The Friends of Saughton Park Wildlife group were up and at 'em early on Saturday morning to attend an introduction to birdwatching and identification session at the park with Scott Paterson from Kinross Ecology.
Having only walked a few feet from our beginning point at the Balgreen Road car park, we learned there is no such thing as a seagull! We were then treated to the sight of a red listed bird, a grey wagtail and an amber listed bird, a dipper, a few moments later, both at the Water of Leith
All in all we heard or saw 27 birds in Saughton Park as we walked around including at least one pair of the UK's smallest bird, the gold crest!
With the Water of Leith, mature trees, areas of scrubs, bushes and hedgerows and dedicated wildlife friendly areas, the park is a good habitat for birds. The Wildlife group and the wider Friends group will be working to protect and enhance this habitat.
We will also be carrying out regular patch watches in the park to monitor seasonal changes. All are welcome to come help out so please feel free to get involved!
What will you spot in the park next time you visit?
Please see below for the full list of birds seen or heard during the morning:
Grey wagtail
Great tit
Dipper
Blackbird
Long tailed tit
Robin
Feral pigeon
Wood pigeon
Blue tit
Wren
Gold crest
Green finch
Magpie
Songthrush
Lesser black backed gull
Mallard
Carrion crow
Herring gull
Starling
Gold finch
Jackdaw
Coal tit
Dunnock
Sparrow Hawk
Siskin
Housemartin
Bullfinch