There were yet more Hawfinch today with another 2 flying over north Poole first thing this morning as migration up on Ballard stayed fairly strong considering we’re coming to the end of the vis-mig season with 1 Brambling, 66 Goldfinch, 18 Lesser Redpoll, 3 Bullfinch, 15 Chaffinch, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Chiffchaff and 2 Goldcrest ringed. In Middlebere a Great White Egret was present for a short while with c800 Avocet now present also a single Spotted Redshank. With WeBS coming this Sunday it will be good to get a full wader and wildfowl count but it seems we’re still low on several species such as Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot and Sanderling which were all present today in very small numbers. 

Sparrowhawk – Ballard Down – Olly Slessor

Brambling – Ballard Down – Olly Slessor

With a bright start to the day and a cold NW wind, it got a few birds moving, including another 5 Hawfinch which passed over Ballard Down early morning, along with 3 Crossbill, 15 Bullfinch and plenty of Lesser Redpoll. A Great White Egret was on Littlesea, Studland and from a school bird boat today a Velvet Scoter was out in central harbour with 50+ Spoonbill on Shipstal but lesser numbers of Great Crested Grebe and Red-breasted Merganser in comparison to recent days, perhaps sheltering in quieter areas out of the wind. What was thought to be the same Hen Harrier was first seen over Shipstal Point, Arne and again later in the afternoon on Hartland. A full count was conducted on Brownsea by the DWT which included 295 Avocet, 15 Spotted Redshank, 12 Greenshank, 5 Knot, 3 Bar-tailed Godwit, 220 Black-tailed Godwit, 152 Grey Plover, 620 Dunlin, 3 Spoonbill, 1 Kingfisher, 134 Shoveler, 173 Wigeon, c500 Teal, 1 Pintail and 7 Brent Goose. A single Purple Sandpiper was back on the North Haven side of the harbour mouth on the sea ledge, with another (or the same) later on the Studland side. Holes Bay NE and SE saw 450+ Black-tailed Godwit, 500+ Wigeon, 1 Spotted Redshank and 2 Avocet. At Lytchett Bay a Merlin was on Otter Island, and out in Studland Bay viewed from Middle Beach a Great Northern Diver and 11 Black-necked Grebe were on the water. We also conducted another night survey at our study area in the Lower Frome Valley checking for returning Woodcock of which we only found 1, however we were able to catch and ring the bird which is a good start to the Woodcock season. Barn Owl and Tawny Owl were also heard. 

Purple Sandpiper – North Haven – Hamish Murray

Woodcock – Lower Frome Valley – Paul Morton

Velvet Scoter – Central Harbour – Marcus Lawson

Spoonbills were reported today from Lytchett Bay, Shipstal and Brownsea. Avocet totals seem to still be growing with c400 in Middlebere, c200 on Brownsea and several on Shipstal. A Merlin was seen dashing across Holes Bay. Red-breasted Merganser numbers continue to grow with c50 out in the Brands Bay/South Deep area along with a single Black-necked Grebe also there. Holes Bay NE is well worth a visit on the rising tide as good numbers of Wigeon, Teal, Black-tailed Godwit, Redshank and Curlew get pushed close to the cycle path. 

At least once a month we like to try and do a full harbour survey via boat to gage arrival dates and building totals of species whilst getting into all those little nooks and crannies which can be difficult to reach via foot. This morning we carried out one of these surveys and managed a respectable 87 species from the boat. We headed up the Wareham Channel/River which allowed terrestrial as well as aquatic species to be monitored. Highlights included the first 7 settled Goldeneye of the winter in amongst the c75 Great Crested Grebe and c100 Red-breasted Merganser. 4 Goosander flew low over the mouth of the Frome and over Swineham. Merlin were noted at Shipstal, Arne and at Swineham. 2-3 Marsh Harrier were in the west of the Wareham Channel with another over the Brownsea Lagoon. Spoonbills were on Shipstal and on the Brownsea Lagoon and a Great White Egret was along the southern shores near Ower Bay. Later in the day a 1^st winter Caspian Gull dropped down onto Swineham GP where it had a quick wash before moving off east towards the Wareham Channel. Migration up on Ballard was strong again with highlights consisting of 3 Brambling, 1 Bullfinch, 14 Lesser Redpoll, 1 Firecrest, 2 Chiffchaff and 1 Blackcap. Its assumed that these late Blackcap are actually our over-wintering birds arriving into the UK from areas like Germany and Belgium rather than late summer migrants departing. Bearded Tits were active at Swineham and Lytchett Bay, along footpath 12. 

Brambling – Ballard Down – Olly Slessor

Firecrest – Ballard Down – Olly Slessor

Today was another beautifully crisp autumn/winters day with a cold bite in the NW wind. Reported sightings were few and far between though, maybe everyone was enjoying the sun too much. In Studland Bay there were 2 Black-necked Grebe, 1 Common Scoter and 3 Red-breasted Merganser. An evening roost check at Hatch Pond saw 138 Magpie settle in their favored roosting tree.  In Middlebere there were 400+ Avocet, 140+ Lapwing, 40+ Brent Geese and a single Marsh Harrier.

A brief update from today which included a Cattle Egret flying NW towards the Bakers Arms over Lytchett Bay. A Hen Harrier was seen on Hartland mid afternoon along with a Merlin. Lytchett Fields had 2 Ruff still.

