Early Spring in the Uists:  29^th March – 3^rd April 2009

Leader: Steve Duffield

Participants: David and Rhian Liddell.

29^th March: We met up at Benbecula airport on arrival of the 13:00 Flybe flight from Glasgow.  The weather was rather poor at the time with force 7 south-westerly winds, drizzle and occasionally heavier bursts of rain. We left straight away for the self catering accommodation in Askernish, South Uist calling in at the Co-op at Creagorry en route to pick up supplies for the next few days.  We arranged an 8:30 start for the following morning and departed company until then.

The weather did improve in the evening and the sun managed to make an appearance, for a short while at least.

30^th March: Much better weather compared with yesterday with lighter winds and brightening conditions throughout the day.

Our first scheduled stop was Loch Eynort; a large tidal inlet opening out into the Minch. Near the head of the loch we stopped to get a look at around 12 Harbour Seals hauled out on the rocks, before continuing to the end of the road where we went for a short walk. Shortly after arriving a Sparrowhawk shot through the trees at the car park giving brief views as it disappeared low along the shore whilst the wooded garden here held Chaffinch, Dunnocks, Wrens and Song Thrush (the latter three all Hebridean races). We wandered through the wooded garden, along the north shore of the tidal loch and out to an excellent vista looking east. On the loch itself we could see both Red-throated and Great Northern Divers whilst to the north a Golden Eagle was seen displaying distantly for around ten minutes before becoming too distant to see. From here we moved to Ardvule; a peninsula jutting out the west side of South Uist and a resting place for more Harbour Seals, Cormorants and Shags on the large rocks to the south of the point. We found signs that Otters were using the area with a well-worn trail and spraint mound by the side of the loch but not the culprit. Red-breasted Mergansers and Tufted Duck bobbed on the waters whilst a couple of Bar-tailed Godwits roosted on the bank along with a crowd of Oystercatchers. Other waders along the shore line included Turnstone and Purple Sandpipers in rocky areas, whilst Ringed Plover, Redshank and Curlews were found in the sandier or boggier ground. Off-shore a few Gannets sailed passed riding the breeze effortlessly. We walked back to the car and pulled onto a bank on the north side of the peninsula to view the birds in the bay. There was lots of activity here with Long-tailed Ducks and Eiders on the water and a good variety of gulls feeding on invertebrates in the piles of seaweed. We first spotted a young Iceland Gull but our attention was then drawn to a much smaller gull. This bird was slightly smaller than the Black-headed Gulls present and appeared more tern-like at times. The under wing was noticeably whiter than the Black-headed Gulls and the bill black, rather than deep red. It was an adult Bonaparte’s Gull, a rare trans-Atlantic visitor from North America. As we turned to head back a flock of Whooper Swans containing over 100 birds flew low, north heading to their summer haunts in Iceland.  Nearby a further 190 Whooper Swans were resting on Loch Bornish before continuing their journey.

Next we headed south to have lunch outside the Pollochar on the south coast of South Uist, stopping en route to check Loch an Eilein at Askernish for an even rarer visitor than the Bonaparte’s Gull. Our luck was in and we got good views through the telescope of a Kingfisher perched on a branch over-hanging the loch. This was only the 7^th record of this delightful little bird for the Outer Hebrides. We also got a brief of view of a speeding female Merlin as we got out of the car. After lunch we took a short trip across to Eriskay where we spotted another Golden Eagle; this time much closer to our vantage point. Looking west the views across the Sound of Barra were superb with a scatter of small islands dotted in among the azure waters. You could spend hours admiring the view but the wind and time were pressing so we started back for Askernish, calling in briefly at Smerclate where another 26 Whooper Swans rested on a small loch. The first day was over but what an excellent introduction to the islands, it had been.

31^st March: Mostly cloudy today with occasional brighter spells and a south-westerly force 5 wind.

