Holiday 2023 - Part 6 - Some surprises at Kirroughtree
Holiday 2023 - Dalbeattie, near Dumfries, Scotland
Each year we choose a different place in the UK to stay while on vacation. In the past we have visited various places such as the Lake District, the Peaks, New Forest, Norfolk Broads, Isle of Mull, South Wales etc. We even visited the Scottish Highlands and the Cairngorms last year, and enjoyed it so much that this year we chose to return to Scotland, this time to the Lowlands, in Dumfries and Galloway.
Part 6 - Bird Watching at Kirroughtree - 14th June
Another day, and another nature reserve!
On our penultimate day of the holiday, we returned back to the Forest of Galloway (which we had partly explored on Day 4). Todays trip was to head over to the other side of the Forest to explore the area around Kirroughtree.
Compared to Day 4, which was a lot of travelling around random locations, today was going to be simpler. One visitor centre (pictured above) and a selection of walks below
We decided to two of the walks. The main one would be a 4km loop around two small Loch's, but first we were going to check out the Wild Watch Trail. This was because it featured the only bird hide in the whole place, and we suspected there would be both Bird Feeders for an assortment of woodland birds and also Squirrel Feeders.
This being in Scotland, it meant there was potential opportunity to see the native Red Squirrel... if we were lucky!
We set of down the path towards the hide... it was only 10am, and yet the day was already shaping up to be a scorcher!
As expected in the hide there were Feeders for both birds and squirrels, my partner and I both settled down with some telephoto zoom lenses, hopeful to see some action... it didn't take long before birds started appearing at the feeders
There were the usual suspects to be honest, with Chaffinches and Dunnocks, and also some Blue Tits. A Great Tit appeared, and he/she was closely followed but a juvenile Great Tit (as seen above).
The benefit of having the feeders next to the hides like this means the birds are used to the presence of humans, and as long as people are quiet then the birds will carry on flying back and forth to get food.
A Nuthatch was lovely to see:
And then I spotted a Song Thrush on the ground further back behind the feeders:
And then I spotted something really cool!
Do you remember this photo I took while out walking on Day One? It is the feather of a Jay, a large and attractive member of the Crow Family.
I have only seen the faintest glimpses of a Jay in the past, and had never managed to get a photo. This Feather I found below gave me hope... would this holiday be the chance, the opportunity to finally get 'The Shot' that I was so eager for?
Well... the answer was a resounding yes!
Initially the bird flew into towards the bird feeders, and as he disappeared back into the forest beyond, I managed to grab this shot.
Jays are members of the Crow family, which means they are pretty intelligent as are all Crows. But they seem to be much, much shyer than the other Crow species. Generally I only see that hint of Orange, before the bird disappears from view, and I NEVER seem to have the right lens available when needed!
We were lucky today though, as over the course of 30 minutes this individual kept coming back to visit the feeders
And then a better shot. Now we knew he was hanging around in the area we sat and waited hoping to see him again.
While waiting there was still other activity, included the striking Great Spotted Woodpecker:
...who kept flying in and helping himself to some nuts from the feeders.
These are quite common across the country, and we've seen them several times before, but they are handsome birds and it's always nice to see them around.
But the highlight of today was definately the Jay, who came back one last time for the best photo yet.
Out of the approximately 2000 images I took over the course of this weeks holiday, this picture of the Jay is the one I'm most pleased with. We've seen fantastic moths, and gorgeous landscapes, and magnificent birds... but this Jay beats them all!
He wasn't the only Corvid here either, higher up in the trees we spotted a pair of Jackdaws
These are much more common than the Jay, and also much bolder, so they are not as bothered by people unlike the much shyer Jay.
I hope @corvidae enjoys these UK crows, as I know she has an unhealthy obbsession, er I mean a deep appreciation for Corvids!
After being sat around for an hour taking too many photo's I decided it was time to go for a wander around the rest of the Forest
Although it was rather hot warm as the day wore on, it felt relatively cooler under the trees. We slowly meander along the path, in no real rush
well we were on holiday after all...
