Looking at the long-range weather forecast it looks as if we’re going to have a ‘westerly’ august! Not conducive for the arrival of species such as Wood Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, Little Stint…Aquatic Warbler! Never say never though as these types of weather systems are perfect for landing things like Pectoral, White-rumped or even the harbour’s first Baird’s Sandpiper on to our shoreline. The Brownsea Lagoon, Lytchett Fields and the new Holton Pools are all areas that need constant monitoring through August and September with good numbers of commoner waders arriving in and the added potential excitement of a rarity or two turning up in amongst them. At Lytchett Fields the wader number numbers continue to increase with 23 Green Sandpiper, 87 Dunlin, 5 Greenshank, 3 Ringed Plover, 4 Common Sandpiper, 1 Little Ringed Plover, 6 Greenshank and 1 Whimbrel with a decent Swift flock of c80 birds moving on through. In Middlebere there were 7 Spoonbill and 2 adult Osprey with several of the translocated juveniles venturing over that way a bit more. In the Wareham Channel there are now up to 3 Marsh Harrier roosting together. And finally a ringing session at Fleets Corner, in Poole Harbour north produced 2 Whitethroat, 2 Garden Warbler and 2 Willow Warbler.

Juvenile Black-tailed Godwit – Lytchett Fields – Ian Ballam