Spring 2024.

Spring migration was quite hard work until a very exciting run of days in late May. 

April saw a northward push of Iceland bound Pink-footed Geese over Ferry Hills with a peak of 3220 on 10th. FH also produced two quality migrant raptors on 6th with Osprey and Merlin north. 

Another good migrant raptor was a female Marsh Harrier in off the Forth and north at Kinghorn on 14th April. 

 May started with a lovely male Ring Ouzel that pitched in briefly at Ferry Hills on 5th.  Several Red-backed Shrikes arrived out on the E Neuk, part of a large arrival down the E coast of Britain and I was hopeful that one might make it up to my W Fife area with so many around, but it was not to be.

A cetacean stole the show in the first half of May with a Humpback Whale off Kinghorn on 12th. A Red Kite was seen drifting along the coast nearby the same day. Also in the Kinghorn area, a migrant Hooded Crow moved through on the 10th, a surprisingly rare bird on the E coast of Scotland. The views were good enough to rule out a hybrid. 

 Then the start of a memorable few days later in May. Actually, things started in a bit of a frustrating manner at Ferry Hills on 23rd with a distant large raptor crossing the Forth being mobbed by gulls which look suspiciously like a Black Kite. It would have only been the second for Fife and It was a little too distant to nail it. That same morning the mood was lifted when a Hobby went north, a long awaited Ferry Hills tick. Still a rare bird in Fife despite small numbers breeding to to north of us (I suspect they breed overlooked  in Fife too).  A Bonxie that flew up the Forth and then turned back east was also nice to see that morning, especially in light of the  population being hit by avian influenza in 2023. 

Not great images as the bird was going away by the time I got the camera on it, but still conveys the distinctive narrowed winged appearance and dark plumage tones. 

The the next day, 24th, things really stepped up a gear with a spur of the moment decision to visit Fife Ness and Kilminning. Conditions continued to look promising for migrants and I was thinking along the lines of a 'predictable scarcity' like Red-backed Shrike or Bluethroat, although in the case of Bluethroat there have been very few Fife records in recent years. 

What I got was definitely not on the list of predictions... After checking the bushes at Lower Kilminning I decided the check the shore in the direction of Fife Ness as it looks great habitat for Bluethroat. I made my way slowly along the shore stopping regularly to scan ahead. Suddenly a large bird burst into the air off the beach ahead of me causing a few seconds confusion until my brain registered ‘of course it is.’ The combination of black and white wing markings and that distinctive profile, it could only be a Stone Curlew! 

The bird gave me superb views as it flew towards me and then around me c30m away before heading towards the car park area. It was low down and seemed unlikely to have gone far and a weird field north of the green shed with short, brown vegetation (sprayed, slurry?) looked good. Sure enough, it was in there and despite a few jittery flights, the Stone Curlew settled down in the field for the rest of the day allowing many birders to get Stone Curlew on their Fife (and Scottish) list.  This was only the 4th for Fife although, remarkably, the 3rd had only occurred last year. The 2023 bird at Anstruther had only been available to a few locals late in the day. The last Fife record before the 2023 bird was in 1965! 

Other nice migrants about that day were Short-eared Owl, Spotted Flycatcher, Whinchat and on the drive home, a luminous singing male Yellow Wagtail at the traditional breeding site near Crail. 

The run continued the following day, 25th,  with an immature Spoonbill flying up the Forth at Ferry Hills. My third there but easily the closest views. A further bonus was a stunning summer Black-throated Diver flying W inland over the bridges, presumably on route to a breeding loch in the NW Highlands. 

The spring began to slow down but in early June  I went to see the smart male Lesser Scaup at Loch Gelly found by Jack Morris. A really smart example of this species which after a bit of a grilling could be seen to show all the features of LS, including the wing pattern in flight. A cautious approach is always needed with this species especially as a look alike hybrid Tufted x Pochard has been at the same site previously. 

Very close views of an otter were a further highlight .

 Early 2024. 

I concentrated on my winter patch of St Margaret's Marsh near Rosyth. The extensive reed bed here had me thinking about one species in particular, Bearded Tit. Although some of the large Tay Reedbed Population is within the Fife recording area, this species is rare elsewhere in Fife. I was very pleased to hear some pinging calls from Bearded Tit during December 2023, the first record in West Fife. It sounded like more than one bird was involved but they remained hidden until I finally clapped eyes on a lovely pair in January 2024. Despite staying in the same area of the reed bed, relatively close to a footpath,  for several weeks they were incredibly elusive. 

