I didn't have much time this morning, but found myself on Seaton Beach looking over a fairly flat sea with excellent visibility. I was only there for about ten seconds when two Balearic Shearwaters came into view and flew west, which I wasn't really expecting. By the time I had to leave half an hour later I had seen 13 fly west, including a group of six. I enjoyed some really nice views over the smooth sea, although this video-grab doesn't really suggest that...
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| An award winning shot of three Balearic Shearwaters flying west |
Gannet passage was probably best described as a steady trickle, with 62 recorded in the half-hour, along with 30+ auk sp. also west.
A quick look along the river valley showed one Bar-tailed Godwit still, two Ruff (juvenile male and female on Colyford scrape, male for second day, female for fourth), three Ringed Plover, three Greenshank, three Shoveler and 51 Wigeon.
On Saturday morning I was pleasantly surprised by the variety of wildfowl in the valley, presumably a result of the north east wind that had been dominating the weather that day and for several days previous. 80+ Teal and 33 Wigeon were accompanied by a female Pintail and a single Gadwall on Bridge Marsh and a flock of five Gadwall and two Shoveler on the Estuary. The five Gadwall relocated to the Borrow Pit on Seaton Marshes where they showed much better, after being flushed by a boat.
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| Female Pintail |
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| Four of the Gadwall on The Borrow Pit |
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| Two of them in better light |
Can't believe we are only a week away from October! Except for the sea, this will truly be an autumn to forget. Dismal numbers of common migrants, really quite worrying.
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