Birds That Aren't Gulls!

With waders and gulls featuring heavily in my last few blog posts, I thought I should fill in the gaps with my other bird sightings from the last couple weeks.

As we approach the end of July, with autumn passerine migration starting to be a feature on the south coast, I gave Beer Head an early morning walk on two days last week...

Looking south west from Beer Head. Such a fantastic location to spend any time!

Both visits showed a similar amount of birds in less than ideal fall conditions.  There were between 6-8 Willow Warblers scattered across the headland on both days, all being my favourite flavoured yellow-lemon juv ones.  There was also a family of Whitethroats in the same place on both visits, as well as the usual breeding Blackcaps.  My second visit however, on 23rd July, did show one more migrant than my previous, with a very charming Garden Warbler feeding on an elder bush in the base of the hollow.  My earliest ever autumn record of this species on patch so a nice reward indeed. 

Just slightly drifting away from the bird theme of this blog post, it was nice to see up to seven Wall Browns during my second visit, which was slightly later in the morning than my first.  This is our most reliable local site for this species...

An underrated butterfly in my opinion, and scarce enough around here to be suitably appreciated

A little inland in the Morganhayes area (woodland west of Colyton), am sure like most conifer plantations in the UK at the moment, there seems to be plenty of Crossbills 'chupping'-around.  Seeing them perched up is a different story though... Why do they always land on the pines just beyond the ones in view!?  On the evening of 20th however one made an error of judgement and actually landed in view, and although it wasn't an adult male it was still much appreciated...

Hello you!  Nice to actually see the cross bill on a Crossbill for a change

Although it landed in view, he/she was never in full view!  

Back down in the river valley, during my recent gull watching sessions other birds have been rudely interrupting my fun.  Take Kingfishers for example, as usual for this time of year they seem to be plentiful, with this one in particular begging to be papped...

A token photo!  Do like the natural framing though so am pleased it stayed put for me :-)

And don't get me started on this Marsh Harrier.  Yes it's a lovely fresh dark glowing-headed juvenile, but it's been around for a week now and not only is distracting, it actually FLUSHES the gulls on occasions!  Not on at all...

My best views were on a gloomy day so pics not great!

Such a striking plumage at this age - love them!

Even a family of Reed Warblers right beside the Tower Hide have been causing me problems, loudly announcing their presence as the beg for food...

A true baby Reed Warbler

Beady eye!

Seemed to be four juvs with at least one adult feeding them

And to complete this post, the final bit of bird news is from today.  Whilst sat at my desk a tern whizzed past my office flying up river - never a common sight on the Axe.  A few minutes later I was outside watching and listening to an adult and a juvenile Common Tern calling to each other as they flew around and around the lower Estuary.  They finally departing when a juvenile Peregrine came diving in.  What a treat. There's a video of them calling away on my Twitter feed, it sure was great to hear.

A Buzzing Surprise

It's over a week late, but I just have to blog about this...

Tuesday 30th June was my last day of Furlough, and feeling like I needed to make the most of it I bundled the family into the car and drove to Dartmoor.  This was despite the absolutely grim weather - I just had an urge to go!

Our picnic near Warren House Inn was something to be forgotten about.  Wind and rain meant we had to stay in the car, and the fog ensured the usual stunning views were not in view at all.  With spirits low I suggested Fernworthy Reservoir as out next port of call, somewhere that has always been a favourite of mine, being the source of so many happy birding memories.

Arriving in the carpark it was nice to see the weather was a little less less grim here.  Drizzle and poor visibility yes, but you could still see the far side of the Res and we had managed to escape the wind.

The weather and views reminded me of being sat on the edge of a Scottish loch

Within about three seconds of stepping out of the car I proved this was indeed an excellent choice of destination.  Before I'd even had chance to shut my car door, in nearby scrub I could hear...

'Tchay - tchay - tchay'.

Willow Tit!  Although a species I haven't heard for about fifteen years, there was no mistaking that scolding-buzzy chur!

I can't lie, I instantly abandoned the family and legged it towards the call!  It took me a few minutes to track it down, but there, feeding on the inside of young willow tree (how apt!) was a super gorgeous and extremely cute young Willow Tit!  It still had that 'fluffy-headed' appearance of a youngster, and seemed to have not fully grown its tail.  WHAT A TREAT. 

