Scotland Holiday Day 3 – 8th July 2012 : Corncrakes on Iona

Scotland Holiday Day 3 – 8th July 2012 : Corncrakes on Iona

We arrived on Mull on Saturday 7th July and by the time we were settled into our self-catering cottage the rain was pouring down and things did not seem very auspicious at all. However by 9 am the next morning things were much better and we were picked up by our tour guides, Stuart and Ruth from Mull Magic Walks and Tours who were driving us and another family, who were also based in Tobermory, down through the island and over on the ferry to Iona where we hoped that we would be able to see, or at least hear, Corncrakes.

They drove us down from Tobermory via Salen and Craignure and then across the island via Glen More and down to Fionphort. As we drove down we saw some Mute Swans that the guides told us were actually Mull’s really rare birds there only being two or three pairs on the island. There were also lots of Hooded Crows – In fact there did not seem to be any Carrion Crows at all which quite surprised me. Also the Hooded Crows seemed to be grey and black instead of white and black which is more commonly the kind that I had seen previously in Scotland.

We also saw a “wild” flock of Greylag Geese (apparently not of the same race as is found on the mainland) and also a flock of Canada Geese. The high point of the journey, however, was without a doubt Glen More. As you turn into the glen at the place they call the Three Lochs we pulled up as  a male Hen Harrier flew fast across the front of the car in front of us. We pulled up and then a ringtail Hen Harrier joined in  and both could be seen against the side of the mountain. As we watched these a Short-eared Owl started to hunt over the glen eventually perching on a post only a few metres away so that (through bins) you could see all the details of the bird down to the feathers on its legs and feet. Two other Short-eared Owls also appeared making three in just a few minutes. Already the day was proving to be something special. Further along we saw a small group of four Ravens flying away from us and up the mountain side and for good measure a Siskin flew right in front of us as we were driving along.

We continued along the road that is at the side of Loch Scridian through Bunnesan and on to Fionphort where we were to get the ferry over to Iona.  After a very short journey we landed at the pier at Iona and on a rock to our right we could see a Glaucous Gull perched next to two Herring Gulls giving us a good comparison and our forst life tick of the trip, There were Shags on the rocks around and Gannets flying overhead. There were also Common Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls. and the odd Mallard.

We turned right from the pier and walked along a path with a meadow on either side just before the church ruins. This is supposed to be good Corncrake territory but it was quite late in the year and the wild flowers were very tall. Th local farmers are subsidised to keep the meadows uncut until after the breeding season is over and the Corncrakes have migrated away. It is only then that they cut the meadows for silage. So our visit to the island to see Corncrakes was very uncertain. Really we should have gone at the start of the season when the call constantly and can be more easily seen. As it happens there were plenty of other birds around the island and as we walked up past the old church we saw Song Thrush and Blackbird, House Sparrows and Jackdaws, Starlings and Rook , Swallows, Meadow Pipits and Pied Wagtails, Goldfinch and Greenfinch and Willow Warblers and Wheatear. We could also hear Sedge Warbler and we saw a small group of Stock Doves. All  this time no Corncrake, though, and as we walked across the island to the “Bay at the Back of the Ocean”  (Camas Cuil an t-Saimh ) ,so called because the next westerly point is America, we walked over the machair away from Corncrake habitat.

We stopped to eat sandwiches and have a cup of soup, all the time scanning the coastline for anything interesting. There was a family of Eider Ducks gliding peacefully along. There were also a few Ringed Plovers and Dunlin, a single Redshank and a few Shelduck – apparantly not common locally. There was an Oystercatcher and several Grey Herons battling with the gulls. As we walked back along the shoreline we started to see many more Wheatears amongst the tangle on the beach and I even managed to pick out a well camouflaged Rock Pipit.

We returned to the other side of the island and just as we came to the coast we saw a great mass of birds who seemed to be feeding on a shoal of fish. There were large numbers of Gannets and Manx Shearwaters plunge diving and also a mass of forty or more Kittiwakes on the water feeding.

By now our time was nearly up so we returned the the meadow just to the west of the fire station to try one last time to see or hear Corncrakes. As we approached we could just hear a sound on the wind that gave us some hope. We spent our last half hour on the island looking into the small meadow and as we did we could hear first one, then two, then three Corncrakes calling ! Try as we might we could not see them in the tall growth of the meadow and the constant low wind meant that it was impossible to distinguish any possible movement of the birds among the swaying flowers. However we were at least consoled by the fact that we could hear several of the birds and this just confirmed my desire to return there another year but earlier in the season when they first arrive from Africa in mid-April. It had been optimistic for us to expect a sighting in July when they were not too far off their annual return to Africa in August.

We made the return journey pretty happy that we had seen a lot of good birds and heard one of our target birds. It was hard not to be happy anyway at the good sightings of Hen Harrier and Short-eared Owls that we had earlier in the day and this was to be repeated on our return when in Glen More we again saw two Short-eared Owls and a male Hen Harrier – fantastic. It was quite late by the time we were dropped off at our self-catering cottage but we were more than happy at the day we had had with the highlights being Hen Harrier and Short-eared Owls, Manx Shearwaters and Kittiwakes and, of course, Corncrake

Bird Sightings : Mull

Bird Sightings : Iona