Early Spring in Cornwall

If I am to drag myself away from my local patch at the start of the 'peak season' then what better place to go than Cornwall!  Arriving on 29th March and departing on 4th April I managed to fit in some good birding that included 3 life ticks!

First up was the long-staying Booted Eagle just north of Penzance that had arrived the day after I left Cornwall in January.  Thankfully it had then stayed put all that time and had developed a routine of appearing just south of Sancreed Beacon each morning.  My wife and I therefore joined the assembled photographers and watchers on top of the beacon first thing along with some inquisitive wild ponies.

I was perhaps the only one present who hadn't seen the eagle yet so was particularly focused on scanning the tall pines at Trelew Farm above which it apparently arose each day.  Sure enough I picked it up a couple of miles south, rising just above the tall pines - my first ever British BOOTED EAGLE.  A pale-morph bird, it then slowly made its way towards us but remained distant, perhaps giving the best views as it glided down below the horizon on occasion.

The Booted Eagle from Sancreed Beacon, Cornwall on 30th March 2025

With the main bird in the bag it seemed rude not to poke my head over the fence of a small paddock at Marazion and see the Hoopoe - one of many birds in this Spring's influx.

The following day I stayed local on The Lizard and picked up a few year ticks in the form of a Great Skua passing with lots of Manx Shearwaters and Kittiwakes off Lowland Point near Coverack.  I also found my first Willow Warblers of the year and Coverack bay held fishing Sandwich Terns.

A walk out along the cliffs and through the heathland around Kynance Cove the next day found me several Wheatears, including my first female of the year, and a smart male Black Redstart.

Female Wheatear and male Black Redstart around Kynance Cove on 1st April

The 2nd April found me a Red Kite on passage over St Keverne around midday (still a scarce bird here) and then a visit to Loe Bar later in the day connected me with my first Osprey of the year.  I scanned the beach and sea at Loe Bar picking out Sanderlings, a male Common Scoter and a Red-throated Diver but nothing rare...however that was all about to change!

Red Kite over St Keverne and Osprey over Loe Pool on 2nd April

Early the next day, local birder David Collins, messaged to say he had found an adult male Kentish Plover on the beach at Loe Bar - definitely not there the evening before!  I got there as quickly as I could and thankfully immediately got on the bird - my first ever KENTISH PLOVER and a very smart bird at that.

The Kentish Plover at Loe Bar on 3rd April 2025

As I arrived to see the plover I was also conscious that many other birders were rushing back past me to go for another rarity that had turned up near Lands End just the day before - an Alpine Accentor.  It would seem rude not to follow suite and later that day, accompanied by my wife and dog Max, I arrived at the stunningly beautiful stretch of coastline north of Sennen Cove.

The bird was favouring a rocky outcrop (Aire Point) just north of Gwynver Beach and walking down the steep slope to the coast path, the azure-blue sea before me, glistening in the sun and lapping at the white sand of the beach made me feel like I had been transported to a tropical paradise!  I don't think I've every 'twitched' in quite such a beautiful setting.

After a 20 minute walk I arrived at Aire Point joining around 10 others all looking for the bird.  It had just been seen but disappeared behind the rock outcrops.  A tense wait followed but all of a sudden it was back in view, seemingly unconcerned about the admiring onlookers.  A set my scope and phone camera up and managed some pleasing shots of what was my first ever ALPINE ACCENTOR.

The Alpine Accentor at Aire Point, Cornwall on 3rd April 2025

A subtly beautiful bird with many features only becoming apparent after close scrutiny - its partly yellow beak and speckled white throat for instance.  It behaved exactly like its smaller relative, the much more familiar Dunnock, hopping slowly amongst the rocky, coastal flora.  It struck me that perhaps this remote headland resembled the closest thing to a rocky alpine outcrop in its more usual territory in the mountainous regions of southern Europe.

Both the Kentish Plover and the Alpine Accentor were birds that I had missed much closer to home with both occurring at Pitstone Quarry in recent years.  Needless to say, the Cornish setting was undoubtedly the finer scenery!  I was also later very pleased for my photos of both birds to feature in the Rare Bird Alert Weekly Roundup Report.

My time in Cornwall was up but not before I added my first Whitethroat of the year, singing along the entrance road to Kynance Cove.  Welcome back and I'm sure the first of many still to come!

Whitethroat at Kynance Cove on 4th April 2025