Please think very carefully before posting any information on scarce or rare breeding species both here and elsewhere online.

A list of ‘at risk’ species in the county can be found here. Many of these receive full legal protection under Schedule 1 and/or are rare in the county and may be vulnerable to persecution/disturbance. It is an offence to intentionally disturb any of the Schedule 1 species during the breeding season without a valid licence. This also applies to anyone taking photographs of these species at or near the nest or whilst feeding dependant young. 

You should also apply these principles to vulnerable species without the wider legal protection. 

Although some species may be found breeding at numerous locations, please keep information about them limited to well-known sites (e.g. Labrador Bay for Cirl Bunting and Aylesbeare Common for Dartford Warbler). Others may be found as obvious migrants and as such can also be posted eg coastal Ring Ouzel and passage waders, or raptors eg Little Ringed Plover, Red Kite or Marsh Harrier.

If you have any doubts and think there is a chance there may be breeding, either because of the habitat or behaviour of the bird(s) then do not post, but please submit your records to the County Recorder and, as appropriate, the RSPB. 

Please be aware that egg collecting and other forms of disturbance and persecution remain very real hazards for some of Devon’s birds. Unfortuately this can involve people wanting to photograph or obtain close views of the  birds, as well as eg egg collectors. 

Every year editors on this site have to remove or edit posts which breach the code outlined here. Please play your part in making this unnecessary. 

Thank you.

Please take extra care when visiting Dawlish Warren. We have been informed that due to the recent bad weather there has been significant erosion from Groyne 10 eastwards. This means that access along the site, to and from Warren Point (and the bird hide) will be via the beach only, with a risk of being cut off for a period either side of high water! Signs have been put up to alert people to the hazards, but people need to be aware that access routes that they have become used to may not be available and they need to exercise extreme caution,  with the possibility of being cut off by the tide, and people are strongly urged not to try climbing the sand cliffs. Further information is available on the Teignbridge District Council website.

If you follow our Blog but are not currently a member of Devon Birds please consider joining Devon Birds to help us with the upkeep of running the website and this service as well as our valuable conservation work .

Acting on comments to Devon Birds some changes have been made to this page. To the right of this header post you'll see there are now several subjects for you to choose to read and post on. Just click your chosen subject and use as previously.

Please be careful not to post under the wrong subject. If you do, you can still easily go back to edit and change the subject yourself so it appears on the right page.

Please try and keep posts short, particularly in the Scarce / Rare Birds & Passage Counts page. Photographs are still very welcome.  

For help with ID email photos to id@devonbirds.org.

Lovely afternoon walking around the quarry (not trespassing as i work there). Lots of Wheatear, Sky Larks, Meadow Pipits, Sand Martins, Swallows, Pied Wagtails, Goldfinches, Tufted Ducks, Little Grebes and a pair of Reed Buntings to name a few.

Sand Martin

Skylark

Wheatear

Eleven members enjoyed the sunny weather walking to and round the quarry to the north of Haytor rocks.   Good views of male Yellowhammer, juvenile Wheatear, several Chiffchaff (possibly some were Willow Warblers) and many Stonechat.  Blackcap in the quarry with plenty of Swallows flying round including some juveniles.   We moved to Blackslade Water and located a Marsh Tit along with Stonechat, Goldfinch, Swallows and Chiff / Willow W..  Species count: 24.  

5 purple hairstreaks in the big oak on the woodland edge at the bottom right corner of the orchard. Also along the bottom edge of the orchard, small and large skipper, large and green-veined white, peacock, red admiral, silver washed firtillary, meadow brown, ringlet, gatekeeper, speckled wood (most of these on the flowering bramble beside the oak). Comma further upslope by the pond as we left.

Purple hairstreak

Silver-washed fritillary

A visit on this afternoon's high tide. Not much to add to Martin's post, but the Coot was just as much of a surprise to me (I hadn't seen his post before my visit)! This is a rarity here, and as far as I can remember, the first one I've seen on the patch, outside very cold conditions. 

Also 2 Mediterranean Gulls (ad-s & 1st-s), 3 Mandarin Ducks and the Little Egrets included a juvenile.

An interesting morning ringing: dominated by a steady supply of Blackcaps. With lots of birds fledging most of those ringed were juveniles. That is except Blackcaps: of the twenty I ringed 7 were adults. Surely they can't all be breeding in the reserve - I've already ringed a good number of adults, so most of these are already migrating(?) Of note were all the male Blackcaps - including a retrap - seemed to have a brood patch. Also:

3 juv Cetti's Warblers

5 juv Robins

1 juv Reed Warbler (and an adult)

1 juv Greenfinch

1 juv Blackbird

1 juv Song Thrush

2 juv Goldcrest

3 juv Wrens

2 juv Chiffchaffs

On this mornings high tide the following were seen:

Curlew 35, Redshank 91 on the meadow, Greenshank 3, Common Sandpiper 5, Little Egret 13, Green Woodpecker 3, GSW 3, Stock Dove 9, Whitethroat 1 and the surprise of the morning was a Coot on the river by Longbridge.

On the high tide: 3 Mediterranean Gulls (ad-s & 2 1st-s), Greenshank, 68 Redshanks, 34 Curlews & 11 Little Egrets. Also 5 Stock Doves, Green Woodpecker, juv Goldcrest & 16 Mandarin Ducks.

Plenty of butterflies including double figures of Small Skipper, Marbled White & Gatekeeper & a single Large Skipper.

