V 14 No.4 - The Scottish Ornithologists' Club

1987
Ring Ouzels in SE Scotland 207
TABLE 1 Criteria for judging breeding,'.
Evidence
Number of sites
Pair seen in territory 41
Male singing 40
Nest found 22
Adult(s) with fledged young 17
Single bird alarming 14
Single bird seen 2 9
Total 143
When several visits were made to one site
the most positive piece of evidence is
recorded.
No positive signs but bird in suitable
territory in breeding season.
From the 1985 data, 29 valleys showed
evidence of breeding birds, with a total
of 140 occupied sites. This figure increased
to 143 sites after three more breeding territories
were found in one more valley in
1986. Table 2 summarises these results by
hill ranges.
TABLE 2 Valley systems with breeding Ring
Ouzels.
Valleys
Hill Range with birds/total Territories
Pentlands 218 8
Moorfoots 15/17 66
Lammermuirs 13/17 69
Totals 30/42 143
The habitat types are listed in Table 3.
Of the 12 valleys checked where no Ring
Ouzels were found only four, three of which
were in the Pentlands, could be described
as heather moorland. The rest were all unsuitable
in appearance, being predominantly
arable. The mean height above sea level of
territories was 352rn, with a range between
209m and 533m.
Of the 22 nests found during the
survey, 15 were on the ground, usually
under a clump of heather, on a steep slope
and above a stream. Five nests were on
rocky ledges under heather clumps and two
were in conifers about 1.5rn above the
ground. During the survey 63 young were
ringed.
TABLE 3 Habitat descriptions.
Description>
Moorland: heather
Moorland: sheepwalk
Moorland: young conifer
Edge moorland/arable
Edge moorland/mature conifer
Territories
with birds
108
18
14
> heather, sheepwalk and young conifer refer
to moorland in which ground cover was at least
50% of this type.
Discussion
The three hill ranges of southeast Scotland
vary in character. The Lammermuirs are
low rolling hills which are still used
predominantly as grouse moor. Heather
cover is extensive, afforestation is significant
only at the eastern edge and
gamekeepers are active. Disturbance is
minimal over much of the range. The result
is that most of the main valley systems provide
good Ring Ouzel territory.
The Moorfoots are larger, steeper hills
with much more sheepwalk than the Lammermuirs,
although there is still much
heather, especially on the steep valley sides.
Disturbance is minimal and intensity of
gamekeepering varies, depending on
whether or not the area is used extensively
for grouse shooting. Certain areas of the
Moorfoots are now under afforestation.
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