St Margaret's did it again with a Water Pipit on 24th February, presumably the elusive bird I'd first seen in November 2023. Despite being a regular winter visitor in small numbers on the Lothian side of the Forth this remains a rare bird in Fife and not annual. Although likely to be overlooked. 

A Scandinavian Rock Pipit was in the same area as the Water Pipit 

A Kingfisher also brightened up the winter days at St Margaret's 

I covered other West Fife sites but none could really compete with St Mag's for quality. Loch Fitty had been productive early in 2023 (Great White Egret, Russian White-fronted and Tundra Bean Geese) but I couldn't come up with too much this winter. That said, two hen harriers interacting on 3rd February was a fine record. Not an easy bird to see in Fife. 

End of 2023

 November 

November is the end of the migration season but I often find it can be productive on my W Fife patches well into the month. November 2023 was helped by a good showing of Waxwing and I had a few passing through Ferry Hills. 

Not all Waxwing were migrating overhead at Ferry Hills with two birds feeding on Hawthorn berries at close range as well. 

I also came across small flocks outside my house at Dunfermline and at St Margaret's Marsh during November. 

 Best find this month was a locally rare Water Pipit which frequented the ditches and pools at St Margaret's Marsh from 10th-24th. 

December 

I was on holiday from the 11th and although plenty of time was taken up with domestics and bird recorder duties, I enjoyed a few outings. 

Best bird was a rather unexpected Grey Phalarope at Kinghorn on 11th which flew in from the east and landed on the sea during rather benign conditions. Certainly a world away from the conditions in October which brought an influx of this species into the Forth during Storm Babet. That said, a check of the weather maps showed a fairly strong NE airflow offshore in the North Sea at the time. 

The same seawatch also produced good views of two feeding Red-necked Grebes. 

I had a feeling of Deja Vu  when I came across a 1st winter male Scaup on Kinghorn Loch after finding Fifes 2nd Lesser Scaup there at exactly the same time of year in 2022. This time lighting hadn't struck twice and it was a Greater Scaup, although still a good record locally in West Fife. 

The year finished with very close views of a Slavonian Grebe at Loch Gelly and an influx of Scandinavian Herring Gulls at several sites. 

Autumn 2023 Part 3

 Migrant Arrival at Kilminning 24/10/23

We were blessed with regular east winds during autumn 2023 and not only that but my advance 'negotiations' for a day out in the E Neuk of Fife also worked out weather wise. With a fresh E wind blowing it was clear birds were coming in as I arrived at the top end of Kilminning with some very tired looking Blackbirds and Blackcaps drinking from puddles on the road.

There were plenty of thrushes about and when I got down to Lower Kilminning two Waxwings, my first in what would prove to be a good autumn for this lovely species. Then things stepped up a gear when I heard some 'tic' calls and picked up a Little Bunting flying off some bushes and low towards the old Crail airfield. Given how low it was flying I thought  I had a good chance of finding this bird again on the fields but no further sign. That said there is an awful lot of suitable habitat for a species like that all the way to Crail and beyond. 

After that an arrival of Common/Mealy Redpolls started, small numbers were coming in off the sea, pausing briefly and then heading off inland. I ended up with a total of 19, this influx was reflected nearby on the Isle of May where they had 55 on the same day. Two Black Redstarts finished off  very enjoyable day in the field.

Northern Bullfinches 

No doubt with similar origins to the Common Redpoll arrival, a small arrival of Northern Bullfinches was apparent in late October. I had four males at Ferry Hills on 23rd and then a very impressive pale female at Kinghorn on 25th. The Isle of May had its best ever arrival of Northerns at this time. 

Autumn 2023 Part 2 Ferry Hills Highlights

 It wasn't just seabirds during this productive autumn. As usual my convenient local patch at Ferry Hills rewarded regular coverage with a great variety of species migrating up the Forth. Highlights this year in addition to Honey-buzzards and Long-tailed Skuas mentioned in previous posts included: 

 -UK record Tree Pipit day count as listed on the vis mig website Trektellen. Ferry Hills has a long established reputation as one of the best places to see Tree Pipits on autumn migration and this year a new record was set with 334 flying SW in just over two hours on 14th August. FH holds all of the top 10 UK day counts listed on the website, all have been in August; Tree Pipit is a classic early autumn migrant with peak numbers well in advance of the Meadow Pipit migration. 

-Good variety of birds of prey. In addition to the unprecedented showing for Honey-buzzard already blogged about,  a good variety of other species were recorded including  Merlin, Osprey, Red Kite, Marsh Harrier, White-tailed Eagle (site first) and Short-eared owl (annual total of 4 which is good for here). 

