Lots of Counting

Due to my brainlessly forgetting to take a clicker along this morning. I'd managed to oversleep somewhat, grabbed the essentials in a rush and well, bugger. So it was timed counts to gauge passage at the Nose.

The wind had picked up a bit, things seemed to be moving a bit, too. Not that much, it turns out, but still not too bad - auks averaged 555 an hour, Gannets a mere 56 and Kittiwakes 168. I didn't need a timed count for the 2 Fulmar an hour going by..! A lone female Common Scoter, 3 Red-throated Divers [including one sneaky one that came through high and dropped to join another flying into the Bay after they'd passed the Ore Stone] and a nice close Black-throated Diver were the only other southerly movers. A subadult Lesser Black-backed Gull flew past north - nice dark one, getting on for intermedius - and a Red-necked Grebe showed up on the sea by the Ore Stone. If you think that's strange [I certainly did - a Red-neck swimming around determinedly and diving in that sea?!?]; as I was going, there was a chap kitting up to do some swimming and diving himself. There wasn't anything on the local news, so I assume he was ok..

This afternoon I went for a spot of leg-stretching with the folks to Ideford Common, which proved to be quite eventful. We met a stag. Very close. Made Tilly's week.... Marsh Tits at the car park again. Lovely.

Yesterday afternoon, Torquay harbour had a 1w LBB and a Moorhen, plus usual reprobates. The Real Living Coast had a Turnstone as well as roosting Purple Sands, but the Bay was too choppy to pick out more than a Razorbill. After once more failing to find a Treeecreeeper in a long tour of the woody bits, the sea off Blackball had just the right height of chop, combined with low sun, to make counting let alone IDing birds very tricky. I got a mere 19 GC Grebes and 5 Razorbills, plus several hundred gulls resting well out, which were probably Kittiwake.

Edit: I've just realised I haven't actually said what the times I've been watching have been! Very remiss of me... 1005-1235

PYL: 70