After about five minutes of some super views, paired with frequent calling (which sometimes included a high pitch 'pi' in front on the buzzy notes), it flew out the back of the willow and away from the path.  For the next few minutes I could hear its calls getting quieter and quieter.

Was I annoyed I didn't have my Nikon P900 with me?  Well no actually.  It's so easy to fluff up a fast moving small bird in a densely leaved tree, and I have wasted many minutes doing this (especially warblers!).  But because I didn't even have my camera with me, I just watched it.   As it was becoming more distant I suddenly thought I should get some sort of 'proof', so I reached for my phone.  Turn your volume to the max and mute all other sounds, then you may just about hear it two seconds into this video clip...

There's a few reasons why this was SO exciting for me...

We don't get Willow Tits in East Devon, and having not been anywhere where Willow Tits occur for so long, this was literally my first Willow Tit since I was in my late teens!  

Fernworthy was actually the site of my first ever Willow Tit.  I remember birding here with Dad in the late 90's after being told they had been seen in the vicinity.  Having never seen one before I just didn't know what to expect with my first Willow Tit, as I'd read on so many occasions how difficult they were to separate from Marsh Tit.  But I will never forget walking around the far south west corner of the Res and clapping eyes on a black-cap tit that basically shocked me at how obviously Willow it was!  It's thick and almost hunched in neck along with a broad pale wing bar were just so striking it had a completely different look to any Marsh Tit I'd ever seen.  Even the way it moved felt different to a Marsh to me.

Although Fernworthy was the site of my first, I also knew this was basically a historic site for this species.  So to see a recently fledged young bird here is a significant find. An honour to find.

And finally... well they are just such a rare bird!  Estimates are they've suffered a 79% UK decline since the late 80's, and in Devon their distribution appears to be similarly shrinking with the north west corner of the county (Roadford and Tamer Lakes and Hartland Forest) being their last strong hold.  Although how many pairs are actually still there I don't know, does anyone?  Am sure there's still the odd pair tucked away on Dartmoor, as this little one basically proves, but there can't be many left. Am pretty sure they no longer occur in Cornwall or Dorset, and maybe even Somerset?

And as if this little one wasn't enough, the whole time we were there Crossbills were 'chupping' away. At least thirty surrounded us in the trees near the carpark and dam, and at one point there was an ferocious explosion of Crossbill calls emanating from the far bank - sounded like an absolute monster flock taking flight! Was nice to see a singing Tree Pipit too along with some fresh lemon yellow young Willow Warblers.  And I couldn't not appreciate the lovely Heath Spotted Orchids in flower...

If you ever needed proof Dartmoor isn't just a fair weather destination, take this blog post as it.

Rose-coloured Starlings

Sometimes success can be even sweeter if you re-visit past pain.  So to do that, here's a post I wrote on the old Devon Bird News blog nine years ago...

If you can't read it here's a direct link to the post; https://devonbirdnews.blogspot.com/2011/06/rose-coloured-starling-colyford.html?m=1

On 9th June 2011 the local birding community found out about a stunning adult Rose-coloured Starling that had been flaunting itself around Colyford for several days. Unfortunately it was last seen on the 8th.  If I remember correctly it was then seen in mid Devon, before winding up on the Otter Estuary in July.  A completely gripping event, can remember the pain even now.

Every year since we've hoped for redemption.  Obviously a summer adult would be most appreciated, and during influx years we've put the effort in, but even an autumn juvenile would suffice to plug the gaping gap on all our Axe lists.  Not a whiff.

And that makes today a very good day indeed.

With the current Rose-coloured Starling influx picking up pace, a couple of days ago I posted this on Facebook. Well us birders can't find one for love nor money, so I thought I'd see if the local non-birding community could do better..

It clearly wasn't shared enough.  This morning Kev phoned with news a friend had tagged him in the following post...

Fairy Liquid and a Rose-coloured Starling!

Soon after we gleaned the exact location we descended. Phil managed to see it perched up but it didn't hang around, Kev and I only managed brief flight views.  I (with Jess and Harry in the car - Jess was just as keen as I to track it down!) followed it in flight across half the town before it seemed to head off west.  We thought that was it, but a few birders sat it out and almost three hours later news came through it was back in the same spot.

We jumped in the car and ten minutes later were treated to this...

Rose-coloured Starling!

Pink punk

It even began to sing!

Turn the volume up for some singing Rose-coloured Starling action...

