All this careless, baseless & morally bankrupt talk, what prospects for the wildlife & especially thinking of geese? Alarm bells should be ringing very loud 🔔

23rd. Old Graitney - 1000 Lapwing on the shore. Sth of Ruthwell - 300 Lapwing, 500 Oystercatcher, 150 Curlew, 4000 Barnies. East of Bankend - 170 Whooper Swan. Powfoot - 40 Pintail, 20 Ringed Plover, 26 Lapwing, Greenshank. Moss Rd pools Cummertrees - 300 Teal, 200 Wigeon, 150 Lapwing, 80 Redshank.  More lapwings than we've seen in years. Ian Bainbridge.

Loch Ryan. One offshore from Cairnryan.

Before heading CL, drove the field roads around Locharbriggs & not a flock of geese anywhere. SG there nearly 2 weeks before circulation. Not helpful to say the least. At CL, 3 GWE, 1 Vendace Bay, 1 off A709 & the other "south shore", but mobile. 2 Scaup with c50 Tufties, a fem & looking like a 1st-winter male.

White morph SG, in field near/at Locharbriggs?? So vague it's embarrassing for a news service. WP on the beach still at Point of Lag, Monreith.

Very breezy & only ventured west of the lighthouse. Found 2 Purple Sandpiper. There may be another but scope-shake & skittish birds preventing confirmation. 20 or so Grey Plover, c500 Dunlin, 2 Rock Pipit & a few Knot & Turnstone were the principal others. 

No disturbance for a change! Yippee! 2 Whimbrel (Carsethorn foreshore individual carrying drooped wings, noticed it recently), just 3 Grey Plover & Knot, c2-300 Dunlin, 5 or 6 Snipe, couple of Black-tailed & I think 3 Bar-tailed Godwit, single male Comm Scoter. Also the att., which is confirmed to be a badger pp Andy Riches. 

19th. Red-throated Diver very close to shore by the lighthouse, Southerness, mid-afternoon today. Lorna Lomas.

For those not already messaged who aren't aware. Please be one of the 20% who stats say will actually act upon something. Cheers P I've just emailed Scotland's party leaders calling for more nature-friendly farming. We need to grow a future where nature thrives! Please will you add your name too? It will only take a minute and it will really help our special wildlife. Thank you! https://action.rspb.org.uk/page/174887/action/ I've spoken up for Scotland's wildlife! The Natural Environment Bill should be our chance to restore Scotland's nature, not destroy it. https://action.rspb.org.uk/page/183453/action/

Harry Huyton recently announced; This week the UK Government awarded Berwick Bank with the public subsidy contract it needed to go ahead. It means that for decades to come we will all be subsidising this project and the devastating impact it is expected to have on seabirds. And neither the UK nor the Scottish Government seem to care. This makes me angry. Of course it does. But all is not lost. Only part of the development – about 1/3 rd  of it – has been given a subsidy so far, raising questions for the future. And their consent from the Scottish Government remains conditional on a “seabird compensation plan”, which we are yet to see.   Images left to right: puffin, kittiwake and guillemot.   It was also encouraging that media coverage of this week’s announcement didn’t ignore the environmental catastrophe this development could cause. I used the interviews I gave to highlight the tens of thousands of seabirds – kittiwakes, guillemots, gannets, puffins and more – that are...

Ross's Goose not far from Wigton reported. Fem RND continues to be seen at Longtown Pools & recently a Sibe Chiffchaff reported down the road at the sewage treatment plant.

A bird claimed to be on the beach at Point of Lag, Monreith this morning.

17th. 2 TBG just off the B724 before Cummertrees on the Cummertrees Loop road.

Got the 2 Tundra Bean Geese at Cummertrees but also a 1st winter Dark-bellied Brent Goose was hiding among the Barnacles. Ian Irving.

Neil Hammatt claims a Greater White-fronted Goose, but which nationality?? Greater White-fronted Goose 1, Barnacle Goose, Mute Swan, Shelduck, Shoveler, Wigeon, Mallard, Pintail, Teal, Pheasant, Woodpigeon, Golden Plover, Lapwing, Curlew, Snipe, Redshank, Cormorant, Little Egret, Grey Heron, Sparrowhawk, Marsh Harrier - "Ad female", Hen Harrier - "White rump", Red Kite, Buzzard, Kestrel, Magpie, Jackdaw, Rook, Crow, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Cetti's Warbler 1 - "Alarming from reedbed", Long-tailed Tit, Nuthatch, Wren, Starling, Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush, Redwing, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, Meadow Pipit, Rock Pipit, Chaffinch, Bullfinch, Greenfinch, Linnet, Siskin 1, Reed Bunting.

