
populations. Coordinated by Scottish
Natural Heritage (SNH), this cooperation
will result in uniform, high standards of
data. It will provide a clearer picture of
population trends, changes in ranges, and
the survival and productivity of raptors. To
date, much of this information has been
collected and collated by the Scottish
Raptor Study Groups and summarised in
the Raptor Round-up published by the
SOC. The new agreement w ill enable data
from the other organisations to be
included in this analysis. The Scheme wi
allow the coordination of best-practice
survey methods and standards, the
consistent analysis of data and the wider
reporting of findings through a publich

a

Launch of Scottish Raptor Monitoring
Scheme, Pitlochry, 24 June 2002.

L-R: David Stroud (JNCC), Mark Holling
(SOC), Malcolm Ogilvie (RBBP), Colin
Galbraith (SNH), Patrick Stirling-Aird (SRSG),
Stuart Housden (RSPB Scotland), Nick
Carter (BTO). (Jon Hardey)

available report. Scotland is leading the
way here as no other such coordinated
scheme has been set up before. It is
expected that the Scottish Raptor
Monitoring Scheme will be a model for
similar schemes in England, Wales and
Northern Ireland.

As well as SNH and SOC, the signatories
were Scottish Raptor Study Croups
(SRSGs), RSPB Scotland, BTO Scotland,
Rare Breeding Birds Panel (RBBP), and
Joint Nature Conservation Committee. The
SOC is proud to be asked to participate in
this scheme and believes that it has a
prominent role both in providing data
through the Local Bird Recorder network
and disseminating the results through its
publications and its 14 branches. We also
have a history of organising and partici-
pating in national surveys. The responsi-
bilities of the SOC as signed in the
agreement are as follows:

"SOC will support and promote national
surveys in Scotland, and assist in their
organisation if requested. The SOC has
access to a wide section of the
birdwatching community in Scotland, and
the records they collect, some of which
may not be known to SRSGs. SOC will,
therefore, assist in the provision of relevant
data to complete the picture, especially for
commoner species. The SOC also has an
important role in the dissemination of
information about birds of prey (e.g. news
about surveys, the results of surveys,
summaries of population trends and issues)
which it will develop through its
publications."

An early action of the group assembled to
run the Scheme (on which the SOC is
represented) is to appoint a Raptor
Monitoring Officer who will be funded by
SNH but report to the group.
Advertisements for the post were due to be
made in late August. An update on
activities of the group will be provided in
Ore editions of SBN.

Mark Holling

FROM THE

BRANCH

NEWSLETTERS

SOC/BTO Conference,
Stirling, April 2002

There were about 100 members at the
one-day conference, but I was a little
disappointed that no one else from
Highland made their way down to an
excellent day. There were displays from the
SOC and the BTO, second-hand books to
buy, prints by Derek Robertson, a quiz
identifying feathers and wings of 12
Scottish birds and, of course, eight very
good presentations/talks.

The first talk was by Liz Humphries about
the decline of Kittiwakes on the Isle of
May, its demise with the start of the
sandeel fishery in 1990 and the
subsequent stoppage. Liz radiotracked the
birds as they left their nests to go and feed,
travelling a minimium of 30km to where

the sandeels shoal. Kittiwakes do not
change their food supply if there are no
sandeels, and so are a very good indicator ,
species to check the sandeel numbers. Liz
also mentioned the work done on
Wandering Albatrosses and how their
numbers are falling, probably due to long-
line fishing where lines up to 3km long are
set with thousands of baited hooks. The
albatrosses take the bait, are hooked and
drown. Setting the lines at night might help
as the albatrosses feed by day; weighting
the lines and other ideas are also being
discussed. Satellite transmitters are
attached to the albatrosses to see how far :
the birds range and whether they stop at
all. This is very expensive but necessary to
track these ocean birds. We were also told
that the albatrosses shut down half their
brain and lock their shoulder joints to save
energy!

Rhys Bullman followed this with a presen-
tation about Redshanks in the Lorth
Estuary. Icelandic and Scottish birds over-
winter and, by looking at strontium
isotopes in their bones or feathers, Rhys
could work out where the birds were
coming from. High levels of strontium
come from old rocks such as Scotland,

Wandering Albatross chick. (Mike Fraser)

while lower readings come from the
younger rocks of Iceland. The work is
expensive but complements ringing and
other studies of bird migration.

The third talk was by Jimmy Maxwell who
has been studying Willow Tits in
Strathclyde for the past five years. There
has been a huge decline in England over
the past 25 years, with the wee Scottish
population just holding on. Jimmy has
made special nestboxes for them, colour-
ringed the birds and fed them in winter
with fat and nuts. He found a lot of to-ing
and fro-ing between nest sites, but not
many new birds joining the gene pool. The
main problem facing the birds seems to be
Blue and Great Tits taking over the hole
once the Willow Tit has excavated a
nesting site. Willow Tits always excavate a
new hole and one pair tried five times in
one season. Unfortunately, it was too late
in the year for it to be successful by the
time they had some peace.

Les Hatton then talked about the Black-
tailed Godwits that winter on the Eden
estuary, where he is warden. The godwits
have been on the increase since the 1980s
and some stay in the summer. In 1991 Les
caught 110 birds, colour-ringed them and
decided to study them as they were easy to
catch (ha ha!). Ever since, he has managed
to catch only a further four birds! However,
he assured us that he is perfecting his
technique. The majority of the birds stay
around the estuary all winter with only a
handful going south towards Humberside
and none going north past Montrose Basin.
Orange rings above the right "knee" are
Eden-ringed birds; lime-green rings are
Icelandic-ringed birds. Nearly all go to
Iceland to breed, with some going across
the central belt of Scotland rather than
following the coast.

After a splendid three-course lunch, some
browsing and a lot of chat with old friends,
it was back to the lecture theatre. Chris
Wernham gave a talk about the
forthcoming Migration Atlas - a precis of
the talk that she gave some branches this
winter. Then Dawn Balmer told us about
another project run by the BTO, the
Migration Watch Project. This is where
people send information about spring
migration arrivals and is only available on
the internet. It is fast with rapid feedback,
using vast amounts of info and is fun! You
have to register on the computer and there
are three levels - a short list of 1 0 common
migrants, a longer list and the full list. There
are maps etc showing the progress of birds
as they spread north, as well as the dates of
their arrival on our shores. The website is
www.bto.org/ migwatch. If you have access
to a computer, do look it up. The project
will be running for three years and should
give a huge amount of information on bird
migration across Britain.

After a short break, Ian Andrews, our Club
President, told us about our move from 21
Regent Terrace in Edinburgh after 43
years. The SOC was started in 1936, had
its first AGM in 1937 with George
Waterston as President, suspended during
the war years and then met in Charlotte
Square after the war. In 1959, £4000 was
given to form a Scottish Centre for
Ornithology and 21 Regent Terrace was
purchased with Fair Isle Bird Observatory
Trust (FIBOT) owning the building and
SOC leasing two rooms, as did the RSPB.
In 1986, No. 21 was transferred to the
SOC Trustees. In Feb/March 2002 the
property was sold and the library packed
into 700 boxes in six weeks and moved to
premises in Musselburgh with two offices
and a store room for the books and

journals. The search is now on for a
suitable new HQ, preferably with good
year-round bird-watching and a hide
nearby. This will take time and we will
probably be in our temporary accommo-
dation for at least a year. Membership
numbers have declined and that is another
problem we must overcome.

Jeremy Greenwood, director of the BTO,
then outlined plans for their Scottish office,
now at Stirling University. He confirmed
the dose ties with the SOC and did not
rule out joining us at our new HQ if
suitable. Alan Lauder will not be replaced,
but instead they have three permanent
posts with back-up from HQ in Thetford.
He has great plans for surveys etc and, as
usual, his enthusiasm was wonderful.

All in all, it was a good conference, nice to
renew friendships with speakers who had
been up there in previous years and to
meet new people. One of the important
reasons for our Club is for members to
meet up, exchange sightings and stories
and generally spread the pleasure of
birdwatching. It is good to see birds, but it
is even better to share those sightings with
others. We can also compare numbers of
different birds like the House Sparrow, so
that we can take any action to stop their
decline. As a group comprising mainly
keen amateurs, we can and must have a
say in the conservation of our environment
and wildlife. We can educate others, not
just youngsters, by showing them the birds
through our scopes, talking to them and
getting them interested, perhaps by starting
off in the garden or on a favourite walk.

Janet Crummy
( From Highland Branch Newsletter).