A singing male Rose-coloured Starling - amazing!  But even more amazing than that, it soon became apparent there were two with a duller bird also present. I managed to drop in briefly later in the afternoon, and didn't even have to get out the car as this was sat on the roof next to me...

Rose-coloured Starling number two! 

The singing male can only be described as being ridiculously flamboyant.  Black, pink and full of punk.  This bird however had paler and dirty looking pink bits, pale tips and edging to most the darker feathers, a dark-tipped bill and just a bit of a shaggy head lacking the large plumes.  We have a male and a female then... they couldn't could they?

A further twist today (which could have been very unpleasant had today not have happened!) came when I found out that there was also a Rose-coloured Starling in a private garden in Colyton nine days ago.  "A baby Magpie that was bright pink and black with a crest" is pretty conclusive for me!  No pics sadly so we can't compare.

Rose-coloured Starling is remarkably my third patch tick of the year, with American Herring Gull in February and the Blyth's Reed Warbler (both patch firsts).  Before 2020 I had suffered three blank years for new birds here, with my last addition being the Beer Head Red-backed Shrike in September 2016 (a month after Least Sand).  Have said it before and it will be said again, a funny old game this birding. Completely unpredictable.

Before signing off I must just mention Crossbills. I had one fly very low west over Seaton early afternoon yesterday  (unfortunately not from my house!) with several more today calling from the Morganhayes Wood area.  They've clearly had a good year, with lots of Siskin around too.

What a day.  A ridiculously pink one.  Take care all.

Axe Cliff and Surprise Crossbills

Yesterday morning, although it was clearer than I was hoping, I went up to Axe Cliff soon after dawn. After a short while I realised I was actually grateful the sun was shining, it was a real pleasure to be out with the fine weather ensuring the local breeders were showing and singing well...

Male Yellowhammer with a back drop of Lyme Bay and Beer Head

I was staggered by the numbers of Common Whitethroats around.  In recent years there's normally about six singing males in the area of Axe Cliff that I cover.  Yesterday however I noted 13 singing/displaying males, along with a 14th non-singing bird. They were all behaving like they were local breeders too - so is it simply going to prove a good summer for the species? Has anyone else noted good numbers of Whitethroats this year?  On the other side of the coin though, I usually come across one or two singing Lesser Whitethroats here, but none during this visit.

The Whitethroats were all sat out proudly and partaking in frequent song-flights

This one on a more natural perch

A lovely highlight was a Hobby that flew low east across the fields soon after I arrived, with the only definite 'grounded migrant' being my first Spotted Flycatcher of the year.  Not that it stayed grounded for long - it soon continued west along the cliff edge.

This morning during a family outing I was surprised to hear Crossbills calling from Bovey Down, then about half an hour later watched two flying around above me calling at nearby Blackbury Camp.  Presumably the date indicates local breeding?  Mid summer is usually our best time to see (or more often just hear!) Crossbills, when family groups are dispersing from their breeding grounds.  Anyone with more experience of the Crossbill breeding cycle have any thoughts on this? Could they actually be breeding here!?

Dartmoor Day

Will post a local update in the next day or two, but in the meantime here's a few pics from a stunning family day trip to Dartmoor yesterday...

At least four Crossbills spent lunchtime with us, along with numerous Siskins, a couple of Dipper and a Wheatear.   Had one of those moments too of really appreciating a common bird. We all go nuts for spring Yellow Wagtails, especially the colourful headed varieties. But have you looked closely at at Grey Wagtail lately? Stunning...

No Good Gulls

I spent a lot of time checking the three large gatherings of gulls in the valley this afternoon, despite the wind and sometimes very heavy rain.  With each scope scan I felt a nice white-winger or crisp first-winter Caspian Gull was next up, it looked so perfect... but just wasn't to be.  In a way this was similar to last Friday, the large numbers of Black-headed and Common Gulls feeding close in over rough seas looked a perfect place for a Little Gull to be. James Mc had two off Lyme Regis but Seaton clearly didn't take their fancy.

I had to do my monthly woodland bird survey this morning, in private woodland near Colyton. This sadly is well outside from my Patchwork Challenge patch, I say sadly because I saw so much!

The three Woodcock were expected - in fact this is well below the usual wintering numbers here, but the Crossbill, Lesser Redpoll and even the eight Siskin were something of a surprise. It's been such a poor winter for most of the finch species down in the valley that I wasn't expecting any of these.  Superb.

