Page 4 - Out Birding Spring 2024

Event Reports
Please send reports as a Word a􏰀achment or in the body of an email to Pat: pat.cro􏰁on@b􏰂nternet.com
Ailsa Craig 15/04/23
We met at Givan harbour in Ayrshire on a warm sunny day. The sky was blue and the sea was dead calm. Excitement and anticipation were high and I for one was glad that it was a calm sea. Ailsa Craig is an island in the outer Firth of Clyde, 8.5 miles west of mainland Scotland. The now uninhabited island is the remains of a magmatic pluton. It was a haven for Catholics during the Reformation in the 16th century. The island is still quarried for its micro-granite to make curling stones. It is now a bird sanctuary leased by the RSPB. Rats were eradicated in 1991 and now Puffins are once again raising their young on the island. White-tailed Eagle nested at the bare stack until 1881.
We found our boat and climbed aboard. As we waited to depart, we saw Sand Martins flying around the harbour and Cormorants on rocks. While we travelled to the island, we were never short of birds to watch. Birds were spotted at frequent intervals and shouts of ‘Another great norther’ were heard frequently. We saw 28 in total. We also saw Manx Shearwaters and Black Guillemots. A skein of Pink-footed Geese was seen flying north.
The island slowly came into view revealing more detail the closer we got. We landed near the lighthouse which was built between 1883 and 1886 by Thomas Stevenson. After exploring the derelict buildings some of our party climbed up to an old castle built in the late 1500’s while a few others wandered along the coast. It was a perfect day sunny, blue sky and little wind. On the sea was a small group of Eiders, the males competing for the females’ attention. On the island we saw and heard Chaffinch, Meadow Pipit, Rock Pipit and Twite.
In the sky were Ravens, Great Black-backed gulls, Herring Gulls, Lesser Black-backed Gulls, and Swallows. Then we saw a Sparrowhawk, as usual a brief glimpse of it while it was hunting on the steep sides of the island. Shags were sitting on the rocks sur- rounding the island and seals were in the sea, one of which followed us as we walked along the shore.
After a couple of hours the boat came back and picked us up and we set off to go round the island. This was a great experience as we were so close to the birds around us, which included Gannets, Guillemots, Kittiwakes and Razorbills. Several Puffins were on the sea and lots of Gannets were nesting on the towering cliffs. We saw more grey seals sunbathing on rocks.
We then set off back to Givan, a quieter trip than the outward one. Sandwich Terns were hanging around the harbour and we saw harbour porpoises and Oystercatchers. As we entered the harbour the boat grounded on a sand bank. Some of us were asked
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