Decisions Right or Wrong

 Friday 10th April; On Friday afternoon after work, I decided to head to Swineham GP in search of the elusive Red-spotted Bluethroat. Was it a good decision or a bad one? What even makes a decision good or bad when birding? Being a Friday, I knew getting from Ferndown to Wareham would be a nightmare—and it was. I also knew the bird hadn’t been seen since 11:20 a.m., so what possessed me to set off at 1:30 p.m.? Not only would it have been a mega lifer for me, but it would’ve added a bird to my county list. This turned out to be my first wrong call of the weekend, as the traffic ate up precious time, leaving me with only about an hour and a half before I had to leave to beat the homeward rush. I didn’t see the bird I came for, but I did add two new species: Reed Warbler and Sandwich Tern. Was it a good late afternoon? It was nice to see these birds, bump up the list, and spend time with fellow birders I knew. Still, in the end, given the traffic, perhaps it wasn’t the best choice.

Saturday 11th April; I made the same mistake of going in the afternoon. Why a mistake? Well, the day before, reports of the Bluethroat had come only in the early morning, with no sightings in the afternoon. So why repeat it? Was it the lure of a lifer or just wanting it on the county list, rather than appreciating it for being a beautiful migrant bird? Honestly, I think it was mainly for the list. I spent another two hours waiting for the bird to show, which it didn’t, though I did manage to tick off two more species: House Martin and Bearded Reedling. On the way home, news broke of a Hoopoe near Hartland Moor, but I didn’t see the update until I was already home and couldn’t go out again due to other commitments.

Sunday 12th April; I think maybe I should have arranged the family walk for Saturday instead of Sunday. I could have gone out after tea this evening instead of writing this blog, but I was torn. With work in the morning, I figured it was best to rest after a week of nine-hour shifts beside a noisy machine, thinking about coordinates, inputting data, and lifting heavy metal pieces all day—it’s both mentally and physically draining. I’m starting to think I’m not cut out for going all out, because in the end it came down to whether I wanted to go out just to tick off a bird for the sake of a number. It’s a lot of effort, and I can’t imagine how birders or twitchers manage to chase around the country—it must be exhausting and stressful. The idea of constant travel for birds is losing its appeal, as I enjoy wandering my local patches or visiting a few familiar spots now and then. Still, I’ve seen some amazing birds, including ones I might never have spotted without making the effort. In the end, maybe there’s no right or wrong choice—just a decision, whatever it brings.

# Reed Warbler 123

# Sandwich Tern 124

# House Martin 125

# Bearded Reedling 126

A western Marsh Harrier in its 3rd Calendar Year

Cuckoo Flower

Wood Anemone

Blue Bells

Garganey and Portland

 On the 3rd of April, I set off on a grey, damp late morning in search of the Garganey recently spotted at Woodsford Bridge. A drake and hen had been seen on the gravel quarry ponds there. Since I’d never visited the area before, I asked about parking and was told there was a small layby nearby. With directions from BirdGuides and Google Maps, I headed out late morning. Finding the spot was easy, and I parked in the small layby before scanning the pools with my binoculars, spotting only two Gadwall at first. Then, two Kestrels appeared over the field, calling and interacting, a pleasant distraction. A family with a dog began walking toward the ponds, and I worried they might scare the birds. Just then, a Red Kite flew overhead, catching my attention, and when I looked back at the pond, I saw the drake and hen Garganey in the middle. I quickly retrieved my scope from the car for a better view.

The Garganey seen I decided to head off to Portland with the hope of seeing some sea birds.

Rubbish photo of the male Garganey

I arrived at Portland at approximately 12pm and found a parking space and walked to the bill lighthouse It was very windy and when I got to Pulpit Rock I could see the see was very rough with waves crashing on to the rocks below. I soon noticed a large flock of gull off west cliffs and among some Gannets, Fulmars and Kittiwake. On the sea I could make out Guillemots bobbing up and out of view among the waves.

