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CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Leisure
Wildlife highlight of the day
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Posted 8 years ago #
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Heading into town yesteday, I spotted a family of swans just beyond the Slateford Aqueduct and was surprised to count eight cygnets, although this then made sense when I saw the usual 'Wester Hailes' family with six cygnets at Harrison Park. I saw both families again this morning at Meggetland and WHEC respectively. I think that I may have seen the 'new' family of eight in the distance from Hermiston House Road bridge recently, but it is a bit of a surprise to see them so far into the others' territory.
Posted 8 years ago # -
confirming JDP's info, the six and the eight have swapped around.
also JDP had his cagoule hood under his helmet today.
very large amount of dog excrement from scott russell aqueduct to where the murray burn runs under the canal. {i am guessing it is the murray burn]
From a very large dog with two large owners I would not even attempt to give them the hard stare but I would like to see them fined.
Posted 8 years ago # -
@gembo
I know that dog. It is a turd tardis, though the owners are affable.
Posted 8 years ago # -
I'm up north. Wildlife is wunderbar. Includes so far kites, hunting osprey (within 50 m for about 10 mins), orchids, c seals and orca (from ferry to Orkney)
Posted 8 years ago # -
I saw a live hedgehog on the road up north, near Brora. Had to give a good swerve to avoid the silly thing.
Posted 8 years ago # -
The rabbits were also pretty hazardous in the flow country stretch.
Just seen our first bonxie of the holiday
Posted 8 years ago # -
@iwrats, the stuff has changed colour through the day. Saw a mammoth mutt out that way tonight, size and colour of a lion
Posted 8 years ago # -
A kestrel or other similar small attack-beakbeast doing its hovery thing above Newhailes, then landing on a fencepost nearby.
Posted 8 years ago # -
Camera traps gotta badger. Though this was at my sister's place in Northumberland last night (took the camera specifically hoping for this...).
Posted 8 years ago # -
Hare, lizard and too many species of birds to identify or list (but sadly no eagles) spotted up a couple of Munros, including the spectacular Lochnagar on Friday, and a hedgehog and red squirrel spotted closer to where we were staying in the Cairngorms, just west of Braemar.
Now back to the usual highlight of swans on the commute.
Posted 8 years ago # -
jdanielp I too was in the Cairngorms (a backpacking trip starting from Linn of Dee, including Ben Macdui and a camp near Corrour bothy). We saw hare and some birds which looked like ptarmagan who hadn't totally lost their winter plumage - August seems to be a bit late to be flying around with white wings? I also got very close to something that might have been a female grouse.
Also frogs and toads. No lizards, though.
Posted 8 years ago # -
It's great going away, especially up north, to see the wildlife.
Down here I saw a young looking roe deer at the bottom of our road in broad daylight. Also seals (scared away by selfish walkers) and possibly a whimbrel in Aberlady bay, though I have difficulty distinguishing them from curlews (they should really stand next to each other and wear name badges).
Posted 8 years ago # -
@fimm we stayed along the road from the Linn of Dee and cycled to Derry Lodge one particularly pleasant evening (Thursday I suspect), although after a few minutes of admiring the view from the bridge I was being consumed by a swarm of midges... We saw ptarmagan up Lochnagar, although I don't remember them looking all that white. I neglected to mention deer (and frogs) - there were large herds of red deer either side of the road when we passed Glenshee (in the car); east end hinds and west end stags.
Posted 8 years ago # -
jdanielp were you at Muir of Inverey?
I can confirm that there were a lot of midges at Derry Lodge on Saturday morning... we were camping... eventually enough of a breeze got up for us to throw our breakfast down before setting off. Not all that much fun. Definitely not a wildlife highlight!!!
Saturday evening/Sunday morning was quite breezy - "At least it keeps the midges down!"
Posted 8 years ago # -
August seems to be a bit late to be flying around with white wings?
The males keep quite a bit of white but you don't really notice unless they fly.
Posted 8 years ago # -
Urban Kestrel making use of the underside of the Tattoo Stands on the south side to perch and spot suitably snackable creatures below. Got some nice-ish shots in the poor light, but didn't quite manage to snaffle it as it landed three yards from me, right at eye level given the steep sloped bank, before spotting I was there.
Tourists by the score wandering past oblivious (or thinking I was clearly a few sandwiches short of a picnic just staring upwards through the railings).
Was there for about half an hour, just lovely to see.
Posted 8 years ago # -
Supplemented my protein intake one morning such was the volume of midges swarming me as I took breakfast beside the bridge at Derry Lodge. Walking around trying to find some (any!) wind while woolfing down some porridge.
Posted 8 years ago # -
@fimm we stayed here (the photos don't really do it justice): http://www.cottages4you.co.uk/cottages/stuffers-cottage-uup
Posted 8 years ago # -
Sabine's Gull and Curlew Sandpiper in Musselburgh today. I didn't see them, just mentioned on Twitter. Must try harder.
What are those tiny black flies called that swarm around at harvest time? I heard someone call them corn lice but that doesn't sound right. Barley flies?
Posted 8 years ago # -
I know them as corn lice.
Posted 8 years ago # -
I forgot to mention that I saw a fine specimen of a rat leaping across the towpath in front of me at Kingsknowe on Wednesday evening; whether or not it has attained the status of being 'the Kingsknowe rat' yet I don't know...
Last night, a small vole or possibly shrew emerged from the undergrowth on the far side of Hermiston House Road as I was approaching, before running at full speed over the road in front of me - I braked to avoid any mishap.
Posted 8 years ago # -
Bats in the Figgate Park (I've been speaking to STV Edinburgh)
Posted 8 years ago # -
Mice, scampering up the ivy against the wall at the left-most side of the fringe venue occupying the arches at the end of East Market Street.
A bat, flapping around on the path beside Seafield.Posted 8 years ago # -
At the weekend - a heron, apparently being hassled by 2 or 3 gulls, over Harrison Park.
Posted 8 years ago # -
Posted 8 years ago #
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Seagulls get it in the neck - literally and metaphorically.
Including possibly the weirdest statistics quote ever:-
A YouGov poll earlier in August found that 44% of Britons would support a gull cull, though that varied by age - half of respondents aged 18-24 opposed a bird cull, while the same number of over-60s backed one.
Utterly meaningless without knowing whether there were more than two possible answers.
Posted 8 years ago # -
The Swan family of 10 at Wester Hailes bedding down for the evening.
Posted 8 years ago # -
...And the family of 8 at Harrison Park.
Posted 8 years ago #
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