July 2008
It's a braw bird, the puddock!

The Buzzard has long been an integral part of everyday life on Mull, where it can often be seen perched upon a pole, surveying the surrounding countryside in search of its next meal. The mixed landscapes of wood and open ground to be found in the Mull countryside make ideal habitat for the 'telegraph pole eagle', providing safe places in which to roost and nest, as well as an abundance of food, in the form of small mammals and insects.

The Buzzard has one of the most variable plumages of any wild bird, with both dark and pale phases making its identification easy to confuse with other birds of prey. Indeed, a very pale individual has been observed in recent years, near Loch Scridain, where itís íwhiteí plumage has invited many birdwatchers' to mistake it for the much rarer Rough-legged Buzzard, a Winter visitor to Britain from Scandinavia. The name 'buzzard' comes from the French 'busard', where it is now referred to as 'le buse variable' on account of the many different plumages it has.

Falconers considered buzzards worthless, and the word 'buzzard' is still used colloquially by some to denote stupidity, an unfair tag on a truly splendid bird of prey. Another local name for this versatile hawk is 'gled', which means glider, a reference to itís apparently effortless ability to soar on raised wings, whilst 'puddock' indicates an apparent dependence on frogs and toads in season.

A recently coined name in Scotland for the Buzzard is 'The Tourist's Eagle', due to the regularity with which visitors mistake Buzzards for Golden Eagles. The Isle of Mull is one of the best places in Scotland for comparing Buzzards with their much larger raptor relations, the Golden Eagle and White-tailed (Sea) Eagle, the latter which has been successfully re-introduced to the island in recent times.

Buzzards provide excellent viewing in late Winter and early Spring, when birds will spiral on raised wings, while noisily 'mewing', as they indulge in pre-nuptial displays. Some birds may become aggressively territorial, and have been known to attack humans should their nest sites be threatened at this time. Also, in late Summer, parents can be seen escorting their newly-fledged youngsters, as they undertake their maiden flights on Mull's thermals.

Small rodents make up the bulk of a Buzzard's diet, but they also take birds, reptiles, amphibians, larger insects and earthworms. The prowess of the eyesight of birds of prey is often greatly exaggerated, but Buzzards do possess quite exceptional sight. This makes up for having a poor sense of smell. Their large eyes see a sharper, more acute image than humans, which is a great help in locating prey. Their strong legs and toes, with long, curved, sharp claws allow Buzzards to deal with live prey as large as rabbits.

Buzzards are now the commonest bird of prey in Britain, having spectacularly re-gained ground that hasn't been populated in generations, and are now more numerous than the Kestrel.

A decline in illegal persecution and the rabbit's recovery from the ravages of myxomatosis have played a major role in the up-turn in the Buzzard's fortunes. However, as occasional carrion eaters, Buzzards are still prone to indiscriminate poisoning, which hasn't yet been eradicated.

Stuart Gibson

June 2008
Grasshopper Warbler

One of the most bizarre noises made by any British breeding bird belongs to the song of the Grasshopper Warbler: a small, rather elongated and hard-to-see Summer visitor. This extraordinary 'reeling' song sounds like a cross between an insect and a fishing reel (a mechanical sirrrrrrrrrrrrrr) and may be heard at dawn and dusk when this elusive warbler arrives back from its African wintering grounds in late April.

The Grasshopper Warbler belongs to the genus Locustella, which means 'little grasshopper', a name derived from the insect-like quality of its song. Grasshopper Warblers are the ventriloquists of the British bird-world, the male avoiding detection when singing by simply turning itís head from side-to-side, thus confusing listeners as to the true location of the singing bird (and how many birds are singing). Being a continuous singer (males sing for long periods without a pause), the Grasshopper Warbler is announcing to the local bird-world that he is free, ready and available. To help his quest for a mate, on calm Spring mornings and sultry Summer evenings, the male's far-carrying 'reeling' song is audible up to a mile away!

When not singing, birds move through the herbage of damp, rough grassland and scrubby vegetation like mice, creeping through the foliage. A Grasshopper Warbler's preferred habitat doesn't have to be 'wet', as many 'dry' locations, such as young forestry plantations, may be occupied by breeding birds. The presence of a 'Gropper' (unfortunate birder-speak for this mysterious little bird) is usually revealed by its song; Otherwise, Grasshopper Warblers would prove extremely difficult to detect and, more likely, go un-noticed. Where there are song-posts on the stems of bramble thickets and isolated small trees, like Willow and Hawthorn, look for a singing bird 'tip-toeing' up a branch. Once detected, and with a little luck, Grasshopper Warblers may allow the observer a close approach, when the cryptic finery of this 'cricket bird' can be fully enjoyed.

This Summertime skulker has dramatically declined in numbers in recent decades, making it a bird of conservation concern (25,000+ pairs in the 1960s, down to 10,500 pairs today). Being erratic in its occupation of known breeding sites, the Grasshopper Warbler suffers year-to-year fluctuations, but habitat deterioration and loss seem to have magnified this speciesí current plight.

The thinning of the 'Gropper's' population has been widespread, with losses indicated throughout the British breeding range of this furtive little warbler. Areas to the south of Oban hold a concentration of this species in Argyll, whereas Grasshopper Warblers continue to be a rather localised breeding bird on Mull.