Watching the Gannets fly by, I soon spotted two Manx Shearwaters riding the waves, turning this way and that, disappearing behind one swell and reappearing on the crest of another. Unfortunately, they were far off and best viewed through the telescope, and my attempt at photographing them was dismal at best. I watched as they headed further out to sea with the outgoing tide, likely following fish. 

I moved on to search for the Little Owl and perhaps a Wheatear near the Obs quarry. Luckily, just before a family walked down the path toward the quarry, I spotted the Little Owl tucked into one of the crags. However, the owl noticed the group and quickly retreated to safety among the rocks. Making my way back along the path, I scanned the many House Sparrows, hoping to spot a Tree Sparrow. A small bird lifted from the grass meadow, flashing a white rump, and I instantly thought “Wheatear.” The bird landed on one of the house aerials, so I focused the scope on it, and sure enough, it was a male Wheatear. With that, I decided it was time to head home.

Portland Bird Observatory

The Bill Lighthouse

 Pulpit Rock

Waves crashing over rocks

Gannet

A dreadful record capture of a Manx Shearwater

Today’s sightings included Garganey, Kestrel, Red Kite, Guillemot, Kittiwake, Fulmar, Gannet, Manx Shearwater, Little Owl, and Wheatear, with the Wheatear marking my 122nd species on the Dorset County List.

Dipping the Dipper

 On Wednesday, 25th March, I went on a birding trip with my good friend George Green. We’d planned to visit either Dancing Ledge for Puffins or Maiden Newton for Dippers, and chose the Dippers—a smart move given the strong winds, which would have been worse on the cliffs. George knew the route, so he drove and picked me up at 9:30 am. It was a short drive, and we found a good parking spot in Maiden Newton near the river. From the first bridge by the school, we had a quick look, then crossed a small footbridge into a field and followed the riverbank, scanning for any sign of a dipper, but had no luck. We wandered through the village, checking a few more bridges without success, and just as we reached the farthest point from the car, rain began to fall, quickly turning into a sharp hailstorm. Luckily, it didn’t last long—just enough to send us back to the car. Once there, we considered our next move, as no dippers had been spotted in Maiden Newton.

Plan B took us to Kingcombe Meadows Nature Reserve, with a few stops along the River Hooke en route. Unfortunately, we didn’t spot any birds along these stretches, even though the habitat looked perfect for Dippers. According to *The Birds of Dorset*, this should be prime territory. So why are they so hard to find in Dorset, especially in the east, when most sightings come from the west? A Tetrad Survey from 1987–1994 estimated 25–30 pairs. That was some time ago, but with such ideal habitat, what’s stopping these wonderful birds from expanding their range?  

At the Kingcombe Visitor Centre, our first stop was the café for a warming coffee. We both went for large cups and the most delicious fruit scones with jam and cream. If you visit, the scones are highly recommended—slightly pricey, but very filling and absolutely delicious.

After finishing our drinks and food, we headed to the River Hooke, and along the way, another memory surfaced. When I first arrived at the centre, I thought I had never been there before, but as I walked to the river, I realized I had visited back in the late ’90s—around 1998 or 1999. I had volunteered to survey otters on the River Stour in Dorset and attended a course on tracking them by their prints and spraint, as well as learning to tell the difference between otters and mink. Otter spraint has a sweet, violet-like smell, while mink give off a strong, musky odor. All these memories came flooding back as I walked along a section of the River Hooke, which looked much the same as it had all those years ago. I had a fantastic time on the course and thoroughly enjoyed surveying the River Stour at Iford Bridge and around Julian’s Bridge in Wimborne.

The R.Hooke

Looking down stream 

Cuckoo Flower also known as Lady's Smock

As no Dippers were seen along the section of river, we headed to a bird hide we’d spotted earlier while having coffee. This turned out to be a great decision, as while watching various birds come and go to a single peanut feeder, a Marsh Tit appeared; a bird I thought I’d have to make a special trip to see at places like Gaston Wood or Thorncombe Wood.

It was a wonderful outing to places I hadn’t visited before, and even though we didn’t see a Dipper, if anyone has tips on spotting them at Maiden Newton, please share. I’ll be going back, as it’s most likely just a matter of being in the right place at the right time. The only Dipper I’ve seen in Dorset was on the R. Allen in August 2019, just a short 2–5 minute walk from home!

