River Plym and Wembury

Friday 20th August was overcast and cool and so I headed off to the River Plym and Saltram for a walk to catch the 5pm high tide.

A few butterflies were flitting about in sheltered spots despite the lack of sunshine and I saw good numbers of Common Blue and Meadow Brown along with a few Small Heath and single Painted Lady and Small Copper. 

Blaxton Meadow was bird filled as the tide headed in through the sluice gates with 34 Curlew, 9 Oystercatcher, 2 Dunlin, 2 Redshank, a Greenshank, 14 Little Egret, a Kingfisher and 4 adult Mediterranean Gulls the highlights. One of the Mediterranean Gulls was sporting a red plastic leg ring on it's right leg but it was too distant to read the white letters/numbers on it even with my telescope.

Out on the estuary 4 more Greenshank with the 2 Redshank from Blaxton Meadow were roosting on the embankment along with 11 Grey Heron and a Little Egret.

Around the Park Stock Doves, Swallows, House Martins, Nuthatch, Coal Tit, a Stonechat, a Treecreeper, 3 Spotted Flycatcher (2 juveniles) and 2 Mistle Thrush were all seen, 3 late Swifts were hawking insects high overhead and a Shag was a nice find resting on a buoy just above Laira Bridge on my walk home.

Saturday 21st August was forecasted to be grey and wet but on waking up in the morning the skies were beginning to clear and it was dry and so I decided to head out to Wembury for a walk.

It was warm and humid in the sunshine but as I headed back home the skies had darkened and the mizzle drizzle duly arrived so I was very lucky indeed to catch some decent weather.

The tide was low but along the beach 6 Turnstone, 4 Whimbrel, 3 Curlew, 2 Dunlin and a Sanderling were seen with the usual Oystercatchers and a single Little Egret. Mediterranean Gulls were roosting out on the rocks with Herring Gulls and Black-headed Gulls and a pair of Great Black-backed Gulls were tucking in to the corpse of a Dolphin washed up on the shoreline which appeared to be entangled in a fishing net.

Great Black-backed Gulls with Dolphin Corpse

The sea was flat calm and scanning offshore revealed the usual Gannets and Fulmars along with a distant Sandwich Tern flying west and 2 Harbour Porpoise briefly surfacing out near The Mewstone.

Chiffchaff, Whitethroat, Stonechat, Linnet and Cirl Bunting were all noted along the footpath and my first Wheatear of the autumn at Wembury was feeding on the rocks below the horse fields.

Swallows and House Martins were flying around overhead with the House Martins moving back and forth along the coast in loose flocks.

A Wall Brown, a Red Admiral, a Speckled Wood, a Large White, Meadow Browns and Common Blues were flitting about along with 2 male Oak Eggars and a Long-winged Conehead was basking in the sunshine along with the usual Common Lizards.

Common Lizard

Mixed Weather Wildlife Watching

The heat wave has finally ended and it is now cooler, cloudier and wetter - and it is quite a relief! At least it is easier to sleep at night now and a shift at work isn't quite the sticky and uncomfortable experience it has been. 

I had the moth box out in the back yard on Wednesday 28th July and on checking it out the next morning there were fewer moths as expected following the drop in the temperature. A total of 12 moths of 8 species were in the trap with a Flame Shoulder new for the year and 3 smart looking Knot Grass the pick of the bunch.

Knot Grass

Thursday 29th July was a rare day off together and so we headed up onto Dartmoor for a cream tea at Badgers Holt and a walk along the River Dart. The cream tea was OK but with new owners now running the cafe the scones were light and bready and not the usual cakey wedges and the jam wasn't the usual home made jam but came in a jar from a company based in Lifton. 

It was a mostly overcast day but warm with brief sunny spells and our walk along the river was very enjoyable with Beautiful Demoiselle, Golden Ringed Dragonfly, Silver-washed Fritillary, Gatekeeper, Ringlet, Nuthatch, Grey Wagtail and Marsh Tit all seen. We also found a few bilberries which were very tasty but stained our fingers purple with their juice. 

