To Hayle and back; a half term road trip. (2 Viewers)

[JWN Andrewes]

Decided to base this half term's trip around an attempt on the Hayle American Herring Gull, with a side order of Ring-billed. A few days before we were able to go the AHG stopped being reported, but it felt like there was still enough on offer to justify the trip.

First port of call was Cot Valley, where the stubble field that had recently been hosting a couple of Little Bunts was now a freshly ploughed field. Oh well. We had a poke about but didn't give it long, and the Buntings don't seem to have been reported since.

Lelant Saltings railway station next where the high tide (Hayle at High Water) had brought quite a few Gulls close in. Unfortunately it was lashing it down, and by the time the rain abated the majority of the Gulls were rather more distant. We spent a while picking our way through them, but eventually scanning fatigue set in and we decided a change of scenery was called for. The main highlight here was a Whimbrel that flew off calling, the first winterer of this species I've seen.

We relocated to the corner of Carnsew basin, picking up some nice Grey Plover along the way, and set to scanning again. We soon picked up a Ring-billed candidate, fairly distant and facing us, I took a few pics and compared them to on line photos of the Hayle bird and it appeared that this was a different bird, confirmed when it took flight and was what I took to be a second winter, rather than an adult. With input from those with more Gull knowledge than me I'm leaning heavily towards female Ring-billed, but if anyone else has an opinion I'm all ears.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

While at Carnsew we could see folk opposite us at Lelant, who were getting good views of birds out of sight to us, so that was our next destination. A good move as it happened, as the adult Ring-billed was on show, giving us our second of the day (and fwiw I'm counting the first as a find). This was a much more blindingly obvious individual and gave very good views once it woke up, really pleasing after having dipped the Strathclyde Loch bird last month to now catch up with two at the other end of the country.

 

[Owene]

I still need both gulls and was toying with going this weekend but the prospect of half term M5 traffic stopped me in my tracks. You're braver than me, glad it paid off

 

[JWN Andrewes]

No real hold ups on M5 on Thursday, we were lucky with timing I guess, setting off at 01:30 helps! Then when it came to home time yesterday we were positioned such that we avoided it altogether.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Now, these days I am neither lariphobe nor lariphile. I guess I would identify as lari-curious, and spent an enjoyable afternoon picking my way through the assorted masses to see what I could find, which in the end amounted to not very much. (Apart from an adult Med Gull, I can do those!)

Fortunately though, there was a local Gull savant on hand, one of those guys who can not only wheedle out the more interesting species, but is also happy to share ID tips with tyros like me. He was even distinguishing between individual birds that had been around before and those that were new to him. Made for quite a humbling experience, but fun and educational too.

So by the time we called it a day we'd clocked up multiple Yellow-legged & Caspian Gulls, and I had added a bit more to my meagre corpus of Gull ID gen.

Med
1st yr Yellow-legged
3rd yr Yellow-legged
4th yr Yellow-legged
4th yr Caspian
adult Caspian

 

[JWN Andrewes]

I'd booked a Travelodge in Somerset for Thursday night, but before heading there we used the last light of the day to try for the Ring-necked Duck at Helston. An easy win it turned out (as had been the Lesser Scaup at this location last time I visited a few years ago), and nice to see a female for a change, all my recent ones have been drakes, and it was a plumage tick for Arch.

Once we'd completed the drive up to our digs it was just a matter of curry, beer (apple juice for Arch) and sleep, before embarking on phase two of the trip.

 

[Jon Turner]

Lovely set of shots of the Gulls. I was at Lelant a few weeks back. We did 9 species of Gull, but then failed with the white-wingers at Newlyn! It's always good to come across one of the experts who share their knowledge. I was lucky a few years back, but as usual forgot most of what he said!

Hope there's more to come?

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Hope there's more to come?

Well, if you insist!

We started the day at Ham Wall RSPB, where we a) failed to see any of our target birds and b) had a really nice morning's birding, starting with watching a feeding Green Woodpecker that was waiting for us in the car park. No sign of any Glossy Ibis or Penduline Tits, just a regular selection of wildfowl, Egrets, a pair of Marsh Harriers, displaying Great Crested Grebes. Arch occupied himself with photographing a Reed Bunting to good effect (attached), and we chatted away with a few of the other birders there before deciding to crack on with the main event for the day (via an absence of Lesser Scaup).

