Ham Wall Day Out

Wednesday 9th May and a very early start saw me heading off on the bus to Yelverton at 06:20am to meet Mavis for the drive to Ham Wall in Somerset for a days birding. It was bright and sunny as we drove over Dartmoor to pick up the A38 at Ashburton but rain and wind was forecast for later in the day, it did indeed cloud over but didn't rain until I caught the bus back to Plymouth from Yelverton at 7pm which was very fortuitous.

A willow warbler, blackcap and chiffchaff were singing away as we arrived at the RSPB Ham Wall car park at just after 9am starting things off nicely. We headed out to Noahs Hide on Shapwick Heath first and along the way we heard reed warblers and garden warblers singing with a songflighting whitethroat showing well as it snaffled down a huge earthworm.

From the hide we picked out a pair of gadwall, 2 greylag geese, great crested grebes, tufted ducks and a male pochard amongst the coots, mallards and mute swans. More unusual fare were a flyover female marsh harrier, up to 7 hobbies swooping around together high over the trees and the occassional flyover great white egret along with booming bitterns, a feeding great white egret on a pool close to the path and 2 little ringed plovers feeding out on the mud - quite magical.

 Great White Egret

Great White Egret

We returned back to Ham Wall, seeing brimstone, green veined whites, blue damselfly species and large red damselflys along the way, and after a refreshing cup of tea from the RSPB information hut while swifts screamed around overhead we walked on into the reserve towards the Avalon hide as the skies gradually started to cloud over.

 Large Red Damselfly

Blue Sp. Damselfly

More bitterns were heard booming and great white egrets and hobbies were regular overhead with some excellent views had of the great white egrets feeding out on the marsh.

 Great White Egret

 Great White Egret

 Great White Egret with Mute Swan

 Great White Egret

Great White Egret

 Great White Egret

Great White Egret

From the Avalon hide we heard a sedge warbler singing and a tawny owl chick was briefly seen at the entrance to its nest box but the stars of the show were the hobbies which swooped and stooped over the reedbeds giving some great views, very mobile and difficult to assess numbers accurately.

A pair of marsh harriers danced over the reeds and a pair of bitterns showed well if distantly as they chased each other around before disappearing back into cover. A male garganey was a nice find as it fed out in the open but it soon disappeared back into cover and there were more gadwall, pochard and tufted duck seen plus 2 young great crested with their parents, 1 small one on its parents back and a larger one following its parent across the water while begging for food.

Garganey - record shot

 Pochard

 Pochard

 Pochard

Mute Swan

Swallows, house martins and sand martins were buzzing around with the swifts while reed warblers and garden warblers were again very vocal with good views obtained of both including a very showy garden warbler which regularly chased after a nearby singing blackcap.

Garden Warbler

It was soon time to head off home at around 4.30pm in darkening skies but it had been an excellent day out - thanks Mavis!

Shrike Dip - Again!

A quick walk along the coast path from The Warren to Stoke Point Caravan Park and back along the lane on Sunday 14th May was sunny but breezey and I managed to see 2 small copper, 2 worn wall, a holly blue, speckled woods, a peacock, green veined whites, a male orange tip and red admirals despite the cool wind. Bird wise it was quiet but swallows, house martins and whitethroats were very noticeable along with stonechats, skylarks, meadow pipits and linnets.

Wall, Stoke Point

Friday 19th May and the start of a weeks annual leave from work and it was off to Yarner Wood for a walk while David went off to Trago Mills and Mole Valley to get some garden stuff. It was cool and cloudy with occassional short, sharp showers but also occassional sunny spells until the end of the walk when the heavens opened and I got drenched in a torrential hail and thunder storm.

Before the downpour I managed to see some good birds though, starting with a walk on the heath and across the road to Trendlebeare Down. A tree pipit was singing from the top of a pine tree with a second bird heard, a yellowhammer was singing in the gorse with another male seen with a female and 3 garden warblers were singing mostly in cover but I did get good views of 2 of them eventually. Also seen were stonechats, linnets and willow warblers while overhead 3 swift, a lone house martin, a grey heron and a male siskin flew over. A male brimstone flitting about in the silver birch saplings was the only butterfly of the day but the biggest surprise was a nightjar which briefly churred from cover when a helicopter flew low overhead.

