• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Backwater Birding - Seaton, Devon (2 Viewers)

Tried an early seawatch this morning. After a fairly dire 40 minutes, with just 2 Gannets and 4 Kittiwakes passing, I was just about to pack up for an early breakfast when a Storm Petrel hurried into view. It was much closer than any others I've seen this spring (could see its little white rump easily) and I watched it all the way through, occasionally pausing to feed as it went, even resting briefly on the water. Seconds later 3 Arctic Skuas headed W (a pale and 2 dark phase birds) and I realised the early breakfast would have to be shelved! By the time I left, at 07:50, the totals were: Stormie 1, Arctic Skua 3/1 (W/E), Gannet 11/9, Kittiwake 28/1, Sandwich Tern /2, Whimbrel 2, Great Northern Diver 1, Razorbill 1 on the sea, Manxie 11, and a 1st-summer Med Gull in from the W. Not bad at all.
 
didnt see much on a quick tour between 9 and 10 am but a little grebe at bruckland was nice. at colyford my highlights were singing sky larks on the other side of the river plus great looks at all 4 swift/swallow speices from the platform. also lots of linnets and finches around the path to the platform. one greylag at least was still around.
 
A planned quick dog walk on the beach late morning turned into a 2 hour (10:40 -12:40) seawatch, with Gavin's early morning sightings on my mind I just couldn't help myself!!!

Unfortunately no Skuas or Stormies for my efforts but totals were:

Kittiwake 14, Auk Sp. 4, plus 1 Guillemot on sea Manx Shearwater 20, Great Northern Diver 1, Diver Sp. 1, Gannet 24/1(E) Common Scoter 1, and 4 Swallows in off.
 
Hi all, nothing much from me today. I did have a half hour look at the sea, but saw nothing...so gave up...too early though by the sounds of it! I know Ian M had two Spoons fly past mid morning.....(I mean Poms by that!!!!), probably just before your watch started Karen!
 
Steve Waite said:
Ian M had two Spoons fly past mid morning.....(I mean Poms by that!!!!), probably just before your watch started Karen!
Click to expand...

Yes Steve, he was just leaving the Spot On when I arrived at the Beach, bad timing or what!!?

Having said that, I'm very happy with the 'spoons' I have seen though. Very happy indeed!:D
 
Terry your fine, 10 years in birding is nothing, my Father in law has just seen his first Jay at 76. Mine you we had to tell him. Thanks Gav. Digiscoping we find is hard work, a great challange, or very annoying. We have missed some great pics this year ,by the time you get set up the bird has flown off. Happy Birding .
 
Simon Wakely said:
Terry your fine, 10 years in birding is nothing, my Father in law has just seen his first Jay at 76. Mine you we had to tell him. Thanks Gav. Digiscoping we find is hard work, a great challange, or very annoying. We have missed some great pics this year ,by the time you get set up the bird has flown off. Happy Birding .
Click to expand...

Simon,

I have actually been birding for 46 years, since I was a little kid!!:eek!:

The Old One.
 
Hi all,
Trip round Axmouth am today. Only birds we could find were at Bindon Barns;
•There were Yellowhammers everywhere, giving great photo opportunities, well worth a trip up there to see them.
•Our second Hobby of the year flew over
•Visited Farm gate on the way home. There was a very lonely Greylag Goose. Couldn't see its mate anywhere.

Hope to see you soon as well Terry.

Simon.
 
Evening all, had a day off work today and took the opportunity to go out sea with a crab/lobster fisherman from Beer, we left the beach at 06.30 and returned to shore at 14.00.....the route we took was straight out a mile and a half off Beer Head then cutting across to 3 miles off the axe river mouth, then 4 miles out off culverhole, returning on basically the same route.....after deciding after about 5 minutes i would never make a very good fisherman i sat behind the boat cabin with my bins and homemade chum at the ready!! i thought it might be a o.k day with a few highlights but i still cant believe how brilliant a day it was in the end i logged - 116 Storm Petrels (mostly heading west, but little groups of up to 8 following the boat..really super) 32 manxies ( mostly all west) 3 Pomarine Skua ( all light phased and fully spooned!! 2 E 1 W.., 4 Arctic Skua ( 2 dark 2 light phase..W) 2 Great Northern Divers, summer plum..W.., 4 Turnstone (w)....and unbelieveably a stonker of a Puffin sat on the sea ( i nearly fell over board at this stage! was amazing!) other bird seen were 18 kittiwakes, 16 fulmar ( thought i would see alot more of these) 14 Gannets, 6 guillimots, 4 razorbills, 5 common terns and 3 sandwich terns.... really was a great day and as its been muted a few times in the past i think all of us Backwater Birders should come up with a date, hire a boat and get out there it really is superb!!
 
Brilliant stuff with the first ever(?) 'Backwater Pelagic', Bun!! Just shows what's out there!

Despite the wind being a bit N of W this morning, I still gave the sea a try. An hour from 05:45 produced very little, except for divers - 4 Great Northern and a Red-throated, all W. Also 10 Swallows in off - so still quite a few bits and bobs crossing the Channel. Talking of which - I hear there's an Audouin's Gull trying to find the Axe. Now that WOULD be an OTT way to notch up our 15th gull sp. for the year!

