Sunday 11th February

The Warren's first record of Lesser Scaup, an immature ♂, was the clear highlight, followed by the three Greater Scaup (♂♀♀) it was with! They were found in the estuary corner late morning, moving along Shutterton Creek on dropping tide, before flying to the main Exe channel briefly and then flew N up estuary @ 12:10. 

Lesser (2nd bird) and Greater Scaup - Lee Collins

Lesser (2nd bird) and Greater Scaup - David Flack

Also in the estuary, a pair of Goldeneye, eight Eider, five Red-breasted Merganser and a Great Northern Diver, with wader counts including 930 Dunlin, 125 Bar-tailed Godwit, 120 Knot, 111 Grey and 12 Ringed Plover, 27 Sanderling, 21 Curlew and two Greenshank.

Offshore 535 auk sp., 108 Kittiwake, 11 Common Scoter and three Red-throated Diver flew SW in a 1hr 45min watch from the seawall, with eight Great Crested Grebe and a Great Northern Diver on the sea.

Elsewhere, after an absence last year, 10 Mallard duckling were at the Main Pond along with six Shoveler, a flock of c60 Siskin were around Dead Dolphin Wood, three Chiffchaff and two Goldcrest were around the bushes and a Buzzard drifted over early afternoon.

Mallard - David Flack

Year list additions:

108. Greater Scaup
109. Lesser Scaup

Other Wildlife: Plenty of insect activity between the showers with a Red Admiral and five Buff-tailed Bumblebee queens on the wing. The flowering Alexanders hosted over 20 Common Dronefly, with similar numbers of Yellow Dung Fly and around a dozen Common Bluebottle Calliphora vicina. Amongst them an Orange-bearded Bluebottle C. vomitoria, a couple of greenbottles Eudasyphora cyanella and the picture-winged fly Tephritis neesii. 

Common Dronefly - Kevin Rylands

Also out in the warming sunshine several Green Shieldbug, a Dock Bug and a Seven-spot Ladybird.

Green Shieldbug - Kevin Rylands

Saturday 10th February

The first Little Gull of the year, a presumed adult was foraging inshore on flotsam with Black-headed, Common and an adult Mediterranean Gull. A 45min watch saw just two Red-throated Diver, two Gannet, a Fulmar and a diver sp. heading SW, although a huge, dispersed and distant foraging flock of 485+ Kittiwake were across horizon, with three Great Crested Grebe and a Great Northern Diver on the sea. 

The high tide roost was again frequently disturbed by an immature male Sparrowhawk, but selected counts included c1200 Dunlin, eventually roosting offsite, 622 Oystercatcher, 90 Redshank, 64 Teal, 48 Knot, 38 Turnstone, 17 Ringed Plover, 11 Wigeon, eight Eider, five Red-breasted Merganser and two Greenshank.

Elsewhere four Siskin and a Chiffchaff were in the bushes and six Shoveler were still on the Main Pond.

Year list addition:

107. Little Gull

Other Wildlife: More clumps of Common Frog spawn were found, this time in the flooded areas of Greenland Lake. Beetling again proved productive with a Dromius quadrimaculatus in the entrance bushes and the rove beetle Phytosus balticus, about the size of a springtail, was under driftwood in The Bight. 

Dromius quadrimaculatus - Alan Keatley

Phytosus balticus - Alan Keatley

Friday 9th February

A wet and windy day saw attention focussed over the two high tides in the estuary, with peak numbers generally over the evening tide. Counts included c1450 Dunlin, 533 Oystercatcher, 505 Dark and two Pale-bellied Brent Geese, 148 Bar-tailed Godwit, 121 Curlew, 91 Grey and 24 Ringed Plover, 56 Knot, 42 Turnstone, 27 Shelduck, nine Sanderling and nine Wigeon.

Nine Great Crested Grebe were also in the estuary with another seven offshore, with six Shoveler and three Little Grebe at the Main Pond. A Treecreeper was a notable find in the Entrance Bushes.

Year list additions

103. Treecreeper
Late news.
104. Redwing
105. Marsh Harrier
106. Red Kite

The 2023 Dawlish Warren Bird Report is now available to downland from the website.

Pallas's Warbler - John Walters

Thursday 8th February

The forecast morning rain didn't amount to much and the stronger winds didn't produce much offshore passage aside from 30 Gannet. On the sea were eight Great Crested Grebe. a single Red-throated Diver and a small flock of 14 Common Scoter, with five Eider off Warren Point.

At low tide, 30 Shelduck and a Greenshank were feeding in the estuary, 85 Dark-bellied Brent Geese were on the Golf Course, five Shoveler were on the Main Pond with a Sparrowhawk  18 Meadow Pipit and 14 Cirl Bunting on site.

Sparrowhawk - Alan Keatley

Other Wildlife: Fewer beetles were beneath the geotubes, able to escape on the damp sand with the darkling beetle Phylan gibbus and the dung beetle Aphodius foetidus.

Phylan gibbus - Alan Keatley

A further new beetle was recorded at the geotubes on Tuesday, the nationally rare dung beetle Melinopterus consputus.

Melinopterus consputus - Alan Keatley

Tuesday 6th February

Another large movement of auks SW across the bay early morning with at least 1500 in an almost continuous movement, many in flocks 50+, in just 45 minutes from dawn. Also passing 170 Gannet but little else with no divers recorded. A single migrant Lesser Black-backed Gull was also watched coming in from the south.

At low tide 95 Dark-bellied Brent Geese were in the estuary, four Eider were loafing on an offshore sandbar and six Teal and five Shoveler were on the Main Pond. 