 Yellowhammer, Yarner

 Garden Warbler, Yarner

Brimstone, Trendlebeare Down

The woods held the usual birds and I had good views of a male redstart with 2 more heard singing, male pied flycatchers singing and checking out nest boxes along with a single female, a "singing" spotted flycatcher and a singing wood warbler in the same area where I saw the singing bird on my April visit but this one had leg rings (yellow over orange on the right leg, silver over green on the left leg) with another bird heard singing briefly nearby and another bird giving the occassional "peu" notes. Mistle thrush, song thrush, nuthatch, goldcrest, blue tit, robin, a male great spotted woodpecker and great tit were also seen and chiffchaff, green woodpecker and blackcap were heard but I never got to view the pond from the hide as it was full with school kids sheltering from the heavy hail and rain. I did however get to dry out and warm up with tea and cake at The Brookside Cafe in nearby Bovey Tracy when David came to pick me up which was as good and tasty as it always is.

 Pied Flycatcher, Yarner

Pied Flycatcher, Yarner

Plans to visit Steps Bridge on Saturday 20th May were again shelved due to the poor weather forecasted so instead I headed up to Cuckoo Ball near Ivybridge on Dartmoor to look for a woodchat shrike which has been present for over a week. The weather this week has been pretty rubbish but the shrike has stuck around so despite the less than ideal conditions - cool, misty and breezy - I caught the train to Ivybridge and then walked up onto the Moor for a look. I have never visited here before and I was pleasently surprised - the scenery was stunning, there were prehistoric ruins dotted around (burial chambers, stone rows) and I met a few birders also looking for the shrike who provided some pleasent company but despite the sun eventually making an appearance I failed, as I kind of expected, to find the shrike.

 Cuckoo Ball Burial Chamber, Dartmoor

Cuckoo Ball Burial Chamber

However I did see a few nice birds - meadow pipits, stonechats, skylarks, linnets and yellowhammers seemed to be everywhere and I also saw a flyby cuckoo, a male reed bunting, 3 wheatears, 2 ravens, 2 kestrels, 3 swifts, house martins and swallows and I heard a willow warbler, a chiffchaff, a blackcap and a great spotted woodpecker.

 Yellowhammer, Cuckoo Ball

Meadow Pipit, Cuckoo Ball

A few bumble bees, a red admiral, a speckled wood and the usual cow pat flys were the only insect life seen but sadly no shrike - but after last years shrike bonanza I guess I can't be too greedy.

Rain stops Birding (For a Day)

Sunday April 30th and I had planned to visit Rame Head again for a look around but the weather forecast was vile so I decided to give it a miss. However on second thoughts I considered going anyway with the forecast rain and strong winds maybe providing some good sea watching but then I wasn't really in the mood to get soaking wet so stayed at home instead. I checked the bird sighting pages during the morning to find good birds were being seen along the South Devon coast (pomarine skua, Arctic skua, Manx shearwater, puffin, etc) and I was beginning to regret my decision so I headed out to Plymouth Hoe for a look to see if anything interesting might have been blown in. The weather was very wet and breezey but not bad enough to blow any birds into The Sound other than at least 6 gannets along with the usual herring gulls, great black backed gulls and cormorants although 3 whimbrel, 2 noisey displaying oystercatcher and a songflighting rock pipit added some interest. But I shouldn't really complain about the rain because we really needed it as it has been dry for many, many days now.

Tuesday 2nd May and we headed out for a walk around Rame Head on a sunny and still afternoon. There was nothing out to sea except herring gulls, cormorants and shags but on land whitethroats were much in evidence with males singing and songflighting everywhere. A singing male yellowhammer and a singing male cirl bunting were also seen along with a peregrine, a sparrowhawk, a kestrel, 2 raven, a male bullfinch and a male stonechat. Butterfly interest was provided by a male orange tip, 3 speckled wood, a red admiral, a small tortoiseshell, a holly blue and at least 6 wall brown and I also saw a speckled yellow moth flitting over the gorse covered cliff side.

Wednesday 3rd May and I decided to head off to Grenofen Woods for a walk on a sunny but cool and breezey morning. I was hoping to find some garden warblers after no sight or sound of any on my 2 spring visits last year and I wasn't disappointed with excellent views of 4 birds, 2 very vocal and mobile males and a third less vocal male with a female in close attendance. I was concerned about my lack of sightings at Grenofen Woods last year but maybe I was just unlucky with birds present but not singing or showing on the days I visited.

Garden Warbler

Garden Warbler

Garden Warbler

I also hoped to see tree pipits after only getting flight views at Yarner Wood last Saturday and again I was in luck with 3 birds seen well - a songflighting male with a female in close attendance and a second male songflighting nearby.

