Cattle Egret

A dull, wet morning was brightened by the discovery of a Cattle Egret by Mark Bailey at the now regular haunt of Teigngrace. It was in the large field west of the level crossing with four Little Egrets and a gang of Black-headed Gulls. The road north of the junction to Twelve Oaks is closed for several days, allowing a rare and enjoyable opportunity to view from the road bridge completely devoid of traffic.

Decoy Country Park held the usual assortment of waterfowl and woodland birds athough single Wigeon and Little Grebe were semi-noteworthy. A male Stonechat was on Newton Abbot racecourse along with a mixed flock of thrushes that included 10 Fieldfares (scarce here) and c.15 Mistle Thrushes. A short seawatch from Teignmouth yacht club at lunchtime produced c.40 Common Scoters, seven Great Northern Divers and a handful of Kittiwakes heading south. To the north several hundred Gannets were gathered off Dawlish seafront.