Monday, January 02, 2017
Making a start on my birding for 2017 yesterday, I "went green" and just walked round the village rather than driving anywhere. From the edge of the golf course I saw turnstones and a rock pipit.
There were at least a dozen shags out on the loch; and this is one of two black guillemots with patchy plumage.
Two otters were playing or fighting in the shallow water near the beach, and a merganser flying past with a goosander challenged my panning skills, which are non-existent.
A dozen twite were still on the scrubby area near the bonfire, some with deliciously "curried" heads.
I was too tired to walk right round via the camp-site spit, so I headed for home - where the brambling had learned how to perch on the tray and wait for bits of food to drop from the madhouse above.
This dull weather does nothing for the brambling's plumage; brighter light is needed to bring out the contrast between the crisp orange and white of the underparts. Snapping through the window doesn't help, either.
// posted by Christine @ 9:56 AM 
