Decoy/Teigngrace

An adult Mediterranean Gull came in to Decoy during a well timed scan of the lake but avoided the bread chasing Black-headed Gull flock, also there 17 Tufted Duck and a vocal Nuthatch.  Again no sign of the Cattle Egret at Teigngrace but eight Little Egret, 60 Redwing and two Mistle Thrush were in the fields. 

Elsewhere an early morning look around Passage House produced ten Little Grebes, two Greenshanks, two Wigeon, a Lesser Black-backed Gull and a good count of 92 Great Black-backed Gulls. Fourteen Teal and 17 Shelducks were on the pond at Luxton's Steps, and eight Ringed Plovers and 59 Dunlin were among the waders roosting between Flow Point and Salcombe Dip.

The past few days

A vocal Raven and two Stonechats were at Teigngrace this morning along with a pair of Sparrowhawks in display flight. There was no sign of the Cattle Egret though it was apparently still present (but elusive) yesterday. On Thursday Mark Bailey had a storm-driven Kittiwake on a flooded pool on the racecourse, and Cilla Ingram saw another Firecrest in vegetation surrounding Homebase in Kingsteignton on Tuesday.

Cattle Egret

A dull, wet morning was brightened by the discovery of a Cattle Egret by Mark Bailey at the now regular haunt of Teigngrace. It was in the large field west of the level crossing with four Little Egrets and a gang of Black-headed Gulls. The road north of the junction to Twelve Oaks is closed for several days, allowing a rare and enjoyable opportunity to view from the road bridge completely devoid of traffic.

Decoy Country Park held the usual assortment of waterfowl and woodland birds athough single Wigeon and Little Grebe were semi-noteworthy. A male Stonechat was on Newton Abbot racecourse along with a mixed flock of thrushes that included 10 Fieldfares (scarce here) and c.15 Mistle Thrushes. A short seawatch from Teignmouth yacht club at lunchtime produced c.40 Common Scoters, seven Great Northern Divers and a handful of Kittiwakes heading south. To the north several hundred Gannets were gathered off Dawlish seafront.

New Year

Returning to Devon from the south-east this afternoon meant I only had time for a quick blast around Hackney Marshes in the hour before sunset. I managed just 27 species but this did include a Firecrest in the woods and brief views of a somewhat pale Chiffchaff in bushes by the road. Elsewhere a brief early morning look from a Teignmouth window showed a female Black Redstart, a couple of Blackcap and a Mistle Thrush competing over palm berries. Robin Shute reported five Avocets on the estuary yesterday at Passage House.

Happy New Year to all readers of this blog!

Big Turnstone count

Whilst searching unsuccessfully for a Black Redstart around Teignmouth Port yesterday morning I came across a group of 31 Turnstones foraging along the quay - my best ever patch count and the largest number in the estuary for at least eight years (having checked DBR reports since 2010). There was little else of note although the Red-breasted Mergsanser party the other side of Shaldon Bridge had increased to 17.

Back in Black

An immature male Black Redstart was around the Rugby Club in Teignmouth this afternoon, the first at this previously regular site since the 14/15 winter. Also present at least one male Blackcap.

Low tide diversion

A Black-throated Diver, the first of the year, was a surprise in the estuary. The bird was feeding in the southern channel off Shaldon on the dropping tide. On the Salty a total of 10 Shelduck with a Mistle Thrush on Teignmouth Rugby pitch.

Dodgy sandpiper and WeBS

The snow-dusted peaks of Dartmoor provided an aesthetically pleasing backdrop to Saturday morning's count of the upper estuary, which was partly delayed by the discovery at Passage House of a presumed Common Sandpiper showing some characteristics of Spotted Sandpiper. Though it was always alone it appeared somewhat smaller than a typical Common Sand, with a fairly short primary projection and rear end, bold eyestripe and plain tertials, though the bill was fairly uniform-coloured and the legs weren't as yellow as you might expect. Any thoughts or comments would be appreciated (apologies for the picture quality).

Presumed Common Sandpiper, Passage House

Totals were generally down on what might be expected for December although the tides were lower than on most WeBS weekends. Fifteen Red-breasted Mergansers, 29 Shelducks, 60 Dunlin, 84 Redshanks, four Greenshanks, five Ringed Plovers and six Little Grebes were among the more notable counts.

Late news for Thursday: a Green Sandpiper showing no characteristics of Solitary Sandpiper was on the floods at Teigngrace south of the level crossing.

Nocturnal Calling

A Black-tailed Godwit flew over Teignmouth just before midnight, only the fourth record of the year on patch.

Firewalks

Although sightings are on the increase a Firecrest will always brighten any day's birding. At least two were around Shaldon this afternoon, one in the Holm Oaks on the Ness and a second in vegetation above Ness Beach. Chiffchaffs were also in both locations and offshore at least 90 Common Scoter.