09068 700234

*calls are charged at premium rate

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from around Scotland

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Manx Shearwaters
in the Firth of Clyde

2001 produced one of the most
memorable years of summer seawatching
in the inner Firth of Clyde, mainly due to
spectacular numbers of Manx Shearwaters.
Virtually unknown in the area until 1988,
large numbers of Manxies started to
appear in 1 989, with a maximum count of
254 north and 434 south past Cloch Point
within 1.5 hours on 24 August.

It was John Spooner who first noted the
appearance of these birds. Working with
the MoD Police, John had a launch patrol
area which encompassed the inner Firth as
far out as Bute and Arran. During 20 years
prior to 1988, he saw only a handful of
Manxies.

Since 1990, the trend has been for ever-
increasing numbers of shearwaters to
come into the Firth of Clyde. One of the
best spots to watch them is Cloch Point,
which is on the Renfrewshire coast near
the town of Gourock. Numbers are
variable and rather unpredictable from
one year to the next. For example, in 1 999
Frances Gatens and I recorded "only"
2,826 bird-days at Cloch, then in the
following year a massive total of 14,545
bird-days, mainly during July and August.
Last year was even more impressive, with
the number of Manx Shearwater sightings
in excess of 35,000 bird-days, a record
total.

Between 1988 and 1993 a pattern
developed. Manxies would appear each
year, mainly between mid July and early
September. The regular movement would
involve them moving north past Cloch
Point, heading up the estuary as far as
Loch Long and Greenock, then turning
around and heading back south again.
During these six years no shearwater was
ever seen landing on the water or feeding.

Then in 1994 their behaviour changed
quite dramatically. There were still the
usual movements past the Point, but
increasingly flocks began to land on the
water, sometimes actively fishing in the
company of Gannets. On 30 July that year
I had one of my first really memorable
days. Not only were there lots of Gannets
diving and good numbers of Harbour
Porpoises offshore, but also a Basking
Shark, only the second record for
Renfrewshire.

The evening was calm and warm. Manxies
were around in their hundreds, by that
time most moving out of the estuary. I
counted 2,005 passing south within the
course of an hour. By the end of the hour,
a large raft of about 1 ,400 had settled on
the water only 200m offshore. With all this
activity taking place, it was hard to believe
I was in Renfrewshire, not the Western or
Northern Isles.

Last summer produced many spectacular
days at Cloch Point, with up to 3,000
shearwaters recorded on several
occasions. Observers visiting for the first
time were pleasantly surprised (some were
astonished!) to see how close in the birds
could be viewed. Even during fair weather
it is not unusual to see small groups pass
by as close as 50m, and for flocks of
several hundred to land on the sea only
1 00-200m offshore.

It is also fascinating to watch the
shearwaters' feeding behaviour. Large
flocks tend to split up and forage over the
sea then, usually attracted by diving
Gannets or a group of their own kind, they
converge from a radius of several
kilometres on a shoal of fish. They engage
in frenzied feeding activity, flying around
in tight circles and making shallow dives
into the water. Sometimes this is all
happening very close to the shore.

If you haven't been to Cloch Point to see
this amazing spectacle, give it a try
sometime. The shearwaters can be present
any time from late June to early
September, but from late July to the end of
August is the best period. There is no need
to wait for windy conditions - some of the
most spectacular flocks have been present
on flat calm days.

Other seabirds are quite scarce - a look at
the position of Cloch Point on a map
shows it to be land-locked by the Kintyre
peninsula from the Atlantic Ocean, and it
is a fair distance up the Firth of Clyde from
the main seabird migration routes through
the Irish Sea. However, there have been
several Balearic Shearwaters with the
Manxies (including one in late July 2002),
and skuas are now seen more frequently,
regularly Arctics and Bonxies but also a
few Pomarines and a couple of Long-
tailed in recent years. Tysties are common
and breed in the area, and flocks of
several hundred Guillemots can be
present, all a change from the past when
the inner Firth of Clyde and its estuary
experienced much greater pollution
levels.

Not far up the firth, dramatic changes in
the populations of fish-eating species have
also occurred on the Clyde estuary, which
has become a nationally important site for
Red-throated Divers and Slavonian
Grebes. WeBS counts logged a record
total of 343 Red-throated Divers in April
2002, a memorable 328 of them in a
single gathering at Ardmore Point.

lain Gibson
(From Clyde Bird News 7)

Torness, a migrant hot-spot. (Mike Fraser)

Birding with Energy -
Lothian SOC's partnership
with British Energy

The area around Torness Nuclear Power
Station in East Lothian is well known to
many local birders as a place that attracts
spring and autumn migrants. A Pied
Wheatear on the beach at Thorntonloch on
27-30 October 1991 was the seventh
record for Scotland and put the site firmly
on the birding map. Remarkably, a Desert
Wheatear chose the same area, as well as
the seawall surrounding the power station.
Both species were "firsts" for the Lothians.
A Short-toed Lark, only the third for the
Lothians, was found on the short grass at
Torness on 30 May 1989, where it
remained until 3 June. Amazingly, a Shore
Lark fed alongside it for several days.

The area is not just important for migrants.
Ringed Plovers were noted breeding at
Torness from 1993-99, with a maximum of
five pairs in 1 998. However, the species has
not been noted in the last two years,
mirroring a decline shown elsewhere in
East Lothian over the least few years. A
survey of the grassland area east of the
power station suggested that Skylark and
Meadow Pipit were the only breeding
species, with six territories each.

Lothian SOC has recently formed a
partnership with British Energy, aiming to
carry out habitat improvement in the area
around the power station. These
improvements will aim to enhance the area
for breeding birds, migrants and winter
visitors. A management plan has been
prepared entailing the provision of areas of
scrub, open water and winter feeding. The
first phase began with 20 volunteers
planting 1,000 shrubs on 17 March. We
hope that in a few years these will provide
nest sites, feeding and shelter.

Another challenge of our Torness
partnership involves the BTO/Hanson Bird
Challenge. This nationwide competition
aims to find the best industrial sites for
birds in the UK, and also awards points for
habitat enhancement. The idea is to
record how many species are using such

sites in the course of 2002. Torness has
been entered for the first time this year
and obviously we want it to do well! All
you need to do is record all the bird
species using the site, i.e. on the ground or
hunting overhead. Fly-over birds not using
the area cannot be counted. So, please, if
you are in the area, note down what you
see and send your observations to me
a.s.a.p. (contact details below). Count
boundaries are: south of the road to
Skateraw beach, east of the old A1, north
of the road to Thorntonloch Caravan Site,
and down to the low-water mark.

Included in the opposition is Sizewell
Power Station which got 187 species last
year!

Ian Thomson
4 Craigielaw, Aberlady, East Lothian
EH32 OPY. imt.aberlady@ic24.net
(From Lothian Bird News, May 2002)

Bean Geese in the
Clyde area - an update

Regular monitoring of the flock started in
December 1989 and has continued
intensively to the present day. The flock
size has risen from the 1989/90 figure of
1 1 2 to the present total of 1 92 birds.

This trend is very unusual in European
populations. Most flocks are either
decreasing or have disappeared from
traditional haunts, leaving only the
strongholds in southern Scandinavia. The
other British population in the Yare Valley
(the Slammanan flock, as it has become
known), arrives much earlier, around late
Sept, and leaves later in mid to late
February. This ostensibly means that for
much of the winter our birds are the only
Bean Geese in Britain and some of the
earliest winter visitors to arrive in the
country.

In 2001 the first 20 birds arrived on 24
September at Easter Fannyside Loch. Most
birdwatchers will know this site, but
probably don't know that it has been
specifically bought as a reserve for the
Bean Geese and is managed by the RSPB.
Much of the study concentrates on site
usage by the birds as they face ever-
growing pressures. The impact of forestry
and farming on what is undoubtedly the
most defensive and wary of our goose
species is becoming a big concern. The
birds exploit marginal ground and require
sites that suffer little or no disturbance,
which means that we have to control
access to the birds whenever possible.

With liaison between farmers and
birdwatchers, all sectors must be catered
for, but it must be highlighted that birders
on a day out come low in the list of

priorities. The reduction in the number of
fields used by the birds has been
decreasing and sites like Carron Valley
Reservoir and Loch Ellrig have all but been
abandoned for varying reasons, leaving just
a few core areas.

To help fight for conservation initiatives, a
Bean Goose Action Group has been
established. Members include all the main
conservation bodies, local councils and
other interested parties. This move has
ensured that detrimental impacts on the
birds can be minimised and that we all
work towards agreed aims to protect this
nationally-important flock. It is also hoped
to have viewing points at various sites on
the plateau to allow greater controlled
access, and information boards sited to
keep birders up to date.

