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 Fulmar Fooling Around

Time for a quick update following the Colyton Cuckoo.  Since then spring migration seems to have slowed down a notch. For example, although I've not made it up to Beer Head recently, all who have report very little to be seen.  I have seen a few bits and pieces though...

Roll back to 19th April, and a female Little Ringed Plover was on Bridge Marsh at dusk, with the reeds full of singing Reed and Sedge Warblers. It's amazing how quickly (about a week?) the reeds went from being almost completely silent, to being crammed full of singing acros. Dusk is much more enjoyable when there's a back drop of chuntering Reed Warblers that's for sure...

Seaton Marshes hide

On the 22nd Chesil Cove recorded an impressive 800+ Bar-tailed Godwits through during the morning, whereas 30 minutes from Seaton Beach showed none!  I did check the Estuary last thing in the evening though and was pleased to see six just upriver from a flock of 12 Black-tailed Godwits.  There are still three here today, this being one of them...

Always look so short-legged!

This morning we had a real April 2019 rarity....rain!  It didn't seem to have done much at first, with just four Dunlin, a Ringed Plover and two Common Sandpipers on the Estuary.  But once the rain stopped during the afternoon things stepped up a gear , and although I missed an Osprey and drake Garganey, I did see the Marsh Harrier over Colyford Marsh, a Greenshank on the Estuary, and from the beach in 20 minutes; 150+ Manx Shearwaters west and a Goosander in-off. 

Looking out to see the visibility was outstanding, with a large container ship crystal clear despite it clearly being a long way off. Thanks to ship tracking website (https://www.marinetraffic.com) I was able to see it was 'Liberty Ace', a Japanese container ship heading for the US, and was about 15 (land) miles out!

The fact this distant ship was so clear wasn't the only surprise this evening.... Whilst I was at Coronation Corner, which is about 1.25km up the Axe Estuary, I looked up to see a Fulmar flying around!...

...it soon realised its mistake and headed back down the Estuary towards the sea.  Now I was not expecting that!!

Redstart Heralds Restart of Spring

Now we've seen the back of that blasting easterly wind, northbound migrant birds have responded accordingly.  

Unfortunately I wasn't able to make it out today, but Kev did ok up Beer Head as the fog cleared mid morning with Grasshopper Warbler, Redstart, Black Redstart and Whitethroat.  I did however cash in on some migrants yesterday, thanks to two visits to Seaton Marshes.

Visit one showed at least ten Willow Warbler and seven Blackcap in the bushes, with my first Reed and Sedge Warbler of the spring on the Borrow Pit.  The rain and low cloud kept 30+ Swallow and half a dozen or so House Martins low over the marsh...

Unfortunately yet again they weren't accompanied but a Red-rumped!

Visit two early afternoon revealed the cherry on top, a cracking male Redstart. It wasn't hanging around however, and within a few minutes had traveled the whole length of the ditch that runs west to east across the marsh just north of the Borrow Pit. I lost it when it flew into bushes next to the tram line.

And that brings this blog up to date for now, although considering the date I hope that by the day there will be more to tell.  To complete this post, although off patch, a visit to Lyme Regis the other day showed the immature drake Eider still present...

Wish it moved a little way west!

A Few More Spring Migrants and Pale-bellied Brents

I enjoyed an hour and a half out birding at each end of the day today, which produced a few more nice little highlights.  

A pre-dawn wander around Black Hole Marsh revealed, at last, my first Reed Warbler of the year chuntering away. I then headed down to the Spot On Kiosk for an hours sea watch from 6am, the conditions were far from perfect though with blue skies and almost no wind by the end of the watch! Still it wasn't a complete write-off, although I'm yet to decide whether it was truly worthwhile!? All west unless stated; 

34 Common Scoter

5 Manx Shearwater

3 Kittiwake (all east)

5 Whimbrel

3 small wader sp. (in off)

During a wander along Seaton Beach with the family a little later in the morning, I picked up a flock of about 40 Pale-bellied Brent Geese flying west offshore, although only just before they disappeared around Beer Head. This was at 09:38, and precisely 29 minutes later they seen off Dawlish Warren where they continued to follow the coast south, which is slightly unusual as most spring Pale-bellied flocks fly in to the Exe. 

Tonight's trip out starting very frustratingly. There was no passage over the sea this evening but there was a group of 6-8 'Commic' Terns feeding some distance out, viewing conditions though were atrocious with a blurry haze offshore.  Three of them came above the horizon in a tight group for about ten seconds, revealing a clear cut Arctic Tern with two Commons, but as for the other three or more am not sure. I did get the feeling there was more than one Arctic in there though.

Once I'd got completely fed up with straining my eyes I had a look up the river valley. Two Whimbrel and the Dark-bellied Brent Goose were on Estuary, singles of Wheatear and White Wagtail were viewable from Bridge Marsh gateway, and on Axe Marsh our first Whinchat of the year - a cracking male.  To say it was distant though is something of an understatement...

It was on the fence posts in the middle of this pic

There it is...just!

Off-patch, during a family trip to Budleigh early this afternoon, it was nice to see a Yellow Wagtail bombing around on the beach just east of the fishing boats with a couple of Pied Wags. It didn't really settle though and headed off north soon after I first noticed it.

Hare, There and Everywhere. But Few Birds...

The weather conditions were absolutely perfect for a spring fall this morning, with a north west wind and really nice thick covering of cloud. There was even a little bit of drizzle not long after dawn!

It started quite well with an early visit to Black Hole Marsh showing that overnight two Reed Warblers had dropped in, with both singing from the strip of reeds up to the Tower Hide. I just love migration, not there one day, singing in full voice the next!  

I then headed up for a good stomp around Axe Cliff, which started off well with a single Tree Pipit over north soon after my arrival. Not a common spring migrant so great to get one on my Patchwork Challenge list so soon.  This was however a false start, with little else passing over and the bushes being incredible quiet migrant-wise.  A singing male Lesser Whitethroat towards the end of my walk did somewhat make up for all the fruitless trudging around mind - another decent year tick. But what really made the walk worthwhile was this wonderful Hare...

I have missed a couple of good birds today. One was a Spoonbill that Phil had briefly drop onto Black Hole Marsh at 1pm, which interestingly looks to be the same Spoonbill that was on Bowling Green Marsh up until 11:30 today.  But more gripping year listing-wise was a Grasshopper Warbler heard reeling for twenty minutes on Colyford Common by a visiting birder mid morning.

I did try tonight for the 'Gropper' in case it started up again at dusk, which they can sometimes do if they haven't moved on, but my plan didn't work out.  It wasn't a wasted trip though as I got to see Goosanders again, with three circling over Black Hole Marsh before dropping onto the Estuary at 20:05...

A drake and two female Goosanders

In my last post I was wrong to presume the lone Cattle Egret that I've been seeing for a couple of days, and the lack of any Cattle Egrets in the Borrow Pit at dawn, meant we were down to just one bird. Twilight Tim has seen seven over the past two days, which actually makes me wonder if the lone bird was bird number seven, which has now joined up with the regular six?

So to summarise today, an okay day but considering the date and the weather it should have been much better. Sometimes I really do wish our patch was somewhere else in the south west, at a real migration hot spot like Lands End, Portland or Charmouth...