The King of Garden Birds!

The King of Garden Birds!

We set off at 3:30am in hopes of seeing a mainland Myrtle Warbler in Kilwinning. The last mainland Myrtle Warbler in the UK was ten years ago, so this was quite a special bird.  As soon as we arrived, we met Kristian who pointed out the Myrtle Warbler straight away feeding on the feeders. We also met Wayne who was there for seconds of the bird. 

The Myrtle Warbler was much bigger than I expected, and its prominent white wingbars stood out when I first saw it. It stayed on the feeders for quite a while, before it started chasing away the Blue Tits and the Great Tits. There was plenty of food in the bird feeders in the garden, but the Myrtle Warbler was too busy chasing off birds. The only birds it didn't chase were those larger in it, which included the Song Thrushes and the Blackbirds. Suddenly, as I watched the Myrtle Warbler through by binoculars in the trees, a female Siskin appeared from behind but it too got chased off.

The Myrtle Warbler then got tired of chasing off the other birds, and decided to perch on a branch just behind the feeders. It showed off its yellow rump quite well, and this is where they get their other name, Yellow-rumped Warbler. We watched for a while, before it eventually flew off. In the garden, we met Kevin, who we previously met at Alkborough Flats two years ago, and his son Gareth. We also met Patrick, and his wife Jill, who we met on Bardsey Island last year. Satisfied with our views, we went over to RSPB Lochwinnoch in hopes of seeing a Lesser Scaup. 

Image from Sam O'Donnel, not same bird

We arrived at RSPB Lochwinnoch at 9:30am and made our way to Barr Loch, where the Lesser Scaup was last reported. Once we got to East Lochhead Shore, we met Allan, who was a local birder. On the loch, we noticed many Goldeneyes, Tufted Ducks, Lapwings and a Cormorant trying to eat a huge pike. Eventually, Allan picked out the female Lesser Scaup distantly with a male Tufted Duck. He let me look through his scope for a very long time, and I saw the bird multiple times, however it kept diving and was quite distant, making me unable to get a record shot. Satisfied with our views, we headed over to Ardrossan Harbour for some seabird action . 

We arrived at Ardrossan Harbour at 11:00am in hopes of seeing some seabirds. Our main target was Black Guillemot. We parked in the ASDA car park to avoid paying a parking fee, and walked towards the ferry terminal. As soon as we got to the ferry terminal, I spotted a Black Guillemot in summer plumage right in front of the slipway. I was ecstatic when I saw it as it was my first Black Guillemot in summer plumage, and it was the best views I have ever had of them.

I also spotted a male Eider in the ferry terminal too. A few Black Guillemots flew past as a huge ferry arrived. We walked over to the lighthouse, seeing many Shags along the way. 

Once we had arrived at the lighthouse, I spotted two very tame Rock Pipits along the edge of the path, feeding. I then did a quick scan, hoping for Harbour Seals, but was unsuccessful. We then headed over to Stevenston Point looking for waders. 

Once we had arrived at Stevenston Point, I noticed a huge flock of mainly Sanderling. In amongst the flock of Sanderlings were Dunlins, Oystercatchers, Turnstones, Redshanks and Ringed Plovers. 

Amongst all of the waders, I only managed to spot one Purple Sandpiper sleeping on a rock with two Turnstones. I then scanned the sea, spotting a few distant Razorbills, Red-throated Divers and Shags. I also spotted a few more Black Guillemots far out to sea. We then headed over to Doonfoot in hopes of finally seeing a Harbour Seal.

We arrived at Doonfoot at around 3:00pm. As soon as we arrived, I noticed a small brackish lagoon surrounded by marsh and short reeds. I had not seen a Jack Snipe for a while, so I looked for them in the brackish marsh. Since I unfortunately didn't have a thermal camera, I had to search for them the hard way. I started wading through the marsh hoping one would fly up. At first, all I noticed were Common Snipe. After a bit more wading through the shallower areas of the marsh, I gave up, seeing a few Stonechats and Greenfinches on the reeds. I then decided to scan the sea for any divers or seals. Since it was beginning to become high tide, there weren't many rocks left for the Harbour Seals to rest on. I then started scanning for divers or any other seabirds I could spot. At first, all I noticed were a huge flock of Eider. I then spotted two Red-throated Divers on the sea, one nearly in summer plumage.

After a bit more scanning, I also spotted two Red-breasted Mergansers, with one of them displaying to the other. I also managed to spot a few Shags, Razorbills and Oystercatchers. We also saw a rescued juvenile Mute Swan getting released back into the sea. As it turned dark, we decided to call it a day and headed home.

Overall, a great day with 1 mega lifer (Myrtle Warbler)!