BIRDING IN PORLOCK

My parents moved down to Porlock in Somerset in 1996, and I've visited them several times since. Naturally I've investigated the local birding potential, and it certainly makes a change from Thanet. This page isn't a detailed survey of Porlock birds, just a summary of what I've found and a few other things I've heard about. There is at least one local birder in Porlock itself who proved quite informative when I grilled him.

It must be admitted, Porlock is hardly a 5 Star Birding Hotspot brimming with rarities, so twitchers can give it a miss. It's not exactly well placed for migrants, and all my attempts at seawatching have drawn a total blank.

If you can fill in any gaps or provide additional information, feel free to email me. And if anyone wants to put up a proper Porlock Birding webpage (ie; better than this effort) then so much the better.

Where is Porlock?

It sits on the west Somerset coast, on the A39, roughly halfway between Minehead and Lynton. It lies in a broad strip of low-lying ground at the foot of Exmoor. Deep-sided wooded valleys ('combes' in local parlance) wind their way up into the hills. Porlock offers a variety of habitats within easy walking distance of the village, most of it fairly scenic. A very pleasant area to spend a day in the great outdoors, unless of course it's raining in which case it's as miserable as anywhere else.

Where to do Birding

There are a number of sites worth particular mention, but on the whole you're best off just wandering around and exploring. There's a visitor centre in the village which should be able to furnish you with a map of all the main footpaths, but there are loads of little trails to get your feet well and truly blistered.

• Porlock Marsh - a flooded lagoon behind the bank of shingle that stretches across Porlock Bay. This bank is now breached by the sea so you can't walk all the way along. From Porlock itself you can get down to the marsh via Sparkhayes Lane, or you can approach it from the west via Porlock Weir. Wellies recommended, since it's usually pretty muddy, but this is the only spot in the area where you stand to get waders and any assortment of wildfowl.
• Hawkcombe - In Porlock, turn inland at the church and you head up towards the hamlet of Hawkcombe. Carry on and you enter the woods of Hawk Combe proper, which follows Hawkcombe Water up to Hawkcombe Head, which is open moor. From there you can either walk back or follow the road back down to the coast. There are lots of little paths running through Hawkcombe woods, some of them branching off over the hills.
• Horner - A little village round the corner from Porlock. It sits at the edge of Horner Woods, which seem to contain all the local woodland species, and like Hawkcombe there's a veritable labyrinth of paths to follow. The main path follows Horner Water, others sidle along the walls of the valley getting you up to eye level with birds in the canopy.
• Bossington Hill - This is the huge rounded hill that looms over the sea immediately east of Porlock. There is a coastal path that goes all the way to Minehead, but since it's halfway up a very steep cliff avoid it if you've no head for heights. Otherwise there are various footpaths leading up and down the hill and through the woods to the south.

THE BIRDS

This list covers the species I've seen in the Porlock area, plus a few I've heard reports of. It is not comprehensive, but gives a fair idea of what might be seen, based largely on my visits in April, July and December.

