Hayle Estuary
Little Egret (Hayle)
Porthgwarra cafe
Warwick royalty on duty
Porthgwarra scene of Poldark TV series
Sea watchers gather on Saturday morning
Sunrise at Porthgwarra
We knew we were in right spot as locals were in position before us on Sunday
Thick fog on Sunday
Gannet passage
Storm Petrels are a species that have always had a great interest in but with no chance of seeing one locally I took up a generous invitation to head to Cornwall with fellow Warwickshire birders for a two night stay. The long journey always put me off visiting this part of world on regular occasions however as just a passenger we made the journey in around five hours with a couple of stops. Our organiser, better known as the Warwick Mayor, even managed to navigate around the multi-level car park without an accident.
We stopped in on the Hayle estuary for a short break however there were only the local gulls, Little Egrets, a few geese and a flock of Curlews. Following a quick check-in at the hotel we made the twenty minute drive to Porthgwarra for a session of late afternoon sea-watching to get the eye in.
Porthgwarra is one the leading sites in the UK for sea-watching and has hosted rarities including Red-eyed Vireo, Coreys Shearwater, Yellow-billed Cuckoo & Black-bowed Albatross. A good passage of Gannets & Manx Shearwater made a superb start with the Gannets flying very close to the cliffs. Then surprisingly a Storm Petrel flew past my scope, then another, I hadn't expected to see these from shore yet we recorded 20 birds. One fed very close below us enabling everyone to get some super scope views.
After a fantastic evening out with the full party we were back on the cliffs for 6am (complete with fuzzy head) ! The early start paid dividends as sightings included 8 Balearic Shearwaters, 2 Sooty Shearwaters, endless passage of Gannets & Manx Shearwaters, 22 Storm Petrel, a Great North Diver (flew over head), 6 Oystercatcher, Fulmers, Rock Pipit, a single Swift, 12 Swallows, Kestrel, Linnets and a Garden Warbler which we flushed as we returned to the car.
On Sunday we tried again, firstly at Pendeen, then Porthgwarra however thick fog really hindered the session and whilst we did see some passage the only additional species were a Black-tailed Godwit and a Bronxie.
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