Thursday 8th December

My first trip this winter was  a little windy, to put it mildly and it affected the water levels with less feeding areas exposed, but nevertheless there were birding treats in store,

I was expecting good numbers of Shags and I wasn’t disappointed. Most were amongst the buoys adjacent to the Harbour with some a short distance up river towards the “Floating Café.”

Groups in double figures showed well with some crests displayed. There were approximately 100, heavily outnumbering Cormorants.  Passengers had a great opportunity to differentiate between the two.

Not many waders today due to the conditions but Avocets came up trumps, good close views.  There were probably 300 plus in total demonstrating both of their feeding methods.

Grey Plover in flight showing characteristic balck armpits

There were a handful of Bar- tailed Godwits with Dunlin, Lapwings, Curlew and Grey Plovers but no Black- tailed Godwits – a species you can almost guarantee to be seen. Every trip is different.

Low numbers of Brent Geese on the river today although flocks were seen flying in the distance behind Star Cross. Regular sightings of Red-breasted Merganser. Six Shelduck were seen amongst the Wigeon and Mallard and there were a few Teal at Topsham as usual.

On return trip we managed to find one Greenshank and one Sanderling as flocks of Oystercatchers passed us on their way to roost at Dawlish Warren.

Ian Waite

All photos by Sue Smith

Saturday 26th November 2011

The fine breezy afternoon ensured that plenty of kite surfers were keeping the end of Pole Sands free of waders, but there were lots of gulls and Crows as usual – in fact a quick count of before we left Exmouth came to no less than 250 Carrion Crows. A few Brent Geese were feeding close to the beach walkers and dogs – they’re amazingly fearless (the geese that is!). Moving back into the estuary, a pair of Peregrines sitting on the sandbank known as Great Bull Hill eventually took flight and we were given the thrill of watching them zooming through and stooping down through the Crows!

Highlights in the central section were lots of Great Crested Grebes – it was hard to keep track of them as several took flight, but probably 15 in all – and 2 Goldeneye, plus a good number of Shags and Red-breasted Mergansers and large flocks of Brent Geese and Wigeon. It was nice to see 2 Sanderlings feeding in typical fashion on the edge of a sandbank in mid-estuary, 2 Greenshanks, a dozen Turnstones and about 25 Knot: there aren’t many of any of these around the Exe in winter.  It was also a relief to find 20 or so Bar-tailed Godwits, a species which has been hard to find in the last month.

The tide was slow coming in today and unfortunately we ran aground for a while off Lympstone (the sediments in the estuary move around all the time!), but we were treated with two feeding groups of Avocets that moved right up to us. Between Turf and Topsham we had close views of Avocets (getting on for 400 in total) and hundreds of Black-tailed Godwits, Curlews, Redshanks and Dunlin with smaller numbers of Lapwings and Grey Plovers. There were also thousands of gulls arriving to bath and preen before heading out to sea to Dawlish Bay for the night. Finally, the resident Harbour (Common) Seal put in a brief appearance as we heading back to Exmouth, where it was getting dark as we made our tardy return.

Dave Smallshire

Saturday 12th November

Great Crested Grebe

Goldeneye

The highlights during a very mild and sunny afternoon cruise included:
1 female Eider (off Exmouth),
2 Great Crested Grebes,
c50 Shags,
50+ Pintail,
1000+ each of Wigeon and Brent Goose,
1 Goldeneye,
c30 Red-breasted Mergansers,
2 Peregrines (sitting on Bull Hill),
250+ Lapwings,

Sanderling

200+ Avocets,
6 Sanderlings,
hundreds of Black-tailed Godwits, Redshanks and Dunlin,
1 Greenshank,
100+ Common Gulls



and 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls among the thousands of Herring and Black-headed Gulls gathering in late afternoon.

Dave Smallshire

Pintail

The First Cruise - 10th November 2011

Thankfully, the weather for the season’s first birdwatching cruise was much better than the Met Office had been forecasting a few days earlier! We had a nice mild, mainly sunny afternoon with a light wind: good viewing conditions.

