Cornwall Birding January 2026

Our first birding trip of the year was in Cornwall and we arrived in Wadebridge during the tail end of storm Goretti which had lashed Cornwall with winds of 99 mph and brought down a significant number of trees.

Technically we were cat sitting at our daughters, not birding but the cat didn't seem to mind us going on an occasional twitch so we made the most of it and targeted local sightings, working around inclement weather whenever possible, links to bird sightings. Cornwall Birds (CBWPS) BirdGuides. Below: Camel Estuary. 

15th January

Our first stop today was over in Truro where a long staying Lesser Yellowlegs has been overwintering on the Truro river since the 15th of October 2025 primarily in the area of the Gas hill (Tesco) mudlflats. On arrival we scanned the river at the back of Tesco's and noted Greenshank, Redshank, Black-tailed godwit, Common sandpiper and Cormorant. There was no sign of the Lesser yellowlegs which had been on BirdGuides earlier that morning so we followed the river further down and spotted it feeding on the mudflats. Lesser yellowlegs.

Our next stop was Coronation boating lake, Helston where a pair of Lesser scaup have been reported for the last few months and on arrival we spotted both male and female in a group of Tufted ducks very close to the edge of the lake. Other birds included Mallard, Little grebe and Canada geese. male and female Lesser scaup.

From here we headed to Redruth for a possible sighting of a Siberian Lesser whitethroat reported from New Cut car park and on arrival we parked up and scouted the area without any success. Later this sub-species of Eastern origin was confirmed on the CBWPS sightings page with images of the bird. There were no further reported sightings during our trip. Our last stop was at Hayle where a Curlew sandpiper and Garganey had been reported. Highlights here were Grey plover, Golden plover, Dunlin, Lapwing, Wigeon, Teal, Curlew, Bar-tailed godwit, Goosander and Rock pipit with no sign of either Sandpiper or Garganey. Grey Plover.

16th January

This morning we headed for a cabbage field at Trenwheal where a White stork had been regularly reported over the last few days. On arrival we found a suitable pull-in off the narrow road and checked out the field. The sun came out and over the far side of the field we had views of the White stork heading in our direction. We anchored down behind the hedgerow and soon we had great views of the bird which was ringed 45 blue. After a little research it was discovered that the bird was part of the White Stork Project, specifically hatched at Cotswold Wildlife Park and released from the Coombeshead rewilding site in Devon. White stork.

Our next stop was over at Loe Pool on the National Trust Penrose Estate, Helston where a Pallas's warbler had been reported a week or so earlier, we didn't see the warbler but had great views of Goldcrest, Firecrest, Nuthatch Blackcap and Chiffchaff. Access was restricted due to storm damage and clean up work was being carried out around the freshwater lake so we didn't venture down. Goldcrest, Firecrest, Blackcap, Chiffchaff.

From here we headed over to Newlyn harbour where Little gull and Iceland gull had been reported earlier in the day. Once again without any luck, 2 Great northern divers were in the harbour and along the roof of the Fish Market we noted Greater black-backed gull, Lesser black-backed gull, Herring gull, Black-headed gull and around 30 Turnstones. The light was going as we set off back to Wadebridge. Great northern diver.

17th January

Our first stop today was for the long staying female Ring-necked duck over at Tehidy Country Park which has been present since early December. We soon found the ring-neck among several Tufted, other sightings here were Jay, Mallard, Little grebe and Rook. Our plan was to head over to Lizard point with a few stops on the way so we returned to the car and headed towards Godrevy and Gwithian sands. Ring-necked duck.

We pulled in by the small nature reserve and checked out the water and surrounding fields noting Curlew, Canada geese, Mallard, Rook, Raven, Jackdaw and a good number of Starlings, we were hoping for Barnacle geese but there were no sign. Continuing on we stopped at Basset cove on the North cliffs noting Stonechat, Peregrine falcon, Fulmar, Herring gull, and Gannet. From here we dropped into Portreath looking for Black redstart which was reported that morning but all we managed was a Grey wagtail. Fulmar.

From here we continued south to the Lizard where we managed to pick out several Red-billed chough from a huge flock of Jackdaw. Other sightings included Oystercatcher, Shag, Cormorant, Rock pipit and Fulmar. Returning back we dropped into Hayle at high tide and noted Shelduck, Lapwing, Dunlin, Golden plover, Wigeon, Teal, Kingfisher and Curlew. Red-billed chough.

