Bean Outta Exmouth

Mudbank in heavy drizzle this morning - 1 Goldeneye, 1 Spoonbill, 25 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Bar-tailed Godwit and 115+ Pintail.

This afternoon I was tempted out of Exmouth, once again, for a nice collection of wildfowl on Exminster Marshes. I managed to combine it with a trip to Mum's. Unfortunately it was all a bit distant but nevertheless good to see 1 Tundra Bean Goose, 1 adult Russian White-fronted Goose, 3 Whooper Swans, 1 Pale-bellied Brent Goose with c3/400+ Dark-bellied Brent Geese, 5 Bullfinches, 1 Pink-footed Goose, c240 Avocets and 1 Marsh Harrier. Seeing all this involved walking a few miles in old wellies so my feet are hurting a bit now.

Good to see Bob, Martin, Brian, Ken, Kev, Dave Stone, Dave Land, Rob and Steph.

Colour-ringed Dunlin - Mudbank. Left tarsus : blue ring with white lettering. Right tarsus : red ring above silver. Couldn't read the lettering. A quick internet search suggests this was ringed by the Devon and Cornwall Wader Ringing Group.

Three Whooper Swans - Exminster Marshes. I resisted the urge to twitch these when they first turned up yesterday, so was feeling a bit smug to catch up with them today, along with the Pink-foot, Tundra Bean and White-front. Just occasionally a little restraint pays off.

Unfortunately this Tundra Bean Goose remained mostly hidden in vegetation. I made the effort this afternoon because it's been a long while since I've seen this species in Devon. I may well be missing some but a quick trawl through my old records suggests the last one I saw in Devon was a 'self-found' on Bowling Green on 8/5/05! Prior to that I saw one (with 6 White-fronts and 25 Barnacles) on South Huish Marsh, on 19/12/95, and before that - 2 birds on Exminster Marshes on 2/1/92 (and again the following day).

A chance for me to show off my incredible photography skills - Russian White-front left, Tundra Bean right.

Pink-footed Goose - Turf.

Little Gull

 Another monochrome December day in Exmouth but I'll miss the easterlies when they've switched.

Something put the Wigeon and Spoonbill up whilst I was walking the dog this afternoon. The Spoonbill headed purposefully upriver before turning round and landing back in its usual spot.

Stand-out bird today was a first-winter Little Gull, feeding for a while 'mid-river' off Mudbank at around 1115. I willed it to come closer but it pushed off upriver and I didn't see it again. I struggle to see Little Gull in Exmouth these days so I'm hoping this one will hang around. Also off there - 25 Great Crested Grebes in one stretched-out flock, 8 Red-breasted Mergansers, singles of Bar-tailed Godwit and Greenshank and, of course, the Spoonbill. Otherwise of note - at least 9 Redwings and a Mistle Thrush coming to Catoneaster berries at the end of our road, and a male Stonechat down at the Imperial recreation ground - not a place I recall seeing one before.

Did virtually no birding yesterday but 1 Lapwing and 3 Snipe were noted in the top fields on Orcombe.

The Spoonbill still present all day. That's 22 days now and long may it continue...

Just Off Patch

Brambling. I reckon I saw at least twenty today but, due to the frequency of calls coming from overhead, I suspect there are many more present, moving between game cover crops around the pig farm and surroundings.

I neglected Exmouth today and spent a few hours birding just beyond the parish boundary. At Hayes Barton, Yettington I recorded c20+ Brambling, c20/30+ Chaffinches, 3+ Lesser Redpoll, 1 Bullfinch, 3+ Reed Bunting, Chiffchaff, Mediterranean Gull and at least 5 Red-legged Partridges. 

A quick look at the Otter, principally for the 34 Russian White-fronted Geese that turned up two days ago, produced 1 drake Pochard, 5 Pintail, c150+ Teal, 2 Chiffchaffs and 6 Little Grebes.

Finally a late afternoon squiz at Blackhill Quarry produced 7 Goosanders, 1 Dartford Warbler and a Peregrine. 

My only look off Mudbank was very brief but did reveal 3 Goldeneye and the juvenile Spoonbill.

Low light levels hampered photography efforts today. Not that I normally take good photos...

All thirty-four of the Russian White-fronts are in this photo. Not something we're used to seeing in Devon.

Drake Pochard - a scarce visitor to the Otter.

Five of the seven Goosanders that I saw at Blackhill Quarry this evening. Apparently, up to sixteen have been coming into roost of late. Good to see Roger, Liz, Rupert and Derek this afternoon.