Archive picture from August 2019 Dipper on the R.Allen

Marsh Tit

Coal Tit

# Green Woodpecker 110

# Marsh Tit 111 

Meeting the Forster's Tern

 Saturday March 7th 2026, I am on my way to Poole Park with the hope of catching up with the Forster's Tern. There are a few blogs and pictures about of this bird. This is my short account of this wonderful Tern that arrived in Dorset in 2023.

When if first heard about this bird I was at work and could not go off straight away and had to wait for the weekend. When the weekend arrived I heard that the tern was being seen from the then new Rockley View Point at Lytchett Field area. I arrived at the small car park to find it was full so I parked up on the lane and proceeded to walk down Slough Lane. arriving at the point there were a couple of  unknown birders still there so I asked if the tern was about and was told sorry mate it as just flown under the bridge, the bridge is a railway bridge that separates Lytchett Bay and the Rockley and Lake Pier area. Dip one that was a start of a series of dips and being unable to get to see the bird due to work of family commitments a total of seven to eight dips  that year. The next two year following I always seemed to be in the wrong place or it never showed up especially when I did a few trips after work to Shipstal Point. I decided after a while if I was going to see I would and if not so be it and gave up trying to connect with the Bird.

The Forster's Tern arrived again this year 2026 and was first seen off Baiter and in Parkstone Bay and of coarse, it began to be seen in Poole Park while I was at work, with me hoping it would stay until the weekend as the sightings suggested this would be the best chance I would have with catching up with this nemesis.

  Driving into the park brought back some childhood memories as my nan and grandad used to live in an old house that was behind the crazy and pitch and put golf courses, and overlooked the park. As I ked I spent many a summer in the 70s at the park. I found a parking space and headed for the group of people near the model yacht pool. Here I came across Nick Hull and asked is the tern still about and Nick pointed the tern out sat on a small post among the the Black-head Gulls. I got the bins on it and a sense of relive passed over me with the three year wait/trying to see the bird. I started to setup the scope for better close up views and the bird took flight. It flew very fast and erratic over the main lake before climb high and out to Baiter! 

So with the bird going AWOL I went to look for the Mandarina Duck that was on one of the smaller ponds over the back near the little train and cricket pitch. The train was going round the small track as I walked that way and remember the many journeys I had on the train when the engine at first was like a stream locomotive then becoming a blue and yellow diesel engine. I eventually found the Mandarina Duck a smart male bird on the very small pond near the cricket pitch.

Male Mandarin; a very colourful bird

Back to the tern and I noticed that everyone had vacated the the area and were on the other side of the lake. So I made my way round the model yacht remembering how I sailed my little fiberglass hulled yacht with its blue sail across the lake and running along the board sometimes a bit scared as when it was chopper the thing used to sway with the waves. I eventually caught up with the crowd and had some good views of the Forster's Tern before if flew of again, but returned back to its original post near the model yacht lake. 

Forster's Tern

Now the bird list is going up slowly but surely  up to 109, though only two months in chasing the birds I have discovered one thing that I do miss going round my local patch Longham Lakes. Yes it can at times feel mundane but it is always exciting when something new turns whether if is found by friends or just one of the many people who like to walk round the place taking pictures. 

The list even though I list my bird seen here they can also be found on BUBO  

# 103 Glossy Ibis

# 104 Red legged Partridge

# 105 Mandarin Duck

# 106 Collard Dove

# 107 Forster's Tern = lifer 

#108 Kestrel

# 109 Great spotted Woodpecker

GLOSSY IBIS IN THE BAG

 After many attempts during January and February and in some awful weather to see the pesky Glossy Ibis which I always seemed to miss or could not locate February came to a close and I still had not seen the birds.

