by Donald Wilson

June:   Alluring Avocets and Picking out a Petrel

Avocet © John Agnew

​So here we are, the end of the first half of the calendar and birding year and what a six months it’s been!

So many highlights within the Clyde recording area during this first half, including some very special birds, all of which made themselves available for all to see. The wintering probable Eastern Lesser Whitethroat in Hamilton, to the Brent Goose that made the Lochwinnoch area its winter home were a superb start to the year. Let’s also not forget the Lesmahagow Hawfinches - what a couple of crackers they were, and one of my personal favourites was the stunning Black-necked Grebe off Ardmore as well as the scarce spring record of a Pectoral Sandpiper at Lochwinnoch.

​For me, and I’m not alone in this, finding and even seeing new and scarce birds in my local area is a real buzz, but of course we had some other special birds that just were not available for all to see, as for some it’s a case of being in the right place and the right time! The Wryneck for example being clocked in a local birders garden or putting in some time into watching a specific area like Cloch point and pulling an Arctic Tern out of the bag or better!

​Of course it’s not all about the one offs. So far this year we have had​ an unprecedented and record breaking amount of people adding useable recording data, primarily through BirdTrack, providing an even better understanding of the status of our local bird and even more importantly the number of breeding birds. Although there are still many places not recorded and I urge all of you to get involved in adopting your own 'patch' and recording the species found there throughout the year.
 

Another highlight and huge success has been the organised “iconic” birds watches, specifically the Glen Fruin Black Grouse Lek and the Glasgow University Peregrine Watch. The latter providing an amazing platform to highlight this iconic species breeding in a busy city environment. The positive public feedback for this project has been nothing but astounding and created such a good vibe about the wider Clyde area, the city of Glasgow, the SOC and associated organisations, a job well done and thanks to all those involved.

So let’s take a look at what’s been seen this month.

The star attraction this month was a pair of Avocets – only the fourth record for Clyde – which were first reported at RSPB Baron’s Haugh on the 6th. This was the first record for Lanarkshire and attracted a lot of interest over the weekend that followed. Presumably the same pair later appeared at RSPB Lochwinnoch on the 9th, marking another first, this time for Renfrewshire, before returning later on the 9th to Baron's Haugh and remaining there until the 10th.
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Previous records for this delightful and elegant pied-plumaged wader are from Ardmore in December 1995 and March 1984 and one at Endrick Mouth going back to 1974 ! (historic Clyde records can be found at the Online Clyde Bird Report  )

The month’s rarest seabird was undoubtedly a Storm Petrel, seen north past Cloch Point during a sea-watch on the 22nd. This was the first record for Clyde since 2012 and only the second ever for that specific location (previously in 1996). The 2012 record involved a bird rescued from Sauchiehall Street and later released from Irvine Beach Park
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The same sea-watch at Cloch Point recorded an Arctic Tern ( a new species for this year) and six Common Terns.  A Sandwich Tern was spotted flying southwest over RSPB Lochwinnoch earlier in the month on the 9th.

Another new species for the year was Quail, with a single bird heard singing near South Medwin Pools on the 13th and again on the 14th.  Quail is heard in the area most but not all years. It’s an erratic migrant with their UK numbers fluctuating dramatically year-to-year.
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Two 1st summer (2CY) Mediterranean Gulls were a good find at Balgray Reservoir (15th & 16th), with one still present on 22nd. An adult bird was seen at Ardmore on 24th.  

Common Sandpiper © John Agnew

Grasshopper Warbler © Lang Stewart

Wader movements picked up as the month progressed, likely including failed breeders. Up to nine Black-tailed Godwits were at RSPB Baron's Haugh earlier in the month, another nine at RSPB Lochwinnoch, and seven were seen at Longhaugh Point field pools towards the end of the month. A Greenshank was noted at Loudon Pond on the 18th, later joined by further records at Balgray and Longhaugh. Other wader sightings included two Green Sandpipers reappearing at RSPB Baron's Haugh on the 23rd, a Whimbrel reported near Airdrie on the 29th, and a brief mid-month visit from a Dunlin at Balgray Reservoir.

Visitors to RSPB Lochwinnoch welcomed four Redshank chicks early in the month – a superb record for a species that is very rare as a breeder in the area these days. By the end of the month there was still one well-grown chick.  Black-headed Gulls also appear to have had a successful breeding season at RSPB Lochwinnoch with at least 24 fledged chicks by 21st June. 

Little Egrets sightings continued throughout the month, with records including single birds at Ardmore and Cardross Bay while numbers at Longhaugh Point increased from two earlier in the month to five by the end of June. 
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Mandarin Ducks peaked at five at RSPB Lochwinnoch. A lone Common Scoter was recorded on Barr Loch at the end of the month, while 17 Common Scoters passed Cloch Point on the 22nd.

Cuckoo (juv) © John Agnew

Whinchat © John Chapman

So that gives us 5 new species since May - which are as follows:

Avocet

Arctic Tern

Storm Petrel

Nightjar

Quail

This brings the list to 194*
(192 confirmed - *Yellow-legged Gull subject to assessment by SBRC. Lesser Scaup subject to assessment by BBRC. )

Until next month - enjoy your birds and birding.
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​A full current species list, month by month for 2025, can be viewed here  - the order and nomenclature follow the Clyde list.

We welcome any corrections or suggestions - please do get in touch at:    https://www.birdsinclyde.scot/contact-us.html​