The flock is favouring two main areas at
the moment. The first is Beam Farm in
Falkirk District. To view the site go to
Newcraig Cottage at NS849756 and park
on the hard standing near the gate leading
north over the moor. Walk a km or so to
the turning circle which overlooks the
field. A good view will be anything under
300m, but the birds are usually further
away. Please do not leave the path - these
birds are not like other geese which fly off
to an adjacent field, but will go to the other
end of their range some 5-1 0km away.

The other current site in Blackhill in North
Lanarkshire. This can only be viewed by
looking south from Fannyside Mill Farm at
NS809734, some 1.5km away. I trust that
the difficulty in studying these birds is
apparent, as is the importance of
maintaining the sanctity of a few core areas
and important sites.

Over the years, the study has developed
into a working partnership between myself
and Angus Maciver and is now partly
funded by the Bean Goose Action Group.
A website giving an insight into the flock
can be reached via the SOC's links page
and would appear to have been well
received. If you want to know more or to
get involved, please contact us at 3
Mitchell Drive, Cardross G82 5JJ; e mail:
john@fabalis.freeserve.co.uk, tel: 01389
841 351 . You will be made most welcome!

John Simpson
(From Clyde Bird News 1)

9

/A wetland alongside the River Dee at
Cults, Inchgarth is the first, and only
nature reserve run by the SOC, in this case
the Grampian Branch. The establishment
of the reserve was described by Ian Francis
in SBN 58: 7 (June 2000). Here Ian brings
us up to date with recent developments.

News from Inchgarth
Nature Reserve
-July 2002

The wild-bird cover crop sown during
2001 began to come into its own from
December onwards, as the Quinoa and
Rape seed became available. Bearing in
mind that before this crop was sown, the
area of ground was dry grassland
dominated by Cocksfoot and must have
held very few birds indeed, the following
table shows the maximum number of birds
counted during the winter in the crop

It seems obvious that the provision of wild-
bird food in this way was helpful to many
species, most of which were present in
varying numbers throughout the winter. We
may have drawn in birds from elsewhere,
but it does demonstrate that if lots of farms
grew this kind of crop then winter survival
would be easier for many species. We
considered the crop to have been a success
and, therefore, with help from funding
from a Schlumberger Environmental
Award, in late May we organised the
sowing of two acres of the crop, rather
than one. We have divided the area into
two halves - one containing a similar mix
to last year, and the other dominated by
Rape. Work last winter by the Grampian
Ringing Group demonstrated how
important this crop can be, particular for
Linnets, Twite and Goldfinches. At the
time of writing, the crop is growing
strongly, and we await the results from the
coming winter with great anticipation.

• ting muddy margins and an island is aimed to improve the habitat for feeding and
costing birds at Inchgarth. (Ian Francis)

Table 1. Maximum numbers of winter
birds in wild-bird crop.

Sparrowhawk

1

Kestrel

1

Pheasant

12

Meadow Pipit

1

Dunnock

1

Robin

3

Stonechat

2

Song Thrush

1

Blackbird

2

Blue Tit

6

Rook

7

Chaffinch

200

Brambling

30

Greenfinch

1

Goldfinch

12

Linnet

2

Twite

1

Reed Bunting

10

Yellowhammer

1

Cattle have now returned to graze the
grassland and pool-side vegetation (from
June), and during last winter, the muddy
edges and cover around the pool provided
habitat for a good range of birds. The
following species maxima were recorded:

Table 2. Maximum counts of waterbirds
at Inchgarth pool.

Heron

3

Teal

35

Mallard

100

Wigeon

20

Jack Snipe

6

Snipe

34

Great efforts were made by lain and David
Landsman, along with Ewan Weston, to
open up the edges and create a nesting or
roosting island safe from ground predators.
The photograph shows the result of their
physical work in March. Our next project is
to investigate the creation of a larger
shallow scrape, bare of vegetation and
attractive to waders. This is mainly through
Juncus rush clearance near the pool. We,
hope this might attract a wider range ofi
autumn migrants.

As before, if any branch members have
suggestions about the reserve or want tc
get involved in future activities, we will be
pleased to hear from you.

Ian Francii
ifnp @clara. co. ul

i

Effects of Greylag Geese
on breeding waterfowl
at Gladhouse Reservoir,
Lothian

At Gladhouse in 2000 only Greylag Goose
(ca 20 pairs) and Mute Swan (one pair)
had a successful breeding season. Visits
have been fewer than in past years, but
have concentrated on assessing the
fortunes of breeding wildfowl. This factor
has not affected the results. Only one
brood of Mallard (a single small duckling
scuttling away) was noted. There were no
broods of Tufted Duck, Teal, Coot nor
Great Crested Grebe and by mid-June very
few birds were to be seen on the water
except geese and swans.

Possible adverse factors affecting
breeding wildfowl at Gladhouse:

Mink. In past years this species has certainly
been the main factor in decimating the
nesting wildfowl. The estates tell us that
they are not the problem now that they
used to be and that they are not being
caught in their traps around the reservoir.

Water levels/wet summers. Two very wet
summers and the recent dropping of the
water level for repairs would not help the
survival of young birds, but these have
occurred in the past without any lasting
damage. During the winter of 1 997/98 the
water level was lowered for repair work
and we did expect some disruption to the
diving waterbirds and thought that this, or
Mink, was responsible for poor Coot
numbers. Things have deteriorated even
more since but it was not until recently
that the possibility of large numbers of
geese having an effect came to mind.

Greylag Goose. On 29 May 2000, 464
adult and young geese were concentrated
in several groups and probably at times
dominated most areas along the south
shore. Large numbers are present from
March to July. The table below gives the

build-up in numbers of Greylag at
Gladhouse since 1 994. By 1 995 there were
over 100 geese and numbers in
spring/summer quadrupled in the next two
years. There was no obvious (to the
observer) adverse effect on other species as
breeding success on the reservoir is erratic.

The present status of the other breeding
species and their possible relationship to
the geese are discussed individually.

Mallard. Broods used to be regularly noted
along the south shore with six or more
families annually. In 2000 only one small
duckling was noted once. The Mallard
broods fed along the edge of the emergent
vegetation and it seems probable that they
have been overwhelmed by the sheer
numbers of geese and gone elsewhere,
either up the streams or to small local
ponds. Certainly the number of Mallards on
Gladhouse in late August are well down in
recent years. The local situation is not
helped by the October fishing now
practised on Portmore and Rosebery.

Tufted Duck. The status of breeding
Tufted can be gauged by the numbers of
females in May attended by perhaps
double the number of drakes. From 1 995-
98 around 1 0 ducks suggested there was a
slow recovery from the depths of the Mink
predation, although still a long way below
the original 25 pairs. Very young broods
can be wiped out by wet, cold spells, so it
was not until 1999, when only one female
was seen, that a decrease became
noticeable. Now perhaps we are down to
only the one pair. Tufted Duck feed in the
shallower water round the shore and this is
the area where the geese swarm, flying
back and forth to the adjacent fields. Until
recently there has been an annual arrival
in June/July of mostly drake Tufted which
stayed to moult. These birds are in small
parties, often sleeping or sheltering among
the floating duckweed or in a flock not far
offshore. Numbers dropped from the
normal 200-300 to 22 in 2000; goose
disturbance is the likely cause.

Great Crested Grebe. When grazing by
sheep was ended 30 years ago there was a
tremendous growth of willows and rushes
round the water's edge. The number of
pairs of this species rose from two to six,
with five broods in one memorable year.
More recently, there have been 3-4 pairs
nest-building, with none breeding
successfully. For the past three years most
birds have left the reservoir by July (mid-
June in 2000), which is a new feature. The
southwest corner was always a favourite
nesting area. In 1999 there were few
sightings here although the birds did build
a nest with no evidence of eggs having
been laid. In 2000 this and the burn-
mouth area were completely deserted by
the species. There are always numbers of
geese on the water or flying in and out to
feed. Other sites suffer the same fate.
There is little doubt that goose disturbance
is the cause of desertion of these
traditional Great Crested Grebe sites that
had been used for the past 50 years.

Little Grebe. This species has not been
affected to the same extent as Great
Crested Grebe. Their nests are often built in
thick willow cover but recently the more
open nests on floating duck-weed have
been noted. Few young were seen in 2000
and no small groups feeding out in the
open water in July/autumn have been seen
although several years ago there were
always 1 0 or more.

Coot. The few pairs which bred and raised
young a few years back have nearly gone.
Of the two birds in the southwest corner in
spring 1999, one soon disappeared - a
victim of Mink! However, a pair in the
southwest corner in 2000 did not
apparently nest and certainly there have
been no young in recent years.

