A select party of seven met in Nethybridge and soon after arrival at nearby feeders were enjoying views of the area’s speciality, a Crested Tit. This was to the relief of the leader who, although he had seen one immediately on a recce the previous day, knew this was not guaranteed – in winter, Cresties join other tits in roving gangs, probably to maximise feeding opportunities and lessen predation risk. A flock does not stay long in any one spot and, had we just missed them, it might have been a lengthy wait for a reappearance. Also, as spring arrives, flocks break up and birds regain defended territories. A Mistle Thrush sang strongly here, a Siskin was noted and an unseen Crossbill (- Common or Scottish?) called.

​We then had a brief stop at the bridge over the Nethy and enjoyed excellent views of a pair of Dippers which soon will be nesting here and saw a few other common birds at nearby feeders.

​Approaching Boat of Garten Woods a Red Kite was spotted – it’s only in the last three years or so that this species has become reliable locally. A walk here gave us a pair of Common Buzzards and distant views of a probable Goshawk but failed to deliver another Crested Tit. Three or four Crossbill sp and a few Siskins were seen up high but these woods were fairly quiet although singing Mistle Thrushes broke the silence. 40 Wigeons and a few other common waterbirds took off from the Deshar Flood but water levels are very low this winter and it’s unlikely this site will deliver the good birds it has in the past.
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We then drove up to the car park on Cairn Gorm but the coming and going of skiers from an (estimated) 200 vehicles didn’t put off the flock of Snow Buntings which are regular on picnic tables here. We only saw five this time but up to 50 birds are regular here and give superb views. There was a cold wind here and clouds were scudding across the mountain top so the shelter of cars – or the restaurant for a coffee – was very welcome.

A stop at the layby by the south end of Loch Insh gave us a few of the commoner wildfowl but the reported Smew here almost eluded us until Tim picked it out in the shadow by the far bank. The combination of distance, shade and the bird’s constant diving at first made viewing difficult but in the end we all obtained satisfactory views. Some 500 Pink-footed Geese flew over, a few Greylags were on the water and five Canada Geese did their best to hide behind a bank. A gang of five Little Grebes squabbled, dived and then swam serenely by.

Next, we tried to find the Snow Goose at the south end of Insh Marshes – it was seen earlier that day – but were unsuccessful. A pair of newly arrived Shovelers was slight recompense for that failure but that’s the way of birding. Good numbers of returning waders were seen towards Kingussie – lots of feeding Lapwings and Curlews and some 180 roosting Oystercatchers which will soon disperse to their farmland nesting grounds. The weather had closed in by this time and it had turned colder so we were disinclined to wait longer for a possible raptor and called it a day.
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As promised, it was a day of quality over quantity with only 41 species recorded but, as Leader, I found it very enjoyable to share my birdwatching with a group of equally-enthusiastic friends. 

Pete Gordon

 
Six members met up with leader, Dean MacAskill, at Dornoch Airfield carpark at 10a.m.,  later joined by Ross, a young member, with parents.   It was grey, mild and surprisingly dry - most of us had left Inverness in misty drizzle and low cloud.   High tides and rains had flooded large patches of the area beyond the airfield so we picked our way across keeping our eyes open for a possible Short-eared Owl which sadly was elusive.  Our spirits lifted to hear several singing Skylarks overhead.  A Jack Snipe was flushed – quickly up and equally quickly down – seen by some.   At the far end of the marsh area, a small flock of birds took flight and landed amongst seedy vegetation.   Very hard to spot, but finally located creeping along the ground picking at the seeds – mostly Twites with a few Linnets.      At the western shore, looking up the firth towards the Dornoch bridge, we scoped the sea  - many Wigeons, Teals, Shelducks and a few Pintails.  The tide was rising, pushing up the numerous waders  including Bar-tailed Godwits, Curlews, Oystercatchers, Redshanks, Knots, a single Sanderling, Dunlins, and most especially Grey Plovers.  One of our party hadn’t seen this species before and managed to have good views and get the photo.  The plovers were giving their plaintive call.  We trudged round the sand – seeing Eiders, Slavonian Grebes, Long-tailed Ducks and Red-breasted Mergansers.   On the east side of the point, a good number of Sanderlings were busily rushing about feeding and dodging the incoming tide.  The sea was fairly calm which aided our search through the numerous scoters – mainly Commons with an odd Velvet, and finally the Surf Scoter pair.  We all had good views but the Black Scoter eluded us, both from the shore, and later from the elevated carpark.  It would have been helpful if the sun was shining to enhance the yellow bill!!

