I had planned a quiet day for Wednesday 11th September but with news coming through of a Wryneck at Saltram I grabbed my stuff and headed out for a look. I caught the bus to Laira Bridge on what was a sunny but breezy morning, it was supposed to be a dry day but there were a few brief showers that rattled in on the wind.
As I walked up The Ride a Raven flew over being mobbed by Carrion Crows and out on the river there were 3 Shag and an adult and juvenile Sandwich Tern roosting on the buoys.
On Chelson Meadow a Kestrel and a Sparrowhawk were having an aerial ding dong with each other before Carrion Crows intervened and split them up. A Buzzard was sat up in the trees watching their antics and 2 Stonechat and 2 Whinchat were feeding out on the Meadow but were mobile and unobtrusive. A Whitethroat was briefly seen too and a Sand Martin flew over with Swallows and House Martins.
Kestrel having a rest from chasing a Sparrowhawk
There was no sign of the Wryneck and so I headed over to Blaxton Meadow for the high tide wader roost, the Meadow was quite empty of water for a change and there were 3 Greenshank, a Dunlin, 3 Redshank, 30 Curlew and 15 Oystercatcher present with a female Goosander and a Kingfisher also noted.
I headed back to Chelson Meadow for a second go at the Wryneck, again with no luck, but I did get better views of the Whinchats and there were now 4 Stonechats present. A Green Woodpecker and a Skylark were also of note and a Peregrine was picked up soaring high overhead.
Whinchat
Small White
I walked up to Marsh Mills to catch the bus home and found the Mute Swan family resting on the exposed gravel bank at Longbridge. A Kingfisher and a Common Sandpiper were also seen here.
Mute Swans - growing up fast
It was bloody freezing when I caught the 7am bus to Wembury on Friday 13th September after a clear and still night but it did eventually become a warm and pleasant September day.
On arriving off the bus I walked along the cliffpath towards The Yealm, the usual sightings of Stonechat, Cirl Bunting, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Swallow and House Martin kept me entertained while a few Meadow Pipit buzzed around calling. A noisy Peregrine was briefly seen catching something before disappearing from view and leaving a stream of white feathers drifting in the gentle breeze. There were 4 small flocks of Mallards seen flying up The Yealm totalling 36 birds while just a single Whitethroat was found in the pathside vegetation.
I turned around and headed back to the main beach and then onwards towards The Point. Jenny had messaged news of 12 Brent Geese at The Point the previous day and amazingly they were still present, something I wasn't expecting. There were 5 adults and 7 juveniles present, feeding together but keeping in their respective family groups of 2 adults and 3 juveniles and 2 adults and 4 juveniles with the solo adult getting hassled by the other adults if it came too near.
Pale-bellied Brent Geese
Pale-bellied Brent Geese
Pale-bellied Brent Goose
Pale-bellied Brent Geese (Juvenile and Adult)
Pale-bellied Brent Goose
Pale-bellied Brent Goose
Even more of a surprise was a redhead Goosander which was snorkelling for fish amongst the rocks at The Point (one had been reported here last week so possibly the same bird), a juvenile bird and my first sighting of one at Wembury.
Goosander
Goosander
Goosander
A Sparrowhawk came shooting across the beach and spooked all the small waders feeding along it, I managed to count a Dunlin, a Sanderling, 2 Ringed Plover and 8 Turnstone as they scattered out to the rocks offshore. Later I counted 9 Turnstone feeding along the beach and I also found a flock of 4 Dunlin roosting on the rocks before they flew off east.
I was pleased to find a Tree Pipit in the radar station complex, it was sat in a tree and pumping its tail before it and 2 other birds feeding in the grass below flew off to an area out of view, all remaining resolutely silent as they went. A Spotted Flycatcher was again in The Pines (and found by Jenny) and along the rocky foreshore 5 Wheatears were seen. Another Whitethroat was found at The Point along with a juvenile Dartford Warbler while an adult Sandwich Tern briefly rested on the rocks offshore before continuing west.
There were fewer Gulls around and as I was walking to The Point around 40 adult Mediterranean Gulls flew east before heading inland up the valley to the beach. A few were later seen out on the rocks but maybe they've now moved on for the winter. A Grey Heron flying west, 23 Canada Geese feeding in the stubble field and a noisy Green Woodpecker at The Point were also of note on the avian front while Red Admiral, Small and Large White, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood and 2 Small Copper were seen flitting about. I was also pleased to see my first Ivy Bees of the autumn too and another Southern Hawker.
Red Admiral
Ivy Bee
Hawthorn Shield Bug
Southern Hawker
Southern Hawker
Southern Hawker
News of a/the Wryneck being found/refound at Saltram on Saturday 14th September meant that my housework schedule was shelved (drat!) as I headed out to look for it. Needless to say I didn't see it (again) but I had an enjoyable walk none the less.
Highlights were a Painted Lady and a Small Copper flitting about, a male Bullfinch, a Green Woodpecker, a Roe Deer, a Kingfisher, a Kestrel, 3 Grey Wagtails, a Raven, 7 Buzzards and a Shag.
The best sighting though was of 6+ Whinchat feeding together with 4+ Stonechat and I managed to get some very nice views of them. A Yellow Wagtail was a bonus too, I heard it calling as it flew overhead but I didn't get a view of it.
Whinchat
Whinchat
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