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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Falmouth Birding (2 Viewers)

I admit I don't do Swanpool/Swanvale half as much as I could - maybe the people put me off and I assume that because it's had rare birds (like Little Bittern, so I hear) it gets a fair amount of coverage from all the other local falmouth birders. I ought to go more often - would make a nice walk down the valley from my place.QUOTE]

And a very lovely Little Bittern it was too......:-O:-O:t:
 
And a very lovely Little Bittern it was too......:-O:-O:t:

I'm sure it was ... ;) . Smart birds.

The Ring-necked Duck and at least 1 normal Bittern at College still. I say at least one ... there was one in the small patch of sedge adjacent to the 'main' viewing area on the east side, as I approached it sunk down and out of view. Didn't see it again, and there was a Bittern feeding out on the end of the island as I was leaving. Could have flown over ...

Waterfowl down - 27 or so Tufties, 3 Goldeneye, 5 Pochard, only 2 Shoveler that I saw. Still 2 Gadwall and the 2 'northern' Chiffchaff. The hybrid drake Wigeon also present.

Popped by the Penryn River near Lidl on way back - 71 Curlew roosting, 22 Redshank scattered and 3 Greenshank etc
 
Think that must be the 3rd winter I've had Whimbrel on Pendennis now. Presumably more do overwinter on the rocky shores in the area, presumably under-recorded

Hi Dan.
I too think Whimbrel overwinter in larger numbers in Cornwall than thought. I've had single regular wintering birds around the St Mawes and Gerrans Bay areas in recent winters. Plus that one at Mousehole a few years back. With so many tracts of coast that has the same habitat i'm sure there are undiscovered birds elsewhere.

Nice one with the Ring-necked Duck, Dipper and other recent finds etc.

Cheers.
Henerz.
 
Dan did you go back and look for the 'mystery' athya today?

Some nice bids you've had recently on your patch. Wish I'd had the same success on mine :).

Sean
 
Dan did you go back and look for the 'mystery' athya today?

Some nice bids you've had recently on your patch. Wish I'd had the same success on mine :).

Indeed I did. Only half the number of tufties though, so I think we'll ever know. Suspect it was a recently surfaced tuftie or a hybrid though, rather than anything rare. Didn't you have Waxwing the other day? - that would be a mega done here! It's all relative ...
 
Hi Dan.
I too think Whimbrel overwinter in larger numbers in Cornwall than thought. I've had single regular wintering birds around the St Mawes and Gerrans Bay areas in recent winters. Plus that one at Mousehole a few years back. With so many tracts of coast that has the same habitat i'm sure there are undiscovered birds elsewhere.

Nice one with the Ring-necked Duck, Dipper and other recent finds etc.

Cheers! It's a good spot at the moment, plus you have to get out there ..

I remember that Mousehole one, a tad distant ... saw a few around Cork harbour last year too ... I think there's probably even more habitat up that way. Had the two on Pendennis again this morning ...
 
Highlights from this morning -

Pendennis

Red-breasted Merganser 3 in the Carrick Roads
Razorbill 2
Black-throated Diver 1 distantly in bay
Gannet 1
Whimbrel 2 on east side

Castle Beach

Black Redstart 1m (Cracking bird)
Little Egret 1

Swanpool

Pochard 3, then flew south
GCG 1
Mute Swan 8
Curlew 1 flew inland

Swanpool Beach

Mute Swan 1, Goldeneye 2 offshore
Chiffchaff 1 nearby
Little Egret 1 on rocks

Predictably, didn't do Swanvale ...
 
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A little bit further afield today (but only about 4 miles as the bird flies) -

Devoran

Shelduck 22
Teal 50+
Black-tailed Godwit 22+
Bar-tailed Godwit 4
Spotted Redshank 1
Dunlin 130+
Little Egret 1

Made a brief visit on my way in to Truro this afternoon, by chance coinciding with high tide. Other birds included what seemed like a couple of hundred Curlew and a fair few Redshank, didn't do a proper count. Had wanted to go to Carnon Downs Sewage works too, but no time before the shops closed (domestic stuff, bah). The Spotted Redshank the first for Cornwall since early October according to birdguides.
 
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The Spotted Redshank the first for Cornwall since early October according to birdguides.

What you have to remember Dan, is that Birdguides and other news services are primarily interested in rarities and good local birds like spot reds slip under their radar. As such they have minimal use for scientific or conservation services which is one of the reasons CBWPS set up the Daily Sightings page on their website.
We have 3 records for St Clements, 10 for Camel Estuary 1 of 3 birds for Kingsmill and 1 for Wacker Quay since early Oct.
Remember though these are reports, so we are probably only talking about 5 or 6 birds, compare this to just 10 years ago when 45 birds (90 in 1991) were reported for the same period and you see just how quickly they have declined.

Dave
 
Carnon Downs sewerage works and the surrounding area offered up a fairly spectacular, albeit rather bewildering array of various chiffchaff types this morning. I made the final score as follows:

two tristis (one quite vocal),
at least four sub-tristis intergrades displaying the full spectrum of characteristics from almost complete tristis to almost complete abietinus,
3 pure abientinus and
at least 50 collybitta.
Also 4 Firecrests

I also had what I can only imagine was a male hybrid Willow Warbler x Chiffchaff in full song uttering the descending song typical of Willow Warbler interspersed with chiff-chaff chiff-chaff, rather similar to two presumed hybrids I’ve come across previously. Appearance wise, it looked more like a bog-standard chiffchaff with black legs, plumage tones within the range of collybitta (albeit slightly more greeny/yellow than is typical), but with rather long primary projection.