Other Wildlife: The first Common Frog spawn was in temporary pools around the Entrance Bushes. A varied selection of beetles were found on the windswept beach beneath the geotubes. The best of which was a new species for the recording area, the dung beetle Onthophagus medius. This species is rarely recorded in the south west. 

Onthophagus medius - Alan Keatley

Other beetles included Marram Weevil Philopedon plagiatum, a few Dune Scarab Aegialia arenaria, a Common Springtail Stalker Notiophilus biggutatus and a Helophorus brevipalpis.

Marram Weevil - Alan Keatley

Common Springtail Stalker - Alan Keatley

Away from the beetles there were a few flying insects on the Alexanders with a Tephritis neesii the best.

Tephritis neesii - Alan Keatley

Monday 5th February

Five Black-tailed Godwit were new arrivals with other waders, Dunlin & Oystercatcher aside, largely absent on the neap tide. Counts from the estuary included 317 Dark and the Pale-bellied Brent Geese, 152 Teal, 88 Redshank. 23 Shelduck, 14 Wigeon, six Greenshank and on Bull Hill, two Sanderling and an adult Mediterranean Gull.

Elsewhere 26 Great Crested Grebe, seven Red-breasted Merganser and six Eider were offshore with an hours seawatch seeing 707 auk sp., 29 Kittiwake, six Red-throated Diver, five Common Scoter, two Gannet and a Fulmar head SW. On site six Shoveler were at the Main Pond and the bushes held seven Siskin, three Chiffchaff and a Goldcrest. 

Sunday 4th February

Much quieter offshore first thing with 232 auk sp. SW in 1hr 30mins along with 97 Kittiwake, five Red-throated Diver, three Common Scoter and three Gannet, with 31 Great Crested Grebe and 11 Razorbill on the sea.

The neap high tide again saw many waders roosting on increasing sandbanks elsewhere in the estuary, with one Bar-tailed Godwit in The Bight, although 1152 Dunlin arrived after being flushed by a wide ranging Peregrine. Other counts included 297 Dark and the Pale-bellied Brent Goose, 232 Teal, 100 Common and an adult Mediterranean Gull, 92 Redshank, 15 Wigeon, nine Red-breasted Merganser, seven Greenshank, six Eider and on Bull Hill, three Sanderling. 

Elsewhere a ♂ Great Spotted Woodpecker was in the Cuckoo's Nest, the Dartford Warbler was on the Golf Course, 14 Meadow Pipit and nine Stonechat hinted at migration, five Shoveler were on the Main Pond, three Chiffchaff and two Goldcrest were in the bushes and two Rook and a Jackdaw were overhead.

Other Wildlife: A Grey Seal was in the estuary.

Saturday 3rd February

A busy start offshore with over 1125 auk sp. distantly heading SW in 1hr 20min, with hundreds of Kittiwake amongst a mixed gull melee across the far horizon. On the sea, 43 Razorbill and two Guillemot hinting at the potential split further out, 39 Great Crested Grebe and five Red-throated Diver.

A flock of 15 Curlew east showed some movement with two Black-tailed Godwit in the estuary also presumably migrants. Low roost counts on the neap tide with two Bar-tailed Godwit and a Grey Plover again, today joined by 37 Ringed Plover and a Lapwing which stood with waders for a spell in The Bight. 

Also in the estuary 246 Teal, 75 Redshank, 15 Red-breasted Merganser, 15 Wigeon, seven Greenshank and two Eider. Elsewhere six Shoveler on the Main Pond with three Chiffchaff, three Goldcrest and two Siskin in the woods.

Friday 2nd February

A 1hr 20 min seawatch saw 313 Kittiwake head SW, with another 120+ attending the distant breeding ledge on Straight Point. Also passing 169 auk sp., those close enough all Razorbill, 12 Common Scoter and five Red-throated Diver, with 33 Great Crested Grebe, seven Eider and a Great Northern Diver close inshore. 

In the estuary just two Bar-tailed Godwit and a Grey Plover in the Bight on the neap tide, with other counts including 164 Teal, 91 Redshank, 43 Turnstone, 23 Wigeon, five Greenshank, four Red-breasted Merganser and two Mediterranean Gull, including a new 2nd cal yr bird.

Elsewhere another small influx of 27 Meadow Pipit, three Rook overhead, 15 Cirl Bunting, five Goldcrest and three Chiffchaff on site, seven Shoveler at the Main Pond, at least three Siskin in the Entrance Bushes.

Other Wildlife: The Grey Squirrel remains in the Entrance Bushes.

Thursday 1st February

No wader counts over the high tide but 250+ Dark-bellied Brent Geese were in the estuary with 182 Teal, 15 Wigeon, the nine Eider, a male Goldeneye, a Red-breasted Merganser and the Avocet.

Elsewhere the Cetti's Warbler was at the Main Pond with six Shoveler, five Teal and three Little Grebe, a male Blackcap in the Entrance Bushes has been present around a week, with three Chiffchaff, two Siskin and a Goldcrest on site and 17 Great Crested Grebe offshore.

Teal - Dean Hall

Year list addition:

102. Blackcap

Other Wildlife: The lack of a bumblebee or butterfly sighting was unexpected in the conditions with Common Dronefly, Gorse Shieldbug and the first wolf spiders Pardosa sp. of the year seen sunning themselves. The highlight was however found under some rotting wood, the first site record of the nationally scarce Stilt bug Berytinus hirticornis, also sheltering the leafhopper Mocydia crocea and the strandline ground beetle Broscus cephalotes. 

Berytinus hirticornis - Alan Keatley

Mocydia crocea - Alan Keatley

Broschus cephalotes - Alan Keatley