Shipstal Point continued to support 29 Spoonbill roosting on the high tide. Littlesea, Studland featured 3 Mediterranean Gull, along with Mallard, Great Crested Grebe, Cormorant, Black-headed,  Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls. A Kingfisher provided a flash of colour at Poole Park.

Building on the success of our recent Studland Pop-Up event with the National Trust Studland team, Birds of Poole Harbour will be visiting Holes Bay this Saturday between 12.30pm and 3.30pm to help you bird this superb urban hotspot. Recent sightings from the site include great counts of Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit and Dunlin, as well as vast numbers of wildfowl, the odd Knot, Little Grebe and a Great Northern Diver in the South of the Bay.

Unfortunately, we are currently unable to share our optics at public events to limit risk of spreading Covid-19. Therefore, if you have your own binoculars and scopes, please bring them along, they will be really useful! Holes Bay is fully accessible with a cyclepath running along much of the shoreline. The closest pay and display car park is located at Upton Country Park.

Where to find us on Saturday (12:30-15:30): Creekmoor Drain – what.three.words / Google maps pindrop

We hope you are able to join us on Saturday, and keep a lookout on our social media and website for announcements of future locations and dates!

Spoonbill – Shipstal Point – Clive Hargrave

That’s more like it! Bright sunshine and a gorgeous blue sky. Although the forecast of thick fog this AM hampered any survey plans with other work arrangements made instead…doh!

Oh well, at least some people were out enjoying the birds and the sun! With the cold weather setting in again it forced 3 Spoonbill back into Lytchett Bay along with a decent count of 328 Lapwing on the fields, plus 1 Peregrine and Marsh Harrier in the area too. Raptors consisted of 2 different ringtail Hen Harrier and an adult male was seen yesterday too, mostly in the mouth of the Wareham Channel area, plus up to 6 different Marsh Harrier are still around including an adult male still being about. Off Baiter there were 2 Great Northern Diver but it was quiet off Jerry’s Point with mainly just Great Crested Grebe, 1 Great Northern Diver, 12 Goldeneye and a single Sanderling. At Holton Pools there were 2 Greenshank and 1 Peregrine with Stonechat and Dartford Warbler both active out on the heath. At Studland several Firecrest were along the peninsular at Knoll beach and Shell Bay. Off Shell beach 4 Black-necked Grebe were feeding with another 8 off Middle Beach. At dusk 19 Little Egret and 1 Cattle Egret flew over Lytchett Bay heading into roost.

We’re also starting a new ‘EYE D’ quiz on our website and social media leading up to Xmas to try and help with identifying birds up close. So, to explain a bit for and for the first days challenge visit the QUIZ WEBPAGE HERE.

Grey Plover – Bramble Bush Bay – Nick Gadenne

2020 has been a quiet year for Spoonbill records at Lytchett Bay, so 3 feeding birds were a welcome addition to the Bay this morning. Of the three Spoonbill, one was a Dutch colour ringed bird marked AE, which was first recorded at the site back in 2013. The recent cold snap also heralded an increase in Avocet to 156, as well as a general increase in waders and wildfowl. Other notable highlights for the site included a Spotted Redshank, 63 Dark-bellied Brent Goose and 2 Shoveler.

Studland peninsular is the place to visit at the moment. The ever-reliable Jerry’s Point continues to produce, today logging 4 Great Northern Diver, 4 Black-necked Grebe, 33 Great Crested Grebe, 4 Scaup, 3 Common Scoter and 20+ Red-breasted Merganser. Nearby, Brand’s Bay featured 109 Dark-bellied Brent Goose, 4 Scaup, 163 Wigeon, 74 Teal, 56 Pintail, 9 Lapwing, 13 Grey Plover, 66 Black-tailed Godwit and a Kingfisher. Knoll Beach offered a further Great Northern Diver, 4 Black-necked Grebe and a Common Scoter. While Littlesea added to the species list with a Great White Egret, accompanied by 19 Teal.

