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 * * * CURRENT DAILY WILDLIFE BLOG * * *
for January 2019
(in reverse chronological order)

Send wildlife observations and photos to Brian Fellows at . . . brianfellows at tiscali.co.uk

Blog Archives . . . from 2012 to current


THURSDAY JANUARY 31 - 2019

Colour-ringed Godwits
Pete Potts replied to my query about the colour-ringed Black-tailed Godwit WY+YX seen and photographed by Peter Milinets-Raby at Langstone yesterday.

Pete confirmed that this Godwit was ringed in Iceland in 2003 by a small UK team including Ruth Potts (Pete's mother) and Ruth Croger from B Waltham on a trip he organised. Pete agrees it is a good age and is still doing just fine. He saws it himself at Pulborough earlier this winter. However, it still has some way to go to beat the 22 or 23 year old colour-ringed godwit that was seen on the Ouse Washes recently. Pete has asked his colleague in Iceland (Boddi) to send a revised history of the bird which will be interesting.

Pete also sent the history of the other colour-ringed Black-tailed Godwit R+GR that Peter Milinets-Raby saw yesterday at Langstone. Pete has 60 records of this bird since it was first ringed on 05-Sep-2010 by the Farlington Ringing Group at Farlington Marshes.

 


Hayling Oysterbeds
Christopher Evans had a walk to the Hayling Oysterbeds this morning and got some fine bird images from the car park opposite the large garage south of the bridge which we used to call 'Texaco bay', though I think the garage has changed its name. This bay is always a good spot to see Black-tailed Godwits feeding on the mudflats - my favourite wader.

Christopher's photo includes a colour-ringed bird Y+LR
which I will pass onto Pete Potts who probably ringed it at Farlington Marshes.

Curlew and male Wigeon

Christopher also snapped this wintering Chiffchaff yesterday at the northern end of Southmoor.


WEDNESDAY JANUARY 30 - 2019

Langstone Mill Pond
Peter Milinets-Raby visited Langstone Mill Pond this morning from 9:09am to 10:35am - tide going out. Another freezing morning, -5C, but again another still day, so the cold felt bearable.
Langstone Mill Pond (two thirds frozen): 1 Canada Goose, 56 Teal - lots of calls and displaying, a very pleasant sight.
Off shore: 106 Shelduck (A new January maximum count, three short of that record count of 109 in December last year). Male Shoveler again, like yesterday, feeding along the tide line by the Hayling bridge. 532 Dunlin (This is an above average count, but still 300+ short of being significant). 2 Greenshank (one of them being the usual semi-resident G//R + BR//-), 11 Grey Plover,
16 Black-tailed Godwit including two colour-ringed birds (see below). In the distance off Conigar Point were another 15 Shelduck and 4 Pintail.


Brian's note on Black-tailed Godwits
Peter had two colour-ringed Black-tailed Godwits.
WY+YX - The X ring on the right leg is a white ring with a black X.

Peter had one previous sighting of this bird back in Oct 2015. According to my records this bird was originally ringed as an adult male in Iceland on 20.4.03 and I have got 9 other sightings since then, mostly Langstone and Farlington. If this is the same bird then it must be at least 17 years of age. I will check this with Pete Potts.

R//R+GR - My records for this bird go back to Mar-2011 with 6 sightings since then including 3 others from Peter. I don't have the ringing details.


Birders at Langstone
Peter commented that there were lots of birders in the Langstone area this morning. "I've never seen so many wandering around aimlessly not looking at anything, just focusing on finding that reported scarcity, not really appreciating their surroundings and the myriad of birds on show!! If this is modern twitching, then what a sad state of affairs the birding world is in? Ahh, with age comes wisdom. To think exactly 30 years ago I was skipping off work to travel to Kent to see a Golden-winged Warbler! Those days are long in the past! All this birder activity was apparently due to a reported Smew and Red-necked Grebe from yesterday. I digress and its time to get off my soapbox!"


