Saturday 24th August

In contrast to recent days, there was little moving offshore during a wet start to the day, with 61 Kittiwake, 20 Gannet, seven Common Scoter, four Manx Shearwater and a skua sp, probably Arctic.

The Osprey was again in the estuary, although outside the Recording Area at Exmouth, with counts from the high tide including 216 Redshank, 187 Ringed Plover, 170 Dunlin, 58 Sandwich, 12 Common and a juvenile Little Tern, 17 Mediterranean Gull, 16 Sanderling, 13 Whimbrel, nine Greenshank, the six Eider, four Turnstone and a Knot.

Elsewhere two Swift were overhead, other migrants were limited to single Wheatear and Willow Warbler, with a Treecreeper in the Entrance Bushes and a Kingfisher was at the Main Pond. 

Other Wildlife: A new beetle for the Recording Area and South Devon (VC3) was discovered in damp seaweed and eelgrass on the strandline, the nationally scarce mud-loving beetle, Heterocerus fossor, amongst a few of the similar rare rove beetle Bledius spectabilis.

Heterocerus fossor - both Alan Keatley

Bledius spectabilis - Alan Keatley

Four Migrant Hawker were the first emergences of the year, also adding to the year list were a couple of arachnids; a Gorse Orb Weaver Agalenatea redii and the harvestman Dicranocephalus ramosus, plus the druid fly Clusiodes albimanus and Twin-spot Centurion Sargus bipunctatus.

Clusiodes albimanus - Alan Keatley

Gorse Orb Weaver Agalenatea redii - Alan Keatley

Elsewhere a Harbour Porpoise was offshore.