Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus o. ostralegus

Very abund. winter visitor and autumn migrant, abundant throughout the summer, has bred, RI(w)

 

This colourful and vocal wader, much loved by local people and professional ornithologists alike is symbolised as the sites’ logo, appearing everywhere on publications and interpretation boards.  It has been the subject of many projects and is amongst the longest studied of a single species in the World revealing fascinating insights into the life of this charismatic bird.  A notable discovery was of individual bill-shapes which differed according to their favoured prey, the mostly male, mussel-feeding birds have blunt ‘hammer-bills’, the mostly female, worm-feeding mudflat dwellers have ‘pointed-bills’ and others feeding on cockles have ‘chisel-bills’.  Also discovered here is the high fidelity of these birds returning to the same estuary each winter which should give these birds added respect for they can live for over 30 years.

 

Not surprisingly our birding ancestors remarked upon the presence here of this hard-to-miss species but it was far less numerous in the 19th century; E. Moore wrote, “not uncommon near the seashore in small flocks, in winter” and D & M wrote, “It is rarely common at any time on the south coast [of Devon] but is most frequently met with in small parties from Aug to Oct, on the seashore or in estuaries...” ; and goes on to say up to four have been seen here up to 1890.  Interestingly, Pidsely wrote, “The Warren at Exmouth is a favourite locality and a pair seen there in June 1888 were probably breeding.”; an unusual occurrence but perhaps indicating an increase as D & M later record, “has become more frequent at Exmouth than formally, as we saw five there 19 Sept 1893 and 12 in a flock 24 Sept 1894.”.  Throughout the present century numbers have swelled to a max of about 300000 wintering in Britain and Ireland by the early 1990s, some 45% of all those within Europe and the Exe is one of about 23 estuaries in the UK which are of international or national importance holding at least 3600 birds. 

 

During every high tide flocks can be found in front of the hide upon ‘Woodhenge’ and also upon Warren Point according to tide height and state, weather and disturbance.  Numbers are lowest in June when 500 to 700 non-breeding imms are the only ones remaining, however by mid-July autumn migrants appear rising to an annual peak of usually 2500 to 3500 in Oct to Dec with an all time max of 5640 in Dec 1990.  Wintering birds leave for breeding grounds within Britain, Holland, Faeroes and Scandinavia from late-Feb onwards but spring passage itself is rather light. 

 

Plumage-abnormalities sometimes occur and partial-albinos are noticed most years; a full albino was noted every year 1964 to 1974 and another was present 11 Sept 1980.  Canon-netting since the mid 1970s has caught some 1500 birds, those here have originated from the Northern Isles, the Low Countries and Rogaland in Norway.

 

Table 87: monthly average of max counts for four 5-year periods *

Mnth

J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

O

N

D

80 - 84

2345

2080

1429

873

713

757.5

1277

2700

3075

2822

2225

2212

85 - 89

2780

2570

1936

1148

962

780.4

1510

3289

3595

3689

3230

3302

90 - 94

2775

2999

1368

755.4

650

557.6

1106

3133

3602

3320

3555

3702

95 - 99

2256

2190

1424

653.6

531.4

504

845.4

1574

2746

2175

2294

2125

 

Table 88:  monthly max count for four 5-year periods *

Mnth

J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

O

N

D

80 - 84

2688

2640

2000

975

695

930

1548

3300

3500

3400

2620

2450

85 - 89

3400

3300

2750

1900

1070

770

1730

5000

4400

4100

3550

4100

90 - 94

3380

4500

1680

1150

800

685

1800

3985

4100

4000

3900

5640

95 - 99

3386

3100

2500

1000

653

717

1000

2000

3420

4400

3200

2800

* highest monthly fig is in bold