BNGs Back

The 'plop' as it dropped in the water, in front of me, alerted me to this first-winter Black-tailed Godwit - my first off Mudbank in a little while.

The two Black-necked Grebes were again off Shelly Beach this morning - the first time I've seen them since the end of November. They remained way too far out for photos but that didn't stop me trying. Views through the scope weren't too bad. Also there - 6 Red-breasted Mergansers and the male Black Redstart. 

A quick look off the seafront produced a loafing Great Northern Diver, 2 Brent Geese and at least 3 Purple Sandpipers, but there were way too many people around for my liking so I didn't give it long.

Off Mudbank - the juvenile Spoonbill all day, 8 Shovelers, 1 Black-tailed Godwit, 28 Great Crested Grebes, 4 Teal, 2 Ravens, 1 Grey Wagtail and 11 Red-breasted Mergansers.

An afternoon walk around Maer Valley revealed c70 Redwings (many in Starling-like sub-song), 6 Ring-necked Parakeets (Prattshayes Farm), 3 Chiffchaffs, 1 Blackcap, 1 Kestrel, 5 Goldcrests and at least 1 Mistle Thrush.

Black-necked Grebes - Shelly Beach. Probably an improvement on my last attempt but still dreadful. I'll hopefully get better views before the winter's over.

Black Redstart.

Pochard

This female Pochard put a big smile on my face this morning. Although not in quite the same league as Coot, this is a rare bird in Exmouth, and a species that's becoming increasingly scarce elsewhere. My last record in Exmouth was of two drakes, also off Mudbank, on 31/10/17.

I had a look off Maer Rocks first thing and was frustrated to watch a grey goose sp head east, around Orcombe Point. I saw enough to rule out Greylag but couldn't positively identify it, though it seems highly likely it was a White-front. Also off there - 1 Great Northern Diver, 1 Red-throated Diver and, a bit later on, 5+ Purple Sandpipers.
Counts from Mudbank, as the tide dropped, included 1 Pochard, 6 Shoveler, 21+ Great Crested Grebes, 15 Red-breasted Mergansers, the juvenile Spoonbill, 12 Teal, 1 Greenshank, 1 Ringed Plover, 165+ Pintail, 1 Goldeneye (female-type) and 78 Mallard.
I popped in on Mum this afternoon, and combined the trip upriver to have a look at Countess Wear/Exe Reedbed, where Marsh Harrier, 5+ Gadwall, 2 Siberian Chiffchaffs, 4+ 'colybitta' Chiffchaffs, 2 Little Grebes, 4+ Cetti's Warblers and a Common Sandpiper were the highlights.

Shovelers are always a treat for me here in Exmouth. Here are this morning's 3 drakes and 3 females.

Marsh Harrier - Exe Reedbeds.

Looking across the river towards Topsham. Not so picturesque if you look north...

I always try and have a mooch around the Countess Wear area around this time of year. It's potentially really good for all sorts of wintering stuff, but I never see other birders there. Perhaps they're put off by the unpleasantly imposing presence of the motorway bridge, and the constant noise that comes with it.

There were two Siberian Chiffchaffs at Countess Wear this afternoon. No surprise with numbers elsewhere. This was a beautifully pale individual, although lighting plays a big part with the colour tones.

Common Sandpiper - Countess Wear.

Spoonbill on Shed!

Popped into the Imperial rugby ground this evening, hoping some gulls would be on the pitch over the high tide. Wasn't expecting to see the Spoonbill! It relocated to Cockle Sands not long before dark, as the tide dropped. No sign of the Iceland Gull tonight and I haven't seen the Yellow-legged Gull since November 24th, despite regular checks.

Iceland Gull

A first or second winter Iceland Gull was on Cockle Sands just before dark this evening - scoped (and badly photographed) from Shelly Beach. 

A post work race around a couple sites this evening, in diminishing daylight, produced Iceland Gull and 5 Red-breasted Mergansers from Shelly Beach, at least one Firecrest along the cycle track, where it meets Sowden Lane, 40+ Meadow Pipits, Peregrine and 1 Jay at West Lodge and the Spoonbill off Mudbank with 150+ Teal.

I love Rooks but rarely get this close to them.

Mistle Thrush.

I'm pretty certain there were two Firecrests in the usual wintering spot, beside the cycle path, where it meets Sowden Lane, Lympstone. Either that or this bird relocated to a completely different spot and started calling, seconds after I'd taken this photo.

I wanted to capture the rather novel image of a Spoonbill on a wall but I fluffed the shot before it jumped off.