​On then to Embo where the very high tide was crashing against the rocks and the Purple Sandpipers had found a ledge on the crumbling pier to shelter with Turnstones.  On then to the Mound – seeing a few Greylag Geese on the way.  The rains were now on and the water was very high with little to see, so we called it a day and felt very lucky to have had a good, mostly dry, outing with an excellent leader.

​There was a biting easterly wind and a dark morning that saw six of us at Dingwall Ferry Point and the tide was very far out. Still it came rushing in quickly enough and we had some good close views of the waders who like to sit tucked into the mud banks of the Peffery at this turn of the tide. Notable was the single Black-tailed Godwit ( who has been around for a few weeks now) spotted by Lesley amongst the Redshank  and Dunlin. There was a solitary Greylag Goose out on the sand and we worried about about that one… a few Shelducks, Little Grebes, Wigeons, Teals, Lapwings and Golden eyes and a small group of Pink-footed Geese flew past but the birds were pretty scarce. The feeders had all the usuals including Tree Sparrows. There were hundreds of Shelducks and Oystercatchers on the way to the business park at Alness and we checked out some bushes holding Yellowhammers. Pat showed us his thermal imaging camera which pointed out about 30 small warm bodies in the centre of a bush. Apart from two more Black- tailed Godwits, the roost was the quietest I've seen it.
The plan was to go down to the Dalmore roost but the road was blocked by roadworks and we couldn't even walk there. So we decided to call it a cold, dark, quiet but rewarding day! 45 species were recorded

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We were lucky again with the weather this year for our annual winter bird race. There was, however, a lot of snow and ice around, but the day stayed bright and dry in the east although there was rain and mist in the west. The cold temperatures created a few problems for participants, but spare a thought for the poor birds struggling to survive in the prolonged freezing conditions!
12 teams took part this year with the object of seeing as many different birds as possible between 0000hrs and 1700hrs, within the Highland Recording Area. Teams joined from Inverness, Strathspey, Glen Urquhart, The Black Isle, Dingwall and Eigg with several teams opting to do a walking-only bird search. Some team members even made the effort to come up from Edinburgh to join in! With teams gaining an extra 3 points if they included someone under 30, there were a good number of ‘young birders’ taking part and 6 teams benefited from these bonus points.
Teams planned their own route and stayed out as long as they liked, so long as they remained in the Highland recording area. In a spirit of camaraderie (as opposed to competitiveness) we set up a WhatsApp group for the day so that folk could keep in touch with photos and locations of birds seen. Several teams bumped into each other at the local birding hotspots and shared birdy news and commented on how cold it was!

Some great birds were seen during the day, including the White-fronted Goose at Alturlie, Black Scoter along with Common, Velvet and Surf Scoters off Dornoch beach, King Eider at Dornoch, Brambling in Fortrose, Water Rail, Greenshank and Kingfisher at Merkinch nature reserve, a Nuthatch at Strathpeffer and Golden Eagle and 4 Great Northern Divers off Eigg. The total birds seen during the day was 126 – pretty impressive.
 C:\Users\carol\Documents\birds\SOC\Bird race\2026\SOC Highland Winter Bird Race Checklist 2026 Total Birdlist.docx
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​We met in the evening over Zoom to swap stories and to award some virtual prizes. The team that saw the most birds, Lord of the Wings, Matt Broadbent, Emily Hill, Oscar Puls and Sophie Hodson, saw or heard a whopping 107 birds, with 3 extra points taking their total to 110. Very well done! Runners up were Totally Aukless of Peter Stronach, Emma McBride and Craig Forsyth with 104 birds +3 taking their total to 107, so a very close run race! 3rd with 92 points, 89 species +3, came Josh & Tracy Allan, Ruaridh Edmonds and Ross Macleod who managed to beat their total from last year. A special mention goes to our lone West Coast birding team on Eigg, The Eigg Eagles, who had difficult conditions, still managed to get 36+3=39. Well done everyone, you are all winners!

Best Team Name – ‘No Hoodies No More’, chosen by Alex Joss
Best Bird – E coast – White-fronted Goose. W coast – 4 Great Northern Divers
Bogey Bird – Goldfinch. Not seen by the ‘Dingwall Dippers’ team
The Eco Award for most birds on foot – “Bumbling Brambling’s” who managed to clock 61 species in their walk in the Fortrose area.
Best photo – Waxwing by Josh Allan
Thanks to everyone who joined in and helped to make it a fun winter day out birdwatching!

Carol Miller
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​Sixteen of us met at Kiltearn Burial Ground just after sunrise on a beautiful December morning. We were happy to see a few winter thrushes overhead, (which have been in short supply this year), from the car park, whilst we enjoyed some delicious mince pies courtesy of Sue and Hugh. 
 
