Andrew
wibble wibble
06-04-03
Location : Dunsford Woods, Devon. SX804884
Today we visited Dunsford Woods for the first time in the hope of Dipper, Willow and Wood Warbler, Pied Flycatcher or Tree Pipits. Dunsford Woods is a steep sided woodland valley with the River Teign running through it. It is located on the edge of Dartmoor near Exeter and maintained by the Devon Wildlife Trust. Today started off with a bit of sunshine quickly changing to cooler cloudy conditions. Apparently this is one of the best places in Devon to see butterflies including the Marsh Fritillary. I did not expect the butterflies to be active considering the lack of sunshine.
After stopping at a garden centre on the way down we pulled into the Dartmoor National Park car park to walk from Step’s Bridge up the riverside path to the other end of the reserve at Clifford Bridge. I was disappointed to find the Steps Bridge Tea Rooms were not open until Easter as I had hoped to treat Mum on her birthday. Nevertheless, we moved on and the first birds were simply common birds namely a few each of 8 Wood Pigeons, 8 Blackbirds, 6 Robins, 9 Chaffinches, 16 Blue Tits and 14 Mallards. (Ducky)
There were wild flowers in abundance including Lesser Celandine, (Celandine) Wood Anemone, (Wood Anemone) wild Daffodils, Primroses, (Primrose) Sweet Violet (Violet) and some odd looking grasses I could not identify. (Grass) The morning was full of bright sunshine and this brought out a few butterflies before the sun was blocked out by clouds. What I could see were three or four delightful Peacocks, a couple of yellow and white butterflies that were on the other side of the river. The shallow river was crystal clear and held some Brown Trout of various sizes including some close to twelve inches long.
High up over the valley through the tree tops I could make out the shape of one of today’s 2 Buzzards and on the river’s sandbanks were two of the expected 5 Grey Wagtails. It is not a surprise to count so many considering the length of river we walked yet it was unusual to watch them in numbers rather than singles. With so many about I was fascinated by the differences between the males and juveniles or females. The adult males had bold black bibs.
We came to an area cleared specifically for butterflies with logs left piled for nesting quarters for insects and such. The path along the river was selected and it was a wise choice as we had extremely close views of one of 2 Treecreepers climbing a dead tree collecting nesting material. I spotted a hole lined with dead leaves. This hole looked to be the Treecreeper’s but it flew across the river to another tree and came back empty beaked to collect more material meaning this hole must be another bird’s or possibly a rodent’s.
In the gnarled up clearing I counted a small flock of six of today’s 11 Great Tits and that was it until the next clearing a short distance later where we stopped at a bench for luncheon. The bench provided the option of looking over the river or to the wooded valley side at the back, I chose the latter in the hope of some early flycatchers.
Twenty minutes passed with no new additions to the list, only consolidations of Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Great and Blue Tits. A flash high up in the tree tops a fair distance away caught my attention. Looking at the exact spot enthusiastically, I made out a bird flying off a perch and snatching at the air in a circular fashion returning to the original perch. With excitement I shouted out “Flycatcher!”. The bird repeated the feat once more revealing it to be a black and white bird which can only be a male Pied Flycatcher. I was overjoyed and my heart beat faster waiting for another glimpse at the bird. I tried to get a sight of it in my scope by scanning the leafless tree tops with a hugely frustrating lack of success.
With luncheon finished we moved on up river adding very few birds over a long distance before we saw only 2 Long Tail Tits however I was delighted at the sight of a close scrutiny of a single Willow Tit. The rufous rump was the giveaway. (path) Large groups of Wood Ants were working away on the ground collecting materials for homebuilding especially pine needles. A very unusual tree fascinated us, it was probably an Oak. The interesting thing about it was that it was so twisted beyond belief like something out of a fairy tale.
All the way since the beginning of the walk I had scanned every stone or ripple in the shallow river relentlessly for a Dipper and not succeeded much to my consternation. (River) Approximately two in the afternoon we decided to stop for a rest near the end of the walk and sit by the stream on some lush grass littered with Wood Anemone and Lesser Celandines. There was no bird activity for a very long time passed by some lemon tea until the far bank debris gave us one of 4 Wrens. The wren foraged the river edge extensively occasionally jabbing at something. The relaxed environment was only punctuated by a few manic cyclists racing past on the path.