Moorhen. The nest of this species is usually
built further inshore from open water than
that of the Coot. At least three territories
persist, in denser cover, and young broods
are regularly noted. As this species is heavily
preyed upon by Mink, this provides more
evidence that some other factor is
responsible for their general decline.

On the evidence it seems that the present
wipe-out of breeding waterfowl is due to
one major factor - the mass of Greylag
dominating the more sheltered shores of
the reservoir. More to the point, can
anything be done to rectify the problem?

The late R.W.J. Smith

(This was Bob's last contribution to the Club
publications, which he keenly supported for
many years. An appreciation of his life and
work appears in the last issue of Scottish
Birds 22: 117-19).

Numbers of breeding feral Greylag Geese at Gladhouse Reservoir, 1986 - 1999.

Year

Max full-grown birds in breeding season

Max young

1986

2

0

1987

6

0

1988

6

5

1989

15

7

1990

11

28

1991

13

26

1992

41

23

1993

49

33

1994

59

67

1995

50

(13 broods)

1996

90

(23 broods)

1997

100+

(27 broods)

1998

70

104 (23 broods)

1999

80+

(21 broods)

11

Wartime anti-tank blocks at Aberlady Bay : ca 7950. (Keith Macgregor)

Aberlady Bay in 1 946 had been largely out
of bounds during the war years, and apart
from invasion defences was also used as a
target-practice area. The targets were
mini-submarines moored out on the sand
bar and at least one of these shell-shocked
subs has been visible at certain tides for
many years.

These facts were unknown to me in that
year as I approached on my utility black
wartime Humber bicycle having heard
that a ternery existed in the bay. The
roadside from the village and across the
estuary half way to the timber bridge was
lined with concrete anti-tank blocks which
extended right up the saltings, some of
which can be still seen today.

Reaching the bridge, two terns perched on
the handrail seemed to confirm that the
ternery may be fact, spurred me on, only to
be abruptly stopped-short by a notice at
the bridge prominent with the word
DANGER! This warning referred to possible
unexploded munitions and caused a
momentary doubt about going on.
However, the terns were there and had to
be checked out, but with added caution!

The aspect on crossing the bridge was
completely open compared with today -
no fences, no conifers or hawthorn and
only relatively small clumps of buckthorn,
with much rabbit-cropped grass providing
good ground-nesting habitat for various
^pecies. Following a track towards the
4arl Loch, then much vegetated, I passed
o remains of an old cottage on the right
Ifway out and a well-defined old curling

pond to the left as well as crossing the old
coach track from Gullane which traversed
the bay to Aberlady - obviously only used
at low tide! Just to the west of the Marl
Loch was a substantial hexagonal
defensive blockhouse, brick-and-concrete

built, but now peacefully occupied by
nesting Swallows. Straying down to the
saltings I was aware of a now constant
clamour of alarm calls mostly from nesting
Lapwing and Redshank, but also sharper
calls of terns. Quite soon I came across

After public pressure, the area was made a
Local Nature Reserve 50 years ago in 1952,
not only to protect the bird interest but also
its rich flora. Initial local problems took
some time to subside and although the
breeding species density may never return
to former days, perhaps a little habitat
creation and adjustment could enliven the
future interest that the area has to offer.

any time of the day with most of the
damage being done not by the genuine
wildfowler but by those who simply used
birds for target practice, often leaving
injured birds to die. Firing into massed
wader flocks was not uncommon. For
example, on 30 January 1949 a count
revealed 25 dead or injured birds of 13
species, including Curlew, Redshank, Knot,
Dunlin, Common Scoter and Wigeon.

Keith Macgregor

(Keith has been birdwatching at Aberlady
Bay for longer than he cares to remember
and is one of Edinburgh's most active
birders and a loyal supporter of the Club.
He was formerly SOC local recorder for East
Lothian and Berwickshire and was the
author, with Frank Hamilton, of " The Birds
of Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve", reprinted
in 7 96 0 by the SOC from the Transactions
of the East Lothian Antiquarian and Field
Naturalists' Society Vol VIII; price 5/-,
postage 4d extra. (I think an update is
due?). If any other members would like to
cast their minds back to their early or
formative days birding in Scotland, be it five
or fifty years ago, we would be very keen to
hear from them).

Offshoots of the sandspit colony were
found in the dunes, along the saltings and
even a few pairs attempting to nest
upstream from the timber bridge. These
were easily visible from the main road and
thus vulnerable. Even in the peak tern year
of 1952 when 138 nests were counted on
22 June, breeding success was depressingly
low.

The most interesting breeding wader was
undoubtedly Dunlin and their presence

I and display were apparent on these early
visits, but it was only on 1 3 June 1 948 that
the first nest of four eggs was located,
accomplished by watching the bird
furtively return to its very concealed nest.
In these days three to four pairs were

A Common Tern nest on the saltings. (Ray Jackson)

Frank Hamilton (left) and Keith Macgregor ringing wader chicks, Aberlady Bay ca 7 949. (Ray
Jackson)

what I took to be a terns' nest with two
eggs in a mini-scrape in the grass. Its
identity was proved when its owner, a
Common Tern, was seen to alight. There
were just one or two other nests scattered
on the saltings; hardly a colony. Walking
back along the longer grass towards the
bridge produced a downy nest with two
large, pale olive eggs which had to be my
first Eider - a great birding day.

By the summer of 1 947 further visits meant
further exploration toward the dunes, and
Ringed Plover nests were added to the list.
Flowever, the most exciting find was the
spit of sand and shells fingering out from
the nearest dunes and this is where the
majority of terns were breeding, there
proving to be three species: Common,
Arctic and, best of all, Little. At first some
confusion existed between Little Tern and
Ringed Plover eggs, but was soon rectified
by nearby comparisons. In 1946/47 a
maximum of about 30 pairs of terns
nested, but many, if not most, were either
washed away by high tides or taken by egg
collectors. In consequence of which fewer
than 10 young ever fledged.

breeding and several young were found -
a rare sea-level location in southeastern
Scotland.

Of other waders there were noticeably
more than today and nest counts made in
April/May 1949 gave totals of five
Redshank, nine Ringed Plover and no less
than 26 Lapwing, with no doubt others
missed. The high density of Lapwings was
certainly due to the short rabbit-grazed
grass and the subsequent decline was due
in part to the advent of myxomatosis.

At this time the downside of the bay, apart
from the constant attention of egg
collectors, was the amount of

indiscriminate shooting that took place at

This is the first in an occasional series of articles on Scotland's bird artists. If there is anyone you would like to see featured in future, do let us
know. You may want to write about or interview someone yourself for SBN? Should we broaden the scope to include bird photographers and
writers working in Scotland ? Please send us your thoughts and ideas.

BIRD ARTISTS IN SCOTLAND - Chris Rose

The first thing to catch our eye on arriving
at Chris Rose's delightful Borders cottage
was a familiar-looking clump of Butterbur
by the driveway. On enquiry, yes, it is the
same plant that features in one of his
paintings! The Whitethroat perched on a
leaf in the painting was not to be seen, but
noisy families of Swallows twittered around
the buildings and over the garden.

The Swallows were an appropriate
welcoming committee, as Chris's first
major commission was to illustrate the
Helm handbook Swallows and Martins of
the World. Published in 1989 with text by
Angela Turner, it was voted the British Birds
"Best Bird Book of the Year". Depicting
species as familiar as House Martin to the
obscure (and possibly almost extinct)
White-eyed River Martin, the 24 plates set
a new standard for their genre, a standard
that has probably only since been
surpassed by the artist himself.

Chris has lived near Melrose for ten years
or so, having migrated north, firstly from
Uganda (where he was born in 1959) to
England at the age of six, thence to
Scotland. The latter move followed a spell
working as illustrator for the Dorset
Heritage Coast Project, a post which he
took having failed (thank goodness) to
find employment as a biologist after
graduating from Nottingham University in
1981. During his time painting
information boards and sign posts (which
must now be collectors' items) he decided
that a career in painting was not only
possible but desirable, and he began to
build up a portfolio and submit work to
galleries. A three-month trek through
India and Nepal in 1983 provided new
and exciting material. The resultant
paintings were exhibited the Mall
Galleries in London in the annual
Exhibition of the Society of Wildlife
Artists, to which he was elected a
member.

Vhitethroat (Chris Rose)

Chris Rose with two of his plates for The Handbook of Birds of the World. (Elaine Rose)

the Birds of the World. We were lucky
enough to be shown a couple of almost
completed plates destined for a future
volume of HBW - brilliant and exquisite
South American fruit-eaters and more
delicately subdued South and Central
American cotingas, with two Bare-necked
Fruit-crows.

