Colin Davison

A Glossy Ibis and a little egret stand beside each other at a small pool in East Lothian. Both were formerly very rare visitors. Not now.

If you were birding in the eighties, scenes like this probably still seem a bit surreal, especially in Scotland….in December

Glossy ibis. Huge influx this autumn. Several records already in Lothian

Quite the surprise at scoughall today, seeing this glossy ibis standing in the compost runoff pool about 20m away.

Image shows a drake mandarin sitting on the sea

A twite is sitting on top of a bush with linnets sitting lower

This mandarin looked out of place sitting on the sea at Scoughall this morning. More subdued were 3 of my favourite finch, the Twite, surprisingly scarce here. @birdinglothian.bsky.social

Scarce bordered straw is a migrant moth

And in a packed (with wasps) moth trap last night at last a migrant! Scarce bordered straw! Lifer!

Three hour seawatch with good friend Justin Carr yesterday morning at @flamboroughbird.bsky.social not lots of birds but good close views of a Cory’s Shearwater and the below adult Pomarine Skua with spoons Digiscoped through a Swarovski STX85 @donnybirding.bsky.social @birdguides.bsky.social

Really chuffed with my latest tee from @aluladesigns.bsky.social
A species (literally) close to my heart, here with some pics from this breeding season in the lammermuirs (Faseny-ting stuff!!; if you know you know)

Baby stonechats

Emperor moth

Green hairstreak butterfly

I usually only see Emperors zipping about the moor. Today i got close to 2! The first had lost its left forewing, perhaps a partial victim of the local stonechats, but the second was beautiful and pristine! Also green hairstreak

Party of 3 migrant ring ouzels

Late fieldfare

Adult ring ouzel, a local!

Robin not often seen on heather moorland

Still small parties of (?)migrant ring ouzels hangin aboot the lammermuirs. This fieldfare perhaps heading for the same area

A male ring ouzel with a ring on left leg carrying food for chicks 2023

Male ring ouzel with left leg ring in same territory 2025

Newly arrived common sandpiper

First pic was taken 19/5/23 and the second yesterday. Presumed back for at least 3rd season as a breeding ring ouzel. Also an early (for me) cuckoo and lots of common sandpipers

Migrating long tailed ducks

Distant puffin

Blurred Merlin

Migrating long tailed ducks

Though puffins have been recorded at scoughall through the winter, today was the first with numbers, all breeding adults, 52 in 2 hours. Also a nice pair of pintail and an exodus of long tailed ducks as proven by the worst photos ever taken (also Manx shearwater and Merlin)

Wind turbines hidden by fog

Low fog through the wind turbines near Whiteadder reservoir

A female black redstart on a fence

2 distant ring ouzels migrating onwards

Early fog in the lammermuirs probably led to a few grounded birds including this black redstart and ring ousels, these ones moving on

Stonechat nest with clutch of 5 eggs, light blue with reddish speckles at the blunt end

Dipper nest on a rock over water

My nesting season opens with 3 stonechats and a dipper

Peregrine

Golden eagle mobbed by buzzard with nearer raven

Red kite

Golden eagle and buzzard

Well, that was a nice day out

Yay, they’re back!

Returning from Nepal had a layover in Istanbul. Didn’t expect a walk for coffee to bring the spectacle of buzzards eagles and stork all migrating north into Europe

Merlin in dead tree

Bullfinch pair on sea buckthorn

Male bullfinch eating buckthorn berry

Goldeneye drake on sea

A few from scoughall yesterday. Best bird was the distant Merlin

male Brambling

rock pipit

Curlew probing under a rock

Chiffchaff in a pine tree

a cold but sunny day for the second full circuit of the Scoughall patch. year list up to 88 with highlights of brambling chiffchaffs raven and best of all a twite. nice light for pics.

Dead adult whooper Swan

Second adult dead in field

Brood of 5 orphaned whooper swans

2 young whooper swans

A sad story. A family of whooper swans arrived in the Scoughall/Lochhouses area in December. One adult must have hit wires, and a week later the second adult was dead in the same field

A light ground covering of slushy snow brought a few birds to the garden in Old Craighall including this fieldfare

Most unusual bird at scoughall on 2nd Jan was this Manx shearwater

Always nice to see and hear a sibe chiff. This one at Scoughall all month, but yesterday with supporting cast of Merlin, 2+ Great Northerns and a standard chiffchaff

Roosting pied wagtails under bright floodlights at Fort Kinnaird, Edinburgh. They probably use the bushes when it is less windy

The blurred pixels here are the closest 2 Little Auks, out of 28 seen in 2 hours at Scoughall with @kgbirder.bsky.social
Other highlight was a party of 3 drake Pintail N-so elegant!

Migrant long eared owl

Juvenile long tailed skua chased by jackdaws

Caspian gull

Male red backed shrike

A starter post of some highlights from the local patch at Scoughall, East Lothian this year