A quick look at the Exminster Marshes this morning got me the following . Eleven Barnacle Goose were still on show but you still had to wade through the flooded road to see them . 2 Egyptian Goose then flew over and out onto the main marsh .
But the highlight of the day for me were 2 Water Pipit that showed near the middle car park . Also seen were Peregrine Falcon , Common Buzzard , Common Kestrel , Water Rail , Redwing and Goldcrest .
A quick trip this afternoon over to the Exeminster Marshes to look for some Barnacle Goose that had been found earlier . I parked the car up further back the road as it was flooded so I waded through with my wellies on to a spot where I could view the birds and I saw eleven of them , but by the time I got there the flock had split in two and the most I could get together was six .
It is quite rare for us to get as many as this in a flock in the South West of England , so I was happy to get the chance to see and photograph them .
This morning I went out to the Exwick area of Exeter again to look for the Dusky Warbler .The weather was a lot better today with a bit of sunshine so my hopes were high of seeing the bird again .
I arrived to find some birders already there and they said that the bird had show on and off . And after a while the bird was picked up low down in the scrub and showed well for a short spell allowing me to grab this shot of it .
Also seen were a male and female Goosander , a Common Kingfisher and 3 Common Chiffchaff .
A trip up to North Devon today with the first stop at the Brauton Burrows to look for a couple of reported Snow Bunting and it was not to long before we found them . Now I just love these stunning little birds and it was a joy to have a bit of time to dwell on them .
We then headed for Fremington Pill where we saw a couple of Spotted Redshank , a Common Greenshank and four of the birds that we had come looking for the Glossy Ibis , at first there was no sign of them but then they were found roosting in trees and after a while they dropped down to the stream and showed very well . The light was very harsh to get good photos of them but we tried our best lol .
This morning I went out to the Exwick part of Exeter to look for a Dusky Warbler that was reported there yesterday . By the time I got there and walked up to the very end of the flood relief . Drizzle had set in and I started getting wet , I started looking across the river at a row of trees where the bird had been seen but all was quiet . but after around 15 minutes I heard the bird calling and I got a brief view of it as some Long-Tailed Tits went through the trees but it went in quite deep , it called a few times more but I didn`t see it again , I got a bit wet but was very pleased in the end .
Also seen were 2 Great Black-Backed Gull , a Little Grebe and this Grey Wagtail
This female European Green Woodpecker came to my garden 2 or 3 times this morning as it had found a food source , it has been a while since the last one I had in the garden and it is always an enjoyment to see these birds .
Now Red Kite is a majestic looking bird . And today I lucky enough to see two of them from the car , with one of them near Reading in Berkshire and another near Watford in Hertfordshire .
A trip up to the Steart Marshes today to look for a reported Eastern Yellow Wagtail and some Penduline Tit but luck was out today as I didn`t see either of them .
But I did see this 1st winter female Merlin that was sat on a post only 10 feet in front of me , a truly amazing encounter for me and one I will remember for quite a while . Also seen was a Western Marsh Harrier , a superb male and a female Hen Harrier a bird that I am always glad to see , 20+ Fieldfare , 3 Common Chiffchaff and 6 Common Stonechat
I had a walk around Topsham this morning and I found a Spotted Redshank on the far bank at Goosemoor . I then carried on towards Bowling Green Marsh and I saw the resident Mistle Thrush that is always in the tree with the mistletoe in it .
There was not a lot to see on the marsh with only , 11 Greylag Geese , 2 male Northern Pintail , 2 Common Greenshank , 6 Redwing , a Common Chiffchaff and 3 male and 2 female Eurasian Bullfinch . And back home there was a flock of over 30+ Redwing in the Topsham Cemetery grounds .
We only have one Kingfisher in this country the Common Kingfisher and even though I have seen many Kingfishers around the world I still get a bit of a buzz when I see ours !
And that is just what happened today as I had gone to Exton Marsh to look for some reported Water Pipits but my luck was out and I only saw Rock and Meadow Pipits . But as I was scanning the marsh there was a female Common Kingfisher that was showing very well , and at one point a male bird came into her territory but she soon chased him off and carried on with her fishing .
A trip up to the Haldon Forest on the edge of Exeter this morning and the first birds that I saw was a flock of 30+ Common Crossbill that flew over my head but they never stopped .
I then had a look around the feeders where I saw a male and female Brambling one of our smart looking winter finches , numerous Coal Tit a male and female Great Spotted Woodpecker , around a dozen Common Chaffinch , a couple of Eurasian Nuthatch and quite a few Eurasian Siskin .
Today saw me again on the Exminster Marshes but the birding was very slow today and all I saw was the long staying Snow Goose , 20+ Northern Pintail and 5 Common Stonechat .
So I then went to Powderham Corner and walked up to the estuary wall and took a look at the Exe Estuary where I saw 20+ Common Ringed Plover and a few Dunlin . And in the field by the new bridge was a Common Snipe and a nice to see Song Thrush a bird that is not as common now as it used to be .
I had news of a Short-Eared Owl that was seen a couple of days ago near the back path on the Exminster Marshes . So I went over this morning to look for it but alas there was no sign of it , I can remember the days when you could see 5 or 6 of these birds on the marsh at this time of the year ...but not anymore .
But I did see the following , a Water Rail , a male Peregrine Falcon , 2 Common Raven , 10 Long-Tailed Tit and a Common Chiffchaff . I then took a look around the Turf Locks / Exe Estuary area and I saw 500+ European Golden Plover , a Common Kingfisher , a Rock Pipit , 2 Cetti`s Warbler and around 20+ Redwing .
On the Exminster Marshes this morning the drake American Wigeon was in with a flock of 300+ Eurasian Wigeon that flew across the marsh and landed out by the main lagoon , obviously it must be the bird that was found a while back on the Exe Estuary at Exmouth by fellow birder Matt Knott but where it has been since then is a bit of a mystery . Also seen was the female Western Marsh Harrier , a Grey Wagtail , 4 Cetti`s Warbler , a Common Chiffchaff , a Song Thrush and 2 Redwing .
I walked down as far as the Turf Locks and a look at the Exe Estuary got me a few Pied Avocet , 4 Grey Plover and 400+ European Golden Plover . And close to the locks a Common Kingfisher showed well and as I was trying to get a shot of it I noticed a bird that was diving quite a lot , so I went to see what it was and to my amazement it was a Common Guillemot a very rare bird to be found this far upriver away from the coast .
A trip up to the Apex Leisure Park in Somerset this morning to look for a Tundra Bean Goose and a couple of Russian White-Fronted Geese that have been on the lake for a few days , and both showed very well along with a few Greylag Geese . Also heard was a calling Yellow-Browed Warbler .
Today was started at Goosemoor in Topsham where there was a Green Sandpiper that was my first on the Exe Estuary this year , also seen were a few Black-Tailed Godwit and some Common Greenshank . Next a look at Bowling Green Marsh produced 3 Dunlin , a Red Knot and 3 Stock Dove but the viewing is very restricted .
I then went across to the Exminster Marshes and I saw the following birds . 20+ Dark Bellied Brent Goose , 400+ European Golden Plover , a Common Kestrel , a Eurasian Sparrowhawk , a female Merlin that has been around the marshes for a while now but it has taken me 5 trips to catch up with it ! I then saw my bird of the day ...my first ever Ring Ouzel on the marshes , an adult female bird that was in with a few Common Blackbird and Redwings .
