Scottish Wildlife Blog: Mugdock Country Park & Kilpatrick Hills, East & West Dunbartonshire

I'm not usually a twitcher, but repeated sightings of a Great Grey Shrike at Craigallian Loch over the last few weeks proved too much to resist!

My dad and I caught a train from Dalmuir to Milngavie, walked through Mugdock Country Park to Craigallian Loch and then walked back to Duntocher (via Burncrooks Reservoir, Duncolm and the Greenside).

We saw a pair of Treecreepers as we walked through the soaking wet woodland in Mugdock Country Park. Near Craigallian Loch we saw a male Kestrel hunting and heard a Tawny Owl hooting.

Clouds of mist and rain drifted through the trees and the valley echoed with the drumming of Great Spotted Woodpeckers. On the loch there were groups of Tufted Duck and Goosander.
We wandered along the path, fruitlessly scanning every fencepost and scrubby tree for the shrike. As we waited, a Green Woodpecker landed clumsily atop a nearby pine.

Disappointingly, the shrike never made an appearance.

On the way home, at Edenmill Farm, we saw a large flock of Goldfinches and a ploughed field full of Lapwings - their zipping calls are like radios tuning.