And then climbing to the top of the hill revealed a beautiful view over Bruntis Loch.
It is actually a man-made Loch, with links to the local mining industry apparently (source). As is the same over the rest of the UK, the mines have since closed... but the Loch itself remains, and has been taken over by nature
In amongst the plants on one side of the Loch we spotted several species of Damselfly and Dragonfly... the first one is a Four-spotted Chaser
But the second one was pretty cool. This is a Golden-ringed Dragonfly, and those distinctive black and yellow bands make it very easy to ID.
We had looked for these while visiting Mull, which is one of the islands of the west coast of Scotland and had no luck... so this was nice to see.
Not quite as exciting as the Jay, but nonetheless still pretty awesome
After the brief Dragonfly macro photography session, it was time to carry on walking...
and walking...
...and some more walking...
A pretty little butterfly, this is a Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
And then just a little bit more walking
until we finally returned back to the starting point at the Visitor Centre.
Feeling pretty warm by this point so I felt we deserved a little treat
By this point I had become bored of Irn Bru, and had moved onto Vimto for a change.
After some time sat in the shade, relaxing and cooling down with Ice cream, it was fast approaching 4pm. As the Wildlife Hide we visited earlier this morning was only a short distance away (literally 400m) we decided to head back to see if there were to be any more surprises in store before leaving.
And I'm so glad we did!
This is another Great Spotted Woodpecker, and those of you who are paying attention may note, this one looks slightly different to the one we saw earlier
One the left is the Adult male (black cap on his head) and on the right is the juvenile with a red cap on his head. We'd never seen a juveniles before, so that was pretty exciting
almost as good as the Jay to be honest!
The Juvenile bird would hang back, while the adult would land on the feeders and and grab some food
...and then fly back to the youngster to feed him.
At this the juvenile bird as obviously fledged and left the nest, and is getting a little helping hand from his parents while he was finding his feet (or perhaps his wings I should say!)
By now it was past 5pm, and it was time to start heading back to the accommodation. This had been a really productive day out with a couple of really exciting encounters.
In fact, looking back on the holiday, the highlights were all birds. Whether it was the striking Redstart on day 2, the magnificent Red Kites on day 5, and then both the Jay and the Great Spotted Woodpeckers today.
it's turned into a birding holiday... I didn't expect that!
Tomorrow is our last day, and we chose to spend it on the longest walk of the whole week while searching for Butterflies
All names confirmed and checked via Wikispieces
Further Research from UK Moths and NatureSpot
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What a fantastic birding holiday. And I do, I do, I do appreciate all those corvid pictures!!! Eurasian Jays are so beautiful. And Jackdaws are just plain precious. I'm going to Hamburg in September to meet some dear friends and add to my corvid experience. I hope I get to see these birds! I know those jays are really hard to spot.
Its been a wonderful week away. Nothing like your adventure to Alaska, but pretty cool nonetheless
Ah thats cool, there will be a chance to see some new wildlife at least in Germany.
Jays will be most likely seen in mixed deciduous woodland, and September is as good a time to see them as any, they will bu caching Acorns for the Winter (like squirrels do). A lot of patience and a bit off luck, and who knows what you'll find! :-)
I'll also get to meet my friend's crow friend Trouble. He's brazen and greedy and fantastic. Hopefully he'll pose for a few portraits.
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The jays I knew on the Midwestern US were blue jays. Smart-looking birds with azure feathers and black marks here and there.
You've got some handsome birds out there for sure, the Blue Jay is an absolute stunner!
I'd love to come over to the states, just to explore the wildlife and the wild places too!
Well, if you visit the inland northwest, there is a lot of wilderness to be found a short drive from Spokane, Washington. Down in the Columbia River gorge, you can visit temperate rainforests and waterfalls. Or if you visit western Montana, you can see Glacier National Park and the National Bison Range. Either of those would probably need an overnight stay at least if Spokane is your hub.