Another on-going project is a monograph
of the world's robins and chats. Chris
extracted from a drawer some plates at
various stages of development: pages of
perfect Middle Eastern wheatears, scrub-
robins from Africa, stonechats from the
taiga. They were all stunning. Though by
necessity positioned somewhat formally
on the page, every bird looked you in the
eye and it would have been no surprise if
one had hopped off in hot pursuit of a
passing insect.

Producing plate after plate of often little-
known species to tight deadlines must be
a wearying task, but this is certainly noi
apparent in Chris's work. His illustration
have freshness, clarity and characte
which only someone who knows anc
understands birds can capture. Thei
structure and plumage are perfect!’
rendered and there is a liveliness to th<
birds which belies the fact that many ha(
to be painted from museum skins.

His work reached an even wider audience
when he won the prestigious British Birds
"Bird Illustrator of the Year Award" in
1986. A major influence and support at
this time and since was one of the judges,
the artist Robert Gillmor.

A print of the seriously alluring Lady Agnew
of Lochnaw by Singer Sargent is almost the
only non-birdy picture on the walls of
Chris's split-level studio. She overlooks a
large "in progress" oil of a Mallard and
ducklings on one level, and the disciplined
output of book illustrations on the other.
His work can be seen in many titles,
including three volumes of BWP and, most
recently, in the monumental Handbook of

14

A vital distraction from hours at the easel
or drawing board is found in gardening.
He and Elaine, a scientific proof-reader,
have created a beautiful garden from what
was essentially a field. Bounding the lawns
and more formal areas of colourful
herbaceous borders are a small burn and
plenty of rough grass and newly planted
native trees to provide good habitat for
wildlife. (His garden list includes
Bluethroat, although to his annoyance he
didn't see it but was gleefully told about it
over the 'phone!).

Travel is another of his great pleasures.
Recently back from California (a painting
of two Sea Otters was in progress next to
the Mallard), he has travelled extensively
in Africa, the Far East and Europe in search
of birds and subjects for his paintings.
Expeditions with fellow painters and
sculptors of the Artists for Nature
Foundation to the Bierbze marshlands in
Poland and the Extremadura region of
Spain helped to promote the conservation
of these important areas.

On leaving the studio after a planned one-
hour visit had somehow extended to three
(well, when birders and artists get together
there is always plenty to talk about), we
noticed a framed set of photographs on
the wall. One particular shot caught our
attention, not so much because it was of
Chris being awarded the "Bird Illustrator
of the Year Award" 16 years ago, but

Whitethroat (Chris Rose)

Originals and prints by Chris Rose can be
seen regularly at the following galleries
and websites:

Abbey Artifacts Gallery, Abbey St Bathans
(01361 84031 2; www.abbeyartifacts.
co.uk)

The Nigel Stacy-Marks Gallery, Perth and
Auchterarder (www.stacy-marks.co.uk)

The annual SWLA exhibition at the Mall
Galleries, London (www.swla.co.uk)

The Wildlife Art Gallery, Lavenham,
Suffolk, (www.wildlifeartgallery@
btinternet.com)

On The Wild Side Gallery, Great Malvern
(www.wildsidegallery.co.uk)

and on www.birdillustrators.com

because he was still wearing the same
distinctive orange shirt. He laughed and
hurriedly pointed out that it was, of
course, now only worn when painting. If,
however, you would like to help Chris
update his wardrobe, then buy a copy of
his latest book, The Grebes of the World.
With text by Malcolm Ogilvie and
published by Bruce Coleman, it will be on
the shelves towards Christmas.

Mike and Liz Fraser

15

REVIEWS

Handbook of the Birds of the World,
Volume 7. Del Hoyo. J., Elliot, A. and
Sargatal, J. (Eds.). 2002. Lynx Edicions. 613
pp, 70 colour plates, 317 colour
photographs and maps. ISBN 84-87334-
37-7. Hbk. £110.

If I was stranded on a desert island (as the
cliche goes) and was able to choose only
one book, without hesitation I would want
this set. Quite simply 'HBW' (as it is
affectionately known) is the most superb
set of bird books ever published.

Volume 7 (Jacamars, Puffbirds, Barbets,
Toucans, Honeyguides and Woodpeckers)
completes the non-passerine section. We
are fortunate to have a further nine
volumes to look forward to, covering the
world's passerines.

Continuing the practice set in earlier
volumes, specialists have been used to
produce the family accounts (e.g. Hans
Winkler and David Christie who previously
wrote the text for the Pica Press
Woodpeckers guide, are responsible for the
woodpeckers), which are lavishly illustrated
with colour photos. The individual species
accounts are necessarily concise, but
remarkably instructive, all being
accompanied by a range map. Every
species is fully illustrated on 70 outstanding
colour plates (painted by sixteen artists
including Hilary Burn, Ian Lewington, Chris
Rose and Ian Willis).

I thoroughly recommend that anyone who
is not already collecting this series should
commence doing so without further delay.
Whilst not cheap, it nevertheless represents
outstanding value for money.

Ron Forrester

Fair Isle Bird Observatory Report for
2001. Shaw, D. and Shaw, H. (Eds). 2002.
Fair Isle Bird Observatory Trust. 1 1 2 pp, 1 8
colour plates, b&w illustrations, map.
£6.50 (inch p&p).

This is the 54th annual report produced
by the observatory. As usual, it is full of the
sort of information and detail that Fair Isle
fans and island buffs in general will enjoy,
and every aspect of observatory life is
covered. Staff, vehicles, boilers and
sewage systems all feature, as does the
addition of a new bar in the observatory!
Habitat improvements include fencing-off
areas to establish cover for migrants, all
the more important as fewer crops are
grown on the island nowadays.

Interesting accounts of moths and other
wildlife are included, but the bulk of the
report is devoted to birds. Seabirds had a
dreadful breeding season, almost certainly
lue to a shortage of sandeels. Only four
> retie Tern chicks fledged from 2,836

nests (ironically, the highest number ever
recorded on the island). Puffin productivity
and pullus weights were the lowest on
record and only a "handful" of Kittiwake
chicks fledged from 8,200 pairs.

The relatively low number of birds ringed
(3,913 for the year) reflected the seabird
failure and a very quiet spring for migrants
(the highlights of which were Great Snipe
and three White-spotted Bluethroats).
Autumn was a bit more lively, with Black-
faced Bunting (Scotland's first) and Pallid
Swift (Scotland's third and Shetland's first)
being the major island rarities. White-
rumped Sandpiper, Ring-billed Gull, Black-
throated Thrush and old faithfuls such as
Olive-backed Pipit (possibly as many as
six), Pechora Pipit and rare warblers in the
shape of Pallas's Grasshopper, Lanceolated,
Blyth's Reed, Radde's and Dusky, helped
maintain Fair Isle's reputation as the place
to be during migration if you want to see
quality birds and avoid the Scilly masses.

Among the predominantly "in the hand"
bird photographs (including one of more
Tree Sparrows than some of us see all year
nowadays) are fine shots of Icterine
Warbler and Rustic Bunting in the field.
The more distant Black-faced Bunting is
suitably tantalising.

Visitor numbers (up 18% on 2000)
continue to improve, boosted by special
accommodation rates in August and
October, both great months for migrants.
This report confirms that Fair Isle remains
a friendly, vibrant place of which the birds
are only one, albeit the most important,
attraction.

Mike Fraser

Pheasants, Partridges & Grouse,
Including buttonquails, sandgrouse and
allies. Madge, S. and McGowan, P 2002.
Illustrated by Norman Arlott, Robin
Budden, Daniel Cole, John Cox, Carl
D'Silva, Kim Franklin and David Mead.

Christopher Helm, London. 488pp, 72
plates, numerous maps. ISBN 0-7136-
3966-0. £45.00

This is the latest in the Helm Identification
Guides series and claims to be the first
comprehensive review of all the world's
galliforme birds (other than megapodes
and the Neotropical guans and currasows),
together with the buttonquails and the
unique Plains-wanderer. This family
includes some of the most sought-after
birds in the world and some of the most
endangered. Many of these species are
colourful or spectacular and no volume
about these birds could fail to be a
beautiful book just to look at, and this one
is certainly that.

The book is divided into two sections, the
plates in the first and the species' accounts
in the second. Unlike many other books in
this series, there is not a lengthy
introduction to the group being examined
and I found this a little disappointing, but
the relatively brief introduction may have
been necessary to save space. More
discussion on the relationships and
evolution of the species covered would
have led to a more interesting book. There
is, however, some discussion of taxonomy
throughout the species accounts in the
introductions to each genus or subgenus.

