theragingbirder: Scotland: Mull part 1 - Quest for the Corncrake

After 40 days in East Africa, I had to swing by London to pick up my belongings so I could move back to Canada. This would be an amazing opportunity to swing up to Scotland with Ramata for one last weekend together before many months apart. In the words of the legendary Gunnar Engblom, MORE BIRDS! AHAHAHAHA

The plan was to fly from Nairobi at 9:20 am on Thursday, change backpacks at her house, then transfer to Gatwick for an evening flight to Edinburgh to pick up the rental car just before midnight. The time change granted us an extra two hours. This would give us three full days to see puffins and corncrakes.

We woke after a two-hour sleep and made the first ferry to the Isle of Mull. This was a change of plans because our chartered tour to see the puffins in Lunga was postponned to the following day due to extreme winds.

We drove across the big island to catch a second ferry to the Isle of Iona, the legendary spot for the CORNCRAKES!

Turns out the tour people were not being overly cautious - the winds were blowing at 40 knots gusting to 60! It was quite a sight and a crushing blow to our corncrake dreams. All ferries to Iona were cancelled until further notice.

We decided to be optimistic and wait a few hours to see if they'd run a ferry. Turns out, they did. Suddenly, they radioed the terminal and told them that one would come in 15 minutes and that would be the only one for the day! The maneuvering job of the captain was impressive as we jumped onto the ramp (the thing was being rocked but he kept it steady!) Let the hunting begin.

On the island, the gale-force winds were less than ideal for a corncrake quest, as this video demonstrates:

Everyone was telling us to get a yurt but we camped anyway, that's just how we are! The tent seriously contorted under the fury of the storm but I used about 14 pegs and put it next to a stone wall so would not be carried to sea.

These common terns didn't mind the extreme winds

We walked around the island, checked out the ruins of the medieval nunnery, and got rained on by a slow, miserable and steady Scottish rain.

Sedge Warblers battling for territory

We were almost going to go to bed early at 6, then suddenly, the heavens opened up and I could send a corncrake ready to be conquered.

So, we walked over to the shoreline and soon we heard one calling from someone's private garden, CREX CREX, CREX CREX. Inaccessible! We continued to the fire station (a well-known haunt). Hearing none, we doubled back, now joined by a British birder. A corncrake blasted from right beside the road, then within a couple minutes it flew across a lawn!

A corncrake makes a first appearance after the rains

We were now in a triangle of corncrakes battling for the precious strip of habitat. Suddenly one blasted from 3 meters from our feet! It was so close, this is a full-frame shot:

Full frame!

Here are a few more for good measure. They put on an epic performance!

It turns out we were lucky. A very cold and snowy winter meant that the grass growth was quite delayed, giving the crakes relatively little shelter for hiding. They had no choice but to blast their song from right in the open!