FIFE NESS HIDE LOG

For  most keen birdwatchers changing the status of a species for your county, region or nationally is a quest….. or perhaps a dream. Finding a ‘first’ for the county, region, or country is the quickest way to do this but it is not the only way. With the RSPB conservation work, and a dedicated team of surveyors, we are changing the breeding status of Corn Buntings in Fife year on year. Our work on Goshawks has changed the known status of this secretive species in Fife.  In the 1990s and 2000s, as a county, we changed the status of Storm Petrel and Balearic Shearwater and before that we changed the status of Cory’s Shearwater in Fife. The FBC hide at Fife Ness has been an integral part of some of those changes (not the Corn Buntings……clearly). Now, there is at least one new species where a change in status is imminent; and the Fife Ness hide will again be an important part of that change.

The log is a very important part of hide usage. The County Recorder uses it to publish our seabird counts; day totals can be easily passed on to those who need them. The idea of  ‘day counts’ is a critical part of this. If observers don’t fill in the log we are missing out as a county!  Let’s not allow that to happen. We are asking ALL observers to complete the log in the hide. Every record counts. Big seawatching days like 28th October 2018 don’t come along that often, so let’s make the most of them. When I am first in the hide on such an occasion I set the log up for the rest of the day. Very simple; date, wind direction and speed, observers’ names and just a list of species as they come. I try to remember to leave space for the next group of observers. So Storm Petrel will only need one line but Common Scoter (at least 420 that day) will need several lines. After I leave, the next observers just add their sightings. If YOU are first in please do the same. As often in life, generally, the worst thing you can do is……do nothing. Your counts in your head or notebook help only you.

I can hear your brains working and some of you are thinking……..’yeah, sounds easy but when you are alone how do you count every species AND fill in the log?’ Very good point. Without being too technical it is a matter of prioritising so count the Pomarine Skuas, the Bonxies, the Sooty Shearwaters and the Manx Shearwaters but estimate the Common Scoters, the Wigeon, the Teal and other commoner species. Being alone on a big day IS challenging (believe me, I know); I try to ‘share’ my time between looking north and far out (for Poms coming south) and south and middle distance (for Shearwaters, Petrels etc coming north). Traditionally I, and I suspect most of us, have not been good enough at looking at divers. We might have to change that!! There is one simple answer to all of this; bring a friend! Two folk makes seawatching easier by splitting up the species and/or the ‘search areas’. A friend who is fast with their camera and has a ‘big lens’ could be particularly helpful.

Lastly, a big thank you to Willie Irvine. If it was not for his maintenance work, we wouldn’t have such a superb hide at the Ness. Just imagine seawatching in late November without it!

  Ken Shaw