The Topsham Area

A look at Bowling Green Marsh today got me 10 Red Knot , 3 CommonBuzzard , a Eurasian Sparrowhawk , a juvenile Peregrine Falcon , 2 Eurasian Nuthatch , 12 European Robin , 7 Winter Wren , a Cetti`s Warbler and a Common Chiffchaff and from the back path this female Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen in the Riversmeet House garden , a look at the Clyst Estuary didn`t turn up much with only 3 Grey Plover , a Bar-Tailed Godwit and a Common Kingfisher seen , I then walked back to the car to head for home but before going I had a look at Goosemoor where 2 juvenile Ruff showed very well .

Great Spotted Woodpecker ( Dendrocopos major ) . Riversmeet House . Topsham . Devon

Ruff ( Philomachus pugnax ) . Goosemoor . Topsham . Devon

Grey Phalarope

I got a call from my mate Andy this morning saying that there was a Grey Phalarope on the Steart Marshes so off we went for it , when we got to the Otterhampton Marsh where the bird had been seen we got news of whereabouts the bird was and we soon got on to it , but it was on the most furtherest pool and then it only showed for a short while before it was lost from view
We then had a look at Durleigh Reservoir for a Pectoral Sandpiper and the bird was right up the far end and once again was a bit distant but showed quite well ! and while we were looking at it 2 Great White Egret were putting on a bit of show chasing each other around the Reservoir !! 

Grey Phalarope ( Phalaropus fulicarius ) , Otterhampton Marsh . The Steart Marshes . Somerset

Pectoral Sandpiper ( Calidris melanotos ) . Durleigh Reservoir . Somerset

Great White Egret ( Casmerodius albus ) . Durleigh Reservoir . Somerset

Bowling Green Marsh

A look from the hide at Bowling Green Marsh this morning got me numerous Eurasian Wigeon and Common Teal , around a dozen Northern Pintail , 2 Grey Heron , a Common Sandpiper and a couple of Grey Squirrel .
I then went to my favourite part of the marsh the area around the viewing platform as I have had a few good birds around there in the past but not a lot was seen today with the most numerous bird being the European Robin with 20+ seen , also seen were 8 Winter Wren , 4 Dunnock , 2 Eurasian Sparrowhawk , a Eurasian Jay and 2 Eurasian Nuthatch and a look from the viewing platform only got me a Grey Wagtail .

Eurasian Nuthatch ( Sitta europaea ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon

Grey Squirrel ( Sciurus carolinensis ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon

Some late add on`s from the 22 /9 /16

Iberian Water Frog ( Pelophylax perezi ) . Ham Wall . Somerset . 22 . 9 . 2016

Also know as Perez`s Frog

Great Cormorant ( Phalacrocorax carbo ) . Ham Wall . Somerset . 22 / 9 / 2016

Pectoral Sandpiper

Today saw me up at Meare Heath in Somerset looking for a juvenile Pectoral Sandpiper and the bird showed quite well but was always a bit distant to be able to get anything more then just record photographs , it was on the main scrape along with 4 Little Stint , 4 Ruff , 3 Common Ringed Plover , 2 Green Sandpiper , 2 Red Knot , 3 Common Snipe & 2 Eurasian Hobby , I then went and had a look at the Ham Wall Reserve where there was 4 Great White Egret , a Great Bittern , 2 Little Grebe and 2 Western Marsh Harrier .... also seen were quite a few Iberian Water Frogs .

Pectoral Sandpiper ( Calidris melanotos ) . Meare Heath . Somerset

Little Grebe ( Tachybaptus ruficollis ) . Ham Wall RSPB . Somerset

The Top Fields

This afternoon I went for a walk around the top fields at Orcombe Point in Exmouth the first birds that I saw were a few Willow Warbler and Common Chiffchaff , I then had a look in a field with some cows in it and I saw 20+ Yellow Wagtail always a nice bird to see , Meadow Pipit were just about everywhere , 4 Northern Wheatear , Barn Swallow were passing overhead all of the time and heading out to sea and I finished the day with a European Green Woodpecker .
Good birds , good weather and the unbeatable Devon Countryside , Ohhh we are so lucky !!!