18th January

This morning we returned to Hayle to catch low tide but on arrival thick fog made visibility poor along the causeway so we decided to carry on towards Marazion and return in the afternoon. At Long Rock Pool the male Greater scaup which had been reported was showing well and a male Marsh harrier was hawking over the reedbed while on Marazion marsh we noted Common snipe, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Firecrest and Great white egret. We also had a possible Jack snipe. Marsh harrier, Greater scaup, Firecrest, Great white egret.

Returning back to Hayle the tide was out but we didn't pick out anything new among the Golden plovers, Dunlin, Black-tailed godwit, Teal, Lapwing, Redshank, Greater black-backed gulls, Herring gulls and Black-headed gulls. Continuing on we Stopped at Carnsew Pool and noted Kingfisher, Great crested grebe, Little grebe, Great northern diver, Grey plover, Common sandpiper, Curlew, Dunlin and Greenshank. Kingfisher.

Our last stop was to look for a Black redstart our second twitch for this species in as many days. A male had been reported on the Knavocks near Navax point, this is also a good spot for Dartford warbler during spring but we had no luck on either count and we continued to scout the area until last light. This area is definitely worth returning to later in the year. Greenshank at Carnsew.

19th January

This morning we headed towards St. Ives where Black redstart and 3 Snow buntings had been reported over the last few days, this was our 3rd twitch for Black redstart and the 3rd time we dipped out. Heavy rain from the outset made the going difficult and we had a mixed bag of sightings of Wren, Stonechat, Meadow pipits, Great northern diver, Greater black-backed gull, Oystercatcher, Gannet, Grey seal and Bottlenose dolphin.

From here we headed towards Penzance and Battery rocks where we spotted the tail end of a passing flock of Sanderling, on the rocks there were 2 Turnstones 3 Rock pipit, 2 Oystercatchers and 50+ Purple sandpiper.

Calling in at Hayle on the way home and noted 400+ Golden plover, 200+ Lapwing and the usual suspects of Gulls and Waders. At Copperhouse we spotted good numbers of Wigeon and Teal along with a Garganey which had managed to elude us on previous visits. Garganey.

20th January

We eventually ventured out in the wind and sideways rain staying local along the Camel trail at Wadebridge heading towards Bodmin. We managed to get to the Iron bridge before tuning around returning to the car. Shelduck, Canada geese, Greylag geese, Mallard, Teal, Jackdaw, Great tit, Blue tit, Coal tit, Long-tailed tit, Rook, Chaffinch, Redwing, Blackbird, Dunnock, Robin, 35 Common snipe and Marsh tit.

21st January

This morning the rains continued so we opted to bird from the car and headed through Camelford towards Davidstow airfield and Crowdy reservoir. After an hour or so without success we decided to head back and follow the Camel trail, this time from the Old Town Cove to Padstow. Whimbrel, Curlew on the Camel.

The rain stopped long enough for us to check out the estuary where we noted 27 Grey plover, 50 Dunlin 100's of Oystercatcher and Redshanks, 5 Greenshank, 2 Common sandpiper, 30 Curlew, 1 Red-breasted merganser and a single Whimbrel. Red-breasted merganser.

From here we spent an hour at Trevose Head where we recorded Raven, Carrion crow, Jackdaw, Red-billed chough, Meadow pipit, Rock pipit and Gannet before returning back. Rock pipit, Meadow pipit.

22nd January

This morning we went to Hayle and along the causeway noted 400+ Golden plover and 150+ Dunlin while on Carnsew Pool we noted Kingfisher. We stopped for lunch at Long Rock Pool at Marazion and had views again of the male Greater scaup. Golden plover, Dunlin.

Our next stop was Penzance and on the shingle beach at Battery rock we spotted 37 Ring plover and a single Sanderling. Over at Newlyn fish market we looked for an Iceland Gull without success but 2 Great northern diver and a Grey seal in the harbour made the stop worthwhile. Ringed plover.

From here we continued to Mousehole and spent a few hours sea watching and noted 2 Guillemot in winter plumage, 4 Great northern diver and a Black-throated diver. Gannet, Turnstone, Oystercatcher, Cormorant and Shag was also recorded. Guillemot.

From here we headed for Sennen Cove but rough seas and high winds made sightings challenging. Our final stop was Chapel Carn Brea specifically looking for Short-eared owls, without any luck. This was our last day birding and we had recorded 95 species during our Cornwall trip. Black-throated diver at Mousehole.

Sightings List