Backwater Birding - Seaton, Devon (1 Viewer)

[Gavin Haig]

Hey Gav....the Med Gull I told you about, AANY , on the Otter on Nov 7th., was ringed on the very same day at the same place!
Bri

Hello Bri - on Saturday there was a 1st-winter at Northam Burrows (AALZ) also ringed on the Elbe on June 17th! Sounds like they had a busy day!

More Med Gulls today (with apologies to Bob Hastie for boring the pants of him with all this gull stuff!). Not sure if Phil is going to post tonight, but just in case not - he had 5 on the river this morning (3 adults and 2 second-winters). Late afternoon there were 6, but this time 5 adults and a 1st-winter (all unringed). So, again, at least 8 in total. Personally, I am now finding it quite impossible to keep track of them all, and have cheerfully given up, comfortable in the knowledge that we are getting (to use the official BTO survey jargon) 'loads of them'........

The patch is still awaiting its first double figure Med Gull count. Surely not far away.

Amongst the Black-headed throng was a leucistic individual. Where it should have been a nice, clean grey was very pale and bleached looking. The colour reminded me of some of the many Iceland Gulls we've had... |=)|

...my local gang of Herring Gulls round the house are suddenly back to their 'alert calling' ways - picking up several buzzards in the last few days...lets hope for a repeat of 2006 with a few diff spp...

Hi James - can I suggest that you put our numbers on your mobile as single-digit 'quick dials'. When that Black Kite puts in an appearance you don't want to be fumbling around with too many buttons mate!!

 

[Terry Smith]

Anyway back to why we are here Woodpeckers, first stop 2 Greatspots, Horsefeild next couldnt park Horses and hounds everywhere./QUOTE]

I hope this is isn't a reference to illegal hunting with hounds Simon! This practise still seems to be carried out by the Conservative-supporting "I'm above the law", Hooray Henries and Jolly Jemimas which frankly get right up my nostril! If you get wind of anything like this please report it to the police asap............

Yours "sportingly" Terry

 

[Steve Waite]

Hi James - can I suggest that you put our numbers on your mobile as single-digit 'quick dials'. When that Black Kite puts in an appearance you don't want to be fumbling around with too many buttons mate!!

Yeah, put me in as number 1!!!!

Just want to reflect on a moment that happened yesterday morning....one that really put an actual honest smile on my face....

There was me, at work, out in the back yard of Co-op, packing stock away into my outside chiller. I took a brief pause to enjoy the sun and the gorgeous blue sky when I heard the call of a Meadow Pipit. Over it came, quite low over the building, flying strongly west....
Part of my happiness was because this was the first passerine I'd seen this year actually undertaking visible migration, but it also triggered a flash back to last autumn, when I was enjoying several hundred of these 'rather boring' birds streaming through Beer Head. |=)| |=)| |=)|

Ringing in the morning, should have time for some birding too.....

 

[Steve Waite]

Evening.

I spent the morning ringing as planned, good to see the Combpyne Water Rail still there, showed fantastically this morning!

An afternoon trip to Colyford Common was enjoyable, one nice rosy breasted summer plumage littoralis Rock Pipit, 2 Water Pipits and an adult male White Wagtail (this one really is an eye-catcher, has a very sharp and clear divide from black nape to pale grey mantle).

Saw 8 Med Gulls (all un-ringed) on the river today, comprising 4 first-winters, 1 second-winter and 3 adults (1 near full hood, one half way and one pretty much in winter plumage). Yesterday's total included 5 adults and 2 second-winters, but only 1 first-winter.... So over two days we've definitely had 11 different birds...at least....

At Beer both Surf Scoter and Black Redstart still present, plus 7 Common Scoter.

 

[Gavin Haig]

A brief excursion early this morning was without too much excitement, though I could tell you about the Med Gulls I saw on the river....?

No??

OK.

I received another nice email from hardy Med Gull ringer, Andreas, who included this photo of the infant AANN. You know how adult summer Med Gulls are stunningly gorgeous? Well, they don't start out that way........ |=)|

 

[Steve Waite]

Morning people, bit of a damp one today!

Started with my monthly woodland bird survey - 5 Woodcock the highlight. Nice to hear lots of birds singing, including 3 Treecreepers, their song is just great! Just up from the woods, I stopped beside a field, it was a nice field too with 200 Linnets and 35 Fieldfare in!!

