Lockdown 2.0 (or Locky D as the youngsters are calling it) continues although it is not as restrictive as lockdown was earlier in the year. However work continues to get increasingly busier, difficult and stressful, the weather remains mostly wet, windy and mild and life ticks along in this weird "on hold" state and it is all, quite frankly, tediously boring.
With mild temperatures and no rain forecast overnight on November 9th and 17th I decided to put out the moth box in the back yard. Previous trapping at this time of year has produced next to no moths and these 2 sessions were no exception with a single Light Brown Apple Moth in the trap on the morning of the 10th and nothing on the 18th. There may have been no moths in the trap on the morning of the 18th but a bonus for getting up early on my day off to check the trap was seeing and hearing a small flock of around 10 Redwing flying low overhead heading west.
With the lockdown restricting travelling I decided it was time to get my Swarovski binoculars serviced. I have had them for 17 years and they have had a hard life with me although optically they are as amazing as the first day I got them. I purchased them from London Camera Exchange in Plymouth in 2003 and they are now dealing with all the arrangements for me as they get shipped off to Austria for their servicing but they are likely to be gone for 5 weeks!!! 2 weeks have nearly passed already but I can not wait for their return, I really am missing them.
A walk around The Barbican and Plymouth Hoe on Tuesday 17th November was pleasant despite the grey skies and occasional drizzle. The highlight of the walk was an adult Mediterranean Gull resting on a buoy out on the water of Sutton Harbour, a ringed bird but too distant to read the letters/numbers on the white plastic leg ring with my travel Leica binoculars while my Swarovski binoculars are away for servicing.
The morning of Wednesday 18th November was wet and windy but by lunchtime it had dried up and so I had a walk over to Ford Park Cemetery for a look around. There was no sign of any Black Redstarts but there was a lot of noise and disturbance from the maintenance men strimming grass. I did find a Chiffchaff and a Goldcrest along with the usual Blue, Great and Coal Tits and 2 Sparrowhawks were seen flying over together. A very tame and stunning looking male Pheasent showed very well around the bird feeders, where he came from is anyones guess as a small cemetery in the centre of Plymouth is an odd place to find one.
Thursday 19th November was a beautiful day for a change, sunny skies with a cold and brisk north westerly wind which eased by lunchtime, and a much needed walk along the coast path at Wembury was very restorative indeed.
It was extremely busy due to the good weather and the birds along the beach were constantly disturbed by walkers on the outgoing tide but I quickly found a smart Water Pipit feeding on the mass of seaweed near the sewage pipe amongst the Rock Pipits and Meadow Pipits. I walked further along the coast path to get a closer view of it but as I set up my telescope an adult Great Black-backed Gull landed nearby and spooked all the Pipits and I lost sight of it.
Cirl Buntings and Stonechats showed very well along the footpath with the male Cirl Buntings heard singing regularly. A male Kestrel, a female Sparrowhawk and a Buzzard were seen overhead and a Chiffchaff was heard calling in the bushes but not seen. Only 15 Oystercatcher were seen roosting along the beach with 2 Curlew and a Little Egret and a lone and distant Gannet was seen offshore. A flock of around 200 Woodpigeon were seen flying inland, appearing to come in off the sea, and shortly after a flock of around 80 were seen flying west along the coast and possibly from the original flock.
On the return walk I decided to amble along the beach and spend some time looking for the Water Pipit amongst the feeding Pipits around the seaweed mass. The Pipits were very mobile and flighty but eventually I found the Water Pipit feeding at the base of the cliff, obscured views as it constantly fed amongst the stones and flotsam and jetsam before it was flushed by walkers. A short time later I refound it in the same spot, the views were still obscured before it was flushed again but it soon returned to the same spot and I finally managed some good views of it. It was, as usual for Water Pipits, quite arsey towards any Rock Pipits or Meadow Pipits that came too close and it was interesting to see it return regularly to the same stretch of beach to defend it from any interloping Pipits.
The sheep field was covered with lots of yellow toadstools again, I think they are Golden Waxcap, and the last time I saw so many here was back in 2012 when we had a very wet autumn just like this year.
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