Easter was a bit of a dud this year with me being holed up at home and ill with COVID although I was meant to be working most of it anyway. And no sooner than Easter is over than we have May Day Bank Holiday looming large, again I'm working but with a few days off before the weekend begins and the weather still warm and sunny and settled we have made the most of my free time.
I worked a long day on Wednesday 27th April and arrived home in the evening absolutely exhausted by it. Despite a good night's sleep I felt rough the next morning but we decided to drive up to Shaugh Prior on Dartmoor for a walk, somewhere we haven't visited for quite a while now.
We walked up to The Dewerstone but it was quite the struggle for me and I felt breathless, dizzy, uncoordinated and spaced out. Despite my struggle I did see my first Redstart of the year, a smart looking male singing in an oak tree before disappearing amongst the leaves. A pair of Pied Flycatcher showed well too with a second male heard singing nearby and a single Swallow was noted overhead flying north. However I was very glad to return to the car and head home, this post COVID fatigue is not pleasant at all.
Friday 29th April and with some items needing to be collected from John Lewis in Exeter we decided to head up on the train to go and pick them up. On the train journey to Exeter I managed a brief view of the female White Stork at Matford Pool as we whizzed by, a bird from the reintroduction scheme at Knepp in Sussex and present in the area for a few days now. I also managed to see it again on the train journey back to Plymouth in virtually the same spot.
We started our trip with a visit to Topsham before returning to Exeter for shopping, its been a while since my last visit to Topsham (September 2020) and it was good to be back. I started off at Goosemoor where at least 6 Reed Warblers were heard singing away along with a Cettis Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff. A Water Rail was heard squealing away too and a noisy Greenshank flew in to the exposed mudflats.
From the hide at Bowling Green Marsh a single Swallow, a pair of Tufted Duck, a Coot, a male Wigeon, 4 pairs of Teal and 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls were noted, the tide was low so there was very little else on view.
A Reed Warbler showed very well in the small patch of reeds at the bottom of the Viewing Platform steps while out on the mudflats a Greenshank, 7 Whimbrel and a Grey Heron were seen. From The Goat Walk 2 late Avocets and variably plumaged Black-tailed Godwit were seen before it was time for lunch in The Lighter Inn and then the train journey back to Exeter for the shopping part of the day.
There had been a report of a Hoopoe at Rame on Thursday 28th April which piqued my interest but I expected it to be a one day wonder as they invariably are. However Whats App messages early on Friday morning confirmed it was indeed still present but with Exeter plans already in place I had no choice but to go and have a look for it the next day (Saturday).
I wasn't feeling overly optimistic at seeing it especially as I had dipped a Hoopoe in almost the same spot in September 2019, Hoopoes always seem to be a tricky bird to nail down despite their over the top and gaudy plumage.
I headed out early, arriving at around 8:30am in the field at Rame where the Hoopoe had been showing. A birder was already present but the news wasn't positive. It was quite chilly despite the sunshine but eventually it warmed up and I hoped the rise in temperature would result in the Hoopoe appearing to feed. It wasn't meant to be though but while waiting around I did see my first House Martins of the year buzzing around overhead along with Swallows, a male Kestrel and a female Sparrowhawk while a Blackcap sang away in the hedgerow and a Red Admiral flitted by.
After 2 hours of watching and waiting I decided the Hoopoe was not going to reveal itself and so headed off for a walk out to The Chapel at Rame Head, noting good numbers of Swallows flying around overhead and good numbers of singing Whitethroat on the cliffs along the way. Chiffchaffs were heard singing away too and 2 adult Gannets, a Guillemot and a Sandwich Tern were seen offshore.
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A pair of Wheatear, a Peregrine, a male Yellowhammer, a Rock Pipit, Linnets and Stonechats were also seen along with a few Speckled Wood, 6 Wall Brown and 4 Fallow Deer.
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I headed back to the bus stop for the journey back to Plymouth but not before another look around the Hoopoe field. Again there was no sign of it and birders present were still giving out negative news, I guess I will just have to wait a little bit longer for my next UK Hoopoe sighting.
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