Yellow Wagtail ( Motacilla flavissima ) . Orcombe Point Top Fields . Exmouth . Devon

Lesser Grey Shrike

I started today with a look at Goosemoor in Topsham where I saw a Spotted Redshank , 2 Grey Plover and a Water Rail , then I had a quick look at Bowling Green Marsh but the only birds of note were a Bar-Tailed Godwit and a Common Snipe , I then thought that I would look for Osprey on the Exe Estuary but there was none to be seen and all I saw were 2 Common Kingfisher and a Common Sandpiper .
But then I got news of an adult Lesser Grey Shrike showing at the Mount Batten area of Plymouth and seeing that I had only seen one in Devon before in 2002 at Dawlish Warren I decided to go for it ! I picked up my mate Charlie Fleming another bird photographer and off we went for it , on arrival we were told that the bird had not been seen for over an hour and our chins were on the floor !! but soon news came that the bird had been found further along the coast line so we got there as fast as we could and the bird showed very well to the group of birders assembled in the top fields... a great little bird !

Lesser Grey Shrike ( Lanius minor ) . Mount Batten . Plymouth . Devon

Saturday 17th September

I start today at Davidstow Airport in Cornwall where I went to look for a juvenile Buff-Breasted Sandpiper and the bird performed really well early in the morning showing right beside the main runway , also seen were 3 Common Ringed Plover , 2 Dunlin , 3 Northern Wheatear , 50+ British Pied Wagtail , 3 White Wagtail , 2 Yellow Wagtail , 50+ Common Starling with a juvenile Rose-Coloured Starling in with them , 60+ Common Linnet and a Common Raven .
The next stop was at small creek called Fremington Pill that is just outside of Barnstaple in North Devon where there was a Glossy Ibis and a juvenile Lesser Yellowlegs that were showing very well to a small group of birdwatchers .

Buff-Breasted Sandpiper ( Tryngites subruficollis ) . Davidstow Airport . Cornwall

Rose-Coloured Starling ( Pastor roseus ) . Davidstow Airport . Cornwall

White Wagtail ( Motacilla alba ) . Davidstow Airport . Cornwall

Lesser Yellowlegs ( Tringa flavipes ) . Fremington Pill . Devon

Glossy Ibis ( Plegadis falcinellus ) . Fremington Pill . Devon

Red-Backed Shrike

A trip over to Beer Head in East Devon today to look for a reported juvenile Red-Backed Shrike and I was lucky enough to find the bird right where I was told it was and it showed very well ( Thanks Bun ) , I also saw 20-30 Meadow Pipit , numerous Barn Swallow with a few Common House Martin in with them , 17 Yellow Wagtail were seen in the sheep field along with 3 Northern Wheatear and a Common Raven flew over .

Red-Backed Shrike ( Lanius collurio ) . Beer Head . Devon

Good Numbers !!

This morning I birded the top fields at Orcombe Point in Exmouth from 7 - 10 am and when I arrived it was a gorgeous morning but by the time I had finished it had gone from quite misty to being clear again and there was quite a fall of birds in good numbers , I looked all around the fields but couldn`t turn up anything new but I could never be unhappy with what I did see ! with 30-40 Yellow Wagtail of all ages in with the cows and a fantastic sight to have them flying overhead , 14 Northern Wheatear including a male and female of the Greenland race , 20+ Meadow Pipit , Willow Warbler and Common Chiffchaff were everywhere and if I said 50+ of each I expect that was only the tip of what was here , a Common Whitethroat , 16 European Goldfinch , 20+ Common Linnet and a male Eurasian Sparrowhawk , a great few hours birding .

Yellow Wagtail ( Motacilla flavissima ) . Orcombe Point Top Fields . Exmouth . Devon

Northern Wheatear ( Oenanthe oenanthe ) . Orcombe Point Top Fields . Exmouth . Devon

Bearded Tit

The highlight today was a probable juvenile Bearded Tit that was seen at the base of  the reeds on the far side of Bowling Green Marsh but it only showed on and off popping in and out of the reed bed in exactly the same spot as 3 were seen a few years back ! but I would like to have seen a bit more of it !!! also seen today were juvenile Wood Sandpiper , a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper , Common Sandpiper ,  2 Common Ringed Plover , 20+ Dunlin and a European Reed Warbler & on the Clyst Estuary there was 6 Red Knot , a Spotted Redshank and this Great Cormorant .

Red Knot ( Calidris canutus ) . The Clyst Estuary . Topsham . Devon

Great Cormorant ( Phalacrocorax carbo ) . The Clyst Estuary . Topsham . Devon

Afternoon visit .

