Friday 12th July

The first juvenile Yellow-legged Gull of the year was in the estuary with 171 Black-headed and 20+ Mediterranean Gull, a minimum of 112 Sandwich Tern, at least 39 juveniles, the six Eider and a lone Common Tern.

Wader counts over the high tide included 260 Curlew, 80 Redshank, 23 Dunlin, 16 Whimbrel, six Greenshank, five Ringed Plover, two Bar-tailed Godwit and a Sanderling. 

Elsewhere a Coal Tit was in Dead Dolphin Wood and offshore 17 Common Scoter, six Great Northern Diver and four Great Crested Grebe.

Other Wildlife: A newly independent Fox cub was around the Bight with the soldierfly Flecked Snout Nemotelus notatus on the Dune Ridge. 

Fox - Lee Collins

Flecked Snout Nemotelus notatus - Lee Collins

Thursday 11th July

An early morning visit saw 41 Swift foraging low over the site, with nine Common Scoter, a distant raft of seven Great Northern Diver and four Common Tern offshore.

Elsewhere the six Eider were roosting on Pole Sands, and whilst a Willow Warbler in the Entrance Bushes was already heading south, a Whitethroat was again nest building in Greenland Lake.

Other Wildlife: A Grey Seal was off Langstone Rock.

Wednesday 10th July

At least 80 Sandwich and a Common Tern remain in the estuary, with 74 Redshank, 29+ Mediterranean Gull, 22 Dunlin, five Greenshank and two Common Sandpiper. Elsewhere a flock of 10 Sand Martin flew SE and three Common Scoter were offshore.

Other Wildlife: The sunshine stirred insects into action following a couple of days of dull weather. Red-banded Sand Wasp Ammophila sabulosa were busy searching for moth larvae to take back to their nest holes, the first Black-thighed Epeolus E. variegatus was on the wing with Green Furrow Bee Lasioglossum morio now numerous across the site.

Red-banded Sand Wasp Ammophila sabulosa - Alan Keatley

Black-thighed Epeolus E. variegatus - Alan Keatley

Green Furrow Bee Lasioglossum morio - Alan Keatley

Butterflies and dragonflies species are still low in numbers, apart from at least eight Small Red-eyed Damselfly on the Main Pond.

Small Red-eyed Damselfly - Alan Keatley

Beosus maritimus nymph - Alan Keatley

Tuesday 9th July

Despite the overnight deluge there was no sign of the Long-tailed Skua, but there was a noticeable arrival of terns and waders. Two Arctic Tern were the highlight, a 1cy (portlandica) and a 2cy bird, also present either feeding offshore or roosting in the estuary, 112 Sandwich Tern, min 25 juveniles, 14 Common and a Little Tern.

Arctic Tern (3cy) - Lee Collins

Counts from the estuary included 70 Black-headed and 46 Mediterranean Gull, 60 Redshank, 52 Dunlin, 31 Turnstone, 18 Whimbrel, eight Common Sandpiper, the six Eider, four Greenshank, two Bar and Black-tailed Godwit, Ringed Plover and Knot and a single Sanderling.

Elsewhere 27 Shelduck flew in off the sea and up the estuary with 14 Common Scoter and an immature Arctic Skua offshore.

Other Wildlife: Damp and drizzly for most of the day, and the normally active insects were mainly inactive, sheltered in flower heads, particularly Ragwort. These included the first Pantaloon Bee Dasypoda hirtipes of the year, Bare-shouldered Colletes C. similis, Yellow-legged Andrena flavipes and Sandpit Mining Bee A. barbilabris. 

Pantaloon Bee - Alan Keatley

Bare-saddled Colletes - Alan Keatley

Sheltering wasps included Bee-wolf and Willow Mason Wasp Symmorphus bifasciatus and selected flies included Red-legged Eriothrix E. rufomaculata, the shieldbug tachinid Ectophasia crassipennis and the hoverfly Riponnensia splendens. 

Bee Wolf - Alan Keatley

Monday 8th July

An unexpected highlight was a Long-tailed Skua, at least a third calendar year, watched hawking low over The Bight and Golf Course for a few minutes, before flying over the dune ridge and lost to view heading SW down the beach just before 8.30am. Only the fourth July record and the first Warren record since a similar aged bird offshore on 4 July 2020.

The same bird was again in the estuary early evening off Cockwood before relocating to Cockle Sands off Exmouth on the rising tide. Also in the estuary, two adult Little Ringed Plover on the morning tide, at least 57 Sandwich (15 juvs) and eight Common Tern, 33 Mediterranean Gull, including the first juvenile, and a Kittiwake. 

Counts included 193 Curlew, 58 Redshank, 29 Turnstone, 25 Dunlin, a sudden arrival of 24 Shelduck including 14 juveniles, 16 Whimbrel, the six Eider, six Greenshank, three Ringed Plover, two Bar-tailed Godwit and a Sanderling.