TUESDAY JANUARY 29 - 2019

Warblington shore
Peter Milinets-Raby wandered around the Warblington shore this morning looking for birds from 9am to 12:30pm - low tide throughout. He says, despite it being -3C it wasn't really that cold. It was a 'southern softie sort of frost', no bite to it what so ever!!
Cemetery: 4 Song Thrush, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker.
Ibis Field: 2 Moorhen, 1 Oystercatcher, 1 Grey Wagtail.
The big stubble field to the east: 27 Skylark, 1 male Pheasant, 1 Buzzard, 2 Roe Deer, 2 Pied Wagtails, 1 Grey Wagtail, 4 Song Thrush and 1 Meadow Pipit on the rotting mound of hay. 13 Lapwing flying over north inland
Conigar Point: 1 Lapwing, 44 Wigeon, 105 Teal (A new January maximum for Conigar Point), 7 male & 6 female Pintail (an increase in numbers and a new January maximum for Conigar Point), 77 Brent Geese, 7 Grey Plover, 20 Shelduck, 21 Dunlin, 2 Great Black-backed Gull.
Off Pook Lane: Two flocks of Lapwing moving inland (47 & 21) with a further 32 on the muddy shore. 60 Shelduck, 96 Brent Geese, 65 Wigeon,
2 Cattle Egret and 2 Little Egret (see photos) in the field west of the cemetery with a single Lapwing and 4 Redwing over.

1 male Shoveler feeding along the tide line by the main Hayling bridge. 23 Black-tailed Godwit (B//R + LG//- Just the one previous sighting in April 2018). 328 Dunlin, 1 Greenshank, 2 Turnstone, 16 Grey Plover, 105 Teal, 3 Red Breasted Merganser, 3 Common Gull.
Horse paddock: 3 Moorhen, 3 Stock Dove, Sleeping Fox.
Langstone Mill Pond (half frozen): 1 Water Rail flew across from one patch of reeds to another, 4 Teal, 1 Canada Goose, 2 Mute Swan,
Herons: Nest 8: 2 adults fiddling with sticks on their old nest. Nest 4: Adult stood on nest. Nest 5: Adult stood on nest. I assume that the Heron is still sitting on eggs on Nest 1 - just not visible!!! There were two other adults loitering in a nearby tree.


MONDAY JANUARY 28 - 2019

Light-bellied Brent Goose
Peter Milinets-Raby went birdwatching in Emsworth Harbour this morning. Starting at Beacon Square he systematically counted through the Brent Geese and the 49th bird he counted was the smart looking Light-bellied Brent Goose that Andy Johnson had previously discovered in Emsworth on Jan 24.

Peter's photos of the Light-bellied Brent Goose

Andy Johnson's photo of the bird is on GoingBirding at . . . https://www.goingbirding.co.uk/hants/show_photo.asp?speciestype=2&date1=1900%2D01%2D01&date2=1900%2D01%2D01&includesensitive=False&photo_id=10344

Brian's note on Light-bellied Brent Geese
As the name suggests Light-bellied Brent Geese differ from the common Dark-bellied Brent Geese mainly in their very pale flanks, giving a sharp contrast with the black breast. Peter's first photo shows the differences very well, though in my experience the differences in the field are often not as clear cut as they are in this case as the flanks of Dark-bellied Brents vary a lot in lightness.
Light-bellied Brent Geese are scarce winter visitors to Hampshire, with usually not more than 20 being seen over the winter period. This compares with 10,000 or so Dark-bellied Brents.
There are three separate populations of Light-bellied Brents: (1) breeds arctic Canada and winters Atlantic coast of USA, (2) breeds eastern arctic Canada and northern Greenland and winters mainly in Ireland, (3) breeds Svalbard and winters Denmark and NE England. I think here in the South of England we tend to get overshoots from the second population. In contrast, the Dark-bellied Brent Geese breed in arctic north-central Siberia, principally the Taymyr Peninsula and winter throughout Western Europe from Denmark to France including Southern England.


Other observations:
Other birds of note that Peter found were as follows: (Low tide - 9am to 10:55am)
Beacon Square: 189 Brent Geese, 2 Shelduck, 22 Wigeon, 3 Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Grey Plover, 8 Dunlin, a pair of Pintail.

Nore Barn: Dog disturbance flushed the 90+ flock of Black-tailed Godwit and they flew east and were almost certainly the birds I encountered in Emsworth Harbour off the mill pond wall later on. 12 male and 8 female Pintail (a good increase!). Nothing else to count as it had all been flushed!!!

