Big News!

Well it won't be big news for anyone else but it is for me!

In our old house, although our front garden was not really a garden at all, just a small bit of concrete and shingle between the pavement and the front door, it contained my most successful wildlife-friendly project of the house.  Back in 2013 I planted some roots of a Privet hedge which were dug up from a garden in Exeter.   

Our old front garden in 2012...

White door

 

And again in about 2022, the same white door!.  It got even bushier than this, far exceeding the darker neighbours hedge in height by the time we moved out...

So happy with it!

 

This hedge gave the garden a new lease of life, and after hanging a fat ball feeder near it, it soon became a focal point for the local House Sparrows.  We would get so much enjoyment watching up to twenty at a time from our sofa, and grew really fond of them.  There were even a couple that would tap their beaks on the front window when the feeder became empty...honestly! 

So, now we are in our lovely new house, which as I have already blogged about has a lovely garden. Lots of green, lots of shrubs and bushes, and as a result a much more varied list of visiting bird species - completely different to our old place.  However one species that I have really been missing is House Sparrow.

Frustratingly, from our back garden I can see to the next street behind, where a small colony of House Sparrows seem very content and are pretty much always audible from the garden.  My goal from day one has been to tempt them 30 meters south west to our back garden, but despite a mass of fat balls they have proved reluctant to move.  

Well that was until I relocated one of my feeders so it would be visible to the Sparrows from their current favoured spot, and on Saturday just gone...

Well hello there, what kept you so long!?

 

So that was two male House Sparrows visiting, and Jess has seen two males and female briefly drop in on another day.  Neither times have they stayed long, but both times they've used the feeder and on the second visit one of the males dived into one of our bushes for cover.  So am now confident it is only a matter of time until we feature on their routine feeding circuit. 

So thrilled!

 

Mighty Meds

Well my plea for more gulls in the last post has been answered as it's been a nice week of increased gull numbers on the Axe, as expected for the time of year.  

I have not had anything unusual as of yet, however that's not really mattered as it's been the numbers that have been making me happy.  Friday's stormy weather produced the most, with an particularly exciting hour or so late afternoon watching large flocks of mostly Common Gulls heading down the valley to roost, although gull passage was evident in the valley throughout the day.

At my first stop of the day, the make-up of the large gull flock resting by the main scrape on Bridge Marsh immediately informed me passage was under way.  Only in the months of Feb-Apr would a large gull flock on the Axe be made up of 70% adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, as this one was...

In the winter, Lesser Black-backed Gulls on the Axe are actually surprisingly few and far between

And as predictable as the late winter/early spring Lesser Black-backed passage at this time of year is the Med Gulls.  I had a minimum of 19 on Friday, 16 of these in the hour pre-dusk.  Mostly adults showing a variety of hoods with just one first-winter and two second-summers.  It has been a particularly poor winter for Med Gulls on the Axe (seems to be the norm now) which made these even more enjoyable...

What a trio of beauties, with three Common Gull in foreground

A not-so immaculate trio, but still looking awesome in the rough estuary at high tide

 

The most dapper of them all, alongside a full summer Black-headed Gull

Same bird looking equally impressive on the water.  Ten points if you can spot the other Med Gull in shot (just!)

And finally, Mr Dapper in flight

 

My final totals for Friday were 19+ Meds, 45+ Lesser Black-backs and 1,700+ Common Gulls.  However it wasn't just Friday that Med Gulls and Lesser Black-backs were obvious, I had seven Med Gulls on the Estuary on Monday with birds present every day, along with daily Lesser-Black backs.

Gulls are pretty much all I have to talk about in this post to be honest, except for a little, well Great surprise which popped up on the Estuary on Friday whilst I was of course watching gulls.. 

A summer plumaged Great Crested Grebe

Great Crested Grebes are usually regular winter visitors here, with birds on the sea often towards Seaton Hole.  Double-figure counts were not uncommon at all, except in recent years.  Like everything else numbers have dropped off a cliff with just low single figures wintering with us in last few years, but this year it has been even worse.  I saw one Great Crested Grebe in the bay several times at the end of 2024, but this bird on the Estuary yesterday was my first of the year as I haven't seen a single one in the bay in almost two months.  Depressing really.

Oh well, at least I have gulls...

 

More Gulls Required!

I have had a few looks at the gulls in recent days.  Although actual spring is still a little way off, spring gull passage usually starts in early February.  There's no mega numbers here yet, although there does seem to be some more Common Gull about now, as well as a maybe a slight increase in Lesser Black-backed and Mediterranean Gull numbers... 

Adult Med Gull looking well hooded already

A sleepy second-winter, which was even more hooded

Although it is clearly wintering here, and despite the fact my office overlooks the lower Axe Estuary, Monday was only the second time this year I have seen the Common Sandpiper...

Elusive blighter!

 

One day it will be the American version, an overdue first for the Axe in my opinion.  

Male Blackcap

First of all to continue the theme of my last post, since posting that I have heard a few more species singing locally, including Nuthatch, Marsh Tit, Goldcrest and Greenfinch all in full song. I have heard several drumming Great Spotted Woodpeckers too.  Now we are in to February I know the excitement of Spring is literally just around the corner and it is, well, exciting!  

Have not had much time at all out this last week, but a short spell in and around woodland at the western edge of our patch (Bovey Down/Morganhayes) gave me at least two Crossbill, a Redpoll (not many around this winter) and several Siskins, so not a bad result for such little time given. Have seen nothing different at all in the river valley during my brief glances over it, not even a Med Gull this week but gull numbers have seemed low.

In the garden, I have added a few new species to the house list, including Stock Dove and Kestrel. More pleasingly though has been watching a male Blackcap settle in with us for the last couple of days, having only seen a female here previously...

Rain soaked fat balls seem to be easier for the smaller birds to consume

 

He's already getting protective over these fat balls, even giving the Robins a run for their money!

 

 Be sure to check back here soon!  Thanks for reading.