Orcombe Point, Exmouth, Devon
An early morning look around didn’t prove successful. The place is really muddy and one of the fields has a stream flowing through it! I trudged along from Gore Lane and got to the mud bath that is the coastal path. My reward was a few Willow Warbler.
Mudbank Lane, Exmouth, Devon
I had a look here after Orcombe Point in the hope of a Osprey. Matt Knott turned up for a quick look but I stayed for a while. Just after Matt left I came across another odd Gull. The bird in question was very white apart from black tips on the primaries. It was noticeably smaller than the European Herring Gulls too (about Iceland Gull size). This is where it gets weird and sounds like I’m jumping on the band wagon. Matt had explained to me that there had been a report (not sure of the credibility) of a Thayer’s Gull at Dawlish Warren a few weeks ago. Now it’s going to sound like I am wanting this to be that bird. This isn't a case of my just having a case of wishful thinking. I have to go with what I saw. I have an app that can ID from a photo. I’ve tried it out on every photo I’ve taken (to test for its accuracy) and it’s been 100% correct (even with my rubbish photos). When I put my photos in of this bird it comes back with an immature Thayer’s Gull as the best match. With all these pointers I am left thinking "Is this the real deal?" These are my crappy photos and it’s the bird on the right.
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| (Putative) Thayer’s Gull |
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| (Putative) Thayer’s Gull |
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| (Putative) Thayer’s Gull |
Near Smeatharpe, Devon
I had a meeting in a remote portacabin near Smeatharpe this afternoon. When the meeting was over I popped out of the cabin for a cigarette and was greeted by the call of a Western Yellow Wagtail. After a few seconds I located 4 smart individuals. Really unexpectedly but enjoyable.
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| Western Yellow Wagtail |
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| Western Yellow Wagtail |
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| Western Yellow Wagtail |
Otter Estuary, Budleigh Salterton, Devon
I had walk from Lime Kiln car park to white bridge after work. I had seen a report of a Common Grasshopper Warbler so was hopefull it hadn’t moved on. No sign of the bird but in the first reed bed after the hide was a Eurasian Reed Warbler. Nothing else of note.
2 comments:
Hi Spencer - I actually said there had been an erroneous report of a Thayers and that the bird in question was an abberant Herring Gull. The bird you've photographed is the same abberant Herring Gull, most definitely NOT Thayers! Cheers. Matt
Ahh I must have missed heard you sorry mate. I was still without my second coffee. Coincidence that I should come across it though. Literally minutes after you mentioned it. Note to self... have more coffee in the morning or get my ears checked out lol. What confuses me about this bird though is the size difference. So I can see why I was reported as a Thayer’s to be honest. I wasn’t booking it as, it just looked the part.
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