Emsworth Harbour: (packed with birds, with 200+ gulls, 2 Little Egrets, 5+ Curlew, 20+ Redshank & 30+ Oystercatchers), 383 Brent Geese, 40 Mute Swans with two extra on the pond (numbers are still growing - I noted none on the Bosham Creek yesterday???). 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 1 Great Black-backed Gull, 112 resting Black-tailed Godwit (almost certainly the disturbed Nore Barn bunch), 6 Lapwing, 1 Greenshank, 14 Grey Plover, 26 Teal, 2 Gadwall, 44 Coot, 32 Dunlin, Surprisingly just 1 Turnstone, 2 Little Grebes, 26 Shelduck, 5 Red Breasted Merganser.

Mill Pond: Mini motorised yacht races disturbing the pond. Could only find 14 Coot, BUT in the southern section of the pond, I had great views of a male Kingfisher perched on a window sill overlooking the pond.


Other local news
Christopher Evans made the most of today's glorious weather and was out for several hours. Here are his photos from the day.

The female Kingfisher was in the culvert that drains the flooded field at the top of Hayling. The remaining photos were taken this afternoon at Thornham Point. The Peregrine, which was spotted by fellow birder John, was on an exposed mudflat out in the harbour, some way off shore. The fox was in a slightly different spot to usual and I had spotted a newly dead fox when I was there yesterday. The Short Eared Owl appeared shortly after I'd seen the fox and initially landed on the fence not far from where I was standing before flying off, landing on the ground, then after a few minutes flying off again and disappearing out of sight.


SUNDAY JANUARY 27 - 2019

Dead Little Egret
Looking over the back garden wall this morning I was saddened to see a Little Egret lying dead in the shallow water of the stream. A Little Egret has been a regular visitor to our garden for several years as it perched on the wall or the fence at the end of the garden looking for small fish in the stream that flows down to the town millpond. If, as I assume, this dead bird is actually our regular visitor, then I shall miss its visits, though maybe another of its species will in time discover this rich feeding area and grace us with its presence.

A view looking north up the Westbrook Stream from my garden wall

Close-up of the dead Little Egret

I don't recall having seen a dead Little Egret anywhere else before. I wonder how this one died. Natural causes is likely, though these birds have quite a long lifespan; the maximum recorded age for a Little Egret in the wild is 22.3 years. Alternatively, it could have been killed though that seems unlikely in this residential area. Large water birds are more vulnerable in open public spaces, Swans and Geese being the most common victims. However, I did find one recent report for 25/01/2019 that the RSPB was alerted after two dead Little Egrets were discovered in the River Wandle in London. The bodies were examined by a vet who thought the injuries were consistent with catapult wounds.


Hermitage Millponds
I had a walk down to the Hermitage Millponds this afternoon, well wrapped up against the strong northerly winds. In fact, it was not as bad as I expected, very windy, but not too cold. The sluice gates were open on Slipper Millpond which meant the two ponds were empty of water. Here is a view looking north across Slipper Millpond.

The coral-like encrustations created by tube worms are clearly visible
.

Interestingly, I discovered a pair of Greenshank busily feeding in the low water channel on Peter Pond - a most unusual occurrence.

One of the Greenshank was colour-ringed - G+BL. This is one of the Greenshank that originally had a geo tag. I first recorded it in Emsworth on 09-Apr-14 and it has been fairly regular here since then.


SATURDAY JANUARY 26 - 2019

Garden birds
I regularly see two Robins in the garden which I assume are a male-female pair as they seem friendly. However, today I spotted this rather battle-scarred Robin, which presumably came off worst in a fight over territory with a neighbouring male.

This is a reminder that our friendly sweet Christmas Robin has a pretty tough existence in the wild. Unlike other common birds, male Robins aggressively protect their territory all year round. Here is a stark photo of a of Robins fighting that I found on the internet. Scary!

Chris Oakley had a pleasant surprise this afternoon when he had a visit from a female Bullfinch to his north Emsworth garden. This was a first for Chris's garden. Nice one. Wish one would come my way.


Friends of Nore Barn Woods
As a paid-up member, I was interested to receive the latest Newsletter (Jan 2019) of the Nore Barn Woods group. This has details of their conservation work in planting new hedges and managing the woods. How good it is to hear that this small but intensively used woodland is in such good hands. Here is a workday team in Jan 2019.