Being in Colyton I thought I'd have a look at the four Cattle Egrets at Colcombe... and there were five!  I did think I had five last week come out of roost so maybe not a new arrival, just one that's relocated to Colcombe?  

If you want to see these Cattle Egrets you have to chose where to view them from dependent on where the cattle, and birds are. Sometimes they show well from Station Road/Rosemary Lane, but more often than not Yardbury Hill Road/Lions Close Hill is a good option. They are more distant from here but you can look over the whole field.  Please remember though that the road that leads to Colcombe Farm (Colcombe Road) is a private road and however tempting you shouldn't be viewing from here.

A Busy But Blustery Beer Head and a Glossy House Tick

Too windy to even contemplate bird ringing this morning (and maybe this week?), but I still thought Beer Head was worth a walk around today despite the crystal clear skies and strong north wind. 

The regular haunts on the east side of the head were completely blown out and did appear to be pretty bird-less, but looking over the Underhooken, along to Branscombe and the upper slopes of Branscombe were sheltered enough to show there was quite a lot of passage going on.  I spent almost an hour looking over the Underhooken watching Goldcrests and Chiffchaffs filtering up the cliff edge, then flicking over the top and off inland. Sadly there wasn't anything rarer (or stripier) among them.  

Overhead passage was ok, not great numbers (Skylark and Meadow Pipit the most numerous), but there was some nice variety. Best of all being a flock of six Crossbill that flew east, low enough to see a couple of nice red males too. There were the expected Chaffinches, Linnets, Goldfinches and Siskins, along with a single Reed Bunting and two Redpolls. Still a few Swallows and House Martins about, but seemed to be noticeable fewer than just a few days ago.

I've already mentioned the Chiffs and Goldcrests, but it was also a Stonechat day - I had at least 18 in all, which is a great count for Beer Head.  And with them two Wheatear, one of which posed in a nice autumnal way...

I am still waiting for my first Redwing, but there were noticeably more Blackbirds and Song Thrush about so I don't think it's far away. To complete my list of sightings from this enjoyable two hour wander, three White Wagtails were nice to see as they were my first of the autumn, and a couple of Yellowhammers dropped in (although they could have been local birds)...

I'm sure you have already read about them on another website/blog/social media platform, but on Saturday as I was driving towards Portland, two Glossy Ibis were flying the opposite way.  They weren't seen from the sea front here (the obvious place to stand when you are told two birds are following the coast west), but it later transpired they were seen circling over Black Hole Marsh at midday, and then feeding on Colyford scrape later in the afternoon.  

Thankfully Phil refound them on Sunday afternoon, but I didn't manage to see them, well one of them, until 4pm today.  It was worth the wait though because I saw it from my bedroom window!  To be honest I thought they'd gone as they were last seen at 11am today on Colyford scrape, and I checked that place several times since and saw nowt.  But as I was typing away on my laptop I heard a very low flying helicopter going over, so thought it was worth a punt.... and among a sky full of panicked birds, a lone Glossy Ibis came circling down on to Black Hole Marsh. Result!  This is my fourth patch record of Glossy Ibis, the others being;

• A flock of six on Black Hole then Colyford Marsh on 19/09/09, found by Clive and they stayed for about six hours.
• On 13/09/10 a flock of 18 that had been on the Otter Est for days flew past Gav and Bun on Beer Head, I was at Axe Cliff and could see them flying east and then north up the valley. Later the same day they were at Dungeness (Kent)!
• A one day bird on Seaton Marshes on 8/11/13 found by Tim White.  

As you can see from those records, Glossy Ibis don't usually stay with us very long at all, but these two must have found something they like!

The Birds

It's time to review what the birding has been like on the Axe over the last month or so, and what I've seen...

I'll start back when I first became laptop-less, in late August.  The Baird's Sand proved a one day wonder on Black Hole Marsh, but the Wood Sands lingered.  Although big numbers were only present for a couple of days, there were between five and 14 for the next few weeks - still amazing numbers when talking about Wood Sands!  What proved as amazing as the numbers were the views they were offering...

Personally I think there's not many places better for seeing wading birds up close in the UK than Black Hole Marsh.  Just look at that Wood Sand in the photo above, it couldn't be closer to the Island Hide!

We had quite a few juv Little Stints over the course of August/September, never more than two at a time, but we probably had about seven or so over the course of the autumn.  Curlew Sands though have proved scarce this autumn, and all we managed were a couple of juveniles on 24th Aug...