Easily detected in Spring, on account of its strange, mechanical song, Bird Club members are urged to report all records of 'reeling' males seen or heard on the island, so that a better picture can be painted of this migrant's status on Mull.

Stuart Gibson

May 2008
Redstart, Pied Flycatcher & Wood Warbler.

The Redstart and Wood Warbler show a preference for the wet Ancient Atlantic oak woodlands that are found on Mull and throughout the West Highlands. In this habitat, these Summer visitors are often joined by another migrant, the Pied Flycatcher, although there are no breeding records to date of this latter species on Mull. This trio of species form one of the most distinctive woodland bird communities in Britain.

From late April, the rather Chaffinch-like warble of the cock Redstart may be heard from atop an oak or block-scree birch on Mull. Despite it's beautiful plumage, male Redstarts can be remarkably difficult to pin down, as they flit among the upper branches of trees in their territory. However, once found and the pictures married with the sound, you have one of the most delightful of all returning Summer migrants. Redstarts have a habit of constantly shivering their rust-red tails, a feature used to great effect during Spring courtship, when one or both sexes may reveal the future location of a nest site, in a hole in a tree or wall. Nestboxes may be used, but the entrance hole requirements are larger than for many titboxes.

Pied Flycatchers have extended their range North in recent decades, and appear to have become established in some Argyll woodlands, especially where nestboxes have been provided. Open oak woodlands, with an abundance of defoliating caterpillars in season, and plenty of natural cavities are an ideal habitat, in which this vigorous songster can feed and nest.

A nestbox scheme by the Isle of Mull Bird Club at Ardura oakwood on the island was prompted by the appearance of a male Pied Flycatcher in Spring 2002. This bird, unfortunately, failed to find a mate, thus no breeding occurred. Pied Flycatchers have an intriguing breeding biology, with males often being polyterritorial (having mated with more than one female). Polygamous males do take responsibility for helping rear the young of their first partner, but less so the offspring of any secondary females. Consequently, around 10% of juveniles raised in any woodland will have been brought up by a lone parent, drawing obvious parallels with human society in the 21st Century!

Easily detected by its two-part song, the pristine Wood Warbler is an integral part of life in the oakwoods/mixed deciduous woodlands of Mull in Spring. The song is made up of a sustained, stuttering trill, accompanied every few phrases by an insistent 'peu-peu-peu' call. Wood Warblers sing from high in the dense canopy of oak and beech, and can be very difficult to see. However, should you be lucky and catch a glimpse of this sylvan delight, you will note that the bird's whole body appears to vibrate, such is the force of delivery of its distinctive song.

The Wood Warbler is the largest and brightest of the three species of Phylloscopus (leaf-dwelling) warbler that inhabit Mullís woods and gardens in Springtime. Lacking the subtle olive-green-grey colouring of both the Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff, the Wood Warbler possesses areas of vibrant lemon-yellow (chin and upper breast), clear green (uppersides) and silky white (undersides), giving it a clean and undirtied appearance.

Stuart Gibson

April 2008
Cheekie Chaffie tops local bird lists.

The Chaffinch is the most ubiquitous bird in the West Highlands, appearing in local gardens in greater numbers than any other bird. Unsurprisingly, it is Britain's second most common bird, with nearly 6 million pairs settling to breed each Spring.

Chaffinches are popular visitors to gardens, although you may have rarely seen them on your bird table until recently. A favourite meal in Autumn and Winter is beech mast, but the availability of this nut is cyclical and some years the crop can be very poor. At such times, many more Chaffinches may be forced into using garden feeding stations. Their patterned plumage helps them to blend in when they are feeding on the ground, where they will take a variety of seeds on offer, although they do have a preference for smaller seed items.

Being ground feeders in the damp West Highlands leaves Chaffinches prone to the symptoms of a viral cancer that affects the legs and feet of some wild birds. The fibrous growths of a nasty condition known as papilloma infects less than 1% of the Chaffinch population, but may appear worse if more than one bird in the same garden has this disease. These tumours have been known to regress, but in serious cases death is inevitable.

The rollicking warble of the cock Chaffinch is an early signpost that Spring is just around the corner. Local Chaffinches appear to set their "song clocks" for the beginning of the second week of February, as this is very often when the male's lusty song is first heard in the New Year.

The song, itself, is a bold, staccato warble, ending with a pronounced terminal flourish. It, indeed, is rather akin to a fast bowler running up to the crease, before unleashing an unplayable, fast delivery. This is an analogy that even Scottish birdwatchersí can relate to nowadays!

The Chaffinch builds a nest of mosses, lichens, hair, wool and feathers, which is decorated with flakes of bark, and held together with cobwebs, in which are laid up to five light blue eggs, with purple-brown blotches at the blunt end. The nest is remarkably well-concealed, often in the fork of a garden tree or shrub, and the eggs among the most beautiful of any wild bird.

Many gardens on Mull will have a seemingly resident male Chaffinch that cheerily advertises its territory from the branches of a hawthorn or birch, in which holds a nest tended by the female. Locating that nest is well-nigh impossible, and may well account, in some way, for the success of this ever-popular finch.

This success is ably demonstrated by the cocky nature of West Highland Chaffinches at local tourist attractions, where birds are attracted by the crumbs left behind by picnicking visitors. Ubiquity can often lead to birdwatchersí being dismissive of certain species, yet the attractive Chaffinch appears to remain as popular as ever.

Stuart Gibson