For further information contact Roy Ewing on 01243 370705 or visit their website: http://www.norebarnwoods.org.uk


FRIDAY JANUARY 25 - 2019

Garden birds
A Stock Dove was a relatively unusual visitor to the garden today, the first I have seen for several weeks. In fact, for a short period today there were 4 species of dove/pigeon on the grass, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Stock Dove and White Dove.


Green Sandpiper
Yesterday, as Jo Bray walked from Westbourne to Emsworth along Mill Lane towards Lumley Mill she saw a bird flying along and landing at the edge of the river. She thought it looked like a Common Sandpiper with a distinctive white breast and was bobbing up and down when it landed.
I agree it might have been Common Sandpiper, as a few do hang around in winter near the coast, but my guess is Green Sandpiper which is far more regular in winter and which I often used to see along the River Ems north of Emsworth in my surveys 10-20 years ago. It has a distinctive white rump on take off. Snipe were also regular. That's good if they are still around, though the river is not easily accessible now. Here is a nice shot that Richard Somerscocks got of one a few years ago.


THURSDAY JANUARY 24 - 2019

Emsworth walk
I had a very pleasant walk around the town millpond on this cold and crisp winter's morning. The pond was largely frozen with all ducks and coots assembled in the northern part. I saw one male Tufted Duck on my way round, the first of the winter, but it was gone when I returned. The regular assembly of Black-headed Gulls was standing on the ice, their legs clearly well insulated against the cold.

Looking back towards the town

It warmed my heart to see a troupe of young children from the Bath Road nursery school braving the chilly weather on the promenade with their carers. Future birdwatchers, hopefully!

Meanwhile, out in the harbour I counted no less than 30 Mute Swans, which is an exceptional number, a bit like the good old days when we used to have over 100 on the millpond.

Also in the harbour, swimming near the seawall, was a small flock of 10 Brent Geese including a family of 2 adults and 2 juveniles. I suspect their breeding season has not been a good one.

On the way home I stopped to listen to a Dunnock singing its pretty little ditty from the bushes in Bridge Road car park - my first Dunnock song of the year.


TUESDAY JANUARY 22 - 2019

Warblington
Peter Milinets-Raby had a quick wander around the Warblington area this morning for an hour from 9am. Again, a bit late for the tide, as the tide pushed in to high very quickly. His report follows . . .

The bird of the morning was seen along Pook Lane, flying low over the car with something in its mouth. A very big looking Raven. It landed on the gnarled half dead tree in the field north of the black barn, where it perched just long enough for me to grab a few photos before it flew off north west.

What ever was in its mouth was swallowed whole and I suspect it flew off to go to a nest site (as I have heard from other birders and from Going Birding that a Raven has been reported in this area over the last three weeks). I actually have a pylon in mind and will check over the next few days.

Other birds seen were:
Ibis Field: 6 Redwing, 2 Moorhen, 1 Oystercatcher, 1 Song Thrush, 4 Pheasant, 1 Little Egret with the cattle.

Conigar Point: 137 Wigeon (A good count. A shame it was not done yesterday, but one can assume the area has over 400+ Wigeon - impressive!!). 25 Teal, 283 Brent Geese, 2 male and 1 female Pintail, 21 Shelduck, 2 male and 1 female Goldeneye.

Off Pook Lane: Only had time to count the Wigeon (42) before a lady and her dog walked passed me looking through my scope and let the dog run along the tide line and chase off ever little feeding flock of Brent, Wigeon, Teal and Oystercatchers. Utterly reckless and oblivious to what her dog was doing!!! More education needed!!!! 1 Seal seen popping its head above the water a couple of times. 22 Lapwing. And 4 Little Egrets and 2 Cattle Egrets in the field west of the cemetery (at last the farmer has his herd grazing in this field!!!).


MONDAY JANUARY 21 - 2019

The 'Blood Moon'
Peter Milinets-Raby reports a wonderful experience of seeing the Blood Moon early this morning and got this cracking image of it. That is so beautiful. I was also up at 5am to see the moon, but it did not look this good from my house. Did anyone else see and photograph this interesting phenomenon?