Any identification guide stands or falls on
the quality of its illustrations and the
illustrations in this book are beautiful,
although not of the quality we have come
to expect from this series. Many of plates
look old-fashioned and the birds are not
really lifelike. This would be
understandable if the artists were
illustrating such little-known species as
the Congo Peacock or Udzungwa
Partridge, but it also happens in plates of
familiar gamebirds. The colours are not
quite right on many plates such as the
Alectoris partridge plates, while the
francolin plates are excellent. Browsing!
through the pheasant plates is enough to!
make any birder want to jump on thei
next plane to south-east Asia.

The species accounts are the meat of the
book and as well giving information on
identification they also cover habits and
the species' conservation status. All toe
often the status section paints a bleak
picture. They also have an expanded(
introductory note to many accounts,
which gives snippets of additional
information about each species such a;
how it got its name. The accounts art
variable in length with the longest fo
well-known species such as the Commor
Pheasant and shorter accounts of half ■
page or so for little-known species.

This is not one of the finest books in thi
series but the birds it is about contaii
some of the most stunning am
spectacular species still in existence

What this book does is show how little
we know about many species and how
close we are to losing them forever. It is
worthy of its place on any bookshelf for
that reason alone but it is not the only
reason that the book is worth its space.
Overall, I think that this is a successful
addition to the series.

David J. Kelly

Birds of Seychelles. Skerrett, A., Bullock,
I. and Disley, T. 2001. Christopher Helm/
A&C Black, London, 320 pp. ISBN 0-
7136-3973-3. £25.00

There were many times during what
masqueraded as summer in Scotland that
my thoughts wandered south to the
azure seas and golden beaches of
Seychelles. The arrival of this book did
not help to keep my attention focussed
on the homefront.

Seychelles comprises 155 islands
scattered over the Indian Ocean from
just south of the equator to just north of
Madagascar. The main birding attractions
are twelve endemic species (including
some of the world's rarest birds) and
sensational seabird colonies (not least the
million birds of ten species that breed on
Aride). A mouth-watering variety of
migrants and vagrants add spice to the
birder's menu.

Tony Disley's 53 colour plates, containing
almost 1000 illustrations of 242 species,
are excellent. His passerines are partic-
ularly good, but all the birds have a clean,
uncluttered look and capture the
essential character of their subjects. Some
are depicted in a local context, such as
the Seychelles Fody nobbling a Fairy Tern
egg. I particularly like the sea-reflecting
turquoise underbelly of the Sooty Tern!
Opposite each plate is a summary of the
birds' main identification features. A
status and distribution code would have
been handy here.

The book is written by Seychelles' top
birder/naturalist (Adrian Skerrett) and a
former warden of Aride (Ian Bullock), so
their credentials are impeccable; this is
reflected in the impressively compre-
hensive and informative text. A section on
the origins and evolution of Seychelles
birds details how many species have come
not from Africa (despite its relative
proximity) but from India and southeast
Asia. The islands' Moorhen, for example,
is the same race as that in Malaysia and
the Philippines. The northern islands' race
of the Green-backed Heron is most similar
to the African, whereas the one from
Aldabra is thought to be originally Asian!

In support of the far-flung origins of many
of the resident landbirds are vagrants of
similarly distant provenance. An eclectic

range of rarities and a host of migrants
have been recorded, ranging from Pacific
Swift and Olive-backed Pipit to Redstart
and Willow Warbler. (Interestingly, many
migrants clearly arrive by design rather
than accident and return in subsequent
years. I once caught a Turnstone on
Cousin Island which had been ringed
there 1 8 years previously. I expect it had
spent every intervening winter there, and
who could blame it?).

The individual species texts form the
bulk of the book. These give detailed
descriptions and useful notes on similar,
potentially confusing species, even if
they haven't yet occurred. (No fewer
than nine "similar species" are detailed
under Jouanin's Petrel). The nesting, past
and present population status, threats
and conservation are described for
breeding species. These have been
thoroughly researched and are well
referenced. The historical accounts make
fascinating and, in all too many cases,
depressing reading, although on-going
conservation successes with the likes of
the Seychelles Magpie-robin (whose
world population at one point was 1 5 or
less individuals on a single island) are
heartening. Such detail is rare in a field
guide and makes Birds of Seychelles a
good read as well as an essential
reference and identification manual.

This outstanding book will enable visiting
birders to appreciate Seychelles' rare
endemics, transoceanic vagrants and
magical seabirds to the full. As important,
it will also be a very valuable educational
tool within the islands where conser-
vation is largely dependent upon local
awareness and sympathy. If you ever visit
Seychelles, do make it known that you
are there to look at birds. Tourism is the
islands' major source of revenue and if
the authorities recognise the importance
of birdwatching to this industry, then the
birds will ultimately benefit.

Mike Fraser

Also received

Bird Census Techniques. Bibby, C.J, Hill,
D.A, Burgess, N.D. and Mustoe, S. 2000.
Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-095831-7.
£35. This is an updated edition of a book
first published in 1 992. It brings together in
one place all the necessary information for
those involved in surveys and censuses etc.

Birds (Collins Gem Guide). FI egg. J.
1999. Collins. ISBN 0-00-711381-1.
£4.99. A new edition of yet another of
the many offerings from Collins in the
field. This is a very simple small format
guide aimed at young people.

Birds of Africa. Vol. 6, Passeriformes.
Picathartes to Oxpeckers. Fry. C.H. and
Keith, S. (Eds). 2000. Academic Press.
ISBN 0-12-137306-1. £99. The fifth and
penultimate volume in this long-running
series, with descriptions, pictures and
distribution maps. Clearly an essential
purchase for anyone already owning the
previous five volumes!

Shorebirds. Thompson, D. and Byrkjedal.
I. 2001. Colin Baxter. ISBN 1-84107-075-
0. £9. Excellent photographs and user-
friendly text, though it is not quite clear at
whom it is aimed. It covers shorebirds
world wide, though it is not a handbook
nor an identification guide. There is some
information about biology and behaviour,
and a chapter on conservation. It is
obviously not for the expert, nor is it a
'coffee table book'. At the price, though,
some people will find it a worthwhile
addition to their shelves.

Snipes of the Western Palaearctic.

Rouxel, R. 2000. Eveil Nature. ISBN 2-
84000-027-X. Produced by the
Organisation Migrateurs du Palearctique
Occidental and translated from the
French. A comprehensive study of the
three species of Western Palaearctic snipe,
described as secretive and little known.

RSPB Handbook of British Birds. Holden,
R and Cleeves, T. 2001. Helm. ISBN 0-
7136-5713-8. £9.99, Described as "a
reference book for anyone interested in
birds", covers 280 species "regularly
occurring in Britain and Ireland." One
page per species with paragraphs on
identification, habits, voice, habitat, food,
breeding, movements and migration,
population and conservation, a distri-
bution map and 2-5 pictures. Not a rival to
the Collins Bird Guide, but well laid out
and presumably aimed at the starter
market, though if so one wonders whether
it was sensible to include some of the
scarcer species (e.g. Kentish Plover,
Aquatic Warbler).

The breeding ecology and conservation
of the ring ouzel Turdus torquatus in
Britain. Burfield, I.J. 2002. PhD thesis.
Members will be familiar with Ian's work
on Ring Ouzels, about which he gave a
talk at the Conference in 2000. This is the
end-result of his work. He points out how
little has been published on Ring Ouzels
compared to other British red-listed birds.

John Davies

17

NOTICES

Birdwatch Artist of the Year Awards

Entries are invited for the Birdwatch
Artist of the Year Awards, sponsored by
HarperCollins and Swarovski Optic, and
now established as the world's premier
bird art competition. There are four
entry categories: Colour Section;

Identification Section; Black and White
Section; Under-18 Section. The judges
are particularly keen to attract entries
from young artists, as the under-18
section offers them the ideal opportunity
to gain national recognition. It is, of
course, important that future talent in
this field is fostered wherever possible. In
addition, and chosen from the section
winners, an overall winner's prize is
awarded. There are substantial prizes on
offer. Each section winner will receive a
high-quality pair of Swarovski
binoculars, £250 worth of HarperCollins
books and a three-year subscription to
Birdwatch magazine. The overall winner
will, in addition, be awarded £1,000
cash.

All winners and other selected entrants
will be invited to a special presentation
at The Mall Galleries in London, home of
the Society of Wildlife Artists, where
their work will be on display. The
winners' work will also be featured in
Birdwatch magazine.