Sunday 1st March and I am off to see Glossy Ibis at Wareham, during the week I kept getting reports that the birds were showing well from the North Walls. Would they still be there when I arrived I certainly hoped so, Unusually for me on a birding trip it was quite nice weather for a change. I found somewhere to park on a very narrow road below what they called West Walls and North Walls, these are earth ramparts built by the Saxons to defend and keep Wareham save from invaders, more about this later in the blog. I climb up the side of West Walls ramparts and walked along the top until I came to North Walls and  could look over the waterlogged fields of Wareham Common. There in front of me and on the others side of the river were the glorious Glossy Ibis all ten birds out in the open in the flooded field feeding. Yes got them in the bag and on the year list  finally.

Three of the Ten Glossy Ibis

record capture

The 10 Glossy Ibis coming in to feed.

Glossy Ibis

It was wonderful standing on top of the wall watching these birds feeding and flying around the common and to see ten of them all in one place. My 1st was a single bird back in May 2016 at Lytchett Fields. 

While standing on the wall/ramparts something dawned on me and I did wonder what the place might of looked like with a palisade and armed warriors patrolling the ramparts on the look out for Viking invades. I have been to Wareham manty time and past over the years but never visited them which I found a bit odd as I have an interest in Saxon history.

This interest began after reading Bernard Cromwell's Historical novels the Last Kingdom.

Signage telling a story about the walls at Point 3 walk

a view along the west wall

Then discovering King Alfred brother was buried in the local church Wimborne Minster I had to go and investigate. 

Wimborne Minster

 So on one Saturday morning I popped into to the Minster to have a look round it is real interesting inside with the arches and stained glass windows. After looking round I got talk to someone in the church that was working. I was told King AEthelred  is supposedly buried under the Pulpit.

The Pulpit 

Apparently back in Victorian times they made a brass plaque to honour ( if that is the right word) and now it is on the wall up by the alter. 

The Plaque to King AEthelred 

Urban Birding, Winter Roost and WeBs

 This latest blog is about some urban birding and surveys I carry out through the winter and year.

Back on Sunday the 8th I set off again to look for those pesky Gloss Ibis that keep avoiding me over at Wareham. I arrived at the end of the road by the Rugby Club to find a match on and I thought oh well not going to see much this afternoon. I am find the one thing this challenge is doing is pushing me to go and try places I have not been to before. Having said that I have been to Swineham GP a few times and having walked down the lane I noticed and as expected due to all the rain that the fields below the house ( The Curlews) were very flooded and the path down to the gravel pit blocked by floods. I turned left of the path that lead to a small lake and some fields behind the rugby pitches. Here is the distance I noticed a group of large birds over in a far field hoping they were the Glossy Ibis. I was a little disappointed to find it was a group of 84 Curlew ! With having a good look round I ticked of a Pied Wagtail, saw some Little Egrets but could not find any Glossy Ibis anywhere. So as it started raining again I made my way back to the car but stopped just before the house The Curlews as I heard what I though were Siskins and sure enough with some Chaffinch and Goldfinch a small group of Siskins going from tree to a feeder and back to the in back garden so Siskin ticked off and now on 88 species.

After this I made my way to Hole Bays, this is a very special site and to look at it you would not think so with a retail park  a very busy bypass just behind you as you look across the large expanse of water and further down the cycle as you get nearer to Poole Town you have the Poole Rail Station, Poole Pirates Speedway Stadium and rail bridge cutting across the bay.

The bay is approximately 286 hectare and is intertidal and a very important site for wintering waders and wildfowl. Even just this month there have been huge numbers of wintering/resting Black tailed Godwits with the extraordinary count of 5000 plus godwits counted let alone the massive numbers of Wigeon and Pintail that winter at the site it soon becomes apparent how important the mud flats can be for winter stop overs and resting site and so close to very busy area of Poole.

The purpose of my visit though was to hopefully find the Little Gull and female goosander that had been frequenting the bay. After find somewhere to park near the industrial estate I waited for the heavy rain to subside a bit before venturing out and crossing the busy bypass which as been made easier with the press button crossing. Down to the cycle path and setting up the scope up I soon noticed a large group of Wigeon feeding close to the shore line

Male Wigeon

After this is was not long before I found a small gull bobbing about on the water out in the middle and thought got you, a Little Gull, then the bird took flight and their was no mistaking that it was and adult Little Gull with those dark smokey black underwings showing off in the distance like beacons.