Emsworth Harbour
Later in the morning Peter went for a wander around Emsworth Harbour from 9am to 10am (Just timed too late as the tide was nearly in!).
Beacon Square: 5 Canada Geese, 30 Teal, 11 Wigeon, 149 Brent Geese, 187 Dunlin on the last bit off mud, 1 Grey Plover, 6 Turnstone.
Nore Barn: I counted the Wigeon (248 - The third highest count I have had for Nore Barn, so quite impressive), then everything departed including a flock of 80+ Black-tailed Godwits, so I didn't manage to count anything else. Of note were 5 male Pintail (did not have the chance to count the females) and THE Spotted Redshank.

Emsworth Harbour, looking very photogenic

50 Coot, 12 Teal, 4 Lapwing, 9 Little Grebe, 24 Mute Swans (The best count for ages!!!!) excludes the TWO on the pond, 10 Brent Geese.
Mill Pond: Over 75% frozen over with 100+ gulls resting on the ice, roosting Black-headed, with 5+ Common Gulls and 10+ Herring Gulls. 25 Coot
1 Kingfisher perched on the underside of the Start Hut on the south of the pond fishing in the ice free puddle under the hut. Some great views!


Greenshank RG+BY
I walked round the town millpond a bit later in the morning (11am) and discovered the regular colour-ringed Greenshank (RG+BY) feeding in the low water channel near the quay along with two Common Redshank and a Little Egret. This Greenshank can often be seen feeding in this place. I was pleased to be able to point out the bird to a couple of passing birdwartchers.

It has been a regular winter visitor to Emsworth Harbour for the past 6 winters since it was ringed on 19-Mar-13 by Pete Potts and his team on Thorney Island. It was one of the birds fitted with a geolocator to track its movements, but this was removed a couple of years ago. We are still awaiting the results! Where exactly does it go in the summer?


SATURDAY JANUARY 19 - 2019

Farlington Marshes
Nicola Hammond reported this morning's walk by the Havant Wildlife Group :
10 intrepid souls met at a chilly Farlington Marshes for this week's wildlife walk. Photos from Derek Mills.
From the western car park we viewed a flotilla of red breasted mergansers led by a splendid male and around 50 ringed plover were well camouflaged on the sea wall adjoining the road. We watched a large flock of lapwing swirling above The Point and above Hayling Island was, what we later decided, a very big flock of dunlin. Better was yet to come!
We walked down to the lagoon where nice views were to be had of fairly large groups of avocet, redshank, pintail and shelduck. High tide was at 9.40 this morning so we were fortunate to see a large number and range of birds on the marshes, including widgeon, teal, lapwings, shelduck, moorhen, scattered curlew, some greenshank, black tailed godwits, little grebes, shovellers, Brent and Canada geese and a lone Greylag goose.

Shelduck with mystery pale duck. What is is?

Smaller birds included starlings, stonechats, dunnock, pied wagtail and rock pipits. From the Point area we viewed a small island which was crammed with dunlin, grey plover and a few black tailed godwits and oyster catchers.

Turnstones were doing what turnstones do along the edges. Looking back we had nice views of a marsh harrier skimming along the top of the reeds.
We took a coffee break on the eastern side of the point field where alongside was another very small island populated by dunlin and grey plover. Suddenly a glittering mass of birds came weaving and swirling back and forth, all trying to cram onto the island as well. They were Bar-tailed Godwits!

It was a wonderful sight and we were also treated to large flocks of lapwing giving aerial displays, assisted at times by starlings. Heather also spotted a peregrine perched on a post in the distance.
As we walked down the eastern sea wall we met a chap doing a count of the Brents and he pointed out a peregrine which was perched on the ground in the marshes and also two ravens. We continued along the path by the hut where we saw a kestrel and had more excellent views of the marsh harrier. The final treat was a reed bunting feeding on reed seeds, spotted by Heather.
The shared eyes, knowledge and enthusiasm of everyone attending always makes such a rewarding morning, despite the weather!

For more information about this local group which has a walk every Saturday go to . . . Havant Wildlife Group


FRIDAY JANUARY 18 - 2019

Two Egrets in garden
We often get one Little Egret on the back wall of the garden overlooking the Westbrook Stream but today there were two, albeit too briefly for me to get a shot. However, here is what I assume is our regular Egret which spent much of the rest of the day, either on the fence overlooking the stream, or on the roof of my neighbour's shed. It looked very much at home there!