Today we covered the west side of North Uist but even before we got there we managed a couple of excellent birds. As we drove passed Druidibeg National Nature Reserve a Peregrine Falcon sailed over causing panic amongst the avian residents whilst a little further along the road a male Hen Harrier glided low over the moor close by. Our first stop on North Uist was at Kyles Paible where we spotted a 1^st yr Iceland Gull on the machair as well as good numbers of Golden Plover and Barnacle Geese. We moved on to Loch Sandary where there was another small flock of Barnacle Geese feeding in an adjacent field. The loch held Wigeon, Teal, 3 Shoveler, Tufted Duck and Little Grebe whilst the gulls gathered on the side included an adult Glaucous Gull. Our next port of call was Balranald RSPB reserve. At the visitor centre we spotted Corn Buntings and a lone Snow Bunting. From here we drove to the coast and took a short walk across the machair to a lovely north facing bay in search of Otters. Unfortunately the tide was probably a bit high and no Otters were forthcoming. We did see a 1^st yr Glaucous Gull, 3 Razorbills, Great Northern Divers and a couple of Wheatears sheltering from the breeze. As we drove back along the track towards the visitor centre the huge bulk of a White-tailed Eagle appeared causing pandemonium amongst the birds. It flew passed and out towards Aird an Runair, showing very well before returning and heading south along the coast. We had tremendous views and a real surprise as sea eagles are only rarely seen on this side of the island. 

We had lunch on the beach at Hougharry before continuing around the north-west side of the island. Near Scolpaig we spotted a female Hen Harrier hunting low over the fields. We took a side track from the main road down to the pier at Griminish. This lovely site, opposite Vallay is a hidden gem and a walk along the shore produced Red-throated Divers, Greenshank and more Barnacle Geese. Just as we got back to the car an Otter ran down the bank and disappeared. Not to be outdone by the stealthy critter we walked around to the site it was last seen and spotted the animal close to the shore line. It quickly disappeared showing again briefly before vanishing and agonisingly not re-appearing for around 10 minutes. Eventually it re-surfaced and spent the next half an hour catching fish and dragging them onto a sea-weed, covered rock to feed.

We turned for home taking the Committee Road over the moor to rejoin the southern arm of the circular route around the west side of North Uist. Just after the high point of the road we spotted an immature Golden Eagle circling over the hillside. It showed incredibly well for a few minutes before drifting west and a second Golden Eagle appeared for a moment to the east. The latter bird was an adult and probably pushing the younger bird out of its territory. We also had brief views of a female Merlin bombing over the moor.

1^st April: The wind was from the south today and a force 5. It was generally cloudy with the odd sunny spell.

We set off once again at 8:30 am taking the road north to Loch Bee. This large, shallow loch held good numbers of Mute Swans as well as Teal, Wigeon and Goldeneye. Another Glaucous Gull showed well on the machair to the west of the loch and just south of Ardivachar Point. There were few birds at Ardivachar so we drove around to North Bay. Here luck was with us once again and an Otter was spotted feeding amongst a floating tangle of seaweed. It showed well for around 10 minutes before the rising tide made catching food too difficult when it swam off to the west. Birds present included another immature Glaucous Gull, Sanderling, Purple Sandpipers and Bar-tailed Godwits. Nearby 58 Greenland White-fronted Geese grazed on the machair and we had good views of a flock of approximately 50 Twite. We moved on to explore the Balgarva / South Ford area with a stop at Hebridean Jewellery. A male Gadwall was on the loch just outside the shop whilst the sandy bay held a variety of waders with good numbers of Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Bar-tailed Godwits. Among the throng were also Grey Plover and Knot. 4 Glaucous Gulls lingered in the area as the last remains of a dead whale were finished off. From here we moved on to Benbecula and a walk on the machair at Borve. This short walk around the coast allowed us further views of a large Peregrine Falcon, plus Purple Sandpipers, Turnstone, Golden Plover and Skylarks. We had lunch over-looking the South Ford.

Our next stop took us to Coot Loch which, aptly named holds some of the last breeding Coots in the whole of the Outer Hebrides. Other wildfowl present included a male Pintail, Shoveler, Tufted Duck, Wigeon and Teal. Shortly after this a panic amongst the birds attracted our attention and sure enough another eagle. This time it was an immature Golden Eagle and although fairly distant in the good light we managed to pick out a lot of detail on the bird including its golden shawl. Nearby Stinky Bay held over 100 displaying Eiders and a lone Great Northern Diver.

In the afternoon we spotted 4 Corn Buntings, Reed Buntings and Twite on a walk on the machair at Daliburgh adjacent to Loch Thallan, South Uist. It was fairly quiet along the coast so we popped down to Lochboisdale to have a look at “Otter City”. The network of trails, holes and spraint sites was truly impressive. In the tidal channels we saw Black Guillemot, Grey Heron, Red-throated Diver and Shags. After a break we continued around the coast and up popped an Otter feeding amongst the seaweed. We sat down and watched the animal fishing for a while before it began swimming towards us. Incredibly the Otter came ashore just where we were sat and I don’t know who was more surprised, David or the Otter when they came face to face. The Otter then vanished having thought better of its route ashore.

2^nd April: Southerly force 5 wind and sunny for the majority of the day.