The gull made it was closer to the PC World drain area and I could not help watching this suburb little gull flying and dipping a bit like a tern then sort of patting the water as it flew a bit like a petrel just sublime. As you can probable tell I like gulls special Little Gull and Common Gulls I can not explain why I like gull as I do find them especially the bigger gulls a real challenge when in their early years. I have read and read about id features but they do not go into the brain very well, though I think I am slowly very slowly in fact getting to understand some of them. Having spent time watching the gull I set about scanning the bay for the Goosander but for the life of me I could not see or find  it out in the bay and started to think was it holed up on one of the far muddy shorelines or had gone under the rail bridge in to the other sector? Putting the scope on the arch of the rail bridge to look through with a hopeful sight of the said Goosander. I noticed a quick flash of blue dive towards the water and back up and there diving off the bridge was a wonder Kingfisher my 91st species as the Little Gull was the 90th.

As I could not see the Goosander, I decided through intermittent shows I would watch the Little Gull a bit more, but as once again the rain started to get heavy and called it a day. Luckily for though there were to birds on the cycle path Nick and Jackie Hull, and having got to them they asked If I had seen the Goosander with me explaining I had not and spent far to much time watching the gull. Nick shouted quick I have the bird in the scope and I looked through Nick's scope to secure my 92nd species with the female bird. My thanks to Nick and Jackie for being out on such a rainy day and helping me with seeing the Goosander which I might not have seen.

Little Gull bobbing about

 

 Little Gull, 

even at a distance it is unmistakable with those dark sooty black underwings 

The Little Gull

closer showing off the underwing

Little Gull flying away from me

showing grey upperparts and white trailing edge to wing 

and white tipped primaries giving the wing a rounded apparency

Having seen juvenile and 1st winter Little Gulls in the past this was my first adult gull to watch and it was a pleasure watching this bird despite the grey and wet day.

Sunday 15th and out for a winter roost watch for Hen Harriers, I must say before I go any further I will not be give away with any information!

Heavy rain at times and raining all morning and my hopes of seeing a Hen Harrier disappearing like the rain water down the drain. Then a ray of hope in the afternoon as I was getting ready to depart to a heathland  the rain stopped.

I got my self in a comfortable position to watch over the recording area and it was not long before I found a pale morph type Buzzard. Scanning round and picked up a young Goshawk zooming low across the mire and landing in a pine. I managed a very ropey  and not very good record phone scoped capture.

At about 1700 hrs  a grey ghost comes gliding in and flies a round for a short while, what a stunning bird, he flies out of sight but comes tearing back in and starts to gain a bit of height and there to my delight is a ringtail and the two birds interact for a short period just spectacular to watch and the break off and go the sperate ways to settle down and roost for the night, 

The Grey Ghost

A view of the underparts, Male Hen Harrier

A view of the upperparts of a Male Hen Harrier

Crap record captures of a Goshawk

I was not sure whether to put these up 

and sully the page with these rubbish pictures 

It is a real privilege to be able to watch these birds that come to Dorset to winter, though we do not get to see enough of them and I expect we all know the main possible cause of that, but there can be many factors. Harriers are my favourite birds of prey.

Now we are at Sunday 22nd February and it is the day of my BTO WeBs core count at my local patch Longham Lakes. And guess what its bloody raining again but that did not stop play.

I was out late 11:20 hours. I began the count with the geese which had congregated round the island and a large group of Wigeon 158 to be precise. Then I found a wonderful drake Pintail a favourite duck a long with the Pochard, I began to notice the numbers of the wintering wildfowl are steadily going down so the birds are I expect making the way back to there breed grounds.

 While doing this WeBs count I ticked off another 5 species which took my list just over the 100 a total I was hoping to achieve before the end of February.  What a way to reach the 100th bird with a dashing Peregrine that came storming in at a large flock of mixed gulls mostly Black head Gulls swooping and drive at them and putting up at least 500 birds of gulls and crows plus 20 Lapwing which I did not see in the fields, the sound of the birds and sight was memorizing and that word again spectacular just incredible. 