Entry to the Awards is free and a
registration form, together with a full
statement of the rules, can be found in
the June issue of Birdwatch or obtained
by application in writing to: Birdwatch
Artist of the Year Award, 3D/F Leroy
House, 436 Essex Road, Islington,
London N1 3QR

Following registration, all completed
artwork entries must be received by 30
Nov 2002. If you have any queries,
please contact Dominic Mitchell,
Publisher and Editor, on 020 7704 9495.

Sightings of colour-dyed Twite

During winter 2002 a number of ringers in
various regions of Scotland will be colour-
dyeing Twite through a collaborative
project. One main objective of the study is
to increase our knowledge of winter
dispersal. Could you please look out for
any marks on Twite, noting dye colour,
location of dye, date and grid reference.
Please report any sightings to the Secretary
of the Colour-Dyeing Twite Project: Lyn
Wells, Findon Cottage, Clashmore,
Dornoch, Sutherland IV21 3RG. Tel:
01862 881 257; e-mail:

izytrout@care4free.net All sightings will
be acknowledged. Thank you for any help
you can give.

The 2002 Scottish Ringers Conference

will be held at the Duke of Gordon Hotel,
Kingussie, from 22-24 November. For
further details please contact: Alistair
Duncan, 12 Cairncry Avenue, Aberdeen,
AB1 6 5DS. Tel 01224 483717, e-mail:
alistair@ cairncry.freeserve.co.uk.

The Ayrshire Bird Report 2001 has been
published and is available from Harbour
Point HQ at a price of £4.00 each.

Lochwinnoch RSPB Nature Reserve Book
Sale will be on 15-22 Sept 2002. Natural
history books (magazines, journals and
even maps) will be offered for sale and full
proceeds or, in some cases, a 10%
commission, will be donated to the RSPB.
Last year's sale was such a success that it
has been decided to make it an annual
event. For further details please contact
Joan Shaw on 01505 842 663; e-mail:
joan.shaw@ rspb.org.uk.

Rose-coloured Starlings
in Scotland summer 2002
- a record influx

The main event of summer 2002 was the
remarkable influx of Rose-coloured
Starlings with around 80 seen in
Scotland between 3rd June and early
August. Putting this number into
perspective makes the influx even more
remarkable as 2001 held the previous
record total in Scotland with 25 reports
throughout the whole year. Scotland has
not been unique this year as many
European countries, including France,
Netherlands, Hungary and Norway (with
a flock of 1 7 seen there in June) experi-
encing record-breaking influxes of this
beautiful central Asian wanderer.

All the birds seen in this influx have
obviously been adults or first summers.
The map shows the distribution of sightings
in Scotland. The first bird reported was at
Cumnock (Ayrshire) on 3rd June with
Starlings in a back garden (which was
typical for a large proportion of the
reports). In the next fortnight 30+ were
seen, with a further 15+ in the last week
of June. Mid-June was definitely when the
invasion was at its peak. Birds found in July
and August were probably wandering ones
that had already arrived. A large
proportion of these were in the north and
west. Amongst the arrivals in June was a
remarkable six birds (including four seen
together) with the large mobile Starling
flocks in the Sea Buckthorn between
Gullane Point and Muirfield golf course
(Lothian) from 5th June (a record British
count). The map shows, however, that

Fair Isle Bird Observatory is running a
50% reduction off the price of
accommodation during 11-25 October
2002, meaning you can stay from as
little as £15 per night on a full-board
basis! The Observatory also has a grant
scheme for young ornithologists to
enable them to come and assist in
Observatory work and gain valuable
work experience. For details, please ring
01595 760 258 or e-mail

fairisle.birdobs@zetnet.co.uk.

Forth Naturalist and Historian,
University of Stirling The annual "Man
and the Landscape" Symposium will be
held on Sat 1 6th Nov 2002 at the Univ.
of Stirling. The theme Scotland's
Weather and Climate - Living with
Change, addresses national and local
issue relating to our natural heritage
and society. Enquiries to M. Scott,
phone 01786 467269 or e-mail
mbnl @stirl. ac.uk

•

•

•

Number of birds:

•

n+

• *.

•

9-10

•

7-8

" tx •

•

5-6

* -

•

3-4

-A >'

Rose-coloured Starlings
3 Jun -5 Aug 2002

1-2

records came from throughout Scotland
with the best numbers on the Outer
Hebrides (13 + ), Highland (12), Shetland
(eight) and Orkney (seven). This distri-
bution is actually not unusual for the
species even in more routine years, a distri-
bution that is also shown by that othei
near-Eastern gem the Black-headed
Bunting.

This is the third consecutive year that there
have been invasions of Rose-coloured
Starlings into Western Europe. Perhaps this
pattern could become the norm with the
first breeding in Western Europe or even
Scotland not too far away? Predicting what
species could become the next British
colonist is, like the Rose-coloured Starling
itself, notoriously unpredictable, with
forecasts that species like River Warblei
and Penduline Tit would be breeding
regularly in Britain so far proving
unfounded.

Angus Murra )

'Uni

H:

Hilo

RECENT REPORTS,
May - July 2002

Although not immediately evident, this
spring has parallels with that of 10 years
ago. Those who remember that magical
season may struggle to see the similarity,
but many of the species prominent this
year were the same species that were seen
in record numbers then. For example,
although only around 15 Icterine
Warblers were seen from 14th May this
included a singing male at Tweedbank
(Borders) on 22nd May - 4th June and a
remarkable record of a pair that
successfully nested on Stronsay (Orkney).
The only other successful breeding in
Scotland was in 1992 when a pair was
seen carrying food on Speyside. A pair of
Marsh Warblers also bred successfully
this year on Shetland (third Scottish
breeding record). A total of 32+ Marsh
Warblers was seen from 29th May
including six on Fair Isle on 6th June (a
record day-count) and mainland singles at
East Barns (Lothian) on 8th-1 0th June and
Fife Ness on 8th-11th June. There is
currently only one accepted record for
Lothian, with none previously for Fife.

Marsh Warbler, East Barns, June 2002.
(Ian Andrews)

Elsewhere amongst the scarcities there was
a Savi's Warbler on Foula (Shetland) on
29th-30th May (seventh for Shetland and
Scotland); single Melodious Warblers at
St Abbs Head on 22nd May (first for
Borders) and Stronsay on 7th June; 53
Red-spotted Bluethroats in May and
June, of which a remarkable 29 were on
Fair Isle alone with, equally remarkably,
only two on mainland Scotland - in Fife on
19th May. Over 65 Red-backed Shrikes
were reported from 9th May, almost all of
which, like the Bluethroats, were on the
Northern Isles. Only nine Wrynecks were
reported, all in May on Orkney and
Shetland. Five Hoopoes were reported in
May. The only Short-toed Lark was on Fair
Isle on 5th May, where the only two
Ortolan Buntings and two Little Buntings
were also seen in May. Single Red-
breasted Flycatchers were reported
between 24th May and 8th June on the

Outer Hebrides, Orkney and Isle of May
and 25+ Common Rosefinches from
13th May included six on Fair Isle in May
and five there in June. Like 1 992, it was a
good spring for Golden Oriole with the
first on South Uist on 18th May followed
by 1 5 others in May and June on Orkney
and Shetland. A remarkable 80 or so
Rose-coloured Starlings were seen from
3rd June, whilst Woodchat Shrikes were
found at Tayport (Fife) on 26th May, near
Dailly on 1 0th-1 1 th June (second Ayrshire
record) and on Foula (Shetland) on 9th-
10th July. Two migrant Nightjars were
seen, one at Fife Ness on 8th June being
the first in Fife since the 19th century, and
one on Fair Isle on 18th July.

Tawny Pipit, Foveran, May 2002.
(Harry Scott)

A Richard's Pipit was at Mull of Galloway
(Dumfries and Galloway) on 10th May,
with one on Fair Isle on 1 1 th— 1 7th May.
Three Tawny Pipits were reported: on
South Uist on 10th May, at Skaw, Unst
(Shetland) on 25th-30th May and a
popular bird at Foveran (Aberdeenshire)
on 1 3th-1 6th May at the same location as
the only previously accepted county
record. This was probably the most
twitched passerine on the Scottish
mainland in the period, showing how
barren it was for much of the time.
Looking back at the records, however,
some impressive rarities stand out and, as
usual, most were from the Northern Isles.
A Tree Swallow, watched over a three-
hour period at Burrafirth, Unst (Shetland)
on 29th May will be the first record for
Scotland if accepted, whilst the third
spring Calandra Lark in the last four years
on the Northern Isles was on North
Ronaldsay on 1 0th-1 1 th May (first record
for Orkney). Nine Subalpine Warblers
were seen between 10th May and 22nd
June all, apart from one on the Isle of May,
on Shetland. The Isle of May had a
Greenish Warbler on 7th-8th June and a
Thrush Nightingale on 1 0th-1 2th May,
with two others on Fair Isle in May. A Red-
throated Pipit was on Fair Isle on 16th
May; this species remains inexplicably
rare elsewhere in Scotland. Two Great
Reed Warblers were seen on Shetland,
on Unst on 29th May and on Foula on 8th
June-1 1th July. An Arctic Warbler was
there on 10th July with singles on Fair Isle

on 19th and 30th July. All four previous
midsummer Scottish records had been on
Fair Isle and Foula. A more expected
midsummer rarity these days came in the
form of a male Two-barred Crossbill at
Vidlin (Shetland) on 1 3th-1 9th July.