Silver-washed Fritillary

Silver-washed Fritillary

Storm Evert lashed Cornwall and Devon overnight and so I decided to visit Rame Head for a seawatch on Friday 30th July. It was windy and showery when I arrived at Whitsand Bay off the bus and I wasn't hopeful of seeing much and so it proved to be with just 10 Manx Shearwater, a Fulmar, Gannets, a juvenile Yellow-legged Gull and 3 Harbour Porpoise seen along with the usual Shag, Herring Gull and Great Black-backed Gulls. 

Pont Aven from Rame Head

A Peregrine, 2 Kestrel, Stonechat, Swallow and Whitethroat  were also noted along with Dodder growing on the Gorse and despite the weather I managed to see a Red Admiral, 2 Gatekeeper, a Meadow Brown and 2 Whites. 

Dodder

Gatekeeper

Saturday 31st July and with the calm after the previous days storm I decided to head out to Wembury for a walk. It was warm but mostly overcast and was overly busy due to it being a Saturday in school holiday hell time and with the ongoing COVID foreign travel restrictions but I enjoyed my wander along the coast path anyway. 

The tide was coming in and feeding along the beach were mostly Black-headed Gulls including quite a few juveniles along with 14 Mediterranean Gulls (5 juveniles) and Herring Gulls. A juvenile Yellow-legged Gull was a nice surprise as it flew along the beach before heading out to The Mewstone, showing the whitest and least marked rump I've seen before.

Juvenile Mediterranean Gull

Out on The Mewstone a Fulmar was flying around the cliffs where a pair were resting on a nest with a well developed looking chick. A few Gannets were picked up offshore but there was no sign of any Shearwaters.

Also along the beach were 3 Whimbrel, a Little Egret and 58 Oystercatcher and along the footpath the usual land birds were also seen - Chiffchaff, Cirl Bunting, Stonechat, Whitethroat and Linnet - with a Willow Warbler and a Greenfinch also noted.

A total of 7 Common Lizard were basking in the occasional sunny spells including 2 small and dark youngsters and a very confiding individual at the bus stop. 

Common Lizard

Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, a Ringlet, a Small Skipper, a Red Admiral and a Green-veined White were flitting about and 3 male Beautiful Demoiselle were jostling together over the water by the bridge. 

More of the Ross's Gull on the River Plym

I had a days annual leave on Friday 13th March and had plans for a birding day out but they went out of the window after I spent the night before regularly running out to the toilet. I didn't feel unwell but had very little proper sleep and felt a little bit sore in the morning and after spending the morning making sure that the world was no longer going to fall out of my bottom I tentatively ventured out on the bus to Wembury. It was a grey day, still windy and with rain forecasted for the late afternoon and as expected the footpaths were a mudbath but I enjoyed my 2 hour walk along the coast apart from the stink of the Common Dolphin corpse rotting away on the beach.

It was quiet bird wise with the highlights being Gannets and Fulmars offshore, singing Cirl Buntings with some nice views of a couple of males and a flighty mixed flock of around 10 birds, a hunting female Sparrowhawk, a displaying Buzzard overhead, a flock of around 20 Linnets in the stubble field and 2 Little Egrets with Oystercatchers and a male Mallard along the beach.

I had hoped to see my first butterfly of the year, there have been lots of reports of butterflies already but I still haven't seen one so far this year in what has been one of the mildest winters ever, but I guess it was too dull and breezy for them. I did however see my first Common Lizard of the year along with Bloody-nosed Beetles and 4 Oil Beetles.

 Common Lizard, Wembury

 Bloody-nosed Beetle, Wembury

Oil Beetle, Wembury

Heading home and on checking the internet sightings pages while on the bus the Ross's Gull was reported as showing well on the River Plym near Laira Bridge and so I decided to stop off and have a quick look for it but as expected it had flown off downriver a few minutes before I arrived. It was beginning to rain, earlier than forecasted, and so I decided to head off home instead of walking down to Oreston Quay to look for it - it really is proving to be a tricksy bird!

