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

Backwater Birding - Seaton, Devon (3 Viewers)

Steve, we are very dissapointed you didnt hear it , We parked in the car park hoping, you would of heard it, up in the lane behind us. Saw your car parked up.
 
Simon Wakely said:
Terry, Sue and i Wish we introduced ourselfs to you.Your Owl hunt turned up a Tuftie, Great stuff rare on our patch.
/QUOTE]

Simon & Sue,

Never mind at least we know what each other looks like! Will know next time I'm over on your patch. Happy you're happy with the Tuftie! :D

Terry
 
Kev Rylands said:
White Stork west over Abbotsbury this evening, so next stop your patch!
Yeah I noticed that one Kev, finished work at 6, came home and checked birdguides, read this, dinner went down in three mouth fulls, and I was off!!!! It had probably gone over by this time though, unless it went to gound before it got to us, it was quite hazy along the coast, so maybe tomorrow will be the day??

Beer Head this morning, nothing outstanding from me - my first Whitethroat of the year, along with 16+ Wheatear and a few Willows and Chiffs. Just before work I had a look over Seaton Marshes and saw 5 Wheatear and 2 Whimbrel.

After work and my three mouth fulls of dinner, I had a little seawatch - 9 Black-headed Gulls passed west...oh, I thought, some movement, then... 2 duck came in to view, Gadwall!! A pair flew west - the male leading the way, a nice surprise, it was looking good!! And then.....nothing else passed at all!! So I gave up!!!!

Another look over Seaton Marshes showed 6 Wheatear and a very smart White Wagtail. I then went for a slow wander up the river - joined half way through by Gav. 2 Sedge Warblers were singing well, 6 Whimbrel were on the saltmarsh, a Wheatear flicked along in front of us, and was pleased to confirm our fifth singing male Cetti's Warbler, I wonder how many of these have females?? (I know for sure one of them hasn't). As the sky darkened around 80 Sand Martins flew around low looking for a place to roost, and a rather large Bat hawked over us....it was a very pleasent indeed. And Simon, I did wave to you, did you see me??? Then visited Lower Bruckland (in the dark!) to hear my third Sedge Warbler of the day.
 
Thanks Terry, We hope to see you soon. A trip to our Favorite patch Top of Axmouth is always a joy, Garden Warbler our first of the year wonderful.Goldfinches with nesting material. Its the year of the chiffchaff, there everywhere. Happy Birding.
 
A quick after work trip around Beer Head today.
One Wheatear, 2 Ravens and this obliging Rock Pipit was about all there was to comment about, still, a lovely evening stroll though.
 

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Steve sorry, didnt see you wave back, reminds us of last night when you didnt hear the Cuckoo, But thats birding. Please by yourself a pair of cricket keeping gloves my eyesight terrible that would help. dont forget to wear them when waving at Sue and I. keep the bird total rolling 203 could be beaten.
 
Just had an hour and half out this morning - am working this afternoon but will make the best use of my lunch hour!

On the river, 8 Dunlin and 2 Barwits. Nothing at Lower Bruckland, but a nice highlight at Seaton Marshes - a stunning male Whinchat with c7 Wheatears (on path to hide). Did you see it, Bob? I went back to the car to get my scope and camera, but when I returned it was being a little blighter and only showed with half its boby hidden behind a fence post....hence the first photo.... the second utterly crap photo is just to prove it did have a huge white stripe above its eye!!!! Just as my Dad arrived it vanished!! Again 2 singing male Cetti's - confirming the confirmation of yesterdays five!!!

Forgot to mention yesterday, lots of Large Red Damselfly tenerals on Seaton Marshes mid morning.
 

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Managed a hour out after work, and went to some fields and thickets, west of the top cemetery at Beer, saw 4 willows, 2 chiffs, 1 female blackcap and 2 smashing male Redstarts sat on a fence only 3 posts apart! certainly seems to be a excellent spring for them so far.
 
Just shows I am a beginner - totally missed the Whinchat. The Wheatears were stunning - and posed superbly on the posts. At Colyton Hide the Egyptian Geese were grazing just infront of the hide - not in their usual position on the river bank.
 

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Steve Waite said:
Just had an hour and half out this morning - am working this afternoon but will make the best use of my lunch hour!

On the river, 8 Dunlin and 2 Barwits. Nothing at Lower Bruckland, but a nice highlight at Seaton Marshes - a stunning male Whinchat with c7 Wheatears (on path to hide). Did you see it, Bob? I went back to the car to get my scope and camera, but when I returned it was being a little blighter and only showed with half its boby hidden behind a fence post....hence the first photo.... the second utterly crap photo is just to prove it did have a huge white stripe above its eye!!!! Just as my Dad arrived it vanished!! Again 2 singing male Cetti's - confirming the confirmation of yesterdays five!!!

Forgot to mention yesterday, lots of Large Red Damselfly tenerals on Seaton Marshes mid morning.



