Spine tingler

A stroll along the road was well worth the effort. The road skirts the edge of the loch so it's bound to give up something. A male Hen Harrier flew across the loch, a couple of WT Eagle could be seen at one of their regular spots, Crossbills 'chipping' in the forest, a Buzzard on a post and an Otter hauled out on a distant islet. It's never boring but the common birds can be overlooked - House Sparrow is a declining species but the only people that will spend a bit of time looking for them are the people that have lost them from their local area. It's a cracking bird when you take a good look.

It's just a Curlew and it's brown - the speckled and barred plumage helps the bird disappear into the grassy moorland breeding sites but everyone loves to hear the evocative bubbling call of this stunner.

The Great Northen Diver is starting to feel the passing of winter as some of these birds are renewing their bonds with their chosen mate and you can hear a lot of calling from these birds. It's not often you get the full 'song', most of it is contact calls, but if you do hear it echoing off the hills it's a real spine tingler.

Greenfinches seem to disappear in October/November and reappear in February although I'm sure you will find them feeding in a garden somewhere. Either way, in February, they will become more noticable as they start to pair up and the singing begins.

This pair of Oystercatchers are on territory and mating already but they won't actually settle down to nest until the middle of April at the earliest. The piping calls of these birds can go on all night!

On the doorstep

I'm not out for more than an hour these days and it's always close to home but when it's all on your doorstep anyway why go any further?! The weather has been a bit changeable so when I located an Otter in good light I thought my luck was in.

He came ashore for a bit of a sniff around...

...and then the rain started. I thought the eyepiece was steaming up with the damp conditions but it was the lens getting covered in rain so most of the photos turned out like this.

I waited for him to head off and then I left. A few Greenfinch paid a visit to the garden early one morning so I was lucky to get a poor shot.

A sunny day was a bit more productive with Golden and WT Eagle seen while a male and female Hen Harrier circled around underneath them.

A Cormorant tried to show off it's good side but whether it has a good side or not is in the eye of the beholder.

A GN Diver was just offshore from that but even though it was a bit distant it's nice to see the bill pattern as it changes from summer to winter colours.

There was another encounter with a Golden Eagle but it was out of range before I even thought about the camera. Quite a few Raven were foraging along the shore - not sure what they were eating but there seemed to be plenty of it.

Baby everything.

Wednesday was another sunny one with less wind so it was a little warmer. Stunning views of a Dunlin in the morning...

...was quickly followed by a Lapwing with two chicks - I managed a snap of one of the youngsters.

A male Hen Harrier was a good one to pick up but it was all too brief unlike the Mountain Hare that was sleeping on the beach.

Three pairs of Greylag Geese with goslings continued the baby theme. A WT Eagle was next up but we were struggling for a place to stop without blocking the road. A Sedge Warbler was an added extra when we stopped.

Lunchtime gave us a few small birds with Goldfinch, Siskin, Chaffinch, Swallow, Meadow Pipit and Song Thrush all showing well. A family party of Greenfinch provided some entertainment...

...and a Blue Tit was feeding young.

Next up was a fly past Red-throated Diver and then a male Hen Harrier.

As the harrier moved off a Golden Eagle came over the ridge in the same view before it sailed over the top of us - awesome. An Otter picked up by one of the guests showed well before swimming off. We found a Mistle Thrush that was collecting food for it's young...

...and an Eider with 5 ducklings.

The weather had changed a bit and there was some light rain that didn't put off the Short-eared Owls. We had one sitting in the grass but the two that were tussling made for a cracking finish to the day.