Another nice autumnal day brought in good reports from around the Harbour. Shell Bay provided several sightings including 7 Brent Geese, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 1 Black-necked Grebe, 4 Meadow Pipit, 1 Rock Pipit and 2 Stonechat. Bramble Bush Bay harboured a similar assemblage as well as 28 Turnstone and a single Redshank.

Off Middle Beach a maximum of 9 Black-necked Grebe were reported, 1 Great Northern Diver, 1 Razorbill and 2 Great Crested Grebe. Brands Bay was also productive with 700 Wigeon, 50 Pintail, 10 Avocet, 170 Brent Geese, 5 Grey Plover, 3 Common Scoter, 2 Dartford Warbler, 15 Great Crested Grebe, 4 Red-breasted Merganser, 20 Turnstone, 300+ sinensis Cormorant, 11 Shelduck, 45 Curlew, 1 Great White Egret, 3 Black-necked Grebe and a Knot.

Jerry’s Point featured 1 Long-tailed Duck, 1 Slavonian Grebe, 3 Common Scoter, 3 Black-Necked Grebe and 15 Red-Breasted Merganser, 35 Oystercatcher, 1 Great Northern Diver and 5 Great Crested Grebe this afternoon. Other highlights include 1 Great White Egret at Littlesea, 50+ Avocet at Stonebench, 2 Spotted Redshank and 3 Green Sandpiper seen at Lytchett Fields and 70 Avocet at Upton Country Park. Swineham recorded upwards of 50 Lapwing, 21 Curlew, 2 Grey Plover, 2 Raven, 2 Green Sandpiper and 23 Black-tailed Godwit.

Sightings a little thin today despite the improvement in weather conditions. Poole Park produced a single Goldeneye on Poole Park Boating Lake. While Holes Bay NW held its fair share of waders and wildfowl today. Numerous Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit were seen along with Kingfisher, Grey Wagtail and 8 Little Grebe.

Today saw a minimum count of 8 Water Pipit on The Pool Field, Lytchett.

Last night’s trip to Hartland (the first visit this autumn/winter) to survey for nocturnal feeders delivered a hattrick with 2 Woodcock, 1 Jack Snipe and 1 Common Snipe ringed, with c15 Woodcock seen. Woodcock will begin arriving in numbers (coinciding with the first full moon in the month – 12^th November) and a study commissioned by Birds of Poole Harbour during winter 2013/14 estimated approximately 650 Woodcock over-winter within the Poole Harbour area each year.

Woodcock – Hartland

Jack Snipe – Hartland

Common Snipe – Hartland

A Velvet Scoter was seen off Red Horn Quay before heavy rain this morning. Later in the day 6 Turnstone, 1 Red-breasted Merganser, 1 Common Seal and numerous Curlew and Brent Geese. While over at Lytchett Fields a colour-ringed Lapwing was recorded, probably ringed in Holland.

A decent haul from a watch from Middle Beach, Studland produced 2 Black-necked Grebe 2 Great Crested Grebe and 16 Brent Geese.

Meanwhile, 6 Woodcock were seen on a walk around Morden bog this afternoon.

A lovely still morning at Lytchett Fields produced 1 Spotted Redshank, 3 Green Sandpiper, 2 Greenshank, 6 Dunlin and c30 Redshank. Parkstone Bay held 42 Brent Geese and Baiter held a further 10, along with10 Turnstone and several Redshank.

A female Peregrine made a brief appearance at Middlebere, flushing 4 Spoonbill, 2 Brent Goose and a Bar-tailed Godwit was feeding amongst the Black-tailed Godwits.

A visit to Hartland Moor revealed 2 Woodlark, several Fieldfare and singles of Siskin and Dartford Warbler. Sightings from a rather cold School Bird Boat included 2 Black-necked Grebe in Ower Bay, a small handful of Red-breasted Merganser and a slight increase in Brent Goose numbers around the Studland peninsular.

The first of our Poole Town Winter Birding Walks kick-started today – and what a day to start. The weather was beautiful, and there was plenty about to train our spotting scope onto. The Quay offered intimate views of Turnstone before we caught up with a loose flock of c75 Brent Goose along the shoreline at Whitecliff. A Bar-tailed Godwit was among the feeding Oystercatcher flocks on Baiter Park. Tufted Duck were in abundance on Poole Park Boating Lake, but there was no sign of the recent Scaup.

A beautiful calm sunny morning at Middlebere with c150 Avocet, c300 Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Spotted Redshank, c80 Dunlin, 15 Grey Plover, 1 Pintail, 3 Great Crested Grebe, a female Marsh Harrier and numerous Kingfisher sightings. The walk along Middlebere track held a mixed flock of c250 Fieldfare and Redwing and as many as 24 Robin.

A scan from Jerry’s Point offered views of 2 Velvet Scoter, 14 Common Scoter, at least 8 Black-necked Grebe, Red-breasted Merganser and a single Light-bellied Brent Goose fly by. Spoonbill numbers have dipped recently, with 5 observed from Avocet Hide at Arne, along with a single Great White Egret and 6 Spotted Redshank.

From Middle Beach this evening there was a decent mix of birds with 12 Common Scoter (11 females and 1 male), 8 Black-necked Grebe, 1 Guillemot, 1 Razorbill, 1 Red-breasted Merganser, 4 Great Crested Grebe and 100+ Med Gulls.