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| White Wagtail ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
The mass arrival of Chiffchaffs is always welcome at this time of year, but this is my first DSLR Spring so I returned to the Borrow Pit with said encumbrance on Saturday having failed to phonescope them on Friday. I was especially hoping to see an Eastern type and hear it call as this is essential if you're going for Siberian. Although, according to Killian Mullarney, some abietinus Chiffs call like tristis, and some of them look very like tristis, so how can we ever be sure we've got one? I say this as a birder who has found Sibe Chiffchaff and had it accepted too! Is it because of the dark eye stripe? Possibly, but the whitish throat and underbelly are another possible factor. A complete lack of greeny-yellow tones on the breast , head and upperparts is also important. Finally, DNA analysis might be conclusive. Then again, it might not. Oh well, let's just enjoy them as Chiffchaffs...
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| Chiffchaff ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Chiffchaff in mid-hweet ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Chiffchaff ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Chiffchaff ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Chiffchaff ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Chiffchaff ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Chiffchaff ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
They were hovering over the water and picking off insects and spending more time in the reeds than the bushes. We ought to call our Spring arrivals Reed Chiffchaff, as it seems to be an annual phenomenon at Seaton Marshes, Axe Estuary Wetlands and Colyford Common. After snapping these at the Borrow pit on Saturday, I was seeing them in the Reedbed Loop on Sunday. On the way to the platform, I got the Wheatears and Stonechats again-this time with the DSLR.
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| Stonechat ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Wheatear ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Stonechat ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Wheatear ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
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| Stonechat ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
Okay, to bring events up to date I 'll add that we've had Gadwall(pr) and Shoveler among the raft of Wigeon off Seaton. We also had 2 each of RB Merg. and GC Grebe fly East yesterday ( 17th ). But the best sighting was a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins which S.Waite picked up from Beer Head and which I later saw from Axe Cliff. I tried to photograph and film them but I don't have anything good enough to show you. The sea boiled with fish before they surfaced, leaping clear of the water at times. Terrific stuff. I saw them turn tail after a good feed and head back towards Beer. I believe I.Waite saw them again off Branscombe, where he was enjoying the YB Warbler and Firecrest (pics of those on next post) which Phil ( or Flabbot as he's sometimes called ) found on Saturday.Anyway, as I was walking back from my second Bottlenose experience ( the first being from Beer in November 2013-self-found yeah!) I ran into this old friend...
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| Short-eared Owl ( Copyright T D Wright ) |
Nice to know it's still with us! Add to this 6 Redwing at Seaton Cemetery and, well, not a bad day, eh?
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