Still sweltering, but the heat provided perfect thermaling conditions for two Honey Buzzard to drift over the Piddle Valley mid-morning. The Brownsea Lagoon saw decent numbers of waders building with 7 Avocet, 1 Grey Plover, 22 Ringed Plover, 1 Knot, 227 Dunlin, 2 Common Sandpiper, 200 Black-tailed Godwit, 1 Spotted Redshank, 14 Greenshank, 148 Redshank, 7 Curlew, 1 Shoveler and 17 Spoonbill. More migrants were on the move and a ringing session early doors in the Piddle Valley produced a single Garden Warbler, 3 Cetti’s Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler plus small pulses of Willow Warbler, Sedge Warbler and an early morning Nightjar. At Arne there was a single Wheatear in the overflow car park and there were several Spotted Flycatcher up on the Coombe Heath walk. At Greenlands Farm there were singles of Wheatear and a Yellow Wagtail went over. At Lytchett Fields there were 47 Redshank, 12 Ringed Plover, 12 Greenshank, 10 Dunlin and 3 Whimbrel on French’s Pool, plus there were 11 Common Sandpiper and 4 Green Sandpiper on Sherford Pools.

One of two Honey Buzzard over the Piddle Valley – Alison Copland