In my last blog I alluded to the fact that I was heading back down to Ayrshire to carry out a bird survey in June. This was my second visit to Loch Doon this year to carry out an Upland Breeding Bird Survey on behalf of the BTO. Normally I would stay at Ayr Caravan Park the night before the survey but on this occasion I thought that I would try the little campsite on the Northwest tip of Loch Doon.
It is quite a basic campsite but had everything I needed for an overnight stay, and I have to say that the views and wildlife were terrific:
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| View from Loch Doon Caravan and Camping Park |
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| New Vannie parked up for the night |
It was a bit of a grey afternoon when I got there but at least it was dry. So I made myself a cup of coffee and settled down to enjoy the views out the windows. Out the front window I could see the loch and the surrounding hills, out the rear I could see a small stand of trees and some rough pasture. it was out this rear window that I got my first view of the local wildlife, starting with a Male Wheatear:
I knew there were Wheatears in the area because I normally see them during my survey, however it was great to see one out my window. My enjoyment didn't end there as another Wheatear, a female this time, popped up to say hello!
Looks like these posts are popular perches for the local Wheatears.
I finished up my coffee and decided to go for a walk, however a cursory glance out the rear window before I left revealed that there was another bird worth looking at.
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| Ringed Plover on grass behind Vannie |
It was a lovely little wader called a Ringed Plover and it was on the hunt for a tasty morsel in the short grass of the campsite:
It had caught a Cockchafer beetle grub and had quite a fight to devour this wriggly meal, but it managed, then went looking for more. Never tried them, they may be tasty?
Once the Ringed Plover had flown off I decided it was time to go for that walk and explore the local area. I headed down to the loch-side and took in the views:
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| Loch Doon and Southern Uplands |
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| Towards Loch Doon Dam |
I had crossed over Loch Doon Dam in the motorhome on my way to the campsite so I thought that I would stroll back down towards the dam and see what I could see on the way. There were plenty of birds flitting about, mainly Pipits, Wheatears and Skylarks, with the occasional Sand Martin. On the shoreline and on the water there were some Black-headed Gulls and one or two Common Gulls.
A little further along I spotted a couple of Meadow Pipits lurking in a bush so managed to video them:
I continued along the road until I reached the dam. It may not be the largest or most impressive dam in the world but it served a purpose as part of the Galloway Hydro Electric Scheme:
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| Loch Doon Dam |
It did however have a little cafe nearby, namely the Roundhouse Takeaway (I know, in the middle of nowhere) so I couldn't resist a latte and a muffin!
At the Roundhouse there is also an Osprey Viewing Centre, basically a TV screen showing the view from a camera trained on an Osprey nest on the other side of the loch. Not a lot of action was seen on the nest and the person describing where the nest was located was understandably a bit vague (you don't always want to give out too specific a location if you are unsure who your audience is).
After my coffee and bun I headed on back towards the campsite. I stopped on my way back as a curious lamb took an interest in me:
Whilst I was waiting for the sheep to move off I thought that I would check the trees on the other side of the loch in case an Osprey was perched on the top of one:
BINGO! ..........It was quite far away and I didn't have my telescope or tripod, but even in this shaky video you can tell it is an Osprey:
I got back to the motorhome in time for tea, once I had made it of course.
After tea I went out for an evening stroll, staying local to the campsite. I passed a little babbling burn on my walk and also noted the abundance of blossom on a Hawthorn bush:
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| Babbling Burn |
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| Hawthorn in Blossom |
I also got some lovely evening views of the loch.
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| Loch Doon in the evening |
It was a Friday evening and the loch-side road was starting to get busy with traffic. People were arriving from all directions to camp on the shores of the loch in their tents, armed with their portable barbeques and a week's supply of beer. I was glad that I had my pitch booked at the campsite, so I headed back.
I was surprised (and pleased) that it was relatively quiet that night, that may be because it started to rain late on and probably put a damper on some folks enthusiasm. I got a good night's sleep and was up bright and early (before 6am) so that I could make an early start on my survey. After breakfast I got motorhome ready for the road then drove round to the other side of the loch to start my survey.
After parking up in the nearest layby to the survey site I got my kit together and headed out of the motorhome. I had only walked a few yards when this Red Kite took off from nearby trees and flew right over my head:
Once it had gained enough height it headed away over the hills, I carried on towards the survey site. The weather was quite overcast and I half expected it to rain. Loch Doon looked particularly gloomy at the start of my survey:
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| Gloomy Loch Doon before survey |
I cracked on with conducting by Breeding Bird Survey, which went well enough with only a few minor showers of rain on the way round. I recorded a wide variety of birds during the survey including Curlew, Teal, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Canada Goose, Buzzard, Coal Tit, Wheatear, Sand Martin and even a Red Kite. It was hard going but when it was successfully completed I felt quite pleased with myself, the weather had even improved (slightly).
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| Loch Doon after survey |
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| Loch Doon after survey (a bit brighter than before) |
I made my way back to the motorhome, which can take almost an hour when you are a bit weary. Just before I reached the layby where the motorhome was parked I noticed what I thought was a Kestrel landing on a telephone cable on the other side of the road:
Closer inspection revealed that it was in fact a Cuckoo, not a bird that you see very often, even hearing one is quite rare these days. I headed in to the motorhome for a rest and some pre-prepared lunch.
When I was eating my lunch the Cuckoo flew over the top of the motorhome and landed on some power cables straight in front of my window. Luckily I had my camcorder handy because what I witnessed next was something I had never seen before.......
A Meadow Pipit flew over towards the Cuckoo and started to attack it! I know that Meadow Pipits can be the unfortunate recipients of Cuckoo eggs, but I don't think this Cuckoo was looking for a nest to lay eggs (in fact I thought it looked like a male)
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