06/12/2025 Dawlish, Devon

Lesser Crested Tern: This mega rare bird was seen and reported mid week, but with such a busy work schedule and lots of site work I had to wait until the weekend to make the nine hour journey south. 

We made good time and connected with the bird almost immediately, viewing from Starcross Railway Station platform overlooking the River Exe. Although, here the bird was miles away, a dot on a distance sandbank.

Not before long the bird moved to an area of the estuary off Cockwood, and here the incoming tide pushed the bird much closer. Fantastic. 

Lesser crested tern records in the UK are extremely rare, with this individual being only the 10th ever confirmed UK sighting.