Black-headed Bunting, Cullane, 3rd June
2002. (Pat Morris)

East Lothian hit a purple patch in early
June with a male Black-headed Bunting
photographed in a Gullane garden on 3rd,
the first for Lothian. A male Rustic Bunting
at Thorntonloch on 6th-8th was the
second county record. A male of the latter
species was also seen on North Rona
(Outer Hebrides) on 6th June. In Lothian at
least nine different Spoonbills were seen
in May and June. The Snowy Egret was last
reported at Loch Feochan (Argyll) on 7th
June. Amongst its allies, three Great White
Egrets were seen in May and June on
Orkney, Shetland and Argyll; a Purple
Heron over Penderry Hill on 4th May will
be the first Ayrshire record if accepted;
two Black Storks were reported in May in
Highland and Aberdeenshire; and 15 +
Common Cranes included at least two
summering birds on Shetland. Three
White-billed Divers were seen in May
and June on Shetland (two) and Highland.
A Pied-billed Grebe spent the afternoon
of 6th May at Harrow Harbour - the first
Caithness record and unusual for the
species to be on the sea. Raptor highlights
included four Black Kites in May and June
in Lothian (two), Highland and Outer

Common Crane, Burrafirth, ]ul\ 2002.
(Hugh Harrop/Shetland Wildlife)

19

Hebrides, and a first-summer male
Montagu's Harrier on Fair Isle on 21st-
25th (found dead on the last date) was only
the second island record after one in 1992.
Four Ring-necked Ducks included one
summering at Loch Leven (Kinross), whilst
two King Eiders were seen - a drake in
Argyll from April until 13th May, and the
regular female in the Firth of Forth. A Black
Duck at Loch of Hillwell on 13th-24th May
was only the second record for Shetland.

Also on Shetland, a first-summer Ross's
Gull was at Loch of Tingwall on 10th-28th
May. While observers down south struggled
with the identification of various orange-
billed terns, the three rare terns seen in
Scotland were much more straightforward
with an adult White-winged Black Tern at
Loch an Tiumpan, Lewis (Outer Hebrides)
on 1 2th-1 8th May, a Gull-billed Tern
briefly on the Ythan Estuary on 19th May
(first for Aberdeenshire) and a Caspian
Tern at Skinflats on 9th July (first for Upper
Forth). It was a good skua passage this year
off the Outer Hebrides with more than
2,300 Pomarine Skuas and 680 Long-
tailed Skuas logged passing the Aird an
Runair headland, North Uist in May with
peak counts of 934 Pomarines on 14th
and 450 Long-taileds on 25th. Unusually,
six Sabine's Gulls were reported from
North and South Uist during the last five
days of May, with an adult reported off
Barns Ness (Lothian) on 29th July. An adult
Black-browed Albatross was seen from a
cruise boat between Boreray and Hirta on
St Kilda on 12th June (is it on a gannetry
out there?) whilst a "Soft-plumaged"
Petrel, presumably a Fea's Petrel, flew
south past North Ronaldsay on 28th July -
a long expected and predicted first land-
based report for Scotland. The only other
Scottish record is of one at sea 1 30km off
Unst in June 1996. These were certainly
the star seabird reports although two
Cory's Shearwaters were seen in July off
Fraserburgh (Aberdeenshire) on 21st and a
lingering individual for the fourth year
running off Kinghorn Harbour (Fife) on
20th-24th.

Kentish Plover, Aberlady Bay, May 2002.
(Harry Scott)

namely a female Kentish Plover at
Aberlady Bay on 1 1 th-1 4th (fifth Lothian
record) and a Stone Curlew which spent
the day of the 28th in a field at Blackdog,
the first record for Aberdeenshire. This
bird had been colour-ringed as a chick on
the Wiltshire/Hampshire border on 26th
July 2001. Elsewhere amongst scarcer
waders there was a great showing by Little
Ringed Plovers with seven seen in May,
including singles on Orkney and Shetland
and the first record for Speyside near Boat
of Garten on 10th. In a record-breaking
showing, at least five breeding pairs were
reported in Scotland this year with proof
of successful breeding in the form of
family parties in July at Kingston (Moray)
and RSPB Loch of Strathbeg
(Aberdeenshire).

Into August, during the first week a party
of three Bee-eaters was seen over
Aberlady Bay (Lothian) on 4th with
presumably the same party seen in
Aberdeenshire on 7th. A White-winged
Black Tern was at Aberdeen on 4th. A
Barred Warbler on Unst, the first of the
year, on 4th really signalled the start of
autumn proper, the time when keen
observers get that tingle of expectation!

Angus Murray , BirdLine Scotland

Rare waders in the period were just that,
with the Greater Yellowlegs first seen in
April again on St Kilda on 8th-10th May
and presumably the same bird at RSPB
Gruinart, Islay on 11 th-1 4th May (second
Argyll record), a Broad-billed Sandpiper at
Loch Paible, North Uist (Outer Hebrides)
on 8th-9th June, and an adult Pacific
Golden Plover on North Ronaldsay
(Orkney) on 8th-9th July. Two scarce
waders in May proved incredibly popular,

Stone Curlew, Blackdog, May 2002.

(Harry Scott )

Next Scottish Bird News

1 for the next issue of SBN, due in December, should be submitted to the SBN Editor, SOC,
1 hailes Road, Musselburgh EH21 6SJ, no later than 18th October. We still welcome
■ i't< ; articles. Electronic material (written, photographs and artwork) can be sent on disc

o -mail to: mail©the-soc. org.uk.

'■ "H try: - a Design, Aboyne, Aberdeenshire. Printed by: Meigle Colour Printers Ltd, Galashiels.

ISBN 0268-3199

Scottish Bird News

Edited by Mike Fraser

Assisted by Liz Fraser, Caroline Scott
& Bill Gardner

Scottish Bird News is the magazine of the
SOC. It acts as a channel of communication
for SOC members and disseminates
information relevant to Scotland's birdlife. It
is published four times a year at the beginning
of March, June, September and December.
Articles and notices are welcomed and
should be sent to the Editor at the address
below no later than five weeks before
publication. The views expressed are not
necessarily the policy of the SOC.
Contributors should note that material has to
be edited, often at short notice, and it is not
practical to let authors see these changes in
advance of publication.

The Scottish Ornithologists' Club,
Harbour Point, Newhailes Road,
Musselburgh, East Lothian EH21
6SJ.

Tel: 0131 653 0653
Fax: 0131 653 0654
E-mail: mail@the-soc.org.uk

The Scottish Ornithologists' Club (SOC) was
established by a group of Scottish ornithol-
ogists who met together in the rooms of the
Royal Scottish Geographical Society in
Edinburgh on 24th March 1936.

Now, 66 years on, in 2002, the Club has
2200 members and 14 branches around
Scotland. It plays a central role in Scottish
birdwatching, bringing together amateur
birdwatchers, keen birders and research
ornithologists with the aims of documenting,
studying and, not least, enjoying Scotland's
varied birdlife. Above all the SOC is a club,
relying heavily on keen volunteers and the
support of its membership.

Headquarters provide central publications
and an annual conference, and houses the
Waterston Library, the most comprehensive
library of bird literature in Scotland. The
network of branches, which meet in
Aberdeen, Ayr, the Borders, Dumfries,
Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness,
New Galloway, Orkney, St Andrews, Stirling,
Stranraer and Thurso, organise field
meetings, a winter programme of talks and
social events.

The SOC also supports the Local Recorders'
Network and the Scottish Birds Records
Committee. The latter maintains the 'official'
Scottish List on behalf of the Club. The Club
supports research and survey work through
its Research Grants.

The Club maintains a regularly-updated web
site, which not only contains much
information about the Club, but is also the
key source of information about birds and
birdwatching in Scotland, www.the-
soc.org.uk

Passwords to access members' web pages:
'Tree' & 'Sparrow'