A short walk to the waters edge rewarded us with a single Pink-footed Goose, and the lovely sound of calling Curlews as they flew away down the coastline. We saw a Great Spotted Woodpecker perched in a tree, and we were discussing a suspicious hole in an oak tree wondering whether something had recently or was currently occupying it. 
 
We headed back across the car park adding a Collared Dove to the list. Once we reached the bridge there were two Goldeneyes at the mouth of the river and bobbing along the side of the stream was an unexpected Dipper. The trees were filled with good numbers of Yellowhammer and Linnets and a Goldcrest was heard and then seen in some nearby conifers as a pair of Buzzards flew in from the fields. 
 
We continued towards the spit at the Cromarty Firth. On the banks of the pool to the left we enjoyed views through the scopes of Bar-tailed Godwit, Redshank and a single Greenshank. All of a sudden all the birds flushed and a Sparrowhawk was spotted chasing a Redshank but the chase was short-lived and the Sparrowhawk retreated back into the nearby bushes. The birds didn’t have long to rest as moments later a Peregrine flushed the same group of birds. 

​Whilst all this was unfolding in the Cromarty Firth, a Kingfisher had been spotted flying away from us down the spit and it soon perched on a large branch further out into the firth, where it sat for a few minutes giving everyone great views through the scopes. 
 
We continued round the circuit passing along the river into the woodland. Another Dipper, presumably the same individual, was spotted on the rocks where it gave great views for a few seconds before it bolted off up the river. We saw a few very photogenic Reed Buntings illuminated in the December sunshine. 

Common woodland birds were ever present along the trail including a Treecreeper which was new for the days list. Just as we started to head back towards the carpark, a Kestrel was spotted in a tree watching over the field below.
 
Once we returned to the carpark we had a brief exploration of the grave yard. We got great views of around a dozen Redwings and Fieldfares sitting in the trees that had presumably been feeding on the many yew berries littered on the ground. There was also some interesting earthstar fungi under one of the yew trees which puffed out a cloud of spores when poked with a stick. 
 
It was then time to head off for lunch so we went in convoy along the windy country lanes to the nearby Highland Farm Cafe, where we all enjoyed a lovely lunch and great company. Thanks to Sue and Hugh for organising a great morning's birding with a fantastic count of 61 species, including some very nice sightings and for arranging our festive lunch gathering. 
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Josh Allan

 
It was on a cold morning, minus 2c, when I rolled carefully down the hill to collect Craig.  Folk were gathering at 9am at the old South Kessock ferry carpark for the Inner Moray Firth SOC trip.   Seven hardy souls made the effort in inclement weather whilst others, further afield, were almost snowed in.   My idea was to walk along the sea wall to the Merkinch Nature Reserve and look for three target species – Kingfisher, Water Rail and Snipe.  But due to the cold temperature I was breathless and decided to drive round to the canal in my wee eco van whilst the group walked to the pools where we would meet.  Before setting off, we logged Ringed Plovers and Turnstone on the shore and Long-tailed Ducks and Guillemot off the pier.   Obligingly, it wasn’t long before a Kingfisher showed in this reliable wintering spot.  Everyone got good views, and Snipes were showing on the edge of the sedge.   Moments before a scope was produced, I had spotted a smaller snipe making jerky movements whilst feeding, with a prominent yellow stripe on it back.  It was most likely a Jack Snipe, but lurked behind sedge/cover.  2 out of three target species – a good start.  Four Greenshanks, Moorhen, Heron, Redshank and Teal were also seen.   Next, we drove to Alturlie.   The sea here was choppy and the wind Baltic, so no Great Crested Grebe or Green-winged Teal which had been seen on the previous day.  Plenty of Wigeons bobbing about, and Mary picked up some very distant Scaups.  We moved along the shore to Alturlie village which was a bit more sheltered but still difficult conditions.  Collared Dove, tits, Yellowhammer and Tree Sparrows were in the bushes whilst Robin and Blackbirds were hungrily foraging.  More Scaups and distant Red-throated Diver were spotted.   On to Connage, Ardersier via a Pink-footed Goose flock at Dalziel farm.  The usual Corn Bunting, finch flocks, larks and raptors (Red Kite, Peregrine, Hen Harrier) were all absent – no doubt hunkered down out of the icy wind.   On the shore we noticed a very pale Rock Pipit, (littoralis). By now it was 1.30 and due to the icy conditions most of us decided to call it a day.  Craig had counted a respectable 67 species, a good count given the conditions.  

