berrytime

 

Four Autumnal visits to Warriston and the Water of Leith between 6th and 13th October. 

I have been watching the berries in Pilrig Street again. (As I did fruitlessly last year.) So far no fieldfares or redwings have appeared, and no waxwings. I am not the only fool scratching their head and hoping for waxwings. A post on facebook (Lothian Birdwatch) suggests they might be on their way but it sounded more wishful thinking than definite. Having photo-ed them last year at Bankhead Roundabout on the Calder Road, an hour's cycle across town and one of the bleaker spots Edinburgh has to offer, I am less gung-ho. My thoughts were that it would be good if they turned up, but maybe chose a new venue or the prettier streets near the old Jenners depository where they have been known to settle. 

Meantime things are changing from butterfly watching days to birdwatching. The birds have been slow to appear and I still haven't set up feeders in Warriston as planned. I have been along and put out bread and seeds on gravestones we used last year but very few of the smaller birds have come out to graze. Eventually the crows and magpies clear the food off. I often end up chatting to the crows and feeding them and they follow us about knowing I carry food. 

goosander

This comma (6th Oct) was likely the last one of the year. As we walked into Warriston it fluttered along the Tesco cyclepath just ahead of us before landing on these leaves in a garden. I had to stand on a wall with an 8 foot drop and take its photo. Mary was a little concerned as I had "a cold" and was a bit below par.

This was the cold I had picked up after a long slow rainy run (see Jeff's Taproom Special 2 blogs ago). I inevitably passed it on to Mary who (being a grown up) bought some covid tests online and when they arrived, instantly tested positive for covid! Well there has been a lot of it about. While we did a little bit of isolating (once we knew) we don't lead a hectic social life or go out dancing much these days!

I initially thought it was a mild cold. Unpleasant but not nearly the misery of the first time I had covid. However it turned a corner after a few days and about a week after it landed I acquired a sore diaphragm and ribs and had 3 nights really broken sleep. I wandered around in a semi-fever dream and was glad when, just as quickly as it arrived, it left. Mary didn't get the diaphragm thing but felt challenged by it more than just a cold. Instead of telling me off for passing on a dose of the pox she took the admirably mature attitude of looking at it as an inoculation against further bouts of covid; like another vaccination, but better. And both of us were able to take the necessary days off to recover. And it means we are less prone to another dose in December with up-coming holidays.

speckled wood

Just around the West side of the crypts (as above) we both saw a holly blue. October is late for HBs and it was a possible indicator of a hesitant 3rd brood (had it been in good condition and not just a raggedy long-lived 2nd brooder.) It seemed in good condition (though didn't get a good look) as it flitted under our noses, but didn't slow or settle and frustratingly flew off, away into the tree tops. No photos! We hung about for ages and returned hoping for a repeat performance, but no joy. How annoying! There have since been a couple more late random HB sightings. Richard and I spent a frigid 2 hrs, two years back after such a sighting in Prestonpans on Oct 24th, 2021. Our vigil came to nothing. The sighting was photographed by a birder and was reliable, but the holly blue did not return for a confirmation. Blog here.

most of the RAs had gone leaving just
occasional specimens warming themselves on the stone

lots of berries about

although the crows are still happy to receive handouts

When we were up in Aberdeenshire recently visiting Mary's mum she gave us a pack of Macadamia nuts she no longer wanted. I put them with the bird food and they have been going down exceptionally well with almost everyone. They are the first choice with the squirrels, magpies and crows when laid out with peanuts and seeds. Now how is it they all prefer an Australian nut that would never occur locally? How do they know they prefer them? Or is it just they are bigger and whiter than peanuts and are somehow more desirable?

The animals refuse to let on but just seem to know they are the best. Andrew usually has a few exotic larger nuts (walnuts, cashews, pecans) in his back pack and sure enough they also go down well. And I don't think walnuts are grown in the UK. I have just done a quick google and got this nugget of opinion: There are five edible nuts that grow in the UK but only three are worth the bother: hazelnuts, sweet chestnuts and walnuts! Now you know! 

Notice the wound above the eye on this crow. I am confident it was done by another crow. Only other thing might be if it was hassling a bird of prey and got a talon-whack near its eye. But I have seen many crows harshly disciplining smaller crows for moving in on their territory, or disrespecting the pecking order, and they go at it with great vigour and little tolerance. I suspect this is a youngster who was being shown the ropes.

ladybirds

This red admiral was flitting around in the sunshine but also quite flighty and not that keen on company. Mary continues to hold out hands in case they want to rest on a sunlit palm but the hit rate is quite low. It is still a huge delight when one bucks the trend and lands on her hand. One did just that a day or 2 ago and I cursed myself for missing the photo - it was off after 3 seconds and I was still raising the camera.

Back on the 11th October. In the riverside area there were a couple of robins. I think this one is a new edition and had something of a large head. Maybe he hadn't fully grown into his head yet. He had the boldness of his kind and I hope will be a regular throughout the winter. 

(another) harlequin ladybird

I have become a little bored with the ladybirds. Every time I see something a bit unusual I go home and get out the ladybird laminate and find it is... just another harlequin. There are loads of different patterns of harlequins (over 100) and they interbreed with all the other ladybirds and so everything is slowly becoming harlequin. 

Nice to get a small  number of garden birds on the other riverside stone we used last year. However until the leaves drop a bit more there is insufficient light there. 

