Birds in November
Among the birds spotted on Arran over the last month, are Waxwing and Little Egret. Sightings of Waxwing have come with the arrival of an irruption in Scotland, as reported in the mainstream news.:
A bumper number of waxwing sightings is being reported across Scotland this winter.
Waxwings are annual visitors from Scandinavia but they sometimes come in more significant numbers – known as an irruption – in search of food. RSPB Scotland said it was “lovely to hear” so many people were sharing photographs of the birds.
“Waxwings are welcome visitors to Scotland every year. In some years, we see them in much larger numbers, called irruptions.
“This happens when the population of the birds in their breeding grounds gets too large for the food available there and they have to venture further afield.”
Arran Birding reported:
Waxwing Update. In November there have been four further reports of Waxwing, all in the Lochranza area. The largest group was thirteen in trees between the outdoor centre and the church on Saturday 11 November. The last Arran report of this irruptive winter visitor was one in a garden in Cordon in February 2020. For more information on Waxwing on Arran click here and here
Two Little Egret on Arran
On Monday 6 November two Little Egret were photographed at Drumadoon Point. This is only the tenth autumn record this year of this species which first appeared in the UK in significant numbers in 1989 and first bred in Dorset in 1996. Its colonization followed naturally from this range expansion into western and northern France in previous decades. The first confirmed Scottish breeding record was in 2020 in Dumfries and Galloway. This year there have been sixty-eight reports on Arran. Almost all have been of single birds. There was a report of two in South Carlo on 8 January and a report of three in Cordon on 8 May.
Update. There have been five further November records of Little Egret including reports on Sunday 19 November from two locations. In the morning there was a report of a single bird at Cordon on the east coast and also in the morning a report of a single bird between King’s Cave and Drumadoon on the west coast. In the afternoon there was a further report from Cordon. These reports would suggest at least two Little Egret on the island. *There was another sighting reported in Cordon on Saturday 25 November.
For more on the birds recorded over the last month on Arran, see the Arran Birding website here and this table of sightings (PDF)
Photographs for Arran Bird Report 2023
Yes it is that time of year again when thoughts turn to producing the annual bird report for the Arran Natural History Society. As you know the Arran Bird Report 2020 was the first one in full colour. The attractive appearance of this and subsequent reports was in no small part due to the generous contributions from many photographers. This quality is also reflected in the images that have graced the front covers http://www.arranbirding.co.uk/annual-bird-reports.html
This on-going support is very much appreciated.
If you have any images of birds photographed on Arran that you would like to be considered for use in the Arran Bird Report 2023 I would be pleased to receive these before Wednesday 3 January 2024.