Tree Pipit

Tree Pipit

Tree Pipit

I also had some nice views of 2 or possibly 3 singing and mobile male redstarts along with a female, always a nice bird to see.

Redstart

Redstart

Also seen were 3 marsh tits, a male great spotted woodpecker, a male yellowhammer, 2 nuthatch, 2 male bullfinch, willow warblers, blackcaps and swallows, with chiffchaff, green woodpecker and tawny owl also heard.

Along the river there was no sign of any dippers but a pair of grey wagtail were busily feeding 2 fledglings.

Grey Wagtail

Grey Wagtail - Fledgling

Green veined whites, 3 speckled wood and a tatty looking male and at least 6 female brimstones were on the wing but there was no sign of any small pearl bordered fritillary after last years first ever sighting.

Male Brimstone

Female Brimstone

Female Brimstone

Female Brimstone

Another oil beetle trundling along the path was a nice surprise, they are such lovely looking things, and again I carefully moved it off the footpath and away from peoples feet, and a dor beetle was also found having dug itself out of the ground.

Oil Beetle

More Summer Migrants

April 24th and lunch at Torcross and a walk along Slapton Ley was relatively quiet with a noticeable change in the weather - grey skies, stiff south-westerly breeze, cool and a hint of rain to come.

Reed warblers were chuntering away and I managed some very brief, obscured views as they skulked in the reed bases. Cettis warblers were also very vocal but I couldn't catch a sight of one. Chiffchaffs and blackcaps were vocal and showy as was a smart male cirl bunting near the bridge. A whimbrel flew over calling and 4 Sandwich terns were noisely patrolling back and forth along the beach.

The highlight were 4 swifts in a feeding flock of swallows, house martins and sand martins over the Ley at Torcross - they gave themselves away by screaming noisely and chasing each other and are I think the earliest I have seen here in the UK.

April 26th and we had a quick visit to Cotehele in Cornwall to have a look at the apple blossom in the orchards. The older trees in the established orchard were in full bloom and looking stunning despite the grey sky but the flowers on the new orchard trees were not quite ready to open.

Apple Blossom, Cotehele

 



A male yellowhammer singing in the top of a bare tree, a chuntering reed warbler hidden in the reeds at Cotehele Quay and a pair of male whitethroats having a sing-off in a hedgerow were the avian highlights.

April 28th and it was time to head off to Grenofen Woods for my annual walk. It was sunny but cool and breezey, out of the breeze it was quite pleasant though. The only butterfly I saw was a lone speckled wood but I did see a few longhorn moths flitting about in the tree tops.

 Longhorn Moth, Grenofen Woods

 

Longhorn Moth (Adela reaumurella)

 



A redstart singing in the trees in the usual place on the walk up through the woods kept well hidden but as I emerged out of the trees on to the common I had some good views of a singing male before it disappeared in the undergrowth. I later had good views of at least another 3 singing males, all very vocal but active and mobile.

Blurry, distant male Redstart

 

A garden warbler singing in the usual place by the footpath on leaving the woods gave some good views but was very mobile too - at times its song was quite scratchy and almost grating to the ears before switching back to the more usual pleasant tones. I managed to see another 2 singing males which gave better views and I also heard a 4th male which kept itself hidden in the bushes.

 Singing Garden Warbler

 

Garden Warbler

 



Sitting on the hillside overlooking the valley enjoying a chocolate bar and the view and a small falcon caught my eye - it turned out to be a hobby flying over the trees heading towards Dartmoor, a very nice surprise and my second Grenofen sighting. A tree pipit started singing nearby and gave some nice views before flying off and I had some more distant views of a 2nd song-flighting bird. A male yellowhammer also sang briefly before flying off.

Tree Pipit

 



Along the river a pair of grey wagtails were busily feeding but there was no sign of any dippers. As usual there were sadly no wood warblers or pied flycatchers.

Male Grey Wagtail

 



A female great spotted woodpecker, 2 jays, 3 buzzards, 2 ravens, a yaffling green woodpecker, a grey heron flying over, 3 house martins, 2 swallows and a male bullfinch were also seen along with the usual woodland species. A minotaur beetle was also a first for me (although I didn't realise it was a dung beetle as it crawled all over my hands!) and a nice end on what had been a very enjoyable day out.

 Minotaur Beetle

 

Minotaur Beetle close up