Thick fog first thing didn’t look like it was going to clear anytime soon, but bang on 10am, just as our weekly school bird boat was going out it melted away and gave way to another beautiful autumn day. The school bird boat produced c50 Red-breasted Merganser, 60+ Great Crested Grebe and 2 Black-necked Grebe in central harbour, 50 Spoonbill on Shipstal and 60+ Brent Geese in Middlebere. A Cattle Egret flew NE across the Wareham Channel near dusk and there were 166 Brent Geese in the Wareham Channel too. The/a Great Grey Shrike was reported at Middlebere mid-morning and a Hen Harrier was seen at Arne. The most interesting occurrence today was during a ringing session at Lytchett Heath, which started slow but ended with some real early November fireworks. We talk about ‘vis-mig’ a lot, where finches, buntings, pipits and wagtails all move overhead in good numbers during October and Nov, but rarely do we get to find out where some of these birds come from. A regular ‘vis-mig’ species is Reed Bunting and today during the ringing session at Lytchett Heath a Reed Bunting was caught wearing a Norwegian ring. This was an incredible recovery on its own however not only 20 minutes before a Scandanavian (littoralis) Rock Pipit was also caught, also bearing a Norwegian ring, add in the 4 Firecrest, 1 Water Pipit, 8 Bearded Tit, 2 Blackcap and 25 newly ringed Reed Bunting, you could say it was a successful ringing trip. What was also great was that due to the wonders of Social Media, the original ringers of the Rock Pipit provided super quick info about its origins. There were also 3 Ruff at Lytchett Fields.

Scandanavian (littoralis) Rock Pipit – 1464km, 1mnth + 22 days after ringing – Shaun Robson

Water Pipit – Lytchett Heath – Shaun Robson

With autumn evenings drawing in now and darkness hitting before most of us are even home from work, weekday sightings are becoming less and less. Amazingly, having disappeared for several days and assumed gone, the Stilt Sandpiper re-appeared in Middlebere, therefore seeing it into its third month within the harbour. We also carried out a night Woodcock and Jack Snipe survey, but only a single Woodcock was seen and zero Jack Snipe, although c75 Common Snipe was a reasonable total. Other encounters included a Redwing and a Skylark both of which we ringed. There was a serious gripe today though which involved a drone being flown over/across the Middlebere Channel, therefor flushing absolutely everything, both feeding and roosting birds. Can anyone who’s out birding that see’s other such occurrences please either photograph or film the incident. The birds didn’t return for the rest of the afternoon. 

Redwing – Lower Frome Valley – Fabian Harrison

Skylark – Lower Frome Valley – Fabian Harrison

We were treated to another beaut of a day today and finally; a settled Hawfinch was photographed in the village of Ridge, just before Arne. All our Hawfinch this autumn have been ‘fly overs’ so it was great when Brain Whally managed to get a photo of one sat up in a tree. The crisp, clear weather made watching from numerous vantage points extremely pleasant and from Slepe Heath a Great White Egret was seen feeding along the southern edge of the Wareham Channel, a Hen Harrier was flying over the Swineham/Keysworth area, a single male Merlin was out on Arne Moors, 2 Fieldfare flew over, 2-3 Marsh Harrier commuted between Arne Moors and Swineham, 1 Woodlark passed overhead and out in the Wareham Channel an impressive c220 Brent Geese were settled. This is interesting in its self as Brent Geese don’t normally use the Wareham Channel due to the lack of Eel Grass present, and we’re beginning to understand how important the Channel is as a staging site for many water birds. Even when we were watching, several flocks of Brent Geese took flight and continued on east out of the channel. Over the course of the year we’ve seen the same behavior from Black-necked and Great Crested Grebe that had settled out in the center of the channel before continuing with their onward journey. Out off the southern shore of Brownsea a Slavonian Grebe and a Black-necked Grebe were feeding, an adult drake Velvet Scoter was in central harbour and a good number of Red-breasted Merganser were back out in the Brands/Bramble Bush Bay area. In the Shell Bay car park, 3 Firecrest and a Brambling were in the tree line and 2 Sandwich Tern were feeding in Shell Bay. At Lytchett Fields a Jack Snipe was flushed, and there was a report of still 50+ Spoonbill present between Shipstal and Brownsea.   

Hawfinch – Ridge – Brian Whally

Hawfinch – Ridge – Brian Whally

Today was another fine day, but a large office move prevented us from getting out, but a new BoPH HQ project on the horizon is an exciting project we’ll be telling you about soon! Highlights from today involved 1 Great White Egret, 400+ Avocet, 12 Spotted Redshank, 20+ Greenshank, 1 Little Stint and 8 Spoonbill. In Studland Bay a flock of 14 Black-necked Grebe had congregated and on Shell Bay just a single Sanderling is back so far! In Brands Bay Turnstone, 11 Grey Plover, Pintail and Brent Geese were logged along with the usual species. There were still 2 Ruff on Lytchett Fields, a Hen Harrier was out over Swineham and 2 Merlin were on Hartland. Night recording from our listening station in Old Town Poole produced a steady stream of Redwing, Song Thrush and Blackbird all night along with 26 Fieldfare calls.