Holes Bay continues to offer top quality urban birding spectacles, today featuring 143 Avocet, 244 Black-tailed Godwit, 18 Curlew, 403 Dunlin, 4 Knot, 8 Oystercatcher, 42 Redshank, 4 Little Grebe, 58 Mute Swan, 34 Pintail, 28 Shelduck, 67 Shoveler, 167 Teal, 937 Wigeon and Great Crested Grebe this morning. The Great Northern Diver remained close into the the shoreline opposite the Premier Inn, Holes Bay South.

The impressive downpours quickly saturated the harbour, and Lytchett Bay was no exception. This image captured by Paul Sutton perfectly sums up today’s rather soggy field conditions. The flooded fields attracted 2 Green Sandpiper, 60 Redshank, 30+ Dunlin, 25 Black-tailed Godwit , 4 Curlew and a hunting Merlin. While a visit to the ever-reliable Jerry’s point offered Great Northern Diver, 10+ Red-breasted Merganser and 2 Grey Plover.

Although our jam-packed December events schedule has sadly been postponed, the team are studying our calendars and weather forecasts as we a keen to get out into the field and run a series of pop-up events across the harbour. Keep an eye on our website and social media channels for upcoming pop-up event announcements!

Slough Lane, Lytchett Fields – Paul Sutton

There was another sighting of a Great Northern Diver in Holes Bay again on the high tide today, seen opposite the Premier Inn, in addition to a Sandwich Tern. A count of the Middlebere Channel produced 320 Avocet, 240 Lapwing, 67 Redshank, 11 Grey Plover, 21 Dunlin, 3 Spotted Redshank, 1 Peregrine and 1 Great White Egret. There was a nice sighting of a ringtail Hen Harrier, as well as female Marsh Harrier over Arne Moors, which alerted c.700 Avocet in the Wareham Channel. Elsewhere, there were reports of a Merlin from both Hartland Moor and Lytchett Fields.

Great Northern Diver – Holes Bay – Martin Adams

This cold snap that’s bedded in over the last couple of days may hopefully push some of the several hundred Russian White-fronted Geese that arrived into SE England this week. White-fronted Geese used to be a regular (almost common) winter visitor to the harbour each year but over the last couple of decades numbers entering the UK each winter have dropped dramatically, hence why we don’t see them anymore. There’s a good chance some may venture this way so it’s well worth checking areas such as Swineham, Bestwall, Holmebridge and Middlebere. Basically, anywhere other geese species congregate to feed. Sightings from today included 2 Long-tailed Duck off Brownsea plus 1 Great Northern Diver, 4 Scaup, 3 Common Scoter, 40+ Red-breasted Merganser, 45 Great Crested Grebe and 4 Goldeneye off Jerry’s Point. Off Middle Beach, Studland there were c10 Black-necked Grebe, 2 Great Northern Diver and 6 Common Scoter. A Great White Egret was on the Furzey Island shoreline. Middlebere hosted 4 Spotted Redshank, 650 Avocet, 6 Grey Plover, 370 Lapwing and 3 Fieldfare were along the track. In Holes Bay NW there were 329 Dunlin, 308 Black-tailed Godwit, 66 Avocet, 33 Knot, 4 Little Grebe and 1 Kingfisher.

Holes Bay NW at dusk – Martin Adams

December got off to a good start for anyone looking to make up for lost time during November. A Glossy Ibis flew up Middlebere mid afternoon, prompting speculation that it could well have been in the harbour since the influx a month ago, but having just hid very well! The Black Redstart was again in Wareham St Mary’s churchyard too. A stunning adult male Hen Harrier was seen just outside the area at Morden Bog and there were still 3 Scaup off Jerry’s Point along with a Great White Egret. A Red Kite drifted over Holton Lee and there were 6 Black-necked Grebe around the Studland Peninsular. Merlin were logged at Middlebere, Shipstal and Holton Lee. At Lytchett Fields 3 Marsh Harrier were active and there was a report of a White-fronted Goose in Poole Park yesterday which sadly didn’t stay very long and was gone by today.

Red-breasted Merganser – Bramble Bush Bay – Nick Gadenne