Just looked through my images and found out that I did see the male Whinchat - sitting on the next post down!

Roger
 

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Hi All,Top of Axmouth pm. Tawny owl flew across in front of our car. Spent a hour lisening to bird song,never saw a person. But then realised we were being Watch by a male. He reminded me of a night i couldnt Remember, Pic on the way ............... The white storks in Fridge, great on bread.
 
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Whinchat was still there at half 5 this evening. Also watched a Peregrine take out a feral Pigeon, the speed was just awesome, it came in like a bullet!!!

I have a day off tomorrow...I look forward to it!!
 
Camera-dodging and Bubble-bursting

The lovely, but reluctant, Whinchat and its camera avoidance technique reminded me of the other day when I was staking out the odd-looking Water Rail at the Borrow Pit. It just would not behave. Attached is one of my best efforts.......

I didn't get any birding in at all today, so here is a belated account of yesterday's momentary elation, followed by a monumental deflation. |=(|

Started out well - a 6:00am visit to Lower Bruckland Ponds revealed what I hoped was the patch's first Sedge Warbler (at 06:07 precisely, I noted, in case of subsequent wrangling over the five desperately-needed Bonanza Points). Decided to go and look at the sea next, so headed down the riverside road from Axmouth. Towards the southern end of the road I spied 2 birds ambling across the tarmac, from right to left, and thought they looked suspiciously like partridges. I stopped some distance away and checked them out through the windscreen. Despite the total lack of garishness around the head it still took several moments before the penny dropped - they were GREY Partridges!! They completed their journey and proceeded to climb the steep embankment on the E side of the road. I jumped out and followed them, whereupon they flew over a clump of bushes into the field beyond. Steve was up and about, so came and joined me in scouring the field - to no avail. Grey Partridges are a bit like unicorns - their pictures are in books but they're only ever seen by people who live in a land far, far away. So obviously I though I was lined up for MASSIVE points. Imagine my horror when Steve told me they were worth nothing. Nil. Zip. I fear this game is seriously rigged........

Lots of other lovely migrants later in the day could not dispel the gloom.

That evening I also discovered that certain birding 'venues' where I have to climb locked gates like a naughty, er, 'pioneering' birder, Steve has a KEY to! I have had to come to the reluctant conclusion that there are at least 2 classes of Backwater Birders:
1. The Haves - with keys, and all sorts of other passports to BIG points (extra eyes, and so on)
2. The Have-nots - without keys; just the TWO eyes (elderly ones at that); have to graft and toil for every point....

EDIT - PS. Nice pics, Roger!
 

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Little Crake not Water Rail???

Gavin Haig said:
The lovely, but reluctant, Whinchat and its camera avoidance technique reminded me of the other day when I was staking out the odd-looking Water Rail at the Borrow Pit. It just would not behave. Attached is one of my best efforts.......

I didn't get any birding in at all today, so here is a belated account of yesterday's momentary elation, followed by a monumental deflation. |=(|

Started out well - a 6:00am visit to Lower Bruckland Ponds revealed what I hoped was the patch's first Sedge Warbler (at 06:07 precisely, I noted, in case of subsequent wrangling over the five desperately-needed Bonanza Points). Decided to go and look at the sea next, so headed down the riverside road from Axmouth. Towards the southern end of the road I spied 2 birds ambling across the tarmac, from right to left, and thought they looked suspiciously like partridges. I stopped some distance away and checked them out through the windscreen. Despite the total lack of garishness around the head it still took several moments before the penny dropped - they were GREY Partridges!! They completed their journey and proceeded to climb the steep embankment on the E side of the road. I jumped out and followed them, whereupon they flew over a clump of bushes into the field beyond. Steve was up and about, so came and joined me in scouring the field - to no avail. Grey Partridges are a bit like unicorns - their pictures are in books but they're only ever seen by people who live in a land far, far away. So obviously I though I was lined up for MASSIVE points. Imagine my horror when Steve told me they were worth nothing. Nil. Zip. I fear this game is seriously rigged........

Lots of other lovely migrants later in the day could not dispel the gloom.

That evening I also discovered that certain birding 'venues' where I have to climb locked gates like a naughty, er, 'pioneering' birder, Steve has a KEY to! I have had to come to the reluctant conclusion that there are at least 2 classes of Backwater Birders:
1. The Haves - with keys, and all sorts of other passports to BIG points (extra eyes, and so on)
2. The Have-nots - without keys; just the TWO eyes (elderly ones at that); have to graft and toil for every point....

EDIT - PS. Nice pics, Roger!


Hi Gavin
Your photo you posted looks to me like a Little Crake not a Water Rail.

Cheers
Brian
 
Gavin Haig said:
Uh-oh! They're on to me! ;)

Sent you a PM Brian.

I really must behave..............

Oops didn't know it was a wind up thought I would save you from being branded a suppressor and called the birdlines. Looks like there will be a lot of angry twitchers in Devon today.
I would go into hiding if I was you Gavin ;)
 
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