Little Grebe - present on Porlock Marsh in December 1998, not seen them there in spring or summer.
Gannet - apparently rare, though they have been seen flying along the coast.
Cormorant - often present on Porlock Marsh, or flying along the coast.
Shag - I've only seen one, on Porlock Marsh in December 1998.
Heron - regularly seen flying over the village, often present on Porlock Marsh.
Little Egret - up to six present Porlock Marsh in July 1999.
Canada Goose - several apparently resident on Porlock Marsh in April 1997, haven't seen any since.
Shelduck - several pairs breeding Porlock Marsh.
Mallard - several pairs breed along the streams.
Buzzard - common.
Sparrowhawk - surprisingly, I have seen just one, over Hawkcombe in July 1999. If they're present in the woods they are exceptionally secretive.
Kestrel - not very common, though occasionally encountered hunting over the moors.
Peregrine - one sighting from Bossington Hill, so perhaps resident along the coastal cliffs between Porlock and Minehead.
Red Grouse - the local population is apparently extinct. So don't go slogging up to Dunkery for them, 'cause they ain't there no more.
Pheasant - abundant.
Moorhen - Porlock Marsh, presumably breeding there.
Oystercatcher - occasional small flocks along the shore.
Ringed Plover - passage migrant on Porlock Marsh, don't know of any breeding pairs.
Turnstone - on the shingle bank of Porlock Bay.
Woodcock - I have flushed two from the woods around Hawkcombe/Horner, both in December, so presumably just a winter visitor.
Snipe - I've flushed a couple from the moors.
Curlew - Porlock Marsh, apparently present throughout the year.
Whimbrel - passage migrant, occasionally present on Porlock Marsh.
Redshank - Porlock Marsh, apparently resident.
Dunlin - on passage, Porlock Marsh.
Greater Black Backed Gull - can be seen along the coast.
Lesser Black Backed Gull - not actually seen one around Porlock, which is surprising. (They breed in Taunton.)
Herring Gull - present.
Common Gull - present, in winter at least.
Black-Headed Gull - present.
Mediterranean Gull - I've been informed of at least one record from Porlock Marsh. A scarce visitor.
Wood Pigeon - abundant in the woods.
Collared Dove - a few pairs in Porlock, but loathe to move up to any altitude. If you're lucky you might go a whole day without seeing one.
Stock Dove - present, but not in any great numbers.
Turtle Dove - no records, but I can't believe they're absent.
Tawny Owl - breed in the woods, pretty numerous going by the racket they make in spring.
Cuckoo - thinly distributed in the woods.
Nightjar - apparently breeding in suitable habitat between Porlock and Horner, though I can't claim to have seen or heard any myself.
Kingfisher - I've heard reports of wintering birds loitering in the harbour at Porlock Weir.
Swift - present around Porlock itself.
Green Woodpecker - present in all woodland.
Great Spotted Woodpecker - ditto.
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker - I've seen a couple in Horner Woods, presumably they are present elsewhere.
Skylark - breeding on Bossington Hill and elsewhere, but not numerous.
Swallow - common.
House Martin - common.
Sand Martin - present in April. I've heard reports of a colony near Porlock Weir but an inspection of promising-looking sites drew a blank.
Meadow Pipit - abundant on the moors.
Tree Pipit - no records. However, I've never been in the area in May, when singing males are at their most obvious.
Pied Wagtail - present in low-lying areas.
Grey Wagtail - breed along the woodland streams, which is hardly surprising since the woodland streams are classic Grey Wagtail habitat.
Starling - resident in Porlock village, flocks foray onto farmland up in the hills, but generally absent.
Magpie - present.
Jay - present in the woods, since most of the trees are oaks.
Carrion Crow - present.
Jackdaw - common in Porlock village and vicinity.
Rook - there is a rookery in Porlock itself.
Raven - a pair often nests above Hawkcombe village (on the eastern side of the valley), and are generally conspicuous if present. Every passing Buzzard tends to get mobbed by one or both adults in the spring/summer. I've also seen one over Bossington Hill, so they might be breeding along the cliffs there.
Wren - common.
Dunnock - common.
Dipper - breeds along Hawkcombe Water and Horner Water. The latter is the more reliable of the two if you want to see Dipper.
Whitethroat - I've seen just one, but I tend not to wander around the arable farmland east of Porlock since it's rather boring scenery-wise, and this is where Whitethroats are most likely to be.
Blackcap - common in the woods. No winter records.
Garden Warbler - present but not numerous in the woods.
Dartford Warbler - a male singing in a large clump of gorse on Ley Hill, April 1998. Not the only record, apparently.
Willow Warbler - abundant in season.
Chiffchaff - ditto.
Wood Warbler - apparently breed in Horner Woods and no doubt elsewhere, but my April visits were too early, and the males would have stopped singing by July, so I haven't actually seen one. Yet.
Goldcrest - common resident.
Spotted Flycatcher - scattered pairs breeding along the woodland margins.
Pied Flycatcher - as Wood Warbler. I'm reliably informed that they do breed in Horner Woods, but not apparently in any great numbers.
Wheatear - a few April records and just one juvenile on my July visit suggest passage rather than local breeding. If they do breed then they're certainly not numerous.
Stonechat - resident, with scattered pairs on the hilltops and along the cliffs.
Redstart - no records myself, but my mother saw a male in Hawkcombe woods so they're definitely around.
Robin - common.
Blackbird - common around the villages.
Ring Ouzel - I've seen just one, a male flying over Cloutsham Ball in April. I would expect them to breed on the moors but I can't claim to have gone fanatically hunting them.
Song Thrush - resident, but not numerous.
Missel Thrush - commoner than Song Thrush.
Redwing - they're on my Porlock List so I must have seen some on my December visit.
Blue Tit - abundant.
Great Tit - abundant.
Coal Tit - common in the woods.
Marsh Tit - a few pairs in Horner Woods. I usually see them along the main path about two hundred yards upstream from the village.
Long-Tailed Tit - abundant.
Nuthatch - present in all the woods, though not in large numbers.
Treecreeper - present throughout in suitable habitat.
House Sparrow - resident in Porlock village, virtually non-existent elsewhere in the area.
Chaffinch - abundant.
Bullfinch - apparently scarce. There seems to be one or two pairs between Horner village and Webber's Post, but I've not seen any elsewhere.
Greenfinch - common in low-lying areas, flocking on the coast in winter.
Goldfinch - scarce but widely distributed.
Linnet - common around the farms and along the shore.
Reed Bunting - present on Porlock Marsh, and I've also found males singing up on the moors.
Yellowhammer - resident, but in very small numbers. The few I've seen have all been along the tree line where the woods give way to gorse and bracken heath.
Cirl Bunting - much as I've kept my eyes and ears open, I haven't had so much as a whiff of a single one.

Take Me Bak 'Ome