This afternoon I had a call telling me that there was a couple of Yellow Wagtail on Bowling Green Marsh so I hurried down in hope of getting a shot of them only to find out that they had flown to another part of the marsh , so I settled down to have a look at what else was on show and I saw a juvenile Garganey , 3 Curlew Sandpiper , a Wood Sandpiper , a Common Sandpiper , a single Pied Avocet , a juvenile Bar-Tailed Godwit & 3 Common Ringed Plover , I then walked down to the viewing platform end of the marsh where there was 20+ Barn Swallow and the 2 Yellow Wagtail were now found again in with the cows , a look at the Clyst Estuary got me 2 Red Knot on the Exe Estuary an Osprey was fishing way down near to Starcross .

Common Sandpiper ( Aactitis hypoleucos ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon

Osprey

There was still an Osprey fishing on the Exe Estuary this afternoon , then I had a look at Bowling Green Marsh where there was 18 Northern Pintail , 20+ Eurasian Wigeon , numerous Black-Tailed Godwit , 5 Bar-Tailed Godwit , a Spotted Redshank , 2 Common Ringed Plover , a few Northern Lapwing were scattered around the marsh including this photographed juvenile bird , numerous Dunlin , a single Common Sandpiper and 2 White Wagtail that showed for a short while before flying off towards the Exminster Marshes .

Northern Lapwing ( Vanellus vanellus ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon

Sea Watching

The rain was falling quite heavy this morning so I  did a bit of a sea watch  off of Exmouth but I didn`t see a lot in the poor light but I did see 15 European Shag , 9 Northern Gannet , 8 Common Scoter and 2 Manx Shearwater , I then had a look around the top fields at Orcombe Point but with the rain I only saw 4 Yellow Wagtail and a Common Chiffchaff , I decided to head for home getting an adult White Wagtail on Exmouth Beach on the way .
I stopped for a quick look at Bowling Green Marsh were there was a lot more Common Teal than before , a single Common Sandpiper and a Stock Dove .

Common Teal ( Anus crecca ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon

Exmouth

I was up very early this morning to check out the top fields around the Orcombe Point area but there was hardly any birds at all with the most impressive being a flock of 30+ Common Raven flying over , I havn`t seen a flock of this size for a long time ! besides that there was a fly over Yellow Wagtail and Grey Wagtail , 4 Winter Wren , 2 Common Linnet , a Willow Warbler and a Painted Lady Butterfly , I then had a look at the Exmouth Cricket Pitch where there were 2 White Wagtail in with 6 British Pied Wagtail and a 1st winter Northern Wheatear . 

White Wagtail ( Motacilla alba ) . Exmouth Cricket Pitch . Devon

Garganey again

Down for a look at the Bowling Green Marsh again today and the birding wasn`t to bad at all with the juvenile/female Garganey showing again if not another one ! also seen were 4 Northern Pintail , the Spotted Redshank had now gone up by another to 3 , 2 Curlew Sandpiper , a Common Sandpiper , another Wood Sandpiper , 2 Pied Avocet , 3 Bar-Tailed Godwit , 3 Whimbrel and an adult Mediterranean Gull .
A look from the Viewing platform at the Clyst Estuary produced a Water Rail , a Grey Wagtail and a Common Kingfisher , I then decided to go to Exton Station and on the way there I checked the cattle in the Darts Farm field for Yellow Wagtails but there was none to be seen but 2 Common Raven showed very well , once at the station I started looking at the Exe Estuary for any Osprey and I managed to see 4 juveniles today plus a male Peregrine Falcon and 2 Sandwich Tern , also seen was a Clouded Yellow Butterfly and a Hummingbird Hawkmoth .

Common Raven ( Corvus corax ) . Darts Farm . Topsham . Devon

Mediterranean Gull ( Larus melanocephalus ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon

Osprey ( Pandion haliaetus ) . The Exe Estuary . Devon

Osprey Day !!

A quick look from the hide at Bowling Green Marsh got me 3 Bar-Tailed Godwit , 3 Whimbrel and a Spotted Redshank , I then went down to the fields near the viewing platform and saw 2 Eurasian Nuthatch , a European Green Woodpecker , a Great Spotted Woodpecker , 5 Long-Tailed Tit , a Grey Wagtail , a fly over calling Yellow Wagtail and a single juvenile Willow Warbler .
A look from the viewing platform at the Clyst/Exe Estuaries turned out to just amazing birding with 6 Osprey seen !! we had 2 catch fish and fly off with them towards the Exminster Marshes and another 4 were still fishing over the Exe together , it is the most that I have ever seen together over the estuaries , it was just a pity that they were all to far down to get shots of them , also seen were 2 Curlew Sandpiper , a Common Sandpiper and 2 Common Kingfisher .

Willow Warbler ( Phylloscopus trochilus ) . Bowling Green Marsh . Topsham . Devon