Great White Egrets

There is quite the heat wave going on at the moment with sunny skies, temperatures in the high 20's, high humidity and an easterly breeze, the best weather we have had in weeks and a little unusual in September.

It is dry and warm overnight so I have been getting the moth box out in the back yard although it is now getting late in the season. I was pleased to finally see an Old Lady along with Mullein Wave and Four Spotted Footman, all back yard favourites, and other highlights have included Treble Bar, Mother of Pearl, Horse Chestnut Leaf Miner and Rusty Dot Pearl.

Old Lady

Treble Bar

Tuesday 5th September was hot and sunny as I headed out to Wembury for a walk. High tide was around 10am and so I caught the 7am bus to try and beat the dog walkers but with the weather being so nice at the moment I failed and the waders along the beach were being regularly disturbed on the incoming tide. Despite this I still managed good views of 2 Redshank, 2 Sanderling, 2 Common Sandpiper, 4 Bar-tailed Godwit,  8 Ringed Plover, 25 Dunlin, 40 Turnstone, 5 Curlew and the usual mobile Oystercatchers. There were only 2 adult winter plumaged Mediterranean Gulls amongst the Black-headed Gulls feeding in the surf line along with Herring Gulls and a few Great Black-backed Gulls and neither of them were ringed.

Redshank

Bar-tailed Godwits

Swallows were passing over in small groups and all heading east and hidden amongst them were at least 2 Sand Martins. A Grey Heron also flew east offshore and a few Gannets were milling about offshore too. A Grey Seal popped its head out of the water very briefly just off the sewage pipe.

A Clouded Yellow whizzed past too quickly and a Comma and a Hummingbird Hawkmoth were equally flitty but 3 Small Coppers showed well. Chiffchaffs and Whitethroats were flitting about in the bushes and I heard a Cettis Warbler singing briefly in the valley to the beach, presumably the same bird as earlier in the year but which I haven't heard since May.

At least 7 Wheatears were moving along the shoreline and showed very well, all heading west as they prepare to depart to warmer winter climes.

Wheatears

Wheatear

I headed back to Plymouth and stopped off at Laira Bridge for a look around The Plym and Saltram. It was very hot by this time and with news of 3 Great White Egrets present on Blaxton Meadow it was a very sweaty walk from Laira Bridge to the Meadow to try and catch up with them. Fortunately they were still present when I arrived but had decamped to the nearby river where they were fishing for small fry with Grey Herons, Little Egrets, Cormorants and Gulls.

Great White Egret

Great White Egret 

Large and elegant and showing very well, my first on The Plym and a joy to watch.

Great White Egret

Great White Egret

Great White Egret 

It was otherwise quiet in the building heat of the day with the 2 Black-tailed Godwits still present on Blaxton Meadow, 3 Clouded Yellows dashing around Chelson Meadow and a Shag resting on a bouy at Laira Bridge the other highlights.

Wednesday 6th September was hot, sunny and still as we headed off to Lopwell Dam to pick sloes to make Christmas sloe gin. We picked some very good sloes, large and ripe and perfect for sloe gin, and then had a walk down the River Tavy through the woodland where it was delightfully cool out of the sun.

A Kingfisher, a Common Sandpiper, Swallows and House Martins were seen but the highlight was an Osprey perched on a pylon near the railway bridge before it flew down towards the water and disappeared into a riverside tree, unfortunately distant and heat hazy views only.

Saturday 9th September was hot and sultry again as I headed out to Wembury on the 7am bus. There was a lot of disturbance from dog walkers even at this early hour but it was a Saturday and the weather was perfect so I had  expected it to be busy. 

Wall Brown, Wembury

Speckled Wood

Alydus calcaratus

I walked east along the clifftop path again past the church towards The Yealm in the hope of finding a Whinchat but I was out of luck. Whitethroats, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps were flitting about in the bushes and a Sand Martin flew east amongst a small flock of Swallows. An adult and juvenile Peregrine dashed overhead chasing a Woodpigeon and at least 3 juvenile Bullfinch were feeding together in the Hawthorns.

I walked back to the church and then on to The Point, watching the waders along the beach being moved back and forth by walkers and I counted 5 Bar-tailed Godwits, 3 Sanderling, 21 Turnstone, 8 Ringed Plover and 3 Dunlin with the usual Oystercatchers and singles of Redshank, Common Sandpiper and Curlew but actual counts were probably higher.

A Stock Dove was again seen flying around The Point and a Reed Warbler gave itself away in the undergrowth as it quietly sang and with a bit of phishing it revealed itself briefly before scuttling back into cover. 

Reed Warbler

A Wheatear was seen in the cow field with a second bird found at The Point and there were also 2 Yellow Wagtails in with cows and they showed very well until deciding they had had enough and flew off west.