​We said our friendly goodbyes and returned home for hot broth whilst Mary, Tony and Tim continued to Nairn.  This addition from Mary -  The wind was even icier at Nairn and onshore.  We did well to spot Sanderling but our search for Snow Bunting along Nairn beach was fruitless.  Returning towards Inverness, we stopped at Loch Flemington and added Moorhen, Coot, Long-tailed Tit and had a lovely sighting of at least 15 Whooper Swans coming in to land on the loch calling.  As we returned to the South Kessock carpark to collect our cars, a Pied Wagtail was our final bird of the day.
Alan thanks all for support, and I can add our thanks to him for leading the outing.

 
Twelve folk met at a very misty, murky Munlochy Bay overlook where we piled into three cars.  Due to a very high tide we high-tailed it through the middle of the Black Isle towards Udale Bay.   A few Fieldfares and a couple of Redwings were balancing on telegraph wires as we passed.   It was difficult to assess the state of the tide at Udale hide as the mist was even thicker – however the Pink-footed Geese were in full voice.  Alice was waiting, and we proceeded to Ivy Cottage carpark, Jemimaville hoping the ducks and waders would be closer in.  A pair of Mute Swans was spotted on our journey and a Canada Goose was identified through the mist, with a lone Slavonian Grebe.  Unusually we had no sighting of the flock of Scaups which were too far out.  Returning to Udale hide, the tide was pushing the birds up towards the land. We were rewarded by Redshanks, Dunlins, Curlews, Bar-tailed Godwits, a single Knot and Lapwings, with Wigeon, Teal, Shelduck, Mallard, Red-breasted Merganser and the ever present and noisy Pink-footed Geese.   The bushes/tree provided Reed Bunting, Goldcrest, Meadow Pipit, Red Kite and Yellowhammer and a single Snipe zigzagged from the sedge.    On towards Kirkmichael church, we detoured to Mark Finn’s garden with his spectacular bird feeders and logged up 15 more species – good numbers of Greenfinches, tits, Tree Sparrows, Siskins, Bullfinches, a Buzzard and a Sparrowhawk. A wander across the stubble gave Skylark but sadly no Grey Partridge. 
    

​From Cromarty harbour we spotted Eiders, Long-tailed ducks, Razorbills, Guillemots, Shags and at least six Rock Pipits and one Meadow Pipit. Starlings were perched on a tree but one bird we had surprisingly NOT seen was a Wood Pigeon.  However, we finally spotted some in the village plus a Collared Dove.  Rosemarkie shore gave us Cormorants, Red-throated Divers and a female Velvet Scoter.   Avoch area gave us Goldeneye and Little Grebe.  Most folk then departed as it was getting more and more murky, but the four from Fortrose/Rosemarkie finished the day with a quick visit to Chanonry Point and logged  Turnstone, a Pied Wagtail and Ringed Plover to make the final count of 74 which was surprising for a day where jizz and call of birds were mainly the identifiers.

Eight of us met in the Tesco car park in Dingwall for our trip along the north side of the Cromarty Firth.  Our outings are normally fairly relaxed - ‘lets see what’s about’ - events, but Ruairidh immediately set us the challenge of beating his highest SOC outing list of 56 species.
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The first leg of our record attempt was a walk along the Peffery in Dingwall, where we were rewarded with very good views of a Kingfisher, which was joined by a second one as it headed down stream.   The bird table beside the path just beyond the football ground then yielded another sought-after species – Tree Sparrow.  With a big female Sparrowhawk doing a fly past, we were on 21 species when we left Dingwall for Alness Point.

The Point gave us a chance to see our first waders and wildfowl.  As well as some close-up views of Bar-tailed Godwit, we added Turnstone, Redshank, Oystercatcher and Curlew. The lagoons held Little Grebe and several duck species, while beyond the shingle ridge there were Slavonian Grebe, Red-throated Diver, Guillemot, Cormorants and a Shag.  Five finches flying over turned out to be Crossbills, and we had reached 54 species after only two stops. With Eider and Long-tailed Ducks seen almost immediately when we arrived at Salburn, we’d equalled Ruairidh’s record and with a single female Scaup and a Black-throated Diver we were at 58. so the target was raised to 60.

It was very high tide at The Nigg RSPB hide, but we eventually found Pintail, Lapwing and Dunlin, so we were at 61 and our new target of 70 was looking possible. By the time we reached Balintore harbour, both cars had seen Stonechats and one car had added a Merlin.   The high tide meant the Purple Sandpipers (Ruaridh’s 197th species for 2025!) and Ringed Plovers were roosting on the seawall and there were at least 12 Rock Pipits.  Three Twites gave excellent close views and Mary picked up a lovely winter plumage Black Guillemot. We eventually managed to positively identify some distant Gannets, and Tony found our only Greenfinch of the day.

