With the heavy rain forecast this morning, we certainly didn’t expect to have as much raptor activity as we did on our Autumn Safari Cruise this morning. The highlight was close views of White-tailed Eagle G466 perched in a tree on the RSPB Arne shoreline, as well as as estimated 3 Osprey hunting in the Wareham Channel over the course of the morning. 2 Marsh Harrier were active over the reedbeds near the mouth of the River Frome. The Brownsea Lagoon was also visited by a White-tailed Eagle earlier in the morning and there were at least 70 Spoonbill present, along with highlights including c.20 Avocet, 7 Grey Plover and 1 Greenshank, as well as 1 Peregrine hunkered down on the wall towards midday. We were also treated to views of a Sparrowhawk flying ahead the boat low over the water as we made our way back to the Quay. Elsewhere, there were 3 Spotted Redshank in Lytchett Bay this morning and 8 in Middlebere. A count at Lytchett Fields on the rising tide produced 484 Teal, 1 Wigeon, 20 Lapwing, 3 Curlew, 1 Bar-tailed Godwit, 193 Black-tailed Godwit, 39 Dunlin, 11 Snipe, 1 Common Sandpiper, 4 Green Sandpiper, 3 Spotted Redshank, 10 Greenshank and 100 Redshank. At Swineham this evening a Cattle Egret was with the cows and 5 Ruff were on the ‘Stilt Pools’. Brownsea Lagoon had 5 Curlew Sandpiper and 16 Greenshank and there were 17 Knot in Middlebere.

White-tailed Eagle – RSPB Arne Shoreline from the Wareham Channel – Clare Slade