Elsewhere a raft of four immature Pomarine Skua offshore had presumably roosted before they headed slowly SW early morning, and four Sand Martin joined 12 Swallow feeding low over The Bight in the mizzle.

Swallow - Dave Jewell

Year list addition:

157. Long-tailed Skua

Sunday 7th July

The first Little Ringed Plover of the year flew over Warren Point with an Osprey another brief highlight, flying SW along back of the Warren and away inland early morning.

More settled birds in the estuary included 290 Curlew, 31 Redshank, 26 Turnstone, 25 Whimbrel, 13 Dunlin, 13 Mute Swan, the six Eider, five Greenshank, two Ringed Plover, two Black and a Bar-tailed Godwit. 

Black-tailed Godwit - Dave Jewell

At least 31 Sandwich Tern, including 11 juveniles, were commuting between the estuary and feeding offshore along with 30 Mediterranean Gull. Remaining offshore were 16 Common and a Little Tern, an immature Arctic Skua, six Common Scoter and an immature Great Northern Diver.

Year list addition:

156. Little Ringed Plover

Ringing News: Five colour-ringed Sandwich Tern have been recorded this week, three from Wales, a new bird from Cemlyn and two returning birds, including one not seen since 2020; a returning bird from Hampshire and a new bird from Larne Lough, Northern Ireland.

Other Wildlife: At least two Common Dolphin were feeding offshore.

Saturday 6th July

Four Common Sandpiper, one on the railway embankment and three on Warren Point were new arrivals along with seven Black-tailed Godwit and the first juvenile Ringed Plover of the autumn. Also in the estuary 391 Oystercatcher, 214 Curlew, 132 Black-headed and seven Mediterranean Gull, 58 Redshank, 25 Sandwich Tern, 17 Whimbrel, the six Eider, five Dunlin, four Greenshank and a Sanderling.

A Hobby flew across The Bight and a breeding plumaged Great Northern Diver flew N up estuary, being lost from view past Lympstone.

Other Wildlife: A Grey Seal was off Langstone Rock. Aside from the Bee-wolf colony on the 18th fairway, few insects were seemingly active in the blustery conditions but the two tamarisk bugs Tuponia brevirostris and T. mixticolor were present, both so far only recorded from the Warren in Devon.

Bee-wolf - Kevin Rylands

Campyloneura virgula, the hunter... - Kevin Rylands

Cacopsylla fulguralis, the hunted. - Kevin Rylands

Lesne's Earwig - Kevin Rylands

Friday 5th July

A two hour seawatch early morning was again quiet although 23 Common Scoter, 20+ Gannet, seven Sandwich Tern, three Manx Shearwater, a summer plumaged Great Northern Diver and a Grey Heron headed SW and a Great Crested Grebe was on the sea.

Counts from the estuary included 240 Curlew, 102 Black-headed and 11 Mediterranean Gull, 13 Whimbrel, eight Sandwich Tern, eight Shelduck, six Eider, four Dunlin and single Black-tailed Godwit and Greenshank.

Elsewhere a ♂ Kingfisher was at the Main Pond, with 55 Linnet, five Long-tailed Tit and a Willow Warbler onsite.

Thursday 4th July

Quiet offshore although the first four Balearic Shearwater of the year flew SW late evening with two immature Great Northern Diver on the sea.

Counts from the estuary included 228 Curlew, 97 Black-headed and 10 Mediterranean Gull, 28 Whimbrel, 21 Sandwich Tern including four juveniles, 22 Redshank, 10 Black and a Bar-tailed Godwit, the six summering Eider, five Dunlin, two Ringed Plover and two Greenshank.

Elsewhere the first two adult Willow Warbler of the autumn were on site with a Great Spotted Woodpecker and 18 Long-tailed Tit.

Year list addition:

155. Balearic Shearwater

Other Wildlife: A Lunar Hornet Moth was found by a school group by the Main Pond, just the fourth site record.  At least five Common Dolphin were offshore in the evening.

Lunar Hornet Moth - Stephen Edwards

Wednesday 3rd July

The first three juvenile Sandwich Tern were in The Bight with at least 22 adults, including a Northern Irish bird. The first juvenile Oystercatcher was also in the estuary where counts included 251 Curlew, 90 Black-headed and seven Mediterranean Gull, 27 Whimbrel, 25 Redshank, six Dunlin, the six Eider, four Greenshank, two Ringed Plover and a Bar-tailed Godwit.

Single immature Great Northern and more unusually, Red-throated Diver were offshore along with a dark phase Arctic Skua, 11 Manx Shearwater, two Great Crested Grebe and a Common Scoter.

Other Wildlife: A couple of sand dune flies, including a late record of the first Pouting Seaweed Fly Malacomyia sciomyzina since 2017.

Coastal Silver Stilleto Acrosathe annulata - Kevin Rylands

Pouting Seaweed Fly Malacomyia sciomyzina - Alan Keatley