When we decided to head back to Dingwall we were on 74.   One car picked up Peregrine, Feral Pigeon and Song Thrush on the journey back and a Grey Wagtail flew over the car park as we were saying our farewells, giving a final total of 78 species.

Thanks to everyone for the good company, Carol & Tony for driving, Ruth for keeping the list and Ruairidh for continually raising the target! 


Simon Cohen

As we walked back to the minibus we had excellent views of a Crossbill, leading to a discussion on the diet of crossbills and their classification. We returned to Cloddymoss, our starting point via the toilets at Culbin Forest Car Park. A flock of 18 Crossbills flew over the car park making a special end to the outing.
 
In total, 52 species were recorded.
 
Thanks to Lawrence, Janet and Tim, Tracy and Josh for making it such an enjoyable outing. Tracy for compiling the species list. All photographs are copyright Josh Allan.
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Alister Clunas

​The group mustered at Fort George car park at 1030 as the day drew fine and dry albeit with a brisk south westerly wind.
We began by checking the Inverness Firth by looking west from the car park but the low tide and facing  into the wind meant other than a few distant Eiders there was little to be seen here.
As a result the group made their way across to the eastern side of the fort to check out the outer Moray Firth. Crossing the lawn a large group of Long-tailed Tits made their presence known by their distinctive chattering call in the adjacent scrub then shortly afterwards they flew over head and dropped down into the fort itself.
In addition, a large flock of Greenfinches also flew over, an unusual sight anywhere these days but particularly along the coast. As we reached the coast a few Turnstones were seen flying past over the sea, some Bar-tailed Godwits were on the adjacent sand feeding. There was little else to be seen on the coast but off-shore there was a greater selection to be found. Several juvenile Gannets were flying about,, groups of Eiders could be seen here and there, a small number of Red-breasted Mergansers, Razorbills and one of Fort George's winter specialties, a couple of Tysties not too far off shore. The regular bottle-nosed dolphins also put in an appearance on a few occasions to our enjoyment and no doubt that of some of the various dolphin watching boats in the area.
Bird of the day then presented as a juvenile White-tailed Eagle came lolloping low along the coast towards us from the east unsurprisingly scattering other birds in all directions as it approached, before reaching us the bird veered off over the range, gained height and escorted by a flock of corvids it was last seen heading west over Ardersier.

​Realising we were unlikely to better that we called it a day at Fort George and made our way towards the Carse woods where we parked up and were greeted by a Crossbill calling loudly before flying overhead. The group then meandered our way towards the MOD training ground along a somewhat overgrown path managing to lose part of the group en-route. After a brief anxious search the party was reunited and had a look over the New Zealand Pigmyweed covered marsh which proved rather a letdown likely due to the invasive plant making it completely inhospitable for any bird during the late summer and autumn period.
We moved onto the bay now flanked by the large imposing fence to the new port development and beyond that the enormous manmade sand dunes which have been constructed beyond. High tide was still a few hours off but as we approached a few Redshanks departed the bay, a few Bar-tailed Godwits, Curlews and a Pink-footed Goose continued to feed off the spit directly opposite us. The group nestled down into the Marram grass in the hope that the rising tide would bring some more birds of interest closer, alas this didn't happen. However, the afternoon was beautiful with the warm sunshine on the group basking in the sheltered sun trap there were worse places to be sat despite the lack of birds. A few distant seals and dolphins made distant appearances and a Kestrel was seen hunting a few times. Another large group of finches feeding on the manmade slope of the yards dunes was probably the most notable sighting here with again a large number of Greenfinches as well as Linnets and Goldfinches amongst them. After an hour or so we began to wander back, a Bullfinch was heard calling from some nearby scrub and a Reed Bunting was seen in flight over the coastal gorse.

​Back in the woods Treecreepers were heard several times but not seen and Crossbills were again located by their call and a few flight views were glimpsed. We took a different route back to avoid the overgrown route we had used earlier. This went really well until we were about to emerge on the road and then we were presented with the aftermath of Storm Amy which had struck a week earlier. Numerous enormous Scots pine trees were down across the path with seemingly no way through. However, the group not wishing to be deterred persevered and thanks to a heroic team effort all members managed to climb through, over and under the fallen boughs and emerge safely on the other side close to the cars and bringing an end to our expedition.

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Despite a general lack of birds it was certainly a memorable day and I suspect most folk slept well that night dreaming of white-tailed eagles and fallen trees!

Jon Clarke