Wildlife in Springtime on the water with Koru

Spring is a wonderful time of year to enjoy the diverse wildlife we have here along the Cornish coastline. With just two weeks until we open for Easter we thought we would share with you what wildlife we hope to see on our Koru Kayak Adventures!

On our St Agnes Koru Kayak Adventures are home to some wonderful wildlife.

Razorbills and Guillemots

The dramatic cliffs with ledges are alive with razorbills and guillemots roosting here in the springtime until July. They then head out to sea. It’s lovely to see them all lined up with their bright white chests and black backs like mini penguins as their young dive off the . ledge learning how to fly. The two birds are very similar, but have different beaks. Razorbills have a hooked beak with a razor bill and guillemots with pointy beaks. See if you can spot the difference as you paddle by.

Grey Seals

We are thrilled to have Atlantic Grey Seals living in this part of the coastline. Their numbers will swell in the summer during mating season. Cornwall Seal Group chart travelling seals who will fatten up for the winter and unlike their Australian cousins who only swim small distances and are much more agile on the rocks. Our Atlantic grey seals are bulky and slow on the land, but are long distance swimmers who have been known to swim as far as Wales! It’s always important to give seals space, but they are naturally curious animals who will often pop up around the kayaks to say hello or can be seen bobbing along in the sea having a snooze.

Seals can weigh up to 300kg, that’s a whole lot of fish, and can give live for 3-40 years so every year we look forward to seeing Silverback and Maggie!

Shags

Is it a Cormorant or a shag? Both are black birds who like to swoop down and swim under water to catch fish. Both have long necks but shags are smaller and have a steep forehead, but shags are smaller coastal birds who can be seen perched on the rocks drying off their wings before their next fishing dive. They can dive up to 45 metres!

Oyster Catchers

The oyster catchers all tend to live around the min waterfall just before Gadger and cluster together on a rock. You can hear their shriek calling sound as they fly by. Their bright red beaks stand out again their black and white feathers. Despite being called Oyster Catchers, their main food is cockles and mussels on the coast and their long beaks perfect for eating them. On the St Agnes Coastline there’s an abundance of small mussels clinging onto the rock faces of Gadger.

Peregrine Falcons, Dolphins and Basking Sharks have all been spotted on our kayak adventures over the years, so if you are lucky you might spot one of those aswell!

On our Helford Koru Kayak Adventures it’s a totally different much softer landscape. The vast ancient oak woodland and farmland with the Helford River and creeks, a tidal waterway with a mix of sea water and rainwater runoff from the surrounding land.

Here’s some of the wildlife you might see on our Helford Koru Kayak Adventures: .

There’s rumours that basking sharks are on their way to Falmouth Bay so we might be lucky and get a glimpse from the mouth of the river. At this time if the year the river is so quiet and so dolphins have swum up the river and seals, meanwhile the creeks are a hive of activity with nesting birdlife.

Here’s what you might see this Spring on the Helford River and creeks:

Herons – with a massive wing span of upto 195cm!!! Whilst their feathers are grey, their beaks (yellow, black and red) and legs (yellow,pink and brown legs) are brightly coloured. Able to eat small mammals and fish the Helford with it’s farmland and waterways is the perfect environment for the grey heron. Something to look out for is herony on the Helford on Polwheveral Creek, right next to where the oyster farm used to be, but make sure you keep your distance especially with noisy engines so you don’t disturb the nesting birds.

Little Egrets – their bright white feathers they first came in significant numbers to the UK from 1989. Also lovers of farmland and marine areas the Helford is a perfect spot for them and whilst some migrate, some will stay here all year round. With manificent white plumage, there’s a few varieties of egret that can be found on the Helford clustering together in the ancient oak trees that line the Helford River and creeks.

Kingfishers – we rarely see these in the Spring time. They are about, but are a much more common sighting in the Autumn? Perhaps too busy nesting in the river banks to be flying up and down the creeks showing off their bright blue and russet wings.

Cormorants – Is it a Cormorant or a shag? Both black birds who like to swoop down and swim under water to catch fish. Both have long necks but shags are smaller and have a steep forehead. both can be spotted on the Helford hanging out on the buoys with wings spread drying them out before their next fishing dive. They can dive up to 45 metres!

Curlews – you’ll hear their haunting cry before you see them as their brown speckled feathered keep them well camouflaged. They have amazing long curved beaks too.

Then there’s seals – whilst not resident in the Helford those cheeky, curious grey seals can often be found following a fish or fishing boat up or even following us so keep your eyes peeled!

We have trips available 6 days a week Monday- Saturday so come and see what’s about this Spring – Kayak Adventure times available