Saturday 14th March was grey again but less breezy and so I decided to stay local again and make full use of a rare bird a mile away from my house. It was being reported again just north of Laira Bridge and so I jumped on the bus and then walked along the river to the Recycling Centre where I picked up the bird feeding mid channel on the dropping high tide before it flew off towards the opposite shore. I then walked back across the Bridge to the footpath between Blagdon's Meadow and Laira Bridge where various birders were assembled and I managed to get some great, closer views of the bird feeding on the water with Black-headed Gulls as it picked at the surface. Occasionally it would fly around, dipping down to pick at the water and showing off it's beautiful pinky flushed underside and diamond shaped tail. Interestingly the pink flush was only really noticeable when viewing the bird head on when it was sat on the water but in flight it was quite obvious.

 Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gull, River Plym

 Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gulls

 Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gull

 Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gull

 Ross's Gull 

 Ross's Gull 

 Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gulls

 Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gulls 

Ross's Gull with Black-headed Gulls

It was very mobile, often flying off upriver and out of sight before suddenly reappearing, and regularly flying around the river to feed in different areas, sometimes quite close to the shore. Some Toggers were throwing bread out onto the water but as expected the Ross's Gull was not the slightest bit interested with noisy Herring Gulls and Black-headed Gulls the only gulls coming in to feed.

Also seen were 2 pairs of Red-breasted Merganser, a male Goosander and the usual Shelduck, Redshank, Little Egret and Oystercatcher but it was soon time to leave for lunch at the nearby Morley Arms pub with David and Mother-in-law and before the mizzle drizzle arrived yet again.

What a great bird though and hopefully it might stick around for a little while yet, very attractive looking and great to watch, I hope it's not another 32 years before I see another one on the Plym. And what a great time to have bought my new telescope, I had some fantastic views of the gull with it, much better than I would have had with my little Nikon telescope.

An Early Spring

Despite it being a Saturday, a gloriously warm and sunny day and Half Term Holiday Hell I decided to visit Wembury on February 23rd for a walk. It was unseasonally warm and unsurprisingly very busy and by the time I left to catch the bus back to Plymouth it was complete chaos with cars blocking the access roads and people everywhere.

Wembury

There was no sign of any butterflies or moths despite the warm weather although I did rescue a large fox moth caterpillar off the footpath. There were however patches of blossom on the sloe bushes in the more sheltered spots and a few bumblebees were seen buzzing past too. My first common lizard baskng in the sun on a fence beam was also a nice find.

Fox Moth Caterpillar

Sloe Blossom

Common Lizard

It was quiet birdwise with the highlights being a female type black redstart flying over at Wembury Point and a brief view of a water pipit along the beach with rock pipits and a meadow pipit before it flew off never to return. Gannets were diving offshore and fulmars were prospecting the cliffs of The Mewstone, 2 curlews and 9 little egrets were roosting with the oystercatchers at The Point on the high tide and cirl buntings and stonechats were showing very well along the coast path.

Cirl Bunting

An odd sight was a training shoe on the beach covered in goose barnacles, unfortunately the barnacles were dead but were a good size showing how long the shoe must have been floating around on the seas.

Goose Barnacles on a shoe

A nice walk despite the crowds and disturbance and a welcome taste of things to come with proper spring not far off now.

Wryneck, Wembury

Friday 15th September and after taking Mother Outlaw to see Father Outlaw at the nursing home we took a drive to Topsham for the afternoon where David looked around the shops while I did some birding. A quick look from a packed hide at Bowling Green Marsh didn't reveal much and so I carried on to the viewing platform where I just missed an osprey catching a fish off Turf. A small group of grey plover with 1 bird still in smart summer plumage were out on the small amount of mud still on show on the incoming tide before I moved on to The Goatwalk where I watched 4 Sandwich tern fishing and had distant views of 6 roe deer in a field on the Haldon Hill escarpment.

