Spring time

Friday 26th February was a gloriously sunny day and as we had to visit Tesco at Roborough we also decided to have a quick walk at (fairly nearby) Burrator Reservoir. 

It is only the second time this year that I have been in a car and still the furthest I have travelled anywhere from home this year (12 miles) and it did feel a bit weird but it was just so nice to be out and about somewhere different for a change. Burrator was busy with people but we kept our distance from everybody and had a lovely walk in the warming temperatures and I even had a brief and distant view of a very white looking female Brimstone butterfly flitting past in the sunshine.

Bird wise it was quiet with the highlight being a summer plumaged Great Crested Grebe out on the waters of the Reservoir. A Marsh Tit was also a nice find feeding on nuts and seeds at the main car park along with Nuthatch, Coal Tit, Great Tit and Blue Tit.

The usual White Goose was present with just 3 Canada Geese and a pair of Mallard. There were also 3 Cormorants drying their wings out on the floating barrage with one looking very smart in full summer plumage.

Cormorant

Cormorant

The lock down continues but we have been advised of a tentative road map out of it from the Government which at least gives us something to plan towards. March 29th seems to be the first key date when the stay at home order ceases and up to 6 people will be able to meet outdoors and then April 12th will be the next key date when the shops will reopen. Hopefully this year spring migration will now be a go after missing out on it last year during the first lock down. 

Lock down becomes more wearing day by day and I have to remind myself that I have much to be thankful for despite it all. The recent spell of warm weather has been very pleasant and has done much to improve my mood with the expectation of spring and the excitement it brings building in my bones. I hope the road map out of lock down goes to plan. 

Wednesday 3rd March and my first Plymouth Hoe lock down walk of the month was a calm, sunny and mild affair and very spring like with plenty of daffodils in flower and a Chiffchaff quietly singing in the bushes near the National Marine Aquarium as it chased small insects amongst the branches.

Daffodils on The Hoe

The female Long-tailed Duck was busily diving away in The Cattewater, distant and mobile as always, and 2 Great Northern Divers were also seen. 3 Red-breasted Mergansers (1 male) were also seen flying downriver out into The Sound.

A smart looking summer plumaged Little Grebe was seen on Sutton Harbour along with 2 male Mallard, 3 Canada Geese and 12 Mute Swans and on the very low tide more Pacific Oysters were seen clinging to the harbour walls along with Breadcrumb Sponge. 

Little Grebe, Sutton Harbour

Cormorant, Sutton Harbour

Pacific Oyster

Pacific Oyster 

Pacific Oyster - growing around a Limpet

Pacific Oyster

Breadcrumb Sponge

Bonaparte's Gull, River Exe

A visit from Mum and Sister Vik, work and continuing family health issues have meant little recent opportunities for birding.

Monday 6th February and a grey and drizzly day meant just a quick look at Burrator reservoir with Mum and Vik but it did provide a sighting of a jay, my first of the year. The water levels were higher than on our last visit but still not high enough for water to flow over the dam.

A walk around Plymouth Hoe with them on Tuesday 7th was bright and sunny and I found 2 great northern divers close in off Tinside Pool, my first for the winter.

Wednesday 8th and with a few free hours to ourselves after Mum and Vik had returned home we took a walk around Burrator reservoir on a sunny and still day. A muscovy duck, mallards, 2 white geese, Canada geese, a male teal, a little grebe and cormorants were seen on the water while the woods held siskins, coal tits, goldcrests, blue tits and great tits with marsh tits and nuthatches seen coming to peanuts put out by photographers at the car park.

 Feral Geese, Burrator Reservoir

Feral Geese, Burrator Reservoir

Wednesday 15th February and finally a day to myself and so I headed off to Dawlish Warren on the train despite the rain.The rain began to ease as I stepped off the train at the Warren and eventually the sun appeared and it became a pleasently mild day.

Offshore it was quiet with a male common scoter close in off Langstone Rock and a great northern diver close in off Warren Point busily munching away on crabs being the highlights. At least 15 variously plumaged great crested grebes were dotted around the Bay and there were 3 distant common scoters resting offshore and an adult Mediterranean gull developing a black hood was seen flying along the seawall.

