Twitching Day 3

The third day in a row that I've been birding and it was an early start again, getting up at 5.30am.
I was on the road at 6.30am and arrived at Rhydwrin near Newport in Wales around 8.00am. I felt like I must be the last birder in Britain to come and see the Common Yellowthroat as there was no one else in view. I soon bumped into another birder though, a guy who had travelled all the way from Colchester that morning and another guy who was on his 4th visit and was still trying to get decent video footage.
We took up positions in the varoius places that the bird had been seen and after around twenty minutes the guy from Colchester had located the bird. This had me running, something I  haven't done when birding for years.
I was soon on the Yellowthroat though and forgetting that I was out of breath. My third lifer in two days !
I tried to get a photo but the bird was in and out of the brambles and it was impossible so I gave up and watched it instead until it moved further into cover.
I then decided to head back to Exeter and the Exminster Marshes arriving around 11am. I parked up at the reserve and pretty soon had located my next target, another American vagrant, but this time a duck.
I located the American Wigeon in with the Eurasian Wigeon flock and there not being much else about I headed over to the other side of the Exe and to Topsham.
I parked up at Topsham and walked straight down to the Goat Walk. The tide was very high and as a consequence very few birds were on show. I did see four Avocets and a pair of Red Breasted Mergansers though. I then walked around to the viewing platform and saw a Little Egret and a Greenshank on the tide line below me.

Greenshank-Topsham

 

 

I then decided to head for home but call into Seaton Marshes on the Way. As I was coming up to Aylesbeare Common I thought I would give it half an hour to see if any Dartford Warblers were about.
I walked around but there was no sign, I think the last two winters have decimated the fragile population that existed here.

 I did see a few Stonechats though.
I arrived at Black Hole Marsh around 3.30pm and spent 45 minutes scanning the Gull roost and checking for Iceland or Caspian Gulls, but with nothing on show decided to head for home.