A very quick look at Seaton Marshes afterwards didn't reveal any birds of note, but DID reveal some tasty looking Temminck's Stint habbo after all this recent rain. We are very overdue a nice wader. I think I said this last year, which just proves it's true!
 
Gavin Haig said:
Brilliant stuff with the first ever(?) 'Backwater Pelagic', Bun!!
Click to expand...

Not quite the first, remember Mr McCarthys attempt last autumn...Black Tern, Little Gull and a few Skuas....though he did go more than 5 miles out....so off patch!!! Think it is worth making it a regular thing - there are probably birds out there that for us are really really rare....but out there, ten a penny!! (ie Puffins, rarer Skuas, Petrels, passage ducks and waders).... I'm real keen now!!

I didn't manage much birding yesterday, but late on 21 Whimbrel flew in/off and passed high north over town.
 
not wishing to make this a regular occurance or be accused of living in the past, but I was just looking through some old notebooks and found that I saw another Axe blocker , also found by Phil (of course) 15 years old ago today.. which i'm sure you boys would love to have on your valley list !

any ideas Gavin/Steve ?
 
Hi mark, if its what im thinking is it slightly smaller than a thrush, brown in colour, creamy buff below and like its smaller cousin hangs around marshes and Reed beds?? if its the one im thinking of i didn,t see it but know there was one around 15 years ago....was it Great Reed Warbler.
 
Buns got it!

Like the Squacco - hopefully one which will be noted again in the near future...though I think a Squacco is slightly more likely.

All this talk about the Axe's past is very interesting....the coverage it gets now is second to nowhere (though it could be an easier place to work!!!), and it shows! That's seven BB rarities now in the last 2 years, not to mention the dozens of DB rarities....let's keep it up people! Now I wonder what the next BB will be....???? I have an idea, but I won't tell anyone til I find it...it's a MEGA!!!!!
 
Last edited:
Evening all.
Just a report of tonight's sightings.
•We had a quick look at Farm Gate, and saw just a single Greylag Goose, still without its partner. A Greenshank calling.
•Plenty of Shelducks on the river and hoping to see young soon.

•It's a big day for us tomorrow as we are moving house. We are moving from Seaton to Whitford, right where the birds are, a nice isolated area of countryside. Happy Days eh? The bungalow we are moving to, we have named 'Relief', which is well deserved, and we shall be much looking forward to it. It will be the world of birds, with 140 foot of prime, peaceful wilderness out the back, and a large amount of bird tables and feeders, half of the wildlife of Devon should end up in our garden. Well, we hope so anyway!

Happy Birding,
Simon Wakely.
 
All the best with your move, Simon and Sue! Sounds like you'll soon have a nice little nature reserve up and running!

Ian M sent me a text in the morning - a 1st-summer Glaucous Gull had made an appearance off the seafront before heading W. I carried on working. Bumped into Karen at lunch time, who happened to mention just having seen 3 Storm Petrels. Oh, and the Glaucous Gull had made a reappearance for her too. That news, plus a temptingly onshore wind, was all the incentive I needed to finish work a little early and go look at the sea. Ian and Karen thought likewise. Mostly pretty slow, but by 17:45 I'd clocked up the following: Gannet 24/10 (W/E), Manx Shearwater7, Kittiwake 26/3, Common Scoter 9/5, Guillemot 1, auk sp. 3. The highlights were a single Arctic Skua E, and a Pom Skua (distant, but complete with spoons) which first headed W and in, chasing Kittiwakes (which it dwarfed), and then cruised off E. Brilliant!
 
Another lunchtime "dog-walk come seawatch" for me |=)|

I certainly didn't expect to see Ian's earlier Glaucous Gull, so I was a really pleasantly surprised as it suddenly appeared in my scope, not far off the harbour entrance. A gorgeous pure white bird, which was a very welcome lifer for me, after having missed the other two on the patch this year!

A rather slow hour and a half seawatch (11:00 - 12:30) produced Gannet 16, auk sp.3, Kittiwake 12/2 Fulmar 8 ,Common Scoter 1, Manx Shearwater 1, and the undoubted highlight Storm Petrel 3!!

These were flying together and I got a very good, but typically brief, view of them as they sped though my field of view. I could clearly see the white rump of one of them, unfortunately I was being a bit of a wimp and sitting in the car and therefore had little scope maneuverability, so I soon lost them.

I joined Gav in the shelter later in the day but (typically for me at the moment) too late to see the Skuas.
 
Last edited:
Warning! This thread is more than 12 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

G
Mergansers, Scotland
Replies
5
Views
586
Gander
G
Andrew Whitehouse
Most misidentified birds in your area
2 3 4
Replies
73
Views
6K
hookem2010
hookem2010
M
Buzzard sp - Horton's Plain, Sri Lanka Nov 2023
Replies
10
Views
940
Muppit17
M
R
California, 2024
2 3
Replies
56
Views
5K
rkj
R
O
Cornwall Adventure
Replies
18
Views
1K
Original PaulE
O

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 3 (members: 0, guests: 3)
Back
Top