111

 Geoneedle.
 

This morning's 3 great northern divers that flew past Orcombe Point took my spring tally to 111 birds. I don't do that much sea-watching so I wouldn't like to hazard a guess as to just how many birds have flown out of Lyme Bay in the past few weeks. I also had a probable black-throated diver flying south distantly. It wasn't a great northern and it wasn't a red-throated but I don't like identifying birds by default, so it has to remain as just a 'probable'. The best bird this morning however wasn't a diver but a skua. A pale phase pomarine skua was picked up a long way offshore at 0635 before beating its way purposefully into the bay to show off its 'spoons'. It remained off the lifeboat station, harassing kittiwakes, until at least 0655 when I had to leave to go to work. It was a bit unexpected given the rather benign weather conditions.

Also off there this morning were 6 small wader sp, just 2 sandwich tern and 3 great crested grebe.

Yesterday I recorded 1 great northern diver, 3 great crested grebe, 1 wheatear, 2 sandwich tern and 2 sanderling.

On 19/5 I logged 21 great northern diver, 6 sandwich tern, c30+ kittiwake, 4 fulmar, 8 wader sp and 1 probable hobby distantly offshore. On 20/5 there was a pair of wigeon in the estuary early morning, and a couple of dog-walks on the common this week produced tremendous views of both dartford warbler and hobby.

Best Bird Missed

Male Bullfinch - perched openly for a change. A pair breeds on Orcombe Point but they're normally pretty elusive.

 

Just two migrants recorded on Orcombe today - a wheatear and a fly-over yellow wagtail. I missed the best bird - a smart adult little gull that Nick videoed off the seafront this morning. Would like to have seen that one!

Divers and Kites

Red Kite - photographed from the back garden. I was fortunate to get this shot as the bird was so low that it was mostly out of sight behind the neighbours' houses.

 

At least 12 great northern divers flew past Orcombe Point between 0530 and 0610 this morning. Most were heading north or north-west but 4 birds went east. Also off there was a first-summer mediterranean gull and c10+ sandwich tern.

A quick look off Mudbank was worthwhile as a red kite flew north before crossing the river. It was the first of 9 red kites today, the rest seen from the garden, heading north upriver. The closest one was really low, pretty much flying up Belle Vue Road on a more easterly bearing. I'm sure that if I'd sat and scanned all day I'd have got loads more. Also 1 peregrine, 1 sparrowhawk and a flock of c30+ wader sp high south, most likely whimbrel.

Today's first Red Kite heading across the river.

Second-summer Great Black-backed Gull with a big crab.

Stuff

Whitethroat

 

Two short spells of birding today - this afternoon's being far more productive than this morning's. I did Orcombe at 0530 this morning, but only managed to find a single sedge warbler and an utterly predictable, high-flying great northern diver. It headed high north inland.

Thank you to Lee and Keith for your texts this afternoon. Lee texted me about a roseate tern off the Warren. I picked it up off the seafront - a lovely 'pinky' individual fishing with about a dozen sandwich tern. Also, off the seafront this afternoon, were c15+ black-headed gull and a first-summer mediterranean gull.

Keith texted me about a couple red kites NE over Bowling Green, so I thought I'd check the river off the Imperial and scan Haldon ridge at the same time. I very quickly picked up 2 red kites heading fast north along Haldon ridge at about 1710, and a third individual circling over the other side of the river shortly afterwards. There are clearly stacks of birds around at the moment. Also off the Imperial this afternoon were 8 great crested grebe, 1 hobby, 1 peregrine and c20+ swift.

 

Great Northern Diver - at least 70 recorded off Orcombe so far this spring, assuming of course that the same birds aren't being re-counted.

Recently fledged Dunnock.

Exmouth Tick

A rare sight in Exmouth these days - a Kestrel hovers over the top fields yesterday, attracted by new-cut silage, from outside the patch.

Thanks to some top 'gen' from good friend Terry Smith, I managed to add nightjar to the old Exmouth list on Sunday night. Amazing views of a male bird at dusk put me in a really good mood for the week.