Anybody keen to get their head around the various plumages and vocals of Chiffchaff races would do well to visit the site over the next few days, particularly as the mild weather seems to be encouraging the birds to be quite vocal.
 
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Carnon Downs sewerage works and the surrounding area offered up a fairly spectacular, albeit rather bewildering array of various chiffchaff types this morning. I made the final score as follows:

two tristis (one quite vocal),
at least four sub-tristis intergrades displaying the full spectrum of characteristics from almost complete tristis to almost complete abietinus,
3 pure abientinus and
at least 50 collybitta.
Also 4 Firecrests

I also had what I can only imagine was a male hybrid Willow Warbler x Chiffchaff in full song uttering the descending song typical of Willow Warbler interspersed with chiff-chaff chiff-chaff, rather similar to two presumed hybrids I’ve come across previously. Appearance wise, it looked more like a bog-standard chiffchaff with black legs, plumage tones within the range of collybitta (albeit slightly more greeny/yellow than is typical), but with rather long primary projection.

Anybody keen to get their head-around the various plumages and vocals of Chiffchaff races would do well to visit the site over the next few days, particularly as the mild weather seems to be encouraging the birds to be quite vocal.

Hmm, might just do that on Thurs/Fri sometime!;)
 
Hello, I'm new to this but have been to Argal and Swanpool today. I took several photos of which some I don't know what they are. I think I have two strange coloured mallards, a great crested grebe and a goldeneye but would be glad of a bit of help to confirm this.
Thanks very much
Carol
 
Hello, I'm new to this but have been to Argal and Swanpool today. I took several photos of which some I don't know what they are. I think I have two strange coloured mallards, a great crested grebe and a goldeneye but would be glad of a bit of help to confirm this.
Thanks very much
Carol

I was at swanpool today too! Unfortunately I'm very new to this so can't really help, but it was the variety I've seen there and along swanvale today which has led to me joining this forum.
 
Hello, I'm new to this but have been to Argal and Swanpool today. I took several photos of which some I don't know what they are. I think I have two strange coloured mallards, a great crested grebe and a goldeneye but would be glad of a bit of help to confirm this.
Thanks very much
Carol

These all seem plausible, but it would be easier to verify if you attached photos. You can do this by clicking the Manage Attachments button in the additional options section displayed below the text reply box. Funny-coloured Mallards are nothing out of the ordinary.
 
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Thanks

These all seem plausible, but it would be easier to verify if you attached photos. You can do this by clicking the Manage Attachments button in the additional options section displayed below the text reply box. Funny-coloured Mallards are nothing out of the ordinary.

Thanks, I hopefully have attached photos of the Mallards and Great Crested Grebe. The Goldeneye was wrong. I believe I saw a little Grebe at Swanpool and there was a Cormorant there as well.
The first one is not very good as they were a long way out on Argal. the other two were at Swanpool. The last I saw at Argal and Swanpool.
Carol
 

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Back at Carnon Downs with Mark Grantham today to get some more phyllosc action. In addition to a Yellow-browed Warbler, one of the tristis was in full song, sounding similar to this one recorded in Siberia.

We (by we, I mean Mark) managed to catch 42 of the 60+ Chiffchaffs present. Mark has the final totals, but of the birds caught, I reckon c. 20-30% were abientinus with at least a couple closer to, but not perfect tristis.



Thanks, I hopefully have attached photos of the Mallards and Great Crested Grebe. The Goldeneye was wrong. I believe I saw a little Grebe at Swanpool and there was a Cormorant there as well.
The first one is not very good as they were a long way out on Argal. the other two were at Swanpool. The last I saw at Argal and Swanpool.
Carol

Images 1-3 show various Mallards, 4 a Great Crested Grebe.
 
Is this a white wagtail or a juvenile pied?

Thanks Ilya for answering my queries on the mallards and grebe.
Could you possibly help with a couple more? This wagtail has been about for a few days and I saw two today but I can't make up my mind which type it is.
 

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Thanks Ilya for answering my queries on the mallards and grebe.
Could you possibly help with a couple more? This wagtail has been about for a few days and I saw two today but I can't make up my mind which type it is.

Both photos show a Pied Wagtail - the most common type.
 
Not quite Falmouth, but two Yellow-browed Warblers at Gwennap Sewerage works this morning and another Siberian Chiffchaff. One of the Yellow-broweds was doing a pretty good impression of a Hume's Warbler appearance wise and I honestly thought it was going to turn into one. Then it called...
 
Fal Estuary at Ruan

Hi All,
Took this photo earlier today at Ruan. The bird I was aiming at moved so not in focus but on closer inspection there are two other birds in the photo. Are the other two Snipe?
So far this week, loads of Wigeon, 4 Redshanks, lots of Curlew, 2 Little Egret, 1 Greenshank, 1 Kingfisher, 1 Heron, 13 Mallards, loads of Lapwings, Black Headed Gulls and 4 Black Backed Gulls. Also nice photo today of a fox jumping the river.
C
 

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