A look along the river produced 6 Med Gulls, 2 ads (looked like 2 from yesterday) and 4 first-winters - one of these wearing a green ring (probably our friend AATL). Also 200+ Common Gulls, 22 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, the leucistic Black-headed Gull (first seen on the 25th), 9 Black-tailed Godwits, 3 Dunlin, 105 Shelduck and the Gypo Goose.

Then had a 15 minute look out to sea starting at half ten; a Red-throated Diver was sat on the sea and 2 Common Scoter, 3 Guillemot and best of all, a second-winter Med Gull (my 7th today), flew west. Common Gulls were going through too, but only in dribs and drabs.

So, the passing 2W would be a new bird, and the green ringed 1W hasn't been seen in the past two days, which makes a 3-day total of at least 13 different Med Gulls. Cool! I just wonder how many others are passing at sea without stopping.....

 

[Roger Boswell]

This Iceland Gull was visible from the road about half-way along the river. It remained preening even when many of the other gulls around took flight.

 

[Simon Wakely]

Iceland Gull on the mud flats-am, terrible picture but a joy to see.

 

[Simon Wakely]

Well forum, good news mud and birds am, 7,Black Tailed Godwits, 5, at last Dunlin, A very Pale first Winter Iceland Gull. Pic posted, wish We didnt. Shellducks 101, Graylag trying to hide behind a post,with 2 Swans for cover, Sue dosent miss anything. No Egyptian to be seen.

 

[Simon Wakely]

We, are wondering if Sue, talked to Roger today, we both talked to a man parked ,behind us.

 

[Roger Boswell]

We, are wondering if Sue, talked to Roger today, we both talked to a man parked ,behind us.

Yes, it was me. I thank you both for pointing out this bird to me. I spent some time watching it - it was in no hurry to move on. As you have gathered from past postings I am quite a beginner at birding but, with all your help I have now seen both the Mediterranean and Iceland Gulls on the Axe. I am not sure that I would be able to spot the latter again without help but the Mediterranean ones seem easier to identify.

Roger

 

[Steve Waite]

The Iceland Gull eluded me all day, well done chaps.

Managed another look at the Gulls in my lunch break this evening: saw another 1st-winter Med Gull, one I haven't seen before, with very feint head markings. So that's 8 for today and 14 in the past three days.

 

[Steve Waite]

Can't stop, going to work.

In a nutshell, seawatching this morning was rather dull (odd Auk, Gannet etc) until a 1st-winter LAUGHING GULL sat on the sea in front of me! Rang Gav, it flew, I lost it, he turned up, we looked and looked but couldn't see it! Then my zoom lens broke on my scope (VERY bad timing!!)! We looked up the river, lots and lots of Gulls (including the Iceland and some Meds), but no Laughing. I then had to return home, need to go to work and be a taxi for mother.

Oh Ian M just rang me (he took position on the seafront when we were checking the river), he's just seen it flying slowly west offshore. Glad it's still about.

 

[Terry Smith]

I wonder if it's our Exmouth bird moved along the coast a bit. Seems highly likely. Couldn't find it when I looked for it yesterday afternoon! 2nd or 3rd record for the Axe area isn't it?

 

[JRE]

Jammy! You guys wish for something, and you get it! Steve, you said when there was a Laugher in Newton Abbot that you wanted it to move up to the Axe. A few weeks later - check RBA - there's a Laugher on the Axe! How do you do it??

 

[Steve Waite]

Jammy! You guys wish for something, and you get it! Steve, you said when there was a Laugher in Newton Abbot that you wanted it to move up to the Axe. A few weeks later - check RBA - there's a Laugher on the Axe! How do you do it??

Terry, second record mate following a first-winter on the estuary in 1984....bit of a gap that, 23 years!!

If someone could direct me to some photos of the Exmouth/Stover/Teign Laugher I would appreciate it. I've been told that it had a few feathers missing in its left wing, the only flight view I had was of it flying towards me, so I couldn't comment about any missing flight feathers.

Earlier when I said Ian saw it, I didn't realise how close he had it!!! In his words, "it flew slowly west two waves out"....wow that's close! He also had an adult Little Gull too, I had a feeling one of them was going to pop up.