-Days of excellent variety. September 30th featured 40 species including Honey-buzzard, 900 Pink-feet, a Greenshank, first Fieldfare of the autumn, 91 Mistle Thrush, 700 Meadow Pipit and 280 Redpolls. 

October  22nd featured 36 species including Short-eared Owl, Black-throated and Great-Northern Diver, 68 Brambling, 1 Hawfinch, 2 Twite and 48 Crossbill. This was the first calm day after the passing of Storm Babet. 

Autumn 2023 Part 1

The  great run of honey-buzzards mentioned in a previous post was just one highlight in an exciting autumn for migration in Fife. 

Regular easterly winds in  August, September and October produced good numbers of seabirds in the Forth. The obvious highlight was the immature Brown Booby which I caught up with at Kinghorn on 5th September, also pretty sure I saw this bird feeding distantly from Carlingnose Point on 14th. Probably should have had the courage of my convictions as it was then seen off the Lothian side at Hound Point and Crammond Island where it afforded some very close views. 

A excellent supporting cast included a Juv Sabs Gull off Kinghorn on 15th September, part of a mini-influx into the Forth at that time, and a strong showing of Long-tailed Skuas. I ended up with a personal best annual total for Long-tailed Skuas of 14, starting with an adult mentioned in a previous post heading north at Fife Ness. The best encounter involved two Juvs in less than typical circumstances',  circling overhead at Ferry Hills calling to each other on 26th August before heading off inland. 

Then came Storm Babet in October with storm force easterlies driving unprecedented numbers of petrels and Grey Phalaropes into the Forth. I somehow managed to miss Leach's during this influx but enjoyed some close views of feeding Storm Petrels including c16 off Hawkcraig Point, Aberdour on 21st October. I also enjoyed close views of a Grey Phalarope feeding in the surf at Port Laing near Carlingnose Point on 20th. 

Grey Phalarope was a long overdue Fife tick for me. Up until recent years this has been a rare bird in Fife but an increase in sea watching coverage at Fife Ness has revealed that there are quite a few phalaropes out in the North Sea at times. This started with an unprecedented influx during Nov 2021 when a run of Northerly winds produced  almost daily sightings including an amazing flock of 28! However I live a long way from Fife Ness in W Fife and this species has very rarely made it that far up the Forth. 

 2023-The Year of the Honey-buzzard-Updated 

Honey-buzzards are one of my favourites, a true birders bird. 

I've had some of my best ever encounters with them this year probably aided by an extremely successful breeding season in Scotland. 

The run of encounters started with a visit to a well studied Scottish breeding site on 7th August when Honeys were almost constantly on view. A min of 5 different adults were seen, often close overhead. Some lovely behaviour observed including wing clapping display and a bird carrying wasp comb. Biggest surprise was Juvenile Honey on the wing. This felt on the early side for a fledged Juv and on speaking to others it turned out it was the earliest ever in the study area! Other observers recorded two Juvs here the next day. 

The next encounter was a real surprise, driving a quiet back road in the Highlands  on August 22nd after a short break with Carina. I glanced up to see a buzzard with suspiciously deep, fluid wing beats flying towards us. Fortunately I was able pull off the road by a forest clearing and we were treated to close views of a Juvenile Honey Buzzard flying low overhead, which then turned around and came back to check us out! 

The day after this, August 23rd, I was still on Annual Leave and savouring the prospect of a Visible Migration watch at my Fife patch of Ferry Hills in ideal fair weather and light south-west winds. What I didn't expect was two Juv Honey-buzzards already on active migration! Both birds gave good views as they slowly moved SW, one at 12:39 and the other at 15:45. 

The next day August 24th I was back at Ferry Hills and while walking up the track to the watch point I noticed as large raptor approaching with the now familiar flexible wing action-another Honey! This one a very dark, almost black Juv and surprisingly early in the morning at 06:45. To put this into context Honey-buzzard is a very scarce bird in Fife and previous to this I had only seen one at Ferry Hills.  

That completed my run of Honey sightings. Given they have had a good year, I was somewhat greedy in hoping for a few more during my regular Ferry Hills watches as they can  pass through throughout September. But I have no complaints!

All above: Bird 1 August 23rd

Bird 2 August 23rd

Bird on August 24th 

Update 

By late September I thought I had run out of time to get any more Honey Buzzards passing through Ferry Hills. The latest I'd ever had down south was on 2nd October on the Isle of Wight. But on 30th September during a cracking day for migration, a Juv Honey Buzzard appeared low out of nowhere right in front of me, I think it had been perched in the trees around the gardens bordering the site! 

Great views as it got chased by a crow and then sparring with a Common Buzzard before it flew off South-west across the bridges to continue its epic migration.