Otherwise it has been quite quiet in Exmouth on the bird front, but my third singing male lesser whitethroat of the spring was found early this morning in the boundary hedge between Sandy Bay and Orcombe. Otherwise the only other migrants noted were 1 smart male 'Greenland' wheatear, 7 house martin, 2 swift, 2+ whimbrel and 3 great northern diver, two of which were picked up by the whistling of their wings as they shot really low over my head first thing this morning. All three gained a lot of height and looked like they were going to fly straight up the Exe.

The other notable sighting today was a decent flock of about 90 sanderling, presumably new in, on a sandbar off the seafront.

Yesterday the most notable sighting was a kestrel on Orcombe Point, no doubt tempted in by the newly-cut silage fields. I'm guessing grass cutting does quite a bit of damage to rodents. Kestrels were a regular sight in the Orcombe/Sandy Bay area until recently, but they have been conspicuous by their absence this year. Let's hope yesterday's bird hasn't flown too far from 'off-patch'. Also logged yesterday were 3 wheatear, 45+ sandwich tern, 1 little tern and 3 whimbrel.

'Greenland' Wheatear

One of two Painted Ladies seen this afternoon.

There are a lot of singing male Whitethroats on Orcombe at the moment. Any area of suitable habitat seems to hold birds.

Poms

Field sketches of this morning's Pomarine Skuas.

Very quiet on the land again today but good on the sea, despite early morning murky conditions and a relatively feeble breeze. I did 0530 - 8'ish, and had a quick look off the beach huts again late morning, when the wind picked up. This morning's totals included 2 wheatear, 23 whimbrel, 2 common tern, 1 little tern, 3 great northern diver, 18+ dunlin, c30+ sandwich tern, 5 pomarine skua, 1 arctic skua, 1 fs mediterranean gull, and 4 manx shearwater.

Just 1 bar-tailed godwit and c30+ whimbrel were noted in the estuary.

The highlight was the 4 pomarine skua, 3 pale and 1 dark phase, that powered around Orcombe Point and in to the bay at 0705. All four spent 20 minutes sat on the sea, off the Lifeboat Station, before heading south and ditching again off Langstone Rock. A fifth bird went through at 1125 along with good numbers of auk sp and a few fulmar, but I didn't give it very long.

Hobby 'In Off'

 

 

Spotted Flycatcher - one of two together in Maer Valley this afternoon.

 

Derek and I did Orcombe from 0530 until heavy rain set in around breakfast time - didn't note the exact time. I went back up mid-afternoon. It was definitely quieter than yesterday but the following species got pencilled in to the old notebook: 1 common tern, c20+ sandwich tern, 15+ great northern diver (between 0530 and 0650), 1 hobby, 2 common scoter, 6 swift, 1 manx shearwater, 1 guillemot, 5+ 'Greenland' wheatear, 2 house martin, several swallow, 1 whimbrel, 2 jay and 1 roseate tern (on an exposed sandbar, off the lifeboat station, with c15+sandwich tern mid-afternoon).

The hobby was picked up distantly, way offshore, and tracked as it flew low over the waves towards Dawlish. I estimated it was going to hit land somewhere near Dawlish Town but apparently it went right over Lee Collins' head as he watched from the sea wall at Dawlish Warren! I've seen a few hobbies on (or just off) Orcombe over the years but they always get the blood pumping.

This afternoon I checked a sheltered spot in Maer Valley, just beyond the 'official' patch boundary, and was pleased to find 2 more spotted flycatchers and a willow warbler. There is a map of the patch and its boundaries on the 'patch' tab at the top of this page.

 

 

'Greenland' Wheatear - Dung Field. The Dung Field always looks so promising. It is the one spot on Orcombe that is just left to grow a bit wild. It's only tiny but it's like a magnet to chats. The rarest bird I've ever found in there is yellow-browed warbler but one day I'm confident it will deliver something extra-special. Blind optimism!