Well, after 2 years of evasiveness from the IoW reintroduced White-tailed Eagles, we have finally been treated to some good views. The eagle that arrived onto Brownsea Lagoon yesterday afternoon, having been seen drifting in over Canford Cliffs, roosted on private land overnight and then was seen again this morning, viewed from Coombe Heath viewing screen. The eagle could be seen from Coombe in a dead tree amongst several Little Egret, Grey Heron and 1 Great White Egret. It departed at around 10:40am, heading in the direction of the Wareham Channel, with only sporadic views into the rest of the day. Shortly after, the Eagle appeared over the Wareham Channel, interacting with a hunting Osprey, before crossing over to the Keysworth shore and settling by the water. This individual is a 2 year-old, ringed G461, released on the Isle of Wight in 2019 as part of the project. G461 briefly visited Poole Harbour earlier in the year in June, so appears to be checking out the area again, which could be a good sign!

In addition to the eagle excitement today, there was a sighting of a blue-ringed Osprey (UV/VU), a 2014 male from Kielder Forest, with an upside down leg ring. He was reported flying over the Middlebere Channel with a fish this morning, heading towards Hartland Moor. The Middlebere Channel provided plenty of other activity, with c.500 Black-tailed Godwit, 2 Bar-tailed Godwit, 11 Spoonbill, 30 Avocet, 11 Greenshank, 20 Dunlin, 1 Green Sandpiper, c.40 Redshank, 4 Pintail and a Hobby. Elsewhere, the 2 Little Stint and 2 Ruff were still present on Sherford Pools at Lytchett Fields this afternoon. Another Little Stint was reported alongside the Ringed Plover at Redhorn Point.

White-tailed Eagle – Middlebere Channel – Kate Plater

Spoonbill – Middlebere Channel – Alison Copland