A front view and a back view! Both are Curlew Sands I promise

Otherwise we had good numbers of Ruff (up to double figures) and the odd single Knot, Turnstone, etc...

Knot

Black Hole Marsh really came good on 30th/31st Aug. Late on 30th a patch first and Devon mega appeared in front of Tim Wright, a Citrine Wagtail! (the grim details and a photo here).  Sadly after barely a minute it flew off and was never seen again. Gutting.  The following morning birders searching for the rare waggy turned up a cracking Spotted Crake and a Wryneck - on fire!!!  I didn't see any of the three rarities, but so happy for the chaps that did and very pleased for the patch. A Bittern was seen on Colyford Marsh by many on 8th Sept, but since then Black Hole and Colyford Marsh have remained rarity-free zones. 

Over on the Estuary  it's been fairly quiet.  The small wader flock from Black Hole Marsh could often be seen here at low tide, and good numbers of gulls on 21st Sept included 180+ Great Black-backed Gulls and a lovely first-winter Yellow-legged Gull.  I saw my first Wigeon of the autumn on 24th Aug (it was actually on the sea), but from mid Sept numbers have been building, there are probably about 80-100 present now.  A nice surprise this morning were two Pintail on Colyford Marsh scrape, my first ones this year. Unusually a Razorbill has been present for a good few weeks on the Estuary, often on the river as far north as the Tower Hide. Bit of an odd sight.

Back to the sea, and an evening walk along Branscombe Beach with Jess and Honey on 29th Aug showed there were large numbers of Gannets offshore (despite no wind at all), and thousands of whitebait washed up on the beach.  

I was interviewed by BBC Radio Devon about this, not quite the 'freak phenomenon' they were hoping for though!

Because of this, the next morning I spent a few hours at Spot On Kiosk, and was rewarded with lots and lots of birds. Most of these were feeding gulls and Gannets, but I did see c35 Manxies and at least six Balearic Shearwaters, a couple of which were lingering and feeding offshore.  A Greenshank in-off was a bonus too, and vis mig over the beach included three species of wagtail for the first time this autumn (Pied, Grey and Yellow).

A bird ringing update will be in another post (once I have IMPR up and running again), but I have spent a fair bit of time at Beer Head, and have had some good mornings there without really seeing anything that special. You don't always need rare birds to have a good day.

The 1st Sept was a pretty good morning up there, in two hours I logged 25 Yellow Wags, one Grey Wag, two Tree Pipit, eight Wheatear, two Redstart, three Spot Flies and a late Swift.

The best day for me though was 17th Sept. Up to the day before I'd seen just a handful of migrant Meadow Pipits, but it was bursting with them!  I left the head 3.5 hours after arriving, and had counted at least 750 Mipits, some flying straight through, but most landing among the long grass in large flocks briefly before continuing on west.  It felt so so good for a rare pipit, but sadly it never happened.  The bushes were just as busy as the fields, with good numbers of Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps, what will probably prove to be my last Willow Warbler and Redstart of the year and a single Spot Fly.

A beautifully well marked juv Spotted Flycatcher

More recently, the 30th Sept was a windy morning, but hirundines were streaming through in their thousands at Beer Head, all going east. In with them plenty of Meadow Pipits, a few finches and on the land a Wheatear and a Spot Fly.

The best day for vis mig variety was even more recently, on 3rd Oct. I was up there ringing and it was fairly foggy, but birds were piling through north.  Several large flocks of Linnets, Goldfinches and Siskins, almost continual Chaffinches and Meadow Pipits, numerous Pied and Grey Wags, the biggest movement of Skylark of the autumn so far (35+), a couple of Redpolls, singles of Reed Bunting and Yellowhammer, and best of all at least two Crossbill. If only the bushes were as busy!  I did see a Firecrest, but sadly didn't catch it...

The only notable birds I've seen since the 3rd were this morning's Pintail that I've already mentioned, and a Firecrest in the middle of Colyton during a dog walk on Sunday morning.

It feels good to be up to date, so from now on as I see I will post, yes regular blog posts will resume.  And I look forward to compiling the bird ringing post too, that will probably come early next week.

A New Moth For The Garden

Sadly it is not a very exciting one though! In fact its a very common and rather drab moth, and I have no idea how I haven't managed to catch one here before now. The Common Lutestring was one of 76 moths of 35 species in the trap on Monday night...