So we have a Richardsons cackler near the WWT entrance with Barnies. A couple of Tundra Beans off the "Cummertrees Loop" somewhere with Barnies.

Loch Ryan between Stranraer & Kirkcolm. 158 Pale-bellied Brent, Wigeon, Mallard, Common Eider, Common Scoter, 10 Long-tailed Duck, Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Oystercatcher, Curlew, 2 Knot, 4 Horned/Slav Grebe - 2 in tandem with Long-tailed Ducks, 2 further south opposite Stena Line mooring, 3 Great Crested Grebe, 3 Red-throated Diver, GND. Also a Barn Owl again in Dally Bay.

Falling tide. Carse Gut, 1 Greenshank, lots of Teal, Wigeon & Pintail, a Kestrel & Sparrowhawk. Carsethorn & towards Hogus Pt, 1 Whimbrel, c2000 Knot, c20 Bar-tailed & 2 at least Black-tailed Godwit, 4 RBM & good/large numbers of the usual others. Coupled Mallard getting on with breeding on former Kirkhouse Fishery.

Afternoon looking for geese at West Freugh, 115 Greenland and 2 Tundra (Stoneykirk) but no sign of Taiga. Also male Hen Harrier and a Hooded Crow. At White Loch, Castle Kennedy a male Pochard and Woodcock. Ivan Lang. 

Hooded Crow viewed this afternoon at usual Brownrigg Loaning/Annan Road junction taking an interest in telegraph pole workers. Robbie Purdie.

Matthew Cookson saw; Peregrine & Kittiwake off the mull & a Black-throated & Great Northern Diver around the Soleburn zone of LR.

Yesterday flying south over St Medan golf course, Monreith.

Lorna Lomas has requested for this petition to do the rounds. Duly obliged.  https://petitions.parliament.scot/petitions/PE2202

Matthew Cookson has seen a Greenshank in Drummore harbour & a Barn Owl at Dally Bay. At Lochrutton Loch, not much but several Goosander, 2ea of Goldeneye & Little Grebe, 4 GC Grebe, Heron, Snipe & Mallard being the only other duck.

A total of 94 in fields near Bridgelea cottages, just east of Bankend.

Ken Smith has seen today ; 51 Greenland White-fronted Geese, 2 Peregrine, 2 Water Rail, 4 Little Grebe, 1 Stonechat, 1 Little Egret.

Apologies are due to Martin Oates, whose image he kindly submitted I failed to notice!! Red-throated Diver also taken and both closer than my own so better for that. No idea how I could've missed them, unless it was the distraction of finding the American Black Scoter the same day. Martin must have left before I arrived. So, sorry Martin 🙏🏻! Hoping this makes belated amends! "Images of Surf Scoters and Red Throated Diver at Rascarrel Bay today. Thanks to Robbie Purdie for location information." M.Oates.

Forgot to add the following from yesterday 10th: Fem/imm Velvet Scoter with c230 Common Scoter east of Castle Point (roughly off Cows Snout), also another 100 Scaup. Surf still present around midday until rain set in! Gavin.

Corsewall Point Seawatch ; European Golden-Plover 350, Common Ringed Plover 24, Northern Lapwing 7, Eurasian Curlew 12, Common Redshank 5, Ruddy Turnstone 14, Red-throated Loon/Diver 1, Common Buzzard 1, Meadow Pipit 4, Rock Pipit 15. Loch Ryan ; Pale-bellied Brent 85, Common Eider 32, Common Scoter 24, Long-tailed Duck 7, Common Goldeneye 15, Red-breasted Merganser 12, Eurasian Oystercatcher 72, Eurasian Curlew 28, Common Redshank 5, Ruddy Turnstone 4, Horned/Slav Grebe 2. 

Next priority, dog mess & dogs off-lead all over our accessible beaches, driving feeding & resting birds etc away & putting them under avoidable survival pressure.  https://www.dgwgo.com/dumfries-galloway-news/citizen-scientists-save-dumfries-galloway-shoreline-from-invasive-species/