A high tide this morning pushed lots of waders onto Brownsea Lagoon for the start of our Winter Safari Cruise, with 300 Black-tailed Godwit, 30 Bar-tailed Godwit, 300 Dunlin, 120 Avocet, 20 Redshank, 3 Greenshank, 12 Turnstone and 6 Grey Plover. The northern harbour was otherwise quiet besides a Guillemot in the North Channel. Moving round the eastern end of Brownsea Island into South Deep there were 3 Great Northern Diver, 2 Black-necked Grebe, and the Long-tailed Duck in amongst 25 Great Crested Grebe. The sheltered fringes of Ower Bay were busy with several hundred Brent Geese, along with 3 Spoonbill and a Peregrine which landed on one of the shingle islands. In the central harbour there were 8 Goldeneye and 40 Red-breasted Merganser, and in the Wareham Channel 1 Red-throated Diver was seen along with 1 Great White Egret, 2 Marsh Harrier and 1 Red Kite.

Elsewhere a single Slavonian Grebe was off Jerry’s Point again this morning, and in Holes Bay there were 1300 Black-tailed Godwit, 331 Avocet, 90 Shoveler and 58 Pintail. A Great White Egret was also seen at Hatch Pond this evening.

Red-throated Diver – Wareham Channel – Alison Copland