Another good day out but not so many people on the boat this time. Still that meant everyone had plenty of room on the upper deck, the weather was fine and the birds were obliging as always.  We had a new skipper, Sid who was excellent getting us almost to Pentille on the Tamar and as far as Sconner on the Lynher, probably the furthest up this river that we’ve ever reached. Avocets had increased significantly since our trip a fortnight ago and the Spoonbills had gone up to 3 , two adults and a first year bird. Interestingly there seemed to be an amazing number of Cormorants, perhaps indicating that there are good numbers of fish in the river and a single Great Northern Diver was an added bonus as we don’t usually see them until the new year. Two parties of Red-breasted Merganser, one of 3 and the other of 5 flew up the Lynher. Derek Spooner has again provided a list of the birds seen and their numbers although there maybe an under estimate for some species eg gulls. Derek and his wife Christine have also supplied photos of the trip. Thanks to them both.

Bird Cruise List
6th December 2014
per Derek Spooner

Great Northern Diver 1,
Great Crested Grebe 7,
Cormorant 70+,
Little Egret 18,
Grey Heron 15,
Spoonbill 3,
Mute Swan 7,
Shelduck 250+,
Wigeon 100+,
Teal 60,
Mallard 40,
Red-breasted Merganser 8,
Sparrowhawk 1,
Buzzard 1,
Kestrel 1,
Pheasant 10,
Oystercatcher 60+,
Avocet 120,
Lapwing 170,
Dunlin 14,
Black-tailed Godwit 20,
Curlew 50,
Redshank 85,
Greenshank 2,
Common Sandpiper 2,
Black-headed Gull 50+,
Herring Gull 30,
Great Black-backed Gull 10,
Feral Pigeon 8,
Woodpigeon 60,
Kingfisher 1,
Pied Wagtail 1,
Blackbird 1,
Jay 1,
Carrion Crow 70+,
Starling 3.
36 species