Our inevitable return was made along the path furthest away from the river to heighten the possibility of seeing different birds. There was a marshy area which we could only glimpse from the riverside path earlier, patches of Marsh Marigolds or Kingcups were dotted around the wet and boggy parts. I tried to take some pictures of these flowers but could not see a way to them. A short stride on and there was one of 3 Marsh Tits in an ivy clad tree.
Up till now I was shameful that I had not registered a single warbler or woodpecker and part of that was removed as up in a thin tree one of 2 Chiffchaffs moved constantly. I followed it for a while trying to get a good view of it through the branches and small leaves before managing to identify it. It’s song also eliminated Willow or Wood Warbler which I would have rather had. A while later I was watching a Wood Pigeon thinking I might have had a Stock Dove and my attention switched to a tiny bird in a ivy covered dead tree. It was a Goldcrest and I followed it through my binoculars trying to identify it’s sex. My green clothing must have rendered me well camouflaged as it tried to land on my head only aborting a foot away from me when I moved.
There was another clearing in the side of the path leading onto a thinner wooded area and I looked out to a Holly bush as there was some movement. It was a fair amount of time before anything showed. My patience was rewarded with 3 Song Thrushes and I managed to reel off some pictures of them through my scope. (Thrush) There were substantial groups of Ramsons coming out but not yet in full bloom, the leaves smelt very much like garlic. There were one or two Bluebells out here too. (Bluebell)
I did not add any new birds until we returned to Steps Bridge. Looking at the feeder stations behind the tea rooms on the opposite bank I added another woodland favourite, a Nuthatch. In the field on the other side of the bridge was a tail less male Pheasant. Back up the steep road we paused near the steps to the car park and surveyed the woods for the last time seeing a Pied Wagtail on the roof of the Tea Room. I removed all ignominy by adding a last minute woodpecker, a Great Spotted Woodpecker flew across the road and alighted in a small group of trees behind the Tea Room flashing it’s red rump. The walk had taken a good five hours including some brief rests and it was very enjoyable. We are certain of returning one day. The whole day was topped off with a delightfully sumptuous homemade Devon cream tea in Dunsford village.
Location : Dunsford Woods, Devon. SX804884
Today we visited Dunsford Woods for the first time in the hope of Dipper, Willow and Wood Warbler, Pied Flycatcher or Tree Pipits. Dunsford Woods is a steep sided woodland valley with the River Teign running through it. It is located on the edge of Dartmoor near Exeter and maintained by the Devon Wildlife Trust. Today started off with a bit of sunshine quickly changing to cooler cloudy conditions. Apparently this is one of the best places in Devon to see butterflies including the Marsh Fritillary. I did not expect the butterflies to be active considering the lack of sunshine.
After stopping at a garden centre on the way down we pulled into the Dartmoor National Park car park to walk from Step’s Bridge up the riverside path to the other end of the reserve at Clifford Bridge. I was disappointed to find the Steps Bridge Tea Rooms were not open until Easter as I had hoped to treat Mum on her birthday. Nevertheless, we moved on and the first birds were simply common birds namely a few each of 8 Wood Pigeons, 8 Blackbirds, 6 Robins, 9 Chaffinches, 16 Blue Tits and 14 Mallards. (Ducky)
There were wild flowers in abundance including Lesser Celandine, (Celandine) Wood Anemone, (Wood Anemone) wild Daffodils, Primroses, (Primrose) Sweet Violet (Violet) and some odd looking grasses I could not identify. (Grass) The morning was full of bright sunshine and this brought out a few butterflies before the sun was blocked out by clouds. What I could see were three or four delightful Peacocks, a couple of yellow and white butterflies that were on the other side of the river. The shallow river was crystal clear and held some Brown Trout of various sizes including some close to twelve inches long.
High up over the valley through the tree tops I could make out the shape of one of today’s 2 Buzzards and on the river’s sandbanks were two of the expected 5 Grey Wagtails. It is not a surprise to count so many considering the length of river we walked yet it was unusual to watch them in numbers rather than singles. With so many about I was fascinated by the differences between the males and juveniles or females. The adult males had bold black bibs.