Churring from 21.36 for one minute - nothing thereafter. Two birds, male & female, constantly in the air/perched in trees from 21.45 - 22. 10, with a third fly-over bird (female?) at 22.10. Best viewed over new planting/tree tubes - by the Nightjar notice-board!  

Flock of Redshank at low tide on the north side of the Taw Estuary & plenty of BH Gulls & 3 Meds amongst them.

This delightful Blue-tailed Damselfly alighted on my bicycle lock cable by the Toll House.

On R.Caen 19 Dunlin still in sumplum, 1 juv Greenshank,142 BH Gulls inc 5 juv's , 1 adult Med Gull & 2 Little Egrets.

Osprey sat on post around 1:30pm. More details please visit http://part-timebirding.blogspot.com/

Between 25 - 30 Swifts seen screeching over Preston this evening.

Rubbish record shot. Wonder if it’s the same bird that has appeared a couple of times over the last year or so.

The adult summer plumage pectoral sandpiper flew off SE at 18.50. Wasn’t seen after that.

An Osprey was again on a post mid-estuary visible from Exton station, mid-afternoon and was feeding on the post for over half an hour.

From Haggington I was trying to count a small pod of Common Dolphins off Rillage Point, about 6 but were dispersed due to pleasure boats when a tatty looking Osprey nearly passed unnoticed until it was moving away at a distance.   

 
Osprey record shot                    Common Dolphin

Eds: the osprey is actually a Buzzard. see https://www.devonbirds.org/birdwatching/articles/common_buzzard 

Over our house on clovelly rd Bideford this afternoon 10 med gulls,7ads,2ss, juvenile.Plus over a 100 bhg's,15:30-16:20.

As sum plum pec sand, LRP and common sand 18.05

Photos from today. See Nigel's post for species and numbers seen.

  
Balearic Shearwater.                              Mediterranean Gull

Common Dolphin

This morning was the first 4hour Lyme Bay boat trip for the season from Brixham in a very active sea state!! Birds seen, 6 Scoter, sp, 10 Manx Shearwater, 2 Balearic Shearwater, 6+ Med Gulls, 2 Kittiwake,  4 Fulmar, 3 Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Gannets and many Herring Gull. also 3 Harbour Porpoise and 10+ Common Dolphin.

If interested give us a call n 07866202576. still some places.

Glossy Ibis back at the Pill this morning 07.30.

2 juv Yellow-Legged Gulls and 7 Med Gulls on Broadsands beach late this evening till 925pm at least on the dropping tide 

An Osprey sat on a post in the middle of the River Exe viewed from Exton Station from late morning to 13.05pm when starting flying around - eventually caught a fish and flew off high west at 13.15pm. 

Good numbers of small red-eyed damselflies at the lower end of the bottom pond today, also a splendid male red veined darter. Other species around the ponds include black tailed skimmer (abundant), broad bodied chaser, emperor, a hawker species (which kept its distance) azure damselfly and blue tailed damselfly. I couldn't find the scarce chaser seen on the 3rd pond up 2 days ago but it could still be there among the numerous black tailed skimmers.

Red veined darter, male

Black tailed skimmer, mating pair

Small red-eyed damselfly, ovipositing pair

3 Black-tailed Godwits.

5 med Gulls ( 3A; 1 1st S, 1 juvenile.

On this afternoon's high tide, 2 Black-tailed Godwits (1 in summer plumage), 29 Curlews, Common Sandpiper, just 20 Redshanks, 1st-s Mediterranean Gull, a pair of Shelducks with 2 juvs & Mandarin Duck. Also, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, a pair of Whitethroats carrying food, 7 Stock Doves & a Kestrel, 

Buzzard in my garden today, taking a break from winding up the local Gull population. 

Recently out on the sea good numbers of Manx Shearwaters are present whatever the wind direction. Up to 10 flocks of 60 chasing about are regularly in view. Today 2 ad Med Gulls on Cheyne rocks. 

Buzzard

pair of spotted flycathers feeding young seen from the path just under castle drogo yesterday,lovely find

Common Crossbill on gorse bushes at Ivy Cove by the SW Coastal Path, east of Coleton Fishacre.

3 adult Med Gulls and 2 juvenile Common sandpipers.

A total of 37 little Egret and 5 Grey Heron between both sides of the river.

A few more birds around today, Yellowhammers, GSW, Meadow Pipits, along with Stonechats, linnets, Green Woodpecker in the distance

GSW (male)

Meadow Pipit

Yellowhammer

On arrival at the bridge to the reserve this morning, a singing Lesser Whitethroat was a real surprise - same one we saw here on 4th May? Sounded identical.

This evening along the mud of the River Caen, among a good scattering of Black-headed Gulls were two smart adult Mediterranean Gulls. At least a dozen Pied Wagtails (mostly juvs) were in with the cattle by cross banks. Sadly, no yellow ones amongst them. No Little Owls on the barns either...

A single Spotted Flycatcher present this evening at the southern end of the site, the first on patch this year. 

Ringing this morning after a 3 week break produced good numbers of migrant Warblers  (2 Willow Warblers were unusual at this time of year) and 2 Cetti's Warblers. In addition, a further 3 juvenile female Kingfishers were ringed,  with Azolla weed blocking many of the ditches on the Great Field, maybe this is a feeding opportunity for them. 7 Juvenile Wrens were notable.

The moulting summer plumaged Spotted Redshank was still present early afternoon. Also 1 Common Sandpiper and 1 Green Sandpiper, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits and a few Whimbrel.