Today was definitely a day of two halves…..birdable and not-birdable. By 7am, temperatures were already 15 degrees, but thankfully a light northerly breeze held steady taking the edge of the heat. However, by 12pm it was 28 degrees and things were tough! Even tougher for our Osprey chick number 2 that hatched this afternoon at the peak of the heat at 12:30pm. Things went well though and by late afternoon both were being fed by CJ7 and 022, and the next phase of the Osprey season is now well underway. An odd occurance, especially in 28 degree heat was a dark-bellied Brent Goose that was stying put in Brands Bay where there was a small number of passage waders including Sanderling and Dunlin, some with exceptionally short bills, and small in body structure, suggesting they’re possibly the arctica subspecies which tend to have really short bills and are currently heading up to NE Greenland. Yesterday afternoon a Glossy Ibis was enjoying Lytchett Fields and tonight from our first Puffin Cruise of the year the trip was rewarded with 3 Puffin and 3 Pomarine Skua. There were 2 Cuckoo at Middlebere, 2 Hobby along the Arne Road, 2 over Carey and 2 over Rempstone. A summer plumaged Grey Plover was on the Brownsea Lagoon and this evening an Osprey was fishing in the Wareham Channel.

Dark-bellied Brent Goose – Brands Bay – Garry Hayman

Sanderling – Brands Bay – Garry Hayman

Dunlin (possible arctica) – Brands Bay – Garry Hayman

Glossy Ibis (Yesterday) – Lytchett Bay – Ian Ballam