Marsh Tit

On a fine winter's morning the woods at Decoy Country Park held plenty of birds including at least one Marsh Tit, a Treecreeper, two Great Spotted Woodpeckers and three Nuthatches. On the lake the Great Northern Diver was still present alongside just four Tufted Ducks; one wonders what has caused the latter to decline from a regular wintering flock of 30+ just a few years ago.

A late afternoon look from the yacht club at Teignmouth saw two Great Northern Diver, four Eider, 13 Common Scoter and an adult Mediterranean Gull with two Great Skua sat further offshore.  

Little Gulls

Three first-winter Little Gulls appeared along Teignmouth seafront on Monday, and one of them had the courtesy to stay until the weekend to allow myself and Kev to catch up with it yesterday. Although it went missing for short periods, it spent the majority of the time foraging along the shoreline either side of the pier, giving exceptional views in flight. Two Eiders were still present on the rocks at the foot of the Ness, and four Great Northern Divers, two Red-throated Divers and nine Common Scoters were offshore towards Holcombe.

Elsewhere, 15 Lapwings at Passage House was the highest count this month of this declining winter visitor. On Friday the female Goldeneye was still in the channel there at high tide alongside the female Wigeon, a couple of Red-breasted Mergansers and Little Grebes, four Greenshanks and three Common Sandpipers.

A Great Northern Diver was still on Decoy Lake with a lone Tufted Duck having first been reported a week ago.

Ducks unlimited

The floods at Teigngrace produced an unexpected variety of dabbling ducks this morning with three Shovelers, 11 Gadwalls, 12+ Teal and 40+ Mallards alongside 11 Mute Swans, nine Little Egrets and a female Stonechat. At the other end of the patch three Eiders - a male and two females - were in the mouth of the estuary off Teignmouth along with a Great Northern Diver. A further three GNDs were to the north of the pier, including two giving great views together off the yacht club; one was also seen on Decoy Lake this morning.

Goldeneye & WeBS

A female Goldeneye in the channel off Passage House was the standout bird of this morning's count, which was postponed by a day after a wet and very windy weekend. This is the first Goldeneye on patch since January 2013, up until which time it was a regular wintering bird on the estuary. Other totals included 302 Oystercatchers, 86 Curlew, 72 Redshanks, 32 Dunlin, four Greenshanks, three Common Sandpipers, three Ringed Plovers, 25 Red-breasted Mergansers, 15 Shelducks, eight Mute Swans, seven Little Egrets, five Little Grebes and a female Wigeon.

Mazy Sunday Afternoon

Spent the afternoon checking various sites around the Teign with varying rewards. Starting at the east of the patch in Teignmouth there was still no sign of any wintering Black Redstart and a no show from the Firecrest along the railway. Viewing from the Yacht Club three Eider were offshore, an immature male of Sprey Point and a female and a second immature male almost under the pier. Also on the sea 67 Common Scoter and a Red-throated Diver.

Next stop was Teigngrace at the far western end of the patch, here the flooded fields held six Little Egret, 90+ Mallard and two Teal but nothing could be unearthed in the tit flock along the Templar Way. A quick stop at Hackney Marshes revealed another couple of warblerless roving tit flocks.

A final low tide stop at Passage House saw a Water Pipit and half a dozen Snipe flushed from the Saltmarsh by a couple of dogs, two Common Sandpiper in the channel and 13 Little Egret heading downriver to roost.

Bold Brent Goose

No luck with finding a Black Redstart around Teignmouth port this morning, but a juvenile Dark-bellied Brent Goose foraging around the foot of the slipway was a belated first for the year. Initially it appeared to be hanging its right wing slightly, suggesting an injury, but after waddling up to the Polly Steps car park it readily took flight and landed randomly in a park on the opposite side of the railway. After almost being attacked by a dog it clearly thought better of it and flew back to the estuary, where it was still present on the Salty this afternoon. Also around Polly Steps today 10 Turnstones and a Firecrest in the scrub by the railway.

 A couple of shots I forgot to post from Passage House last weekend, in between the downpours

WeBS

In between the torrential showers counts from the estuary over the weekend included 269 Oystercatchers, 74 Curlew, 51 Redshanks, 10 Greenshanks, eight Ringed Plovers, seven Dunlin, six Lapwings, four Common Sandpipers, 36 Mallards, 30 Mute Swans, 23 Shags, 19 Red-breasted Mergansers, six Little Grebes and a Kingfisher.

Elsewhere the floods at Teigngrace held 12 Little Egrets, three Teal, 95 Canada Geese and 500+ Black-headed Gulls on Sunday morning. No Cattle Egrets in the cattle fields - yet.

Velveteign

A quick afternoon look from Teignmouth Yacht Club showed a raft of 34 Common Scoter and two Great Northern Diver. More unexpected though were three immature Velvet Scoter, the first of the year, they kept separate from the scoter flock being closer in off Sprey Point.

Roost reward

The timing of the dropping tide and sunset was ideal for checking gulls pre-roost on the Salty, especially with the windy conditions. The wind meant no birds were roosting offshore so numbers where much higher than normal. I had intended to count the roost but my second scan through the birds scuppered this plan.

The distraction was a smart first winter Caspian Gull, only my second on the estuary. Almost as soon as I found it all the birds were flushed by a helicopter, but they soon settled back down and the bird was easily picked up a second time. although distinctive, refinding was helped but it coming closer and roosting separately from the majority of other larger gulls.

Also on the Salty seven Turnstone and the white-headed Oystercatcher.

Late news for Thursday - an immature Eider was off Teignmouth per Devon Sea Safaris

Returning waterfowl

In a bitterly cold northerly wind this morning, the sheltered southern side of the Ness still held two Firecrests but the bushes between there and Bundle Head were blown out and very little was moving overhead bar a few finches. A scan of the estuary towards Flow Point from Salcombe Dip layby at high tide produced four female Red-breasted Mergansers, four Wigeon and 23 Shelducks - all recent arrivals - plus at least 274 Oystercatchers and 31 Redshanks roosting up against the railway.