We have now finalised the birdwatching cruises on the River Tamar this winter. We are only running three this year so demand is expected to be high so book early to ensure you have a place. There are already plenty of waders around, many visible from the new footpath accessed from Wacker Quay and very soon the Spoonbills and Avocets will be back. The best way to see all these is from a boat. The Birdwatching Cruise page (top right) […]

Less than a month since leaving our shores Tore has reached her probable wintering area in West Africa. She cut across Mauritania and into the Gambia but has edged just a wee bit north from Guinea Bissau,  and is now in Senegal, appearing to follow & explore a river system. She is close to Marassoum, on the Soungrougrou River, her last fix 3pm yesterday, 9th October, was in an area of  riverbank-side woodland called Foret de Diognere.

The latest news is that Tore has made it to Africa! From her previous last reported point, she has travelled down through Extremadura, into Portugal on 23the September at 9pm, down through the Algarve to the coast near Faro, before heading out to sea, at night, making landfall on the Moroccan coast at c.7am at Larache. She then kept going, passing Souk-el-Arba-du-Rharb, then west of Meknes, overnighted just south of Tadla, passing Ouarzazate at 2pm on 25th September, her latest fix […]

Did you know that….. 429,137 birds   ……have already been illegally killed by trappers in Cyprus so far this autumn? THIS NUMBER represents the BirdLife Cyprus estimate for how many birds have been illegally killed using mist nets and limesticks between September 1st and September 21st 2011. This death toll, which will be updated weekly during the autumn trapping season, is based on systematic monitoring of trapping activity in the field. Although only an estimate, it shows the extent of the problem out […]

After a three week stay on the Lynher/Tamar estuary Tore, the Loch Garten bred Osprey, continued her southward journey on the 18th September. She was at Wacker at 8am, headed over Millbrook and Maker around 9am and crossed the Channel into northern France, coming ashore near Saint Brienc, west of St Malo. She continued SE during the day and roosted near Nantes. On the 19th she continued  to the Gironde estuary near Bordeaux before changing to a SW bearing, cutting […]

Spoonbills have returned and bred for a second year at Holkham National Nature Reserve (NNR), eight pairs fledging 14 young. Last year saw the first breeding of Spoonbills in the UK for more than 300 years when six pairs successfully bred. Spoonbills at Holkham (Natural England). The breeding Spoonbills are part of group of around 40 adult and immature birds summering along the north Norfolk coast. These birds move between feeding sites on north Norfolk coast nature reserves and the […]

One of the young Ospreys that fledged from the nest at the RSPBs Loch Garten reserve has frequented the lower Tamar and River Lynher since the end of August. Called ‘Tore’, she is fitted with a satellite tracking device and her progress from Scotland is being monitored on a daily basis. You can follow her by clicking on the link http://www.rspb.org.uk/community/placestovisit/lochgartenospreys/b/lochgartenospreys/archive/2009/07/06/tore.aspx I saw her from the car park at Wacker Quay on the afternoon of 8th September, perched in a […]

We have arranged an additional Bird watching Cruise on Saturday 19th February leaving Cremyll at 11.30am and Saltash at 12 noon. Most places are already taken but there are some spaces available. Phone or email for availability.

We were blessed with some lovely weather; a mild autumn day with light winds and excellent visibility. After leaving Saltash, our skipper Ray, navigated close to mudflats on the Devon shore where there were good number of Oystercatcher, Grey Herons and Little Egret. Nearing the confluence with the Tavy there were large numbers of gulls, cormorants and here the first Avocets and Black-tailed Godwits were seen. We continued slowly upsteam as the tide was very low and at times there […]

The history of Cirl Buntings in Cornwall [part 2] Click here to view the article published in Palores earlier this year which cover the period from the Millenium up to 2009.