Things are picking up really nicely as they should do at the beginning on August with a really nice mix of new arrivals, but also quality long-stayers. Out of the blue the Littlesea Purple Heron came into roost again at dusk with 50 Little Egret and a pale phase Arctic Skua was out in Studland Bay. Another Pied Flycatcher was seen with one at Littlesea along with a Spotted Flycatcher. At Lytchett Heath the autumns first flyover Tree Pipit and Yellow Wagtail went over at dawn and a busy ringing session produced 26 migrant Sedge Warbler, 24 Willow Warbler, 16 Reed Warbler and 1 Lesser Whitethroat. There were 2 adult Osprey in the harbour today with one seen over Lytchett Bay and another at the same time at Arne. At Holton Pools there were 3 Green Sandpiper and 2 Common Sandpiper. At Middlebere a post breeding flock of 20+ Mistle Thrush flew across the lane and there were 5 Spoonbill in the channel along with a Cattle Egret later in the evening. There was also a juvenile Marsh Harrier that was going between Middlebere, Wytch and even Lytchett Fields. In Brands Bay there were 4 Whimbrel, 77 Med Gulls, 3 Teal and 10 Swift went over south. On the Brownsea Lagoon there were 8 Greenshank, 1 Spotted Redshank, 4 Common Sandpiper, 2 Green Sandpiper (rare here), 2 Turnstone, 40 Dunlin but a whopping 350 Common Tern.

There was more good coverage of the harbour today with a nice selection of birds including 1 Osprey, 6 Spotted Redshank, 9 Greenshank, 119 Black-tailed Godwit, 1 Avocet, 3 Curlew, 1 Whimbrel 1 Hobby and 1 Marsh Harrier at Middlebere with several migrant Willow Warbler and Whitethroat along the lane. At Holton Pools there were 2 Green Sandpiper and 1 Common Sandpiper with an Osprey seen over Lytchett Bay and at Lytchett Fields 3 Green Sandpiper, 9 Greenshank, 63 Redshank and 12 Little Egret. What was almost certainly a Black Kite was seen drifting over Slepe Heath mid morning, but sadly couldn’t be clinched. A Cattle Egret was at the mouth of Middlebere mid morning and a juv Marsh Harrier flew along the channel and there seem to be plenty of Whimbrel about with Middlebere, Wytch, Brands and Bramble Bush Bays all holding birds. At dusk, what was thought to be the Purple Heron was seen in the Littlesea roost but sadly it was too dark to confirm.

The highlight of today was the autumns first Wood Sandpiper at Holton Lee where there were also 3 Green Sandpiper, 1 Common Sandpiper and 1 Lapwing with several Willow Warbler in the surrounding scrub. At Lytchett Fields 16 Green Sandpiper were across the fields with 5 Common Sandpiper, 136 Redshank, 9 Greenshank, 6 Dunlin, 1 Snipe and several returning Teal.

Ergh! What a day, although we needed today really badly as the forecast is for today’s torrid weather to breeze on by and for the hot weather to continue. The only rewards for a wet soggy watch at Lytchett Fields was an adult Little Stint.

With a short but sharp storm battering the harbour last night and the remains still blowing ‘a gooden’ at dawn it was an amazing scene to have 3 Osprey circling together in the breeze at Lytchett Bay around 8am. At Holton Pools another Yellow Wagtail was on the scrapes along with a single Green Sandpiper and 3 Little Egret. Whimbrel are now ‘dropping in’ to various bays with several individuals in Brands Bay, Bramble Bush Bay, Arne Bay and in Middlebere. Juvenile Willow Warbler are becoming more and more conspicuous in Long-tailed Tit flocks as they move through scrub and heathland habitats and will soon be joined by species such as Redstart and Spotted and occasional Pied Flycatcher.

The heat wave looks set to be coming to an end for a brief period this weekend with some rain (yes rain) due to hit us over night tonight and then a proper down pour on Sunday. Never have we wanted it to rain so much with the heathlands all like tinderboxes and almost all of the countryside devoid of any moisture. The last 48 hours has also seen three devastating heathland fires across southern Dorset (Ferndown Common, Ham Common and Canford Heath) so a good drenching in in everyone’s best interest. With cloud cover rolling in over the course of the day a definite cooler feeling was set across the harbour with a few more migrants noted on the move. On Lytchett Heath a Long-tailed Tit flock contained 7 Willow Warbler, 1 Garden Warbler and 2 Blackcap. At Lytchett Fields a Grasshopper Warbler, 33 Sedge Warbler and 16 Reed Warbler were ringed. At Middlebere a single Osprey was on the Middlebere platform and the Spoonbill was still in the channel along with a Green Sandpiper in front of the Middlebere hide and a Peregrine.

With people trekking down to Middlebere to see Ospreys its great to hear that other species are being logged along the way. Today in the channel were 2 Greenshank, 1 Knot, 11 Black-tailed Godwit, 1 Avocet, 1 Spoonbill, 10 Little Egret, 1 Peregrine Falcon and of course an Osprey on the Middlebere platform. In the Corfe Channel there were 10 Greenshank and 2 summer plumaged Spotted Redshank. At Lytchett Fields there were 6 Green Sandpiper, 1 Curlew Sandpiper, 5 Common Sandpiper, 3 Greenshank, 2 Little Ringed Plover and 2 Common Snipe.

