WeBS

A very disappointing August WeBS yesterday both in terms of numbers and variety. Sometimes I have to remind myself that the estuary is not a well-funded wader scrape on the east coast! Counts of herons and waders in particular were down on what I've come to expect at this time of year, especially at Passage House. Totals from here to Salcombe Dip included just 24 Little Egrets, one Grey Heron, ten Cormorants, five Little Grebes, 30+ Sandwich Terns, 500 Black-headed Gulls, 314 Oystercatchers, 87 Curlew, four Whimbrel, three Dunlin, two Ringed Plovers and two Common Sandpipers. I'm sure there were more waders about, as on Friday there were six each of Ringed Plover and Dunlin as well as two Redshanks at Flow Point.