Porthgwarra, Stithians Reservoir and Barton-on-Sea

Where better to start September than Porthgwarra? A pleasant stroll around Porthgwarra with Liam featured two Pied Flycatchers, a pair of Chough, a Garden Warbler, two Tree Pipits, three Wheatears, a Swift, four Ringed Plovers, a Dunlin, three Fulmars, two Little Egrets, a Peregrine, two Ravens, a House Martin, 80 Swallows, a Willow Warbler, a Rock Pipit and three Grey Wagtails. At least eight Buzzards started to make use of the thermals late morning, as did the roaming flock of 21 reintroduced White Storks, although these u-turned after deciding that a jaunt to Scilly wasn't such a great idea after all.





We popped in to Stithians Reservoir to twitch a Cattle Egret, which was showing nicely, along with the juvenile Wood Sandpiper, a Common Sandpiper, five Curlews and two Lapwings.

 

On the way back east, I stopped at Barton-on-Sea, where it was too late in the evening for the Icterine Warbler to show but I was gobsmacked to hear one or two Water Rails calling from the vegetation on the beach.

Stithians Reservoir and Falmouth pelagic

An early check of Stithians Reservoir produced a Wood Sandpiper and a Curlew Sandpiper with two Redshanks, as well as a Snipe, a Greenshank, two Common Sandpipers, a Curlew, a Mediterranean Gull, a Raven, a Sand Martin and a Swift.



The rest of the day was spent on a boat with AKK Wildlife out from Falmouth. It was a beautiful calm day and a fun way to spend the day but not the best conditions for seabirds. We did, however, manage a Balearic Shearwater, a Puffin, three Arctic Skuas, two Bonxies, five Guillemots, three Common Terns, three Fulmars, hundreds of Gannets and Manx Shearwaters, four Kittiwakes and eight Shags.

adult pale morph Arctic Skua during the Falmouth pelagic

Durleigh Reservoir, Devoran and Stithians Reservoir

On the way down to Cornwall, I couldn't resist adjusting the route to include a stop at Durleigh Reservoir, where the juvenile Purple Heron was easily seen, enjoying the sun in the trees near the manor house, along with two Great White Egrets. 43 Great Crested Grebes were almost entirely at the same end of the reservoir, including several young; I'm not sure I've ever seen such a breeding season congregation. Four House Martins, two Sand Martins, two Little Egrets and a family of six Mute Swans were also seen.





I met up with Liam in Penryn and we headed over to Devoran, finding three juvenile Curlew Sandpipers, along with five Knot, a Whimbrel, three Ringed Plovers, 81 Curlew, 23 Icelandic Black-tailed Godwits, 16 Dunlin, 16 Oystercatchers, a Teal and a Little Egret.



Stithians Reservoir in the evening offered a Greenshank, a Common Sandpiper, 13 Little Grebes, two Shovelers, two Wheatears, a Willow Warbler and two Little Egrets.

Porthgwarra, Drift Reservoir and Stithians Reservoir

Anticipation was high and the car park at Porthgwarra was rammed with optimistic seawatchers - up to 80 of them - almost all of whom went up to Hella Point. Liam, myself, Matt Doyle and a few others went for the thinking-man's option of the cove, where the level view and proximity to the cafe suit me fine. While it was monumentally quieter than we had hoped, highlights for me included a fairly close Cory's Shearwater, four Balearic Shearwaters, a Sooty Shearwater, a Storm-petrel, a couple of thousand Manx Shearwaters, four Whimbrel, two Curlew, 70 Fulmars and a Common Scoter.

We moved on to Drift Reservoir, where the adult SPOTTED SANDPIPER was picking along the opposite bank. Then we caught up with a juvenile Wood Sandpiper at Stithians Reservoir...

Stithians Reservoir, Devoran and Porthgwarra

Getting some work done in the morning, we then headed out to Stithians Reservoir, where we had to shelter behind some trees to view out of the wind. A few more waders were present than on the last visit (though nothing scarce/rare). These included a Green Sandpiper, a Common Sandpiper, three Greenshanks, two Ruff, 21 Dunlin, six Ringed Plovers and 26 Curlews. At least a couple of White Wagtails were among a few Pied/Whites and 20 Meadow Pipits.

Twitching Devoran again for the juvenile Lesser Yellowlegs, we were successful this time and I enjoyed nice views of my third example of this species in Britain. Also present was a Whimbrel and a Bar-tailed Godwit, along with the Spotted Redshank, 85 Curlews, five Dunlin, 27 Black-tailed Godwits, five Mediterranean Gulls, a Sandwich Tern, a Grey Wagtail and 44 Teal.

My visit concluded with a late afternoon seawatch from the cove at Porthgwarra, the highlight of which was picking out a Grey Phalarope as it tracked west. A Black Tern went the same way, along with 30 Balearic Shearwaters, four Bonxies and two Sooty Shearwaters.

juvenile Lesser Yellowlegs

Marazion, Hayle Estuary, Porthgwarra and Stithians Reservoir

An aspiration to find a rare wader or two was much of the motivation for the Cornish trip, and as such we started at Marazion beach shortly after dawn. Visibility was terrible but we marched up and down a decent stretch of the beach, though we only found four Sanderlings, 10 Ringed Plovers, 14 Turnstones, 11 Mediterranean Gulls, a Dunlin, a Rock Pipit and an Oystercatcher for our efforts.

Hayle Estuary was next up. A Water Rail showed for a long time right out in the open. The five juvenile Knot were still present, while an adult Spotted Redshank, two juvenile Ruff, a Common Sandpiper and 85 Dunlin were the most notable among the other waders. Teal numbered 140, a Rock Pipit flew over and a few Mediterranean Gulls were around.

Water Rail at Hayle Estuary

Ruff and Knot at Hayle Estuary

A seawatch at Porthgwarra for just over three hours around midday was worthwhile, not least for the 43 Great Shearwaters seen, almost all of which were in a spectacular single flock! I also noted 31 Balearic Shearwaters, eight Sooty Shearwaters, three Arctic Skuas, two Bonxies and 10 Common Scoters. The usual Gannets, Shags, Fulmars, Manx Shearwaters, Kittiwakes, Guillemots, Razorbills and Rock Pipits featured, as they did on each visit.

I enjoyed a visit to Stithians Reservoir later, although it was a bit gusty to view comfortably. A 1CY White Wagtail, Greenshank, 30 Curlews, 12 Dunlin and four Ringed Plovers were the highlights.

1CY White Wagtail at Stithians Reservoir

Devoran and Stithians Reservoir

Before I headed home, Liam and I headed out for a bit of birding near Falmouth. First up was Devoran, a nice little site where we had seven Greenshanks, four Common Sandpipers, 70 Redshanks, four Whimbrel, seven Black-tailed Godwits, 18 Dunlin, 94 Curlews, 20 House Martins, six Mediterranean Gulls, a Sandwich Tern, 16 Oystercatchers, 70 Redshanks and two Little Egrets.

From the hide at Stithians Reservoir, we enjoyed views of single Green and Common Sandpipers. A Snipe, a Willow Warbler, nine Swifts, seven House Martins, a Little Egret, an Oystercatcher and two Lapwings were also present.