Lizard seawatching

Back on patch again this weekend and with Atlantic weather systems dominating the forecast I thought I'd try seawatching. Yesterday the wind was from the south so I tried Bass Point. I didn't arrive until about half 10 due to a late night, but it still didn't disappoint. I never really last long on a seawatch and yesterday and today were both no exception, usually about two hours.
Yesterday at Bass Point, sheltered by the coastwatch station, things started off slow with a trickle of Balearic Shearwaters coming through. Groups of Razorbills were passing really close under the cliffs at Bass Point and Gannets were very numerous. About half an hour in a *Sooty Shearwater* passed fairly close and in good light followed by another shortly after. Balearics countinued passing with two groups holding 6 and 4 birds respectively passing really close in, just below the cliffs! Allowing a rare chance to look at the subtle features of their plumage from land. A total of 15 were recorded overall. The highlight of the seawatch came at 12.05pm when I picked up a large shearwater moving west in good light... it was a fantastic Great Shearwater! I watched it for about two minutes as it flew past and, being reasonably close, the views were brilliant. Walking back from Bass Point along the coast I saw a Pied Flycatcher in the bracken, loosely associating with a few Stonechats by the lifeboat station.

The wind veered west today so I attempted a seawatch off Lizard Point. Numbers of birds weren't as high as yesterday but still not bad. For a two hour seawatch I had 5 Sooties, 8 Balearics, some Razorbills and a Great Skua.     

Jynx torquilla

Yesterday morning I was back on the Lizard to see what was around. Having been there only ten minutes it was clear to see that there was a notable increase in birds around there area. Meadow Pipits and Skylarks were moving overhead and Chiffchaffs seemed to be everywhere. Blackcaps were also in good numbers. I counted 14 in total but there were no doubt more in the deeper cover.
The walk I do to cover as much as the point as I can takes me west past Bass Point and towards the Housel Bay Hotel. Whilst walking this stretch of the coast path a bird flew up and landed on the fence post just in front of me... it was a WRYNECK! It quickly dived into cover but then briefly landed in the open before flying off again. Despite searching the immediate area for a while I couldn't re-locate it, but that didn't matter, I'd found a Wryneck. The rest of the walk was fairly quite apart from a Wheatear by Housel Bay and a Garden Warbler in Caerthillian Cove.

Wheatear about to take off

Cornwall

Last Sunday I started my university studies based at Exeter's Penryn Campus nestled in the shipping town of Falmouth in Cornwall. The first step whilst settling in was to find a good patch to work. Falmouth has a few good sites, College and Argal Lakes, Pendennis Point for seawatching and Carrick Roads is a good spot for wintering grebes, divers, scoters etc. However, one site stood out from all the potential sites, was the Lizard. Only a half an hour drive from campus the most southly tip of Britain has an excellent track record and is fairly easy to cover. I will no doubt bird regularly around the sites in Falmouth because they are so close but for an actual patch, the Lizard is perfect.

Away from deciding on a new patch to work, I got out to a few sites to see what Cornish birding had to offer. The highlight of a short seawatch from Pendennis Point on the 12th were 2+ Balearic Shearwaters. Later that same day I went to Perranuthnoe to see the long-staying HUDSONIAN WHIMBREL, which showed very well throughout the visit.

Brown rump just visible

HUDSONIAN WHIMBREL

I had my first visit on to the new patch on the 13th and it was amazing. A brief hour seawatch from Lizard Point resulted in 7 Balearic Shearwaters, 4 Manxies, 2 Guillemots and good views of a superb Cory's Shearwater that lingered offshore for two minutes before carrying on west! Migrants on the land included 2 Whinchats and a *Turtle Dove*, my first in Britain!

On the morning of the 14th a twich to Argal Reservoir was rewarded with fantastic views of a juvenile Whiskered Tern. Often very mobile, travelling between College and Argal Lake, still some great views were had.

Whiskered Tern

Another visit to the Lizard on the 15th was a bit quieter, with 6 Wheatears, a Whinchat, 10 Chiffchaffs, and 15 Stonechats, plus great views of a Balearic Shearwater past the point.

Ginst, Angle and Ginst again...

Things are picking up once again as Autumn arrives. Patchworking at Ginst on the 28th August was rewarded with a smart female/imm Marsh Harrier quartering the saltmarsh and a Black-tailed Godwit.

A break from patch on the 3rd I met up with Dave Astins and Jason Moss for a look around Angle Bay. Conditions were very poor but despite this we tallied up a nice selection of waders at Kilpaison. Including: 2 Bar-tailed Godwits, 10 Knot and 8 Turnstone, 6 Curlew Sandpipers and a Little Stint, the latter a Pembs tick!

1 of the 6 Curlew Sands. at Kilpaison 

Back to Ginst the following day. Not the numbers of waders seen at Angle but still a nice selection: 6 Knot, 5 Turnstone, c150 Dunlin, c200 Ringed Plover, and the highlight, a smart juvenile Curlew Sandpipier- its that much better when you find one on your own patch!

Knot

Ginst Point Curlew Sand.

Hourtin Plage Holiday 10th-24th August

We spent two weeks at Hourtin Plage again this year. This time I managed a holiday list of 104 species beating last years list by 23. New birds this year included White Storks, Cattle Egrets, Ospreys, Nightjars, Serin, Tawny Pipits and a Crested Lark.
Seawatching off the beach was rewarding with Balearic Shearwaters moving through the bay most mornings, 14 Black Terns on the 19th, a Sooty Shearwater on the 20th, 2 Arctic Skuas on the 21st.
Hoopoes were more elusive this year with only one seen in Hourtin Plage village on the last day.
Wader numbers were higher than last year with good passage off the beach each morning and 2 juvenile Little Stints and 3 Green Sandpipers on the salt pans at Le Verdon-sur-Mer.

Yellow-legged Gull

Crested Tit

Kentish Plover

Short-toed Eagle

Osprey

Tawny Pipit

Little Stints