A view of North Lake

The path leading to the causeway

with South lake in the back ground

Common Gull another gull I like to see in the winter

 And the updated list as of 22nd February.

# 88 Pied Wagtail

# 89 Siskin

# 90 Little Gull

# 91 Kingfisher

# 92 Goosander

# 93 Goshawk

# 94 Hen Harrier

# 95 Stonechat

# 96 Pheasant

# 97 Reed Bunting

# 98 Common Gull

# 99 Great White Egret

# 100 Peregrine

# 101 Lapwing

# 102 Egyptian Goose

 

Cirl Buntings

 When I set out on this challenge of trying to see 200 bird species in a year one of those birds I really hoped to see was Cirl Buntings. As only ever seeing one brief view of one a few years back at Labrador Bay in Devon. So when news broke of 8 seen in a crop field near Old Harry Rocks I thought I better go and see them at weekend. Though not really sure of the best parking location and were the crop field was located I asked on a local forum and Blusesky for directions and tips on locating the birds. In  the mean time I read a very good blog by themanchesterbirder.blogspot.com about  a trip to see a Eastern Black Redstart and some fieldcraft and how some folk have stopped asking for approximate locations. This got me thinking I am I one of those folk, because I do find myself asking for locations of birds just like above. And in reality I did know how to get to Old Harry having been in the past, so If I new the way why did I ask for help and location of the birds. When if I had just gone and searched the hedge I might of found something for myself who knows, I think the reason for asking is it makes it a little bit easier with knowledge of the location making me feel more at ease at knowing I am in the right spot.

Sunday morning I set off once again in the darn rain will it ever stop raining this year? I think I read somewhere ( probable on social media) we have had more rain in Dorset these past two months than we did between 1991and 2020? Driving along Ferry Road I  was trying to make my mind up whether to go straight for the Cirl Buntings. Or to carry on through Studland Village and down to Jerry's Point to look for the Red necked Grebe that had been hanging about for a few days. As I drove past the view point at the top of the hill that looks out over the bay and golf course my hart sank a little as it seemed everywhere was shrouded in mist. I mad my decision to carry on to Jerry's Point because I thought the higher ground would most likely be covered is sea mist.

Arriving at the pull in next to Jerry's Point I was sure glad that I had left my wellington boots in the car as the path down was very flooded and water logged.

Having reached the point I was pleased I was able to see over to Brownsea Island. I started scanning around the the grebe. Though the first few scans I only picked up Great Northern Diver 4 and Red breasted Mergansers, Great crested Grebes, followed by 4 Black necked Grebe as nice as it is to see these wonderful birds it was not what I was looking for, so with that I looked in to the small bay to my left and scanned the shore line. Here if found some Grey Plover and Dunlin new birds for year, then suddenly I noticed a grebe pop up to the surface followed by another and there in this small bay was the Red necked Grebe with a Great Crested Grebe giving a great comparison. After seeing this grebe I decided it was now time to go and see if I could get to see the Cirl Buntings.

So I made the short drive to South Beach car park, were I had to pay the exorbitant price of a ticket in the National Trust car park of £3 an hour. Lucky for me a local birder was still at the car park and came over to give me some pointers and the direction to take from the car park. So after grabbing my gear I made my way up the track to Old Harry Rocks, but instead of checking the hedge line I carried on to the spot were the birds were last seen. As I slowly walked to where I could view the field several birds lifted off the field and into the hedge. Shortly afterwards I had a very brief view of a male Cirl Bunting which popped up on top of the hedge and I thought great wonderful better get a picture only for it to disappear, and then what I thought was a female 1st w type bird appeared  which I managed to photograph.

This is what Old Harry looks like on a good day

There are a couple of legends about Old Harry, but the one I like the best is about is about a Poole pirate called Harry Paye. He supposable harassed the French and Spanish. Using the stacks as look out points and by hiding is ship behind the stack. 

 Female 1st/w type Cirl Bunting?

 I digressed a little with the pirate story.

