A windy start to the day has seen gusts of 19mph and a high of just 18°C. Over at Sunnyside Scrape a White Stork was strutting about, which is one of the recently released birds from the Knepp Estate translocation project. Also there was a Hobby which took a meadow pipit on the ground and several Yellow Wagtail overhead. At Lytchett Fields a Wryneck was seen a couple of times briefly on the approach track down to the viewpoints, but darted into cover both times and couldn’t be relocted. Out on the fields were 1 Ruff, 1 Spotted Redshank, 1 Common Sandpiper and the usual spread of commoner waders. A Hobby was chasing a lone Swallow over Wareham Town Centre this AM and 3 Marsh Harrier including the really dark juvenile left the West harbour roost and a fourth flew over at dawn. 

Sightings were limited on Brownsea with just 4 Black–tailed Godwit and large numbers of Oystercatcher but an Osprey did fly over.  Bog Lane/ Frome Flood fields logged a collection of 13 Lapwing and a pair of Buzzard. A Marsh Harrier was seen cruising at Middlebere, along with a Green Sandpiper. Little Egret and Spotted Redshank were recorded at Holten Pools and at Baiter Park; c30 Ringed Plover, 2 Dunlin, c30 Turnstone, 2 Wheatear (1 juv), 4 Meadow Pipit and a Sandwich Tern. Finally Holes Bay recorded 27 Wigeon and a Wheatear. 

Finally, some sad, but great news….ALL OUR OSPREY CHICKS HAVE LEFT! We received a final signal at 9:15am yesterday morning from chick 019, and by 11:30am there was no signal at all, meaning that the final six left yesterday morning. We’ll write a full 2019 overview in due course but to know they’ve now all left (apart from poor 025 which was predated by a Fox just days, maybe even hours before leaving on migration), and are all heading south for their first winter in Africa is such a great feeling and we really can’t now wait until spring 2020 to see what exciting updates follow.

White Stork – Sunnyside Farm – Nick Mudge