Langstone Mill Pond
Peter Milinets-Raby had a high tide visit to Langstone Mill Pond this morning from 9am to 10am. Chilly with plenty of sunshine. Great for photos, however, not many birds around.
173 Brent Geese, 74 Shelduck with another 39 in the distance off Conigar Point, 9 Red Breasted merganser, 44 Wigeon, 18 Lapwing.

On the pond: 1 Canada Goose (still lingering), 43 Teal.

In the horse paddock: 1 Oystercatcher, 2 Stock Dove. Light coloured Buzzard perched on a post


THURSDAY JANUARY 17 - 2019

Brook Meadow
Work session
There was a good turn out of 11 volunteers for this morning's work session on Brook Meadow led by Maurice Lillie.

The main jobs involving raking and clear of cut vegetation finishing with a bonfire.

For the full report and more photos go to . . . https://www.brookmeadow.org.uk/conservation-news/


Wildlife
As well as taking photos and videos of the work, I spent some time collecting a selection of winter twigs, including Aspen, Black Poplar, Goat Willow, Crack Willow, Osier.

Hazel with yellow catkins and Alder with dark red catkins and nascent cones.

I also discovered a rather poorly looking Ladybird (probably Harlequin) on the Alder. It should be hibernating somewhere warm.


'Golden Willows'
Maurice Lillie, David Minns and I stopped to admire the tall 'Golden Willows' in the western plantation and noted how different they were to the standard Crack Willow, having tall straight trunks topped with conspicuous bright orange-yellow twigs glowing in the winter sunshine. They were planted on Brook Meadow over 20 years ago by the Council to shield the gasholder (now gone). There are some more at the end of Seagull Lane and on the south side of Palmer's Road Copse.

It was confirmed by BSBI Recorder Martin Rand that these willows are hybrids between the true Golden Willow (Salix alba var. vitellina) and Crack Willow (Salix fragilis) and are called Basford Willows (Salix x rubens forma basfordiana). They are characterised by conspicuous orange-yellow twigs which glow in the winter sunshine and very long pendulous yellow catkins.


Views
It was such a beautiful morning that I could not resist taking a few more shots of notable features of Brook Meadow which were looking good in the bright winter sunshine.

A view from the north path looking towards the north bridge.

A view of the Aspen tree looking south towards the centre meadow

A view of the two Black Poplars which were cleared by volunteers today.

A view of the Lumley Stream with a fallen Willow tree


TUESDAY JANUARY 15 - 2019

Langstone Mill Pond
Peter Milinets-Raby visited the Langstone Mill Pond this morning for an hour from 9am - low tide. The birds of interest were as follows:
On the pond: 1 Canada Goose (still lingering), 2 Mute Swan, 12 Teal. 1 Chiffchaff heard calling.
Heronry news: 4 Grey Herons: Top Holm Oak nest with two adults in pristine clean spring plumage and one of the two birds was noted snuggling down with lots of wiggles onto the nest (probably sitting on eggs?). The lower Holm Oak nest had a pristine plumaged adult stood over the nest. Nest 10 had a grey drab bird on the nest moving sticks about. So that's three nests nearly up and running.
Well, I did see my first Daffodils and Snowdrops today!! . . . 'Spring is on the way'.

Off shore: 2 Greenshank (G//R +BR..-), 112 Teal, 74 Shelduck, 151 Dunlin, 12 Grey Plover, 1 male Pintail, 120+ Brent Geese, 5 Red Breasted Merganser, 10 Wigeon, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 9 Black-tailed Godwit.


MONDAY JANUARY 14 - 2019

Warblington shore
Peter Milinets-Raby was out this morning and visited the Warblington shore from 9am to 10:30pm. His report follows . . .

The 2 Cattle Egrets, with 3 Little Egrets were in the Ibis field for 10 minutes before they flew off north, much to the dismay of the visiting birders. There were more aimlessly wandering bird watchers than birds this morning! !
The birds of note were as follows: 1 Goldcrest in the cemetery,
Ibis field: 1 Grey Wagtail, 2 Song Thrush, 16 Redwing (without doubt the birds of the morning ), 1 Buzzard.
Conigar Point : 109 Wigeon, 124 Brent Geese, 14 Teal, A pair of Pintail, 2 Grey Plover, 4 Shelduck.
Off Pook Lane : 95 Shelduck, 42 Wigeon, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 9 Red breasted Merganser, 79 Teal, 307 Brent Geese, 4 Grey Plover, 24 Black tailed Godwit, 48 Dunlin, 1 Greenshank.