We came to an area cleared specifically for butterflies with logs left piled for nesting quarters for insects and such. The path along the river was selected and it was a wise choice as we had extremely close views of one of 2 Treecreepers climbing a dead tree collecting nesting material. I spotted a hole lined with dead leaves. This hole looked to be the Treecreeper’s but it flew across the river to another tree and came back empty beaked to collect more material meaning this hole must be another bird’s or possibly a rodent’s.
In the gnarled up clearing I counted a small flock of six of today’s 11 Great Tits and that was it until the next clearing a short distance later where we stopped at a bench for luncheon. The bench provided the option of looking over the river or to the wooded valley side at the back, I chose the latter in the hope of some early flycatchers.
Twenty minutes passed with no new additions to the list, only consolidations of Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Great and Blue Tits. A flash high up in the tree tops a fair distance away caught my attention. Looking at the exact spot enthusiastically, I made out a bird flying off a perch and snatching at the air in a circular fashion returning to the original perch. With excitement I shouted out “Flycatcher!”. The bird repeated the feat once more revealing it to be a black and white bird which can only be a male Pied Flycatcher. I was overjoyed and my heart beat faster waiting for another glimpse at the bird. I tried to get a sight of it in my scope by scanning the leafless tree tops with a hugely frustrating lack of success.
With luncheon finished we moved on up river adding very few birds over a long distance before we saw only 2 Long Tail Tits however I was delighted at the sight of a close scrutiny of a single Willow Tit. The rufous rump was the giveaway. (path) Large groups of Wood Ants were working away on the ground collecting materials for homebuilding especially pine needles. A very unusual tree fascinated us, it was probably an Oak. The interesting thing about it was that it was so twisted beyond belief like something out of a fairy tale.
All the way since the beginning of the walk I had scanned every stone or ripple in the shallow river relentlessly for a Dipper and not succeeded much to my consternation. (River) Approximately two in the afternoon we decided to stop for a rest near the end of the walk and sit by the stream on some lush grass littered with Wood Anemone and Lesser Celandines. There was no bird activity for a very long time passed by some lemon tea until the far bank debris gave us one of 4 Wrens. The wren foraged the river edge extensively occasionally jabbing at something. The relaxed environment was only punctuated by a few manic cyclists racing past on the path.
Our inevitable return was made along the path furthest away from the river to heighten the possibility of seeing different birds. There was a marshy area which we could only glimpse from the riverside path earlier, patches of Marsh Marigolds or Kingcups were dotted around the wet and boggy parts. I tried to take some pictures of these flowers but could not see a way to them. A short stride on and there was one of 3 Marsh Tits in an ivy clad tree.
Up till now I was shameful that I had not registered a single warbler or woodpecker and part of that was removed as up in a thin tree one of 2 Chiffchaffs moved constantly. I followed it for a while trying to get a good view of it through the branches and small leaves before managing to identify it. It’s song also eliminated Willow or Wood Warbler which I would have rather had. A while later I was watching a Wood Pigeon thinking I might have had a Stock Dove and my attention switched to a tiny bird in a ivy covered dead tree. It was a Goldcrest and I followed it through my binoculars trying to identify it’s sex. My green clothing must have rendered me well camouflaged as it tried to land on my head only aborting a foot away from me when I moved.
There was another clearing in the side of the path leading onto a thinner wooded area and I looked out to a Holly bush as there was some movement. It was a fair amount of time before anything showed. My patience was rewarded with 3 Song Thrushes and I managed to reel off some pictures of them through my scope. (Thrush) There were substantial groups of Ramsons coming out but not yet in full bloom, the leaves smelt very much like garlic. There were one or two Bluebells out here too. (Bluebell)
I did not add any new birds until we returned to Steps Bridge. Looking at the feeder stations behind the tea rooms on the opposite bank I added another woodland favourite, a Nuthatch. In the field on the other side of the bridge was a tail less male Pheasant. Back up the steep road we paused near the steps to the car park and surveyed the woods for the last time seeing a Pied Wagtail on the roof of the Tea Room. I removed all ignominy by adding a last minute woodpecker, a Great Spotted Woodpecker flew across the road and alighted in a small group of trees behind the Tea Room flashing it’s red rump. The walk had taken a good five hours including some brief rests and it was very enjoyable. We are certain of returning one day. The whole day was topped off with a delightfully sumptuous homemade Devon cream tea in Dunsford village.
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