From the hide at high tide there were hundreds of dunlin with 6 ringed plovers, a sanderling, grey plover, knot, redshank, oystercatcher, turnstone, curlew and bar tailed godwit. A male reed bunting, 2 skylark, linnets and rock pipits were feeding in the salt marsh and another Mediterranean gull flew past, this one with a much more extensive black hood than the bird seen from the seawall.

As usual there were bark bellied brent geese dotted around The Bight and in the estuary along with a small flock feeding on the golf course.

 Brent Geese, Dawlish Warren Golf Course

Brent Geese

On the main pond were a summer plumaged little grebe and a pair of shoveler along with a snipe sleeping amongst the waterside vegetation.

Shoveler and Little Grebe, Dawlish Warren

I then walked over to the nearby Cockwood Steps, somewhere I haven't visited before, and on the outgoing tide I soon found a Slavonian grebe, presumably Herbert the resident bird and looking a bit scruffy as it moults into summer plumage, but later I saw a second bird looking much smarter with a bright white neck. 2 Harbour seals were hauled out on the sand bank, some distance apart from each other and both a very pale colour. A female goldeneye, red breasted mergansers, 2 little grebes and a greenshank were also seen but there was no sign of the regular wintering Bonaparte's gull which has been most regularly reported from here this winter.

Harbour Seal from Cockwood Steps

I kept scanning the gulls resting on the mudflats and flying around but there was no sign of it although there were quite a few common gulls noted. A local birding couple then arrived and within a few minutes one of them found the adult winter Bonaparte's gull resting on the mud towards Shutterton Creek, a little distant but its bubble gum pink legs, black bill, black blob behind the eye and smaller size compared to nearby black headed gulls were all noticeable.

It flew down to the waters edge and then flew off down river when disturbed by a bait digger when its white underwings lacking any dark markings under the wing tips were noted but unfortunately it landed out of sight and I never refound it. I was very pleased to see it though and all thanks to the local birder finding it - apparently it is best looked for in the afternoon downriver from the steps on a outgoing low tide - and it helps to have a better telescope than mine!

A Three Grebe Day on The River Plym

Thursday 14th January and a sunny day with a bracingly cold wind and I decided to head off to Wembury for a walk, my first walk there for 2016. I expected it to be muddy and indeed it was, more so than on my pre-Christmas visit, but I managed to navigate the path again without incident.

A few gannets were distantly offshore and fulmars were prospecting the cliffs of The Mewstone. A pair of bullfinch were in the valley to the beach, the male looking stunning in the bright sunlight. 3 song thrush were heard singing strongly with a fourth bird seen and a kestrel and buzzard were seen flying over.

There was a good count of 57 oystercatchers feeding in the stubble field and occasionally they were being harassed by nearby carrion crows when they found food. A further 17 oystercatcher were roosting at The Point giving a good count of 74 oystercatchers in total. 3 curlew and 8 little egrets were also roosting along the beach with the oystercatchers.

Shag, Wembury Point

The seaweed mass near the sewage pipe was much diminished from my previous visit but as I approached I disturbed a common sandpiper feeding on it and it flew off low over the water towards The Point. Scanning around and I quickly found a water pipit feeding on the seaweed mass, presumably the bird I saw before Christmas  - again it was very aggressive towards any rock pipits that dared to venture near to it, constantly chasing them off. A female type black redstart was feeding along the nearby cliffs but was very unobtrusive and quite elusive at times.

 Water Pipit, Wembury Point

 Water Pipit

Water Pipit

Heading home and I stopped off at Laira Bridge over The River Plym where a black necked grebe has been reported for the past few days but at first all I could find were 3 little grebes. However as I scanned around as the tide receded I eventually found the black necked grebe and it gave some nice views despite rarely spending long at the surface. As I watched the grebes a great northern diver drifted downriver, spooking the grebes into flight when it dived underneath them. Scanning upriver and I also found a great crested grebe, the first time I have seen one on The Plym.

Black Necked Grebe with Little Grebe, River Plym

 Black Necked Grebe

 Black Necked Grebe

Great Northern Diver, River Plym

Also seen were 2 greenshank, a very beautiful kingfisher, looking resplendent in the sunlight, 4 little egrets and a flyover grey wagtail before it was time to head home to catch up on chores.

Kingfisher, River Plym

Kingfisher

And so a 3 grebe day on the River Plym - my first black necked grebe, my first great crested grebe and 3 little grebes - and only my second ever sighting of a black necked grebe in the Plymouth area.