2 RAs along the crypts

reluctant wren

I spent a while dawdling at the crypts. I hoped to see the last of the admirals fly in or out the upside down arched windows, proving my theory they overwinter in the cool dry stonework of the crypts. While I have seen them many times sunbathing on the warm sandstone I have never seen one emerge from or enter those windows. (Nor have I climbed a ladder with a torch and checked how deep they go!) I saw an RA leave the stonework, but it was to fly into the topmost branches of a tree. I am beginning to lose faith in my favourite unproved theory. 

showing the windows which run the length of the crypts

this crow seemed to be eating the flaky rock
(I looked closely through the full zoom and no sign of insects)

another pair of RAs

a pair of bullfinches appeared briefly near the tunnel

Excellent to see the grey wagtail near the riverside stream. I feel a bond he may not, after we went through the trauma of him losing his tail a while ago and then growing it back and eventually finding a girlfriend and starting a family. Now it seems he is back to solo life again and hopping around the same area between the tunnel and the WoL. He doesn't care much for human company but will let me creep up for photos if I am stealthy, and keep a discreet distance away.

I spent a while at the 1859 stone feeding 3 or 4 squirrels who
1/ love the macadamia nuts and
2/ can get quite possessive and territorial

bigwig the robin

magpie making a dash for the macadamias
they weren't interested in anything else

where did all the macadamias go?

Mary and I went out for a walk on the 12th October. We had roughly planned to head up the Water of Leith in search of otters, kingfishers and pelicans, while realising dippers and bullfinches might be a more realistic target. As we approached St Mark's park there was something interesting going on in the small lane before the bridge. A female kestrel landed on a lamppost. A magpie, being very vocal, landed on the other side and flapped and cawed at the kestrel who might have been a youngster and looked profoundly surprised and innocent, as the magpie did its best to explain the rules and flew over the back of the kestrel, trying to dislodge it and chase it out the area. 

The kestrel would have happily sat there for photos if it were not for the hullabaloo the magpie was making. The magpie flew off and returned and eventually the kestrel flew off with the magpie in pursuit. It is one of these moments you are exceptionally glad to have happened upon at just the right time and yet makes you greedy for more, and you wonder if you should have moved in quicker or tried to chase the magpie off or somehow got better photos. The photos came out pretty well given the speed of the incident from start to finish. Pity the magpie had to spoil things!

the gormleys start collecting nest building materials around now

As I said the initial plan was to go up river in search of wildlife. However at Logie Green Rd we paused to photograph a few things going on. There was the resident heron parked there, looking a bit grumpy. But the sunlight had also brought out a red admiral or 2 who were playing in the fruiting ivy flowers, and as we waited and took photos, a peacock (the first in weeks) appeared and did Ophelia-like presentations (copyright Iain C) at the riverside. It was so well lit with bright sunlight that the photos all the way from the other side of the river leaning over the wall, came out fine. Some goosanders played in the shadows and we threw bread for them.

and a cat on a lead sat on the wall enjoying the action!

It was all too much and we decided we best go into Warriston, rather than go up the river. If there was nothing there we could always resume the riverside walk. There was a small selection of things to keep us from going hunting for kingfishers but not a huge amount. We already felt richly rewarded seeing a peacock and kestrel so were fairly buoyant, especially as the sun was shining and it was glorious weather.

another peacock on the crypt wall
2 in one day after none for weeks!

dunnock

dew on the leaves

scarface crow with healing wound (and macadamia nut!)

perfect admiral

imperfect admiral missing left wingtip

how many macadamia nuts are enough?

riverside robin

the crypts

13th October on 13th October

Friday 13th October. I am not (overly) superstitious. If anything, Friday-the-13ths have been slightly better than the average day for me. This visit to Warriston was mainly to get out the house and get some exercise. The sun was nearly out and I was worried that all these days of non-running due to covid would eventually see me the size of a house. If I am out the flat, I am not near the fridge. Although the weather was good, there was not the kestrel excitements of the day before and soon I began feeling a bit short-changed. After a couple of lacklustre laps of the graveyard I decided to go with what was there - and threw almost the entire contents of my birdfood bags to the crows and magpies. There was such a crowd gathered that even the squirrels came over to see the poor-oot. The Warriston squirrels are quite shy and not fully up to speed with the notion of humans being a source of handout. If you so much as rattle a polly bag of nuts in the botanics you are mugged by a well disciplined gang of greys. But here you have to coax and cajole them over and sometimes they lose interest before getting the bait.

one crow being disciplined by another re the pecking order

There was an open area on the path well lit with sunlight and I aimed the nuts for there. The magpies and crows came over and although they were well lit, they did not hang about that much and were continually hopping about. I was crouched or lying on the ground and mostly failing to catch just the best moments, or catching them, but out of focus.

I have been looking at the new Lumix G9ii (out in November) and have pretty much decided it will be the new camera. It has animal detection and even animal eye-detection as well as phase-detection, an improved autofocus to the previous G9 and majority of Panasonic cameras. Being a micro 4/3rds it means less weight and size to carry - a 100~400mm lens giving an 800mm reach. It has been getting excellent reviews matching or bettering the OM1, turning out great quality video while being smaller and lighter (and cheaper) than most full frames with big lenses attached. Seems to be the best option for wildlife photography without carrying a fuckton of equipment. 

the whole gang

This squirrel ran up the wooden fence and posed for AGES while I took loads of photos. (MUCH obliged!) Good lighting and great bokeh. It then ran along the top horizontal of the fence at about 20mph. It is not quite wide enough and it was compensating by supporting itself on occasional verticals as it ran at top speed. They are absolutely incredible when it comes to arboreal gymnastics and leaping from tree to tree. And yet their eyesight is really poor on the ground. A macadamia nut lands 6" away, and they hunt blindly trying to find it by sniffing it out. How can they scoot up trees and along branches at that speed if their vision is so poor they can't find a large white nut 6" away? Is it brains in their feet? I am at a loss to understand it. But enjoy watching their antics.

high speed fence-top run

master of the treetops