Devon Birds

I haven't been posting a while due to technical difficulties - hopefully they are fixed!

My first trip this year takes me to the South East coast of Devon, to see the fantastic birdlife which is around at this time of year. 

RSPB Bowling Green Marsh is a small reserve, with many pools and scrapes. Around the edge of one of the pools was this Snipe, hunkered down, trying not to be seen. Snipe are one of my favourite wading birds, they are so beautiful!

Soon, it was joined by another Snipe. They probed around in the wet grassland for a while, then waded across to the edge of a lagoon.

The main species on the pools at Bowling Green Marsh was Black-tailed Godwit, driven here by the rising tide from the Exe Estuary, where they were feeding. 

A little further down the Exe Estuary is Dawlish Warren Nature Reserve, which is a mix of estuarine, coastal and dune habitat. The spit at Dawlish Warren sticks out across the mouth of the Exe Estuary, and at high tide is a fantastic place to see 1000's of wading birds and waterfowl. A flock of around 100 Dunlin were being pushed by the tide up towards where I was sitting on the spit.

I was watching a group of 3 Dunlin feeding in a small puddle in the mud, working their way around the edge, coming a little closer, before wading off.

On the beach's shore line at Dawlish Warren, Turnstones were feeding; flipping over seaweed and pebbles with ease. I stayed as still as I could, which meant they could just carry on feeding, completely undisturbed by me. 

Turnstone have a very strong and powerful neck, which combined with its thick, short and strong bill, helps them flip over heavy rocks, pebbles and seaweed. This technique exposes small insects, such as sandhoppers, which other wading birds aren't able to access. 

Offshore at Dawlish Warren were quite a few different seabirds - Red-breasted Merganser, Red-throated Diver and these Eider ducks. There were 3 of them, 2 females and one immature male, which is the one you see flapping his wings, swimming along in the current, not too far away from the shore.

Further south along the coast is RSPB Labrador Bay, a small farmland reserve which looks out over Lyme Bay, and is one of the best places in the UK to see Cirl Bunting. 

I've wanted to see Cirl Bunting for many years and it didn't take long until I saw one...there was a flock of around 30 feeding in a stubble field right next to the car park!

Cirl Bunting have declined massively due to intensive farming practises, leading to a huge decline of food and nesting sites. By 1989, they were almost at the point of extinction in Britain, with only 118 pairs.

However, since then, the RSPB and landowners have done a huge amount of work to bring their numbers back; the UK now has over 1,000 breeding pairs. 

If you are interested, there is a page on the RSPB website which tells you all about it:

https://www.rspb.org.uk/about-the-rspb/at-home-and-abroad/england/cirlbuntings/

 

They are still very rare, are vulnerable to habitat loss, and there are only a handful of sites in South Devon and Cornwall where you can see them, but their numbers are on the rise.

Here's a video of Cirl Bunting feeding in the stubble field.

Its not just Cirl Bunting which can be found at RSPB Labrador Bay - I was lucky enough to have a very quick glimpse of this stunning Firecrest before it shot off into the safety of the hedge. Firecrest (one of our smallest breeding birds) can be told from there much commoner cousin the Goldcrest by there clear black eye stripe, white supercillium (the thick stripe above its eye) and much greener back. 

I didn't manage to get a great photo as it was really quick, but what a brilliant bird! 

Travel down the coast 6 miles from RSPB Labrador Bay and you will come to a SSSI, Hope's Nose, a headland which looks out onto Lyme Bay and the English Channel, and is one of the best places in Devon to seawatch.  

The furthest point of Hope's Nose has an almost 360 degree view of the sea and while I was there, I saw hundreds of Guillemot and Razorbill flying way out at sea. 

This Razorbill came quite close to where I was sitting, their distinctive thick, chunky bill, helps identify them from Guillemot.

Talking of Guillemot, here's one which also swam very close to the shore! While I watched it, Fulmar, Common Gull, Gannet, Mediterranean Gull, more Razorbill and Shag were all flying and swimming past. 

The sun beautifully lit this stunning male Shag, complete with his amazing crest.

The sun went back in...it clouded over...then a few spots of rain came...and then it started to snow! 

The Gannets flying offshore weren't deterred by it - I'm sure they've faced much worse when they've been flying in the open sea, many miles from shore. 

I noticed a small, grey wader feeding close to the crashing waves on the rocks below me...it was a Purple Sandpiper, my first ever!

Purple Sandpiper is mostly a Winter visitor to the UK, escaping the harsh cold on its breeding grounds in Scandinavia and the Arctic; around 10,000 of them come to our shores each year.

And with that I have come to the end of my Devon trip - what a great time I had! 

To finish off, here's a short video of the Dunlin at Dawlish Warren Nature Reserve.