Some of the smarter moths included...

Crescent Dart - a local speciality

Phoenix

Blood-vein

Burnished Brass

There's a few more birds turning up locally now, with a few waders on Black Hole Marsh and Black-headed Gull numbers increasing by the day (including my first juvs a few days ago).  I keep bumping into Crossbills locally too, with at least two this morning feeding high up in conifers at Bovey Down amongst a large mixed flock of birds.

Heathland Habitat At Home

In the last couple of years we've been blessed with Nightjars on patch, thanks to the clearance of a load of larch near Morganhayes Wood. Usually I advocate leaving trees and woodlands as they are, but this has proved such a positive bit of habitat restoration - even though this wasn't the intention! 

Not only have Nightjars moved in, but for the second year there's singing male Tree Pipit here (haven't seen a pair yet unlike last year but she could be sitting), and this year a family of Stonechat.  There were also a few Willow Warblers singing yesterday and they certainly wouldn't have been there if it was still a larch plantation. The surronding conifers still hold several Siskins, and yesterday I was surprised to see a flock of eight Crossbill fly over before landing near where I had parked my car.  Seeing as they were so scarce last autumn and during the winter I don't think they have bred here, but more likely my first autumn migrants.... (yes that's me wishing this cold and windy summer away already!).

It was nice to see two baby Tawny Owls as well making a right racket and looking pretty clumsy. Typically I didn't have my camera with me though...

Beer Head Back On The Birding Agenda

After several days of blustery and wet conditions, Tuesday was calm and dry so I thought I'd give Beer Head a try for autumn migrants. It was a bit of a long shot really as sites like Portland and Dungeness hadn't reported much in the way autumn migrants yet.

As ever, and in keeping with previous 'first visit of the season to Beer Head posts' - here's a scenery shot...

Notice the mist in the river valley

Nice to see a new visitor board at the entrance too. For some reason they've not labelled the prime migrant spots though...

I just wish people would read the 'Please keep your dog on a lead' bit!!

Bird wise it certainly was a worthwhile visit - although no variety, totals of 28 Willow Warblers and two Wheatear certainly made it feel 'autumnal'...

This is the closest this Wheatear would allow me!

Every year when I see the first autumn Wheatears they always look small - and I suppose that's because the last Wheatears I see proir to this are large Greenland-type jobs in late spring.

I gave Beer Head another try today, it was much quieter with just one Wheatear and eight Willow Warblers. I did have a Beer Head tick though in the form of a juv Green Woodpecker near The Summit bushes. They do breed half a mile in land but I've never seen one here before.

A little later in the day I had a lovely flock of 17 Crossbill in Morganhayes Woods. They were clearly hanging around as they were moving backwards and forwards between tree-tops, so I'll have to keep my eye on them in case a Two-barred joins them. Now that would be nice...  

After this, a quick look at Lower Bruckland Ponds showed an aytha in with the moulting Mallards. Sadly not a Scaup or a Pochard...

...a lady Tufted Duck

My daily Black Hole Marsh vist was later than usual today, I didn't get here until early afternoon.  The wader situation appaeared much the same as the previous few days. A single juv Ruff remains, there's up to 34 Black-tailed Godwits (including two Axe Estuary colour-ringed birds) and several Green and Common Sands dotted about.  There was a newbie in with the Dunlin (numbering 40) and Ringed Plover (numbering 22) though - this lovely Sanderling...

Sanderling surronded by Ringed Plover, Dunlin and a Common Sandpiper

Have to say it wasn't feeding like a Sanderling at all, it was probing just like a Dunlin!

To complete this post, an update on the colour-ringed juv Kittiwake at Black Hole Marsh on Monday.  Thanks only to Phil's quick camera work we were able to make out the combination of colour-rings, and I've already had a response...

The bird was ringed at the Pointe du Raz colony (Plogoff, Finistère, Bretagne, France), which is pretty much the most western point of France. It was last seen in the colony here on 27th July.  Thanks to Phil and Jean-Yves Monnat.

Hot Weather Birding

Had a couple of hours out this morning birding, which was nice. Had to come home when the temperates got up though - I have always found my binocular strap incredibly uncomfortable when sweat comes into the equation!

