News from a cold and frosty Slamannan

After a week of sunshine in the Canary Islands it was a shock to arrive back in Edinburgh on Friday night to a temperature of 1 degree c.

A trip to the plateau on Saturday afternoon found all of the bean geese in and around the Garbethill area.

There must have been a bit of disturbance too as the birds were seen in the air on several occasions over a period of hours. Eventually they all headed for Beam Farm to feed before their roost flight to Fannyside or Darnrig.

News update from the Slamannan Plateau

A milder day of weather was welcome after the icy blasts of the last week.

Found a nice flock of 47 bean geese NW of Slamannan and another group of 58 birds much further west. They were well hidden and not easy to find.

A roost count last Friday evening produced very few birds going to roost at the usual times of one hour after dusk. There was quite a bit of snow on the ground so birds sat out late before moving. The flock of 134 I was watching looked as though they would spend the night in the field but a check before dawn on Saturday morning proved that they had actually moved elsewhere during the night. Only 9 geese arrived at East Fannyside Loch on the same night.

No further news from Denmark about any of our birds being seen there.

Latest News - from Central Scotland - Bean Geese

The sun shone today and after a frosty start I was off to find the bean geese flock. I had found them yesterday in the northern sector of the study area, so had a good idea they would be back there today.

I wasn't disappointed. I had just arrived when 48 beans came past me in flight near to Castlecary High Wood. They flew west for 1/4 mile and then wheeled around and came back just in time to meet another flock of c40 birds who had followed them from further east probably Beam Farm or Tippetcraig. It was a lovely spectacle and with little wind their vocalising was a delight to hear.

On the field below there was already c100 birds so when they joined up it was a super sight to see so many geese after a few miserable days of seeing nothing.

A chap and his wife from the Chilterns who had arrived yesterday to see the flock, arrived a little later and were rewarded by having super views of the geese. I was pleased for them considering the distance they had come.

There were eight birds with collars in the flock which I was able to read today. See pictures of two of them below. 7Y adult male ringed 7th October 2013 and his mate 7Z ringed on the same day and date.