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