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1 week ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
A juvenile starling (right) lacks the glossy, flecked plumage of the parents. (Image: Pixabay.com) Frequent dramas are currently unfolding across Inverclyde's gardens and countryside. It's that time of year when hordes of juvenile starlings have left their nests and are heading out into a world of full of danger. And what a racket they make as they squawk loudly in pursuit of the adults which are busy finding food for the hungry youngsters.
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2 weeks ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
The chiffchaff weighs less than a pound coin, but this fiesty little species survives by finding food high among the boughs of bare trees while other summer-visiting birds are still in the balmy south. When you hear them giving away their presence by repeatedly calling their name - 'chiff-chaff, chiff-chaff' - it's a welcome sign that spring is on its way.
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3 weeks ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
Lunderston Bay has been the place to chill these past few weeks as we enjoy one of the sunniest and driest springs for many years. And it's not just beach-goers who have reaped the benefits of this long dry spell: Kilmacolm and Port Glasgow Agricultural Society had bumper weather last Saturday for their 190th show at the Knapps, and Gourock Highland Games had an equally fine day on Sunday for their tartan spectacular at Battery Park.
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4 weeks ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
Cuckoos are summer visitors to Inverclyde's uplands. (Image: Pixabay) What drives a bird to fly from tropical Africa across desert, mountain and sea to a windswept moorland high in the Inverclyde uplands? It's a question I ponder every May when I hear the cuckoo calling its name from the heathery heights beyond Shielhill Glen. The answer, of course, is the bird's urge to migrate between its winter and summer territories for the important business of raising young.
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1 month ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
Bluebells add a carpet of colour to many woodlands every May. (Image: Pixabay) May is often considered to be the finest month of the year and it's easy to understand why. The dawn chorus is hitting a crescendo, trees are flaunting their new-grown greenery, wildflowers are popping up everywhere and the days are longer and warmer.
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1 month ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
The little egret (left), great white egret (top right) and greenshank are among the many beautiful wading birds to be seen along the Port Glasgow shore, says David Carnduff (Image: Pixabay/George Munro) Nature has an amazing ability to boost our mood on dismal days when the weather seems determined to dampen our spirit. This thought occurred to me on a cold, grey morning last week when I hoped to see wading birds feeding on the mud among the timber ponds at Parklea.
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1 month ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
David Carnduff goes on a walk along an old farm track linking Inverkip and Wemyss Bay. (Image: David Carnduff/George Munro) Hello Easter! You took your time to arrive this year, but you're very welcome nonetheless. Yes, we've had to wait a bit longer for this important date in the Christian calendar, which is determined by the lunar cycle and varies from year to year. It can fall any time between March 22 and April 25 and the last time it was this late was back in 2014.
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1 month ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
With clear skies and rising temperatures, now is the time to start looking out for swallows in Inverclyde, says David Carnduff (Image: David Carnduff/Pixabay) Many moons ago, in my high school art class, I painted what I thought was a perfect landscape with trees, grass, hills and a deep blue sky. However, my teacher - Miss Currie - pointed out that my sky had no clouds. "In Scotland" she advised, "there is hardly ever an occasion when the sky is cloudless." Oh really?
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2 months ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
The stretch of coast off Ashton is a good place for spotting gannets hunting for food in the spring, says David Carnduff. (Image: David Carnduff/Pixabay) THE transition from Greenwich Mean Time to British Summer Time was a stormy affair. A westerly wind last Saturday gradually gained strength until a proper hooley was blowing up the Clyde when we put our clocks forward. Earlier in the day I took a walk along the coast but misjudged the weather.
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2 months ago | 
greenocktelegraph.co.uk | David Carnduff
David Carnduff (Image: David Carnduff) PEOPLE wishing to attract wildlife to their gardens are often advised to leave a corner untended to let nature do its own thing. The emerging wild plants might then attract birds, bees and butterflies. If people had a look at my garden they would think I had taken this advice to the extreme, given the jungle at one side of my "dear green place." It was the effects of Storm Éowyn back in January that focused my attention on this wild patch.