  

Shortly after this brief sighting the birds disappeared with a flock of Chaffinch, I walked up to the next gap in the hedge with another birder as a group of ten were seen at this spot. Though having got there a large flock of finches were flying about and headed out in to the field. I made the decision to move back down to the gate and wait as finches were coming and going to the hedge that was running out in to the field. It was not long before some Chaffinch and a large flock of Linnet turned up which kept me on my toes scanning at any slight movement in the hope it was a mythical Cirl Bunting. Perseverance paid off in the end as four wonderful Cirl Bunting appeared on top and along the hedge line.

Male Cirl Buntings

It is wonderful to be able to see these birds in Dorset, and it is due I believe to the credit of Conservationist and the work the did down in Devon which as enabled this wonderful and charmful buntings to spread along the cost in to Dorset and hopefully set up more breeding territories.   

81# Grey Plover

82# Dunlin

83# Red-necked Grebe

84# Mediterranean Gull

85# Skylark

86# Cirl Bunting

87# Raven 

I do not know if it is but I feel perhaps my blog is a bit same old same stuff? 

I know it is supposed to be all about birds but I think sometimes other stuff that I am interested in just might creep in to the blog, like my new other challenge of 100 plants in 2026 which I signed up to at bsbi.org as I thought this was something I could do while out birding. As  I have had an interest in wildflowers and orchid for a while now and of course during the summer months some dragonflies and damselflies.

  

  

January Ends

 As January was coming to a close and with me still stuck at 71 species for the month I headed off to Lytchett Fields area. I decided I would cut across the Sang and look at the Pools Field and look over Lytchett Bay from the relative new view point Rockley Point View. As I was walking through the field I noticed a raptor just gliding over over head, which turned out to be a Red Kite tick 72 of the year.  The bird was heading towards the field that now have pigs in, it  used to be the old wild flower meadow. I think the pigs are there to churn over the ground? 

This was a good move due to ticking off some of the commoner passerines like Greenfinch, Chaffinch and Meadow Pipit.

Chaffinch

Greenfinch

Like  most of January it was another wet and grey day and as I made my way to the view point it started raining again. The rain eventually stopped ( only to start again a little later) and I took the rain guard of the binoculars and unzipped the telescope. And scanned the bay there were stacks of Wigeon which I tried to count get up to a 150 birds but some of them were so far away it was difficult but there must of been over 200? The next bird to be spotted was a lovely pair of Avocet. I do like these birds in their black and white livery. 

Avocet

This month I have missed some really good birds due to being stuck in a factory milling components on a CNC machine, which is a Computer Numerical Controlled Vertical Milling Machine. But a ho that's life. 

So I managed to hit a target of bird species I was hoping for as when I set out on the 1st I considered 70 to a 100 species was a good number and having got to 80 species in Dorset and 1 in Hampshire I was quite pleased with myself. 

 

72# Red Kite

73# Greenfinch

74# Chaffinch

75# Avocet

76# Greenshank

77# Teal

78# Black- tailed Godwit

79# Stock Dove

80# Meadow Pipit

Now I must write about the one trip out of county into Hampshire to see a very rare bird.

Having heard about a mega sighting of a Killdeer I mulled over whether to go and see the bird.

I never considered ever seeing this North American wader and at the time I did not relise how rare the bird was until I found out that the last one reported in Hampshire was back in 1980 a very long time ago. So with the bird still staying I set off on Sunday morning of the 25th January. Once again it was raining very hard as I was driving to the location of Ripley Farm. Some of the roads were still slightly flooded and as I turned on to the road to the Avon Causeway it suddenly  dawn on me what if the causeway is flooded and what I am I going to do s it was the only way I knew of getting to Ripley. Lucky as I drove along the fields were well flooded but the water was only just beginning to lap the edge of the road.

I pulled into the layby and kitted up and to the long track down to the bird luckly the rain had eased off so I had a pleasant walk down. I was very fortunate that the bird even though distance showed very well and I managed to get some phone scoped shots of this wonderful little plover. I am sure glad I went to see the bird a mega lifer for me.

Killdeer