Arrived at the sewage works at Compton Dando just before noon and settled down for a long search for the Hume's, which wasn't obliging by coming down to the turntables as it has been at some points in its stay. I was beginning to think we would have to sacrifice our final target of the day on the altar of elusive Phylloscs, recent memories of the cumulative hours spent last autumn trying to get Arch his tick Yellow-browed started to loom large. And then, as I searched along the perimeter leaving Arch to stake out the turntables, he quietly called "I've got it"! And got it he had, in the alders above him. It took me a few moments to get views myself, and then try for photos (attached, honest!) before it did a vanishing act. We hung around for a bit, in the hopes of better views or pics, but didn't want to spin it out too much and waste the opportunity that nailing it had given us.

So over the Severn we went, and made our way to the village of Awre (no, I don't know how it's pronounced either), and headed out to find the field that the Richard's Pipit had been favouring, encountering a small group of sixteen Bewick's Swans drifting down the river. Arch was still watching these when I reached our theatre of operations, almost instantly putting up a Skylark. Hey up I thought, best wait for the lad before forging on. Very much the right move as it turned out, once he caught up and we proceeded together we'd barely gone a dozen places before a small brown streaky number lifted up, went a short distance, and dropped down into the short turfed tyre-track gap between the deeper sward either side, our quarry stood before us; Richard's Pipit, Arch's third tick of the trip. It scurried away from us in little bursts, pausing for periods to eyeball us over it's shoulder. We managed to quietly reposition once for closer views, but it was clearly onto us, and understandably disinclined to cooperate, so we let it be.

Very pleased with our final set piece, we headed home, A roads via Hereford, then Shrewsbury, no need to tangle with the motorway network at all. The opportunity to have a long lie in this morning was both appreciated and taken!

 

[Jon Turner]

Ah thanks, the Hume's Warbler was similarly elusive for us. It was very interested in the bramble patch behind the settling tanks. Fortunately we had Mick (Colquhoun) with us who pointed his howitzer at it and obtained some acceptable images. We had similar luck around Ham Wall except for a spectacular fly-by from a Bittern over the water at the Avalon Hide. Tank one at Barrow Gurney has a fabulous drake Long-tailed Duck, it's been there overwintering for a few winters now.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Ah thanks, the Hume's Warbler was similarly elusive for us. It was very interested in the bramble patch behind the settling tanks. Fortunately we had Mick (Colquhoun) with us who pointed his howitzer at it and obtained some acceptable images. We had similar luck around Ham Wall except for a spectacular fly-by from a Bittern over the water at the Avalon Hide. Tank one at Barrow Gurney has a fabulous drake Long-tailed Duck, it's been there overwintering for a few winters now.

I dipped that Long-tailed Duck a few years ago. Spent as long as I dared (it felt a bit trespassy) scanning that bloody featureless tank to no avail, only for it to be reported again later that day. Oh well.

I see that now there's (potentially) two American Herring Gulls off Mousehole today, and the Little Buntings are back. Good job we had a good time or I might be miffed!!

 

[Jon Turner]

I dipped that Long-tailed Duck a few years ago. Spent as long as I dared (it felt a bit trespassy) scanning that bloody featureless tank to no avail, only for it to be reported again later that day. Oh well.

I see that now there's (potentially) two American Herring Gulls off Mousehole today, and the Little Buntings are back. Good job we had a good time or I might be miffed!!

I think the SWW people Or maybe Bristol Water? are unlikely to hunt you down. We've been lucky on each visit but it's better when it's on Tank 1 right by the fisherman's car park. Having been to Sennen after our visit to Hayle, not sure I can synthesise enough enthusiasm for another drive down there, although I note a Glaucous Gull is back in Newlyn harbour. The AHG would be a British tick too....

 

[Owene]

Nice write up of the (fairly) local star birds of the winter. Looks like you were a little unluckier with the Humes than I was but much much luckier with the pipit. I didn’t come close to being able to photograph it.