Conditions could not have been better for our Summer Safari Cruise this morning with flat calm water, sunshine throughout, and two each of White-tailed Eagle and Osprey in the Wareham Channel! A distant Goshawk was also spotted skirting the north-western shoreline. There was plenty of Sandwich Tern and Common Tern hunting activity close to the boat with the low tide, whilst the extensive mudflats were enjoyed by thousands of gulls and hundreds of waders in amongst them, as well as a few Common Seals hauled out here and there. Elsewhere, in Lytchett Bay there were 37 Redshank, 5 Greenshank, 3 Green Sandpiper, 3 Black-tailed Godwit, 2 Common Sandpiper and 1 Snipe on the flooded fields this morning. Waders were also the highlight in the Middlebere Channel where there were 4 Curlew, 1 Whimbrel, 5 Green Sandpiper, 1 Spotted Redshank and 1 Greenshank. At Swineham a Green Sandpiper was on the Stilt Pools , the first migrant Wheatear of the autumn was on Hartland, in Middlebere there were 3 Spoonbill and 1 Great White Egret, 2 Spotted Redshank, 3 Green Sandpiper and 1 Marsh Harrier. Of note the Carey Ringing Station logged 5 Grasshopper Warbler, 42 Sedge Warbler and 4 Willow Warbler and a Kingfisher.

Black-headed Gulls foraging whilst Common Seals fight in the shallows – Wareham Channel – Alison Copland