Wheatear

Yellow Wagtail

I stopped off at Laira Bridge on the way home and had a very hot and sticky walk up to Marsh Mills before catching a bus home. Again no Whinchats were found but the 3 Great White Egrets were still present on Blaxton Meadow as were 3 Clouded Yellows on Chelson Meadow.

A Wembury Wryneck

Monday 28th August was the Bank Holiday and my first non-working one. I'm not really sure what you're supposed to do on Bank Holidays as I'm usually at work but it just felt like another boring Sunday after a usual boring Sunday.

Anyway I did head out for a quick walk along The Plym for something to do, it was very quiet but I did finally see my first Plym Black-tailed Godwit of the year on Blaxton Meadow as the tide came in along with a Kingfisher, 8 Greenshank and 25 Curlew while Blackcap, Swallow, Ring-necked Parakeet and a Common Darter were seen in the park.

Common Darter, Saltram Park

Waking up on Thursday 31st August and it was as grotty as forecasted, grey and wet but mild and with just a light breeze and as I really needed to get out and about I donned my waterproofs and caught the bus to Wembury for a walk. However within 20 minutes of arriving off the bus at Wembury the rain stopped and the sun occassionally appeared from behind the clouds and fortunately for me it didn't start raining again until I was heading back to Plymouth.

The tide was heading out but there were still waders feeding along the beach including 2 Redshanks, my first at Wembury this year. A surprise was a flock of 13 Knot which dropped in onto the rocks for a quick rest and a preen before continuing on west. Also present were 2 Whimbrel, a Curlew, 4 Sanderling, 4+Dunlin, 4+Ringed Plover, Turnstones and Oystercatchers and amongst the roosting Gulls were 4 Mediterranean Gulls (3 juveniles).

Knot

Knot

A big surprise was a cracking Wryneck which I found in the radar station compound at The Point, unfortunately there is no access here so views were from the perimeter fence only but I managed some brief and distant views and I was very pleased to have self found my third one here at Wembury. It has been a while since I last saw a Wryneck and I had forgotten how small they are, how exquisitely marked they are and also how mobile and elusive they can be!

Wryneck - honest!

Also present here were 2 juvenile Green Woodpeckers and a Wheatear and I was struck by how interesting the habitat is here, I never visit this area and only did so today because I thought I saw 2 Stock Doves fly over and land here and went to check it out - no Stock Doves were found but a Wryneck was more than adequate compensation!

Wryneck Habitat, Wembury Point

Also of note were a juvenile Peregrine which was buzzing back and forth along the beach as it practised its hunting skills, Willow Warblers and Whitethroats flitting about in the brambles and a few Red Admirals feeding on Ivy flowers in the sunny periods.

Red Admiral

It was warm, humid and cloudy on Friday 1st September as I headed out to Wembury again although the cloud did eventually clear and it became a hot and sunny day, the warmest day we've had for some time. It was high tide when I arrived at The Point and a very high, high tide which left very little beach uncovered but assorted waders were still present - 2 Whimbrel, 2 Sanderling, 2 Curlew, 3 Ringed Plover, a Redshank, Turnstones, 10 Dunlin. Oystercatchers and a Common Sandpiper. Also present were a juvenile Mediterranean Gull, 38 Mallard and 3 Little Egret.

Sanderling

I had a look again for the Wryneck but there was, as expected, no sign of it but I did find a very smart Tree Pipit, only my second sighting of one this year and a delight to watch as it regularly pumped its tail as it perched in a tree. I also found 2 Stock Doves, presumably the pair from yesterday!

Tree Pipit

A Wheatear, a Green and a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a Sparrowhawk, a Hummingbird Hawkmoth, a Hornet Robberfly and a Common Lizard were also of note.

Hornet Robberfly with prey

Saturday 2nd September was warm and sunny too and with a high tide at 08:20hrs I headed out to The Plym for a look about. It was a very high tide again and Blaxton Meadow was totally flooded but 25 Curlew, 2 Common Sandpiper and 8 Greenshank were trying to roost with 2 Black-tailed Godwit and Redshanks.

Black-tailed Godwits

Black-tailed Godwit 

Black-tailed Godwit 

Black-tailed Godwit 

It was also quiet around the Park with a Sedge Warbler, 2 Willow Warbler, 4 Great Spotted Woodpeckers feeding together in a presumed family group, a Kestrel and a Collared Dove of note. A Teal was on the duck pond but there was no sign of the Red-crested Pochard.

Teal

Giant Polypore

The Plym is very slow at the moment, it was very bird packed this time last year but not so this year. However Wembury is on fire at the moment with a good run of birds being seen and as a result my Wembury year list has passed my 100 species target for the first time ever (currently it's on 101) but The Plym is only on 96. How times change but the year is not over yet!