Black headed Gull, The Goatwalk

Back to the hide and waders were beginning to arrive and amongst the dunlin and ringed plover I found at least 2 curlew sandpipers which gave some nice views despite being very nervous and flighty. Curlew, redshank, black tailed godwit and greenshank were also seen along with shoveler, teal, wigeon and mallard. I then met up with David and we headed over to Darts Farm for something to eat and a look around the shops before heading back to Plymouth.

Saturday 16th September and with grotty weather forecast for the afternoon I headed off in the morning to Wembury for a walk. No moths in the toilet block but a few butterflies were flitting around in the occasional sunny spells - red admiral, large white, small copper and speckled wood - and 3 common lizards were also enjoying the sun as they basked on the fencing.

Common Lizard, Wembury

Common Lizard, Wembury

It felt very autumnal, cool with sunny spells and very pleasent and with a feel of birds on the move. From the riding stable track I scanned a kettle of herring gulls circling over the cliffs towards Stoke Point hoping an osprey might have been with them but with no luck. However a falcon was circling at the top of the kettle which I thought may have been a peregrine especially when it stooped and headed towards me but as it levelled out over the fields in front of me I was pleased to see it was a hobby, only my second Wembury sighting of one, and it was quickly followed by a second bird as it dashed over the hill and out of sight. A short while later I saw a hobby soaring over the cliffs again towards Stoke Point before it headed inland over Wembury church where it was again joined by a second bird - presumably the 2 I had seen a short time earlier or maybe another 2 birds?

18 Canada geese were feeding in the stubble field with assorted herring gulls and I picked out a probable juvenile yellow legged gull but just as I was getting my scope out for better views the gulls all took to the air and I lost sight of it. A curlew, 2 little egrets and oystercatchers were on the rocks and along the beach meadow pipits were feeding amongst the rock pipits and I could hear birds passing overhead. The pied wagtails along the beach also included a few white and 2 grey wagtails flew over together. Offshore a few gannets were seen along with a juvenile peregrine flying west low over the water - later at the bus stop while waiting for the bus home an adult and juvenile peregrine circled overhead before heading off east.

Chiffchaffs were seen and heard, swallows and house martins flitted around overhead and 2+ whitethroat were skulking in the brambles at The Point. A spotted flycatcher was feeding amongst the pine trees at The Point, only my 3rd Wembury sighting, and there may have been a second bird present as I watched it chase after another bird that I lost from view.

A passing birder had given me the heads up about the spotted flycatcher and also news of a wryneck feeding in the grassy field by the pines and after a bit of a search I managed to find the wryneck on the ground amongst the tussocks where I had some great views, my best views ever in the UK and my 4th Wembury sighting, although it was quite flighty at times and sometimes quite elusive - cue yet more of my usual quality record shots.

 Wryneck, Wembury

 Wryneck

 Wryneck

 Wryneck

 Wryneck

Wryneck

And so quite an eventful morning at Wembury and luckily the rain didn't start until I had arrived back home.

Wembury, 14th March 2017

A quick walk along the coastpath at Wembury on another grey and claggy day before a last minute night shift and I was hoping to find my first wheatear of the year after quite a few recent reports of birds along the Devon and Cornwall coast. No luck with wheatear but there were certainly signs of spring in the air.

Sloe Blossom

A chiffchaff singing away in trees below the church was a good start with a second bird heard on the other side of the valley. Another bird briefly sang at Wembury Point and a very green looking individual was flitting about in the hedgerow by the HMS Cambridge footpath.

The toilet block actually had a moth in it which I caught and released outside - a Ni Moth, a rare migrant moth from North Africa and a new moth for me. I had originally ID'd it as an early moth but was beginning to have some doubts and then I received an e-mail from Matt Knott who pointed me in the right ID direction with ID then confirmed by Barry Henwood from the Devon Moth Group.

Ni Moth

The pair of Canada geese were again in the sheep field, the larger male keeping guard as the smaller female nibbled on the fresh grass shoots. Along the beach 6 little egrets, oystercatchers and a pair of mallard were seen on the outgoing tide. The usual pied wagtails and meadow- and rock pipits were feeding on the rotting seaweed along the shoreline and included a female grey wagtail and a male white wagtail but I couldn't find the water pipit or any littoralis rock pipits amongst them. A dead adult gannet on the beach was a sad sight although it looked like it had been somewhat staged.