Today we took in the island of Berneray, now connected to North Uist by a modern causeway. On the way north we spotted a flock of distant grey geese heading, high north-west.  Once on Berneray we first drove across the southern part of the island where we had good views of around 400 Barnacle Geese on the machair as well as a variety of waders and Skylarks. Another distant flock of grey geese was seen bringing the total to around 300 birds (from the two flocks). To the north lay Loch Brusda which held a pair of Pintail, Teal, Tufted Duck and Whooper Swans. A walk across the machair took us to a wonderful golden beach stretching along the west side of the island and looking out towards the island of Pabbay. The channel in between the two islands held a good number of birds including 130 Long-tailed Ducks, numerous Eider and Great Northern Divers. A few Gannets flew through heading west as did a single Great Skua. Kittiwakes were also spotted using the channel as a passage between the Minch and the open Atlantic. Once again a flock of grey geese (this time about 100) were seen heading north-westwards but this time we managed to get a good enough view to identify them; Icelandic Greylag Geese. Once we had soaked this wonderful place up we walked back across the machair towards the car spotting 5 distant Snow Buntings in flight. We called in at the youth hostel and explored the north-east shore where we spotted Wigeon, Sanderling, Purple Sandpipers and Turnstone.

We left Berneray in the early afternoon driving back across to North Uist. Once on the main island again we spotted a small bird diving close to the shore at Newton Ferry. This turned out to be a summer plumage Slavonian Grebe. Lunch was taken at Clachan Sands in another scenically beautiful spot. A distant Golden Eagle got us back into the swing of things and 2 male Belted Beauty moths added a bit of variety. We drove back towards Lochmaddy and made a sudden stop to check the large bird of prey, low down by the main road. This turned out to be a magnificent Golden Eagle that was quickly followed by a second bird providing superb views as they flew to the hills lying to the south-west.  Once in Lochmaddy the brief stop at the pier was just in case a sea eagle was around. Red-throated Divers fished the bay here and then once again our luck was in as an adult White-tailed Eagle flew across the mouth of the natural harbour, alighting on the far shore not far from a couple of Red Deer. We continued southwards calling in at Langass for a short walk. Another Peregrine appeared over the hills along side a Buzzard and the garden attracted Chaffinch and Greenfinch as well as a couple of Collared Doves. Finally we called in at “Otter City” and despite the tide being at a similar height the critters eluded us.

3^rd April: The final day was sunny but quite windy with a force 6 – 7 southerly wind.

We started out a little after 10:00 am and made our way to Loch Eynort with excellent views of a female Hen Harrier en route. Loch Eynort held the usual Harbour Seals plus Robin, Dunnock, Wren, Chaffinch, Greenfinch and a Sparrowhawk. The biggest surprise was a very early Peacock butterfly. This species is a scarce visitor to the islands but having spread across much of Scotland recently is a potential colonist. From here we moved on to Peninerine where good numbers of gulls were feeding close to the shore. Amongst the excitement the winter plumage Bonaparte’s Gull fed over the water and a clump of seaweed. We had excellent prolonged views along side a variety of other species allowing us to scrutinise the subtle differences with Black-headed Gull. Our next stop was Druidibeg National Nature Reserve and Loch Skipport. We had our lunch by the old pier attempting to shelter from the strengthening wind. Red-throated Diver and Shags fed in the tidal loch and a Golden Eagle flew low along the north bank before crossing to the same side as us. Still raptors kept appearing as the eagle was shortly followed by a Buzzard and then we added Kestrel and another Hen Harrier to our tally as we drove back across the nature reserve. We circumnavigated the west side of Loch Bee once again stopping for a while at North Bay which provided us with good views of 2 Glaucous Gulls, an Iceland Gull plus Great Northern Diver and a selection of waders such as Sanderling and Purple Sandpiper.

We left South Uist for the last time and drove around the west side of Benbecula. Coot Loch had 2 Gadwall as well as Shoveler. Our last stop was at Stinky Bay and this small, partially sheltered haven provided us with good views of 8 Long-tailed Ducks, Eiders and 2 Great Northern Divers. We returned to the airport at Balivanich, Benbecula at 4:15 pm for the flight to Glasgow at 5:30 pm.

Western Isles Wildlife

Specialise in trips throughout the main islands of the Outer Hebrides.

For further details please contact:

Steve Duffield

5 Drimsdale

Isle of South Uist

Western Isles

HS8 5RT

Tel 01870 620241

07867 555971

www.western-isles-wildlife.co.uk