Book Review

The Axe Estuary and Seaton Bay Bird Report 2007. Edited by Gavin Haig. Published by East Devon District Council. Pp.114 Price £7.50

Now in its second year in this format, this report is considerably larger than its predecessor. Once again it has been written by Donald Campbell, James Chubb, Gavin Haig, Ian McLean, Bob Olliver, Fraser Rush, Michael Tyler and Steve Waite, and edited by Gavin Haig. In his Editorial he draws attention to some changes from the first report. The use of species names for birds that are recommended by the British Ornithologists’ Union has been discontinued, and names in common use, more familiar to many birdwatchers, are now used instead. Latin names are also given in the Species List. A very successful innovation, in response to comments from readers of the first report, is the distribution of photographs through the narrative, so that each is usually next to a relevant part of the text. There are also two new sections – one on butterflies, the other on dragonflies and damselflies.

The greater part of the text (65pp.) is devoted to a detailed account of the species recorded during 2007. In his introductory Review of the Year, Steve Waite points out that no fewer than 211 species were identified during this period, so the length of this section should come as no surprise! For some species, the description given includes maximum numbers of individuals seen in each month. The report also includes articles on rare species seen in the area (Audouin`s Gull, Bonaparte’s Gull, Iberian Chiffchaff and Stone Curlew), the Napoli Incident, Local Nature Reserves and Timed Tetrads and Roving Records. Two maps are included showing the location and the layout of the two LNRs on the Axe estuary. This excellent and well produced report is strongly recommended to dedicated bird watchers and more casual observers alike.