Shag

November is the peak month for Shags to congregate in the Estuary to feed and today we saw dozens, including some sprouting crests ready for next year’s breeding season. Red-breasted Merganser numbers are still building up, but we still managed to see more than 30. The resident (flightless) Slavonian Grebe was near a couple of distant Little Grebes, but it was perhaps the 8 Great Crested Grebes that were the highlight for me; I don’t recall ever seeing this many inside the estuary before, although larger numbers spend the winter nearby in Dawlish Bay.

Great Crested Grebe

Merganser

Hundreds of Brent Geese and Wigeon were feeding on algae and eelgrass, though the Wigeon were too distant to locate the American Wigeon that has been with them for a few weeks.

Wigeon

Three Greenshanks were feeding along the shoreline at Powderham and a pair of Tufted Ducks – unusual in intertidal habitat – sat amongst some Wigeon. Off Lympstone Camp large flocks of Dunlin and other waders gyrated in the sky: they had presumably been spooked by a Peregrine, although we couldn’t find it in the melee. Here also we saw our first Avocets feeding in the shallows, and later many more – over 200 in total – giving some typically great views as the channel narrowed towards Topsham. Several hundred Black-tailed Godwits and Redshanks also gave us good views at the head of estuary, but a flock of 20-30 Golden Plover only gave us tantalising views. Over 100 Lapwings were also here, suggesting that winter is only just around the corner ….

Lapwing

Dave Smallshire

Thoughts from Dave and Ian...

Providing the commentary on a Guided Bird Watching Cruise is no small effort.  You are being the eyes of everybody on board making sure you spot everything from the regular visitors to the unique and rare at the same time as offering information on habitat, lifestyle, feeding, plumage and breeding.  All this has to be in a clear voice over the PA system and most importantly make sense!
Stuart Line Cruises feel privileged to have the services of Dave Smallshire and Ian Waite once again for the 2011 and 2012 season.

Here are their thoughts for the coming season;



Dave Smallshire


 Having spent over six months looking over the Exe Estuary from its shores, I’m really looking forward to getting out again amongst all the birds. The Brent Geese returning from Siberia have brought lots of young with them, so their numbers should be significantly higher this winter. Our ‘resident’ Slavonian Grebe is still here, so we’ll be looking out for it around Cockwood during the cruises. An American Wigeon has joined the Wigeon flock, but that will be a real challenge to find!







Ian Waite


Great!  Another season enjoying the thousands of birds on the Exe.  Such a spectacle and I am sure there will be a few surprises amongst our regular waders and wildfowl.
Every trip is different and I am looking forward to sharing the experiences with newcomers and familiar faces.






A review of will be published on here after a trip is completed so that even if you have not been able to sail on the river you can keep in touch with what we've seen.
We would also like to be able to publish your photographs from the trips (all accreditations given) in this blog and on our Facebook page so please send them into us at info@birdwatchingcruises.co.uk.  Here are a some pictures taken last season by Sue Smith during a cruise in March 2011

And so it begins.....

November is fast approaching and that means so is that first Guided Bird Watching Cruise with Stuart Line Cruises.
Once again we will be joined by Dave Smallshire and Ian Waite to give an informative and enlightening commentary throughout the trip;
Below is some information about them and in our next post they will be giving their thoughts on the coming season.


Ian Waite - In the last twenty years Ian has been an enthusiastic bird watcher in the local area.  He leads bird watching groups for various societies and provides commentary on Bird watching Tram Trips on the River Axe.  He is a member of The Devon Bird watching and Preservation Society and the Devon Wildlife Trust and is a committee member for a local Conservation Society.









Dave Smallshire - An avid bird watcher for 45 years, with a special interest in wetland birds. David has an intimate knowledge of the Exe Estuary’s wildlife, which has been his ‘local patch’ for nearly 25 years, he does the Wetland Bird Survey counts every month on the estuary between Starcross and Dawlish Warren. His interests span all aspects of wildlife, notably dragonflies – about which he has written a highly acclaimed field guide









Each cruise departs from Exmouth aboard a vessel with and open top deck and an enclosed and heated lower deck.  The vessel has toilets on board and a refreshments bar serving hot and cold drinks, snacks and Homemade Soup.

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