Dead Gannet

Cirl buntings were very obvious along the walk, the birds were very flighty and mobile but I reckon there were at least 5 male and 3 female birds present.

Male Cirl Bunting

There was no sign again of any Dartford warblers on a brief search of the usual spot and a couple of passing birders also commented on having not seen any for a while too, hopefully they are still around and have relocated to another area at the Point.

A nice walk was finished off with a common lizard trying to warm up on the wall by the bus stop in the weak sunshine trying to break through the clouds, my first of the year.

Common Lizard with Fly

Wembury, July 27th 2016

A day to myself but crap weather meant my plans for a trip to Ashclyst Forest went out of the window. Instead I decided to head off to Wembury but it was raining as I left the house to catch the bus and I nearly changed my mind but I carried on anyway and I'm glad I did as the weather improved and the sun did show itself for brief periods.

No moths in the toilet block as expected but a green woodpecker heard yaffling near the church was nice to hear. I did see a rush veneer along the footpath which I disturbed from the grass and a few six-spot burnets were flitting about and feeding on thistle flowers.

Six-spot Burnet

Plenty of butterflies were on the wing in the humid conditions and I had nice views of a very fresh male common blue, 2 small coppers, 2 peacock, a small white, 2 green veined white, 4 red admiral, gatekeepers, meadow browns, 100+ large whites and a ringlet. The large number of large whites were mostly seen flitting around the field in the old HMS Cambridge grounds which is currently covered in yellow marigold-like flowers but with a few more seen along rest of the walk.

 Gatekeeper

 Gatekeeper

Ringlet

Large White Field

Bloody nose beetles were seen including quite a few squashed on the footpath by clumsy walkers and on the fence posts were an adult and 4 young and very small common lizards. Field grasshoppers were much in evidence also, being quite variable in their colouring.

 Young Common Lizard

Field Grasshopper

At Wembury Point on the high tide 56 oystercatchers were roosting with a common sandpiper while off The Mewstone fulmars were flying around the cliffs. Offshore gannets were flying around, mostly adults but with a few dark juveniles and a few variably marked sub-adults. It was good to see my first Wembury Manx shearwaters of the year offshore also, moving west in a steady trickle either singlely or in small groups of 2 to 9 birds. I counted 34 birds in a ten minute period and I must have seen around 200 birds in my casual scanning as I walked along the footpath. Most were a little distant but a few were close in on the seaward side of The Mewstone.

Whitethroats and chiffchaffs were seen including quite a few juveniles/fledglings and it was nice to see 4 family groups of stonechats along the walk. A lone house martin over Heybrook Bay and a lone swallow over the horse stables were seen along with a juvenile blackcap and juvenile goldfinches with 9 eclipse male and female mallards along the beach. Also along the beach amongst a small flock of adult black headed gulls was an adult Mediterranean gull moulting into winter plumage, unringed and disturbed as usual by dog walkers when it flew off towards Plymouth and out of sight.

 Mediterranean Gull

Male Linnet

A kestrel and a buzzard were hovering overhead at Wembury Point and I had a brief view of a sparrowhawk hunting along a the hillside, hopefully not catching the 2 singing male cirl buntings for its lunch.

I jammily got the last Chunk pasty from the cafe for my lunch and after a coffee too I headed off home, having had a very enjoyable walk. And with juvenile yellow legged gulls now cropping up along the South Devon coast it was good to read a great entry on the Axe Birding website giving a masterclass in YLGull ID and I also found 2 fantastic photos on the Portland Bird Observatory website showing a classic yellow legged compared to a classic herring - oh to find one of my own!

 Juvenile Yellow Legged Gull (courtesy of Portland Bird Observatory Website)

Juvenile Herring Gull (courtesy of Portland Bird Observatory Website)