With the hottest day of the year approaching (if that’s even possible) then getting your birding done before 11am is well advised. An early morning walk to Coombe Heath saw yesterdays Cattle Egret settled again to the right of the Raptor Screen at Arne and was later seen on the edge of Wytch Lake. Again, 2 Osprey were seen over the course of the day, mostly around the Arne peninsular but also over the Wareham Channel. More migrants were on the move and a ringing session at Lytchett Heath saw 2 Garden Warbler, 1 Grasshopper Warbler, 45 Sedge Warbler, 21 Reed Warbler, 8 Willow Warbler and 3 Bearded Tit ringed over the course of the morning. On Lytchett Fields there were 20 Green Sandpiper and 3 Greenshank. At Holton Lee the 2 Little Owl were active early evening and the Cuckoo that was seen on Tuesday was seen again this evening and there were 2 Green Sandpiper on Holton Pools.

Little Owl – Holton Lee – Ian Ballam

Although there’s been no sign of the Purple Heron for a few days at Littlesea, the ‘heron run’ continues with a Cattle Egret that was seen at Arne, heading across Middlebere this morning. It goes without saying these days that 2 Osprey were seen at Arne and Middlebere throughout the day and from now on they’ll become a daily feature as numbers begin to rise as birds start heading south for the winter. Our ringing stations around the harbour are getting busier too with our Ballard site ringing seven species of warbler including Garden Warbler, Blackcap, Common Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Reed Warbler and Sedge Warbler. At Lytchett Bay a Marsh Harrier was seen again and there was a single Common Sandpiper near the Waterworks, also 4 Sedge Warbler, c10 Reed Warbler and 15 Black-tailed Godwit. A large Starling flock of around 1000 birds dispersed west at dawn past Arne Moors which we assume is a large post breeding flock that’s forming.

Cattle Egret – RSPB Arne – Fabian Harrison

Common Sandpiper – Keith Rawling – Lytchett Bay

Wow, what a day. First we’ll go through the bird info, than talk about the several exciting events we hosted over the course of today. Highlights included a fresh juv Cuckoo at Holton Lee where 4 Green Sandpiper, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Greenshank and 2 Lapwing were on Holton Pools. The first 2 migrant juv Willow Warbler were also at Holton Lee with a Marsh Harrier and a light passage Swift went out over south across the Wareham Channel. On Lytchett Fields an adult Little Stint was a turn up for the books with 10 Greenshank, 19 Dunlin, c100 Redshank and 39 Little Egret also present. At Arne and over the Wareham Channel up to 2 Osprey were again on and off during the course of the day.

This evening we were thrilled to host the end of the Chris Packham UK Bioblitz campaign tour at our Birds of Poole Harbour HQ on Poole Quay ending 10 days of intensive wildlife surveys around the UK.

Chris Packham’s BioBlitz campaign aimed to highlight the biodiversity of British wildlife across the nation, visiting 50 wildlife sites across the UK in just 10 days. The results will provide a benchmark with which future surveys can be compared, and see how the populations of different species rise and fall over time. Chris Packham started in the Scottish Highlands on July 14th, criss-crossing the UK and helping the survey effort along the way; from the smallest insect to the largest deer and everything in between. Specialists, amateurs, and enthusiastic naturalists have helped immeasurably along the way, including members of the public who have come along to events to listen and learn about the UK’s fantastic biodiversity.

Arriving at Poole Quay with his BioBlitz crew, Chris Packham boarded a ferry with 50 lucky Poole school children and the Birds of Poole Harbour charity team. Chris and his crew were treated to a cruise around Poole Harbour for a spot of birding, passing the internationally important Brownsea lagoon site and seeing common and sandwich terns in flight. The ferry docked back at the quay at 8pm, returning to an audience 200 strong to hear Chris’ rousing speech about the campaign and the future of British biodiversity. He then crossed the finish line at the HQ of local conservation charity Birds of Poole Harbour, where he then spent an hour meeting and speaking with visitors about wildlife and the environment.

Paul Morton from the Birds of Poole Harbour charity explained

“To have Chris and his team finish his campaign here in Poole Harbour was a real privilege. Over the ten days they visited some areas that were in dire need of environmental change but they were keen to finish here on the south coast because of how rich our biodiversity is and to highlight how some areas are getting it right”

You can get involved with Chris Packham’s campaign by contacting Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and telling him your concerns for the state of british biodiversity and the threats it faces. Chris Packham is also calling for everybody who cares about wildlife to join him in central London on September 22nd 2018 for The People’s Walk for Wildlife as a nature-inspired call to arms.

Check out his website for more information:

https://www.chrispackham.co.uk/

For more information about Birds of Poole Harbour, check out their website:  

https://www.birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk/

Common Cuckoo – Photographed during the Holton Lee Bioblitz – Clare Slade

Chris Packham addressing the crowd – Poole Quay – Debbie Parker

Chris Packham addressing the crowd – Poole Quay – Debbie Parker

Chris Packham crossing the finish line – BoPH HQ – Debbie Parker