Well, I really hope it hangs about for all to see, everyone deserves to see every bird on this patch.

Had a look over the Gull roost at Seaton Hole tonight when I finished work at 5, all I could see were 3 Meds (2 ads and 1 1W).

 

[Gavin Haig]

No Laughing Matter!!

Quite windy this morning, so thought an early look at the sea might be fun. There I am, contentedly monitoring the trickle of seabirds going W (I got up to 19 Gannets, 21 Kittiwakes, a very distant diver sp., plus a Red-throated on the sea) when the phone rang. A glance at the screen shows me it's the Jam Lord calling.

'Hi Steve!'

'Can you come down to the 'Spot-on'?' he says, without preamble. 'Right now!'

Experience tells me this urgent summons means a) Steve's got something good, and b) he's not 100% certain of the ID yet. In the past I've asked what he's got. This morning I was in the mood for mystery so just said OK and hurried down there. On the way I decided it was going to be the Otter Bonaparte's feeding along the tideline. I wasn't far off! In the 2 or 3 minutes it took me to get there the ID was clinched and the bird had vanished in the sun. Suspecting that it may have moved onto the estuary we decided to check it out. No sign. Steve has to go. While I'm still on the river Ian M has it fly slowly past the seafront, nice and close. I arrive 3 minutes too late......

Once upon a time, Laughing Gulls invaded SW Britain, raping and pillaging throughout Devon. Every village with a bus-stop received a visit - so we waited for ours. We waited...and we waited. Nothing. The clock moves forward a year and a bit. There's just ONE known Laughing Gull in the whole of the UK, and it lands in front of Steve! I am just a few hundred yards away. Twice. Hmmmmm.

Steve has just phoned and wonders whether it landed on the beach when he lost it - just sitting there while we went to search the river, and then giving Ian a nice, close fly-by. What a comforting thought....

Not ALL bad, though. It was an absolutely amazing day for gulls. During the early seawatch it was clear that masses of gulls were on the move. Loads of birds offshore, including numerous Commons, Black-headed and large gulls, mostly slowly heading W. Doubtless many were feeding too. Ian M had an adult Little Gull in the morning, too. Whilst searcing the river first thing Steve and I had the 1st-winter Iceland Gull and 4 Med Gulls. After a morning's work, I went to check the river again at lunchtime. Masses of gulls. Several Med Gulls, and I had a go at counting the Commons. Got up to 350-odd when the whole lot took flight and moved! Tsk! Yesterday I counted 232 Commons, which was a record for me here. Mid-afternoon I had another go, successfully. Here is my gull tally for the day:

1 Iceland Gull (1st-winter)
12 Med Gulls (2 adults, 3 2nd-winters, 7 1st-winters - including green AATL, and a new colour-ringed bird, red 5P5).
749 Common Gulls!!! With the birds moving through on the sea, plus later birds on the river, the day's total must be WELL over a thousand.
Wonder if this movement was picked up anywhere else along the coast?
[EDIT - both the Med Gull and Common Gull counts are local records, I think]

What with this lot, the Laughing Gull, Little Gull, recent Ring-billed, plus all the other goodies we've had of late, I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that the Seaton/Beer/Axe patch is mutating from anonymous, underwatched backwater into Prime Site. Have to rename this thread 'Birding in the Spotlight'!

 

[Larry Sweetland]

It's like one of those tests. Extrapolate the following series :-

Jan ..... Iceland, Feb...... Ring-billed, Mar..... Laughing, Apr..... ?

Best of luck to all of you down there for the Laughing Gull to appear again and stick around. It's not fair if you don't all get this one. (avid thread-follower here on the edge of his seat.)

 

[Kev Rylands]

Steve,

A couple of photos on this link. As I said, back in Jan it had a chunk of its left wing missing. The Newton bird was also small for a Laugher, smaller than some Black-heads.


http://www.birdguides.com/pictures/default.asp?t=377358&r=0&st=0&v=0

Cracking find, whether a new individual or not!

Cheers
Kev

 

[bun]

Evening all, had 2 looks at the gulls on Beer beach today lots of large gulls, mostly herring, great blk back , a few common and and quite a lot of blk headed, but no laughing gull...surfie still there with 7 common friends, got a feeling im gonna be spending the first few hours of work tomorrow cleaning down by the beach, (again!!)