A short sea watch from Seaton showed a few bits and pieces. I was hoping to see a Balearic Shearwater or two, although not many have been reported as yet this year this hot weather could easily entice a load up - in fact I'm surprised it hasn't already.  When I spotted a distant Shearwater heading west over the flat sea I thought my gamble had paid off, but surprisingly it was a Manxie.  Other notable birds included an adult Med Gull east, two Sandwich Terns fishing close in and two Common Scoters sat on the sea.

Mid morning I went to Black Hole Marsh, where wader numbers are ever increasing. Black-tailed Godwits are up to 12, with nine Dunlin. Also eight Common Sands, five Lapwing, two Greenshank, one Green Sandpiper and a Whimbrel. Lots of Black-headed Gulls again but not even a Med Gull in with them today.  

Nice to see plenty of insects around the marsh. Of all of them, this Comma was the most showy and just had to be papped...

Although I am always moaning about the heat, I'm pleased for the insects!

To complete my bird news for the day, had Crossbill again at Mum and Dad's. Didn't see it, just heard it a few times calling somewhere from the west. It sounded settled too.

I've had a moth trap out on each of the last two nights - but I'll save this for another post (probably tomorrow).  Nothing earth shattering but some nice species.

I'm Home!

Well I have been home for several days now, but just haven't had time for this update. Here it is though...

Firstly I will just mention the only worthwhile sighting since my return home. On Monday I was very surprised to hear Crossbills calling whilst in the front garden, and looked up to see three flying over. I wouldn't have been so surprised if it was Sept/Oct. Even July/Aug would be ok for migrants, but early June? Must be local birds surely?

Also I would like to say thank you to anyone and everyone who signed the Buzzard petition. It worked! See here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/may/30/buzzard-trapping-plan-abandoned-uturn

Ok, so where have I been? NORFOLK! It wasn't a birding trip at all, just a relaxing few days away with Jess, and it was superb - we had so much fun in this beautiful part of the world. The drive back was a bit of a nightmare though, not only was the traffic horrendous, but this happened whilst driving on the M25...

Oh dear! AA did a temporary fix, but am still waiting for a full repair

It didn't dampen our spirits though as we had such a great few days. I have got hundreds of scenery photos, but I won't bore you with all of them. Just four to give a taster...

Makes me feel relaxed just looking at them

Just being in Norfolk meant we saw plenty of birds - but we did visit Titchwell, Holkham Gap and Cley once or twice whilst here.

I actually managed a UK lifer on this trip! On Wednesday a Great Reed Warbler was found at Cley, and late afternoon I managed some brief views of it - just a pity it wasn't singing when I was there. In the Cley/Salthouse area I also saw a Wood Sand, some excellent views of Bearded Tits (the photo doesn't do the views justice), very brief views of a raptor that flew in off which I hope was just a Hobby (it was either this species or a Red-foot), and stacks of Avocets...

A family of Bearded Tits in the reeds

We even saw some chicks wandering about too. They were too far to photograph though, unlike the above adults!

Titchwell produced a nice bunch of 1st-summer Little Gulls and two Little Ringed Plovers. And Holkham Gap gave a Cuckoo.

On Wednesday we went on a seal trip in Blakeney Harbour. Great views of masses of seals (I took about 100 photos of the Seals, but don't worry I'll post just three here), but bird wise it was also enjoyable with a fly over Spoonbill being a surprise, loads of terns (4 species, incl. loads of Little), a couple of adult Med Gulls and 3+ Marsh Harriers. A lone Brent Goose I presume was an injured or sick straggler.

They really are funny looking things!

Just driving about and stopping now and then also showed plenty of birds. We saw numerous Marsh Harriers (the males really are so stunning, never seen an adult male on the Axe), several Barn Owls, Grey Partridge all over the place and a lone Corn Bunting near Choseley Drying Barns...

These were everywhere!

But these weren't, just one Corn Bunting - this photo was taken some time after 9pm, hence why it is so dark. He was still singing away though!

We stayed in Wells, and ate out every night. The best meal I think we had was in the Victoria, at Holkham. The service and dinner was brilliant, but it was the desert that really did it for me...

Called 'Tasting of Strawberry'

Unfortunately the two days I had set aside for possible Swallowtail searching were much cloudier, with Thursday being quite wet. So in the end we didn't make the drive down to the south of the county to see this butterfly. That's ok - just means we will need to come back again some time soon!

Back to work again now though, and back to 'the norm'. Now spring is over, it's time for me to knuckle down and get stuck into DBR 2011...