11th February - A family day out!

Not much birding done today! We had a family day out to Trotters Animal Park. Not many wild birds there, but I did see a Treecreeper in the Eagle Owl enclosure!
Next up we went to Whinlatter Pass for a walk and so the kids could have a play in the play area. Not much bird-wise here, though a flock of Siskin feeding in the larches was pleasant. Also several Crossbills were a bonus, year tick in fact!

10th February - Lesser Scaup

After another stress-filled week at work I had to get out birding! With no serious rares to go for we ( me and the family) decided to take a trip to Caerlaverock WWT for the afternoon.

We saw some Barnacle Geese and Whooper Swans in fields en-route. On arrival we made our way to the observation hide that over looks the Whooper Pond. Here we got excellent views of Wigeon, Mallard, Gadwall, Tufted Ducks Mute Swan, Greylag Geese and funnily enough Whooper Swans!, Oh yes birding on the edge!! It was not long before I picked out the female Lesser Scaup that was present for its second consecutive winter. This bird showed exceptionally well as it dived, preened as roosted on the pond. I managed to get some reasonable shots of the bird, despite the crappy light! We had a brief look around the reserve before heading to the visitor centre for our lunch and then off home