SUNDAY JANUARY 13 - 2019

Emsworth walk
I had a pleasant walk this morning through Brook Meadow and down to Peter Pond. I was pleased to spot a wintering Chiffchaff working its way through the bushes on the west bank of the river in Palmer's Road Copse, the first sighting of the winter period. They are almost certainly around, but not easy to find unless they sing that is.
This Chiffchaff was much too active for a photo, so here is a nice one from my files taken by Tony Wootton at Titchfield Haven in December 2013.

I happened to meet Roger Mills who told me he had seen the first blossom on the Cherry Plum tree near the Lumley gate - Roger is always the first to spot this early flowering tree. I could only see one flower out when I looked later, which I suppose is the one Roger saw too.

Three clumps of fresh green leaves of Hairy Garlic (Allium subhirsutum) are now showing well at the eastern end of the footpath behind Lillywhite's Garage. It gets its common name from the distinctive hairy edges to its leaves. It also has a faint garlic aroma when the leaves are crushes. Hopefully, we shall see the pretty white star-like flowers in early spring (March-April), though sometimes it does not seem to flower at all, or maybe I just miss them.

The Mute Swan family with 3 cygnets is still on Peter Pond, though there was a clear indication that the cygnets will all soon be driven off from their parent's nesting territory. You can see the cob chasing one of the cygnets in the background of this photo.


Garden Egret
We had a Little Egret on the wall at the end of our garden this afternoon, looking down into the stream that runs at the end of the garden. After a few minutes looking it dropped down to the stream, to catch small fish that live there.

This elegant bird is a fairly regular visitor to the garden, though rarely actually comes onto the garden itself, usually remaining on the end wall. However, this the first time we have actually caught sight of the bird for over a year, though we may well have missed it as it does not tend to stay long. The following chart shows the per cent of weeks the Egret was seen in the garden each year since 1998.


SATURDAY JANUARY 12 - 2019

Redwings
Sue Thomas had her first winter Redwing on a very berried tree this afternoon. One of a flock of four. She was hoping for waxwings but redwings are very welcome! Has anyone else had them?

For a report of today's walk by the Havant Wildlife Group at Bosham
go to . . .
http://familyfellows.com/hwg-walk-reports-2019.htm


FRIDAY JANUARY 11 - 2019

Nore Barn
I spent another very enjoyable hour or so, from 11.30 to 12.30, at Nore Barn with the tide rising to high water in about 2 hours. Much as yesterday, the conditions were perfect for birdwatching, calm sea, no wind and no sun. The bay crammed with hundreds of Brent Geese, Wigeon and Teal with a flock of around 90 Black-tailed Godwits feeding around the edges. Many of the birds were pushed by the incoming tide into the creek south of the woods where they were much easier to see.
The Kent-ringed Black-tailed Godwit with three rings on each leg (ROL+RLR) that I saw yesterday was here again along with another Emsworth Harbour regular (G+WR) that I have seen no less than 126 times over the past 10 years. It was originally caught and ringed at Farlington Marshes by Pete Potts and his team on 10-Sep-08 as adult male.

On the left is Black-tailed Godwit G+WR and on the right is G+WR along with ROL+RLR

My best sighting of the morning was of four Pintail, 2 males and 2 females, sailing serenely, as only Pintail can do, through the myriad of geese and other ducks. Not a very good photo, but they were a long way out.

As for the stream, it was surprisingly empty of birds. When I arrived I noted the regular colour-ringed Greenshank (G+GL) and a couple of Black-tailed Godwits in the shallow water, but no Spotted Redshank. When I got back from my sojourn up the creek there was nothing in the stream at all, no Spotted Redshank, nothing, even though the conditions appeared to be perfect. But not to worry, it does seem to like keeping us on our toes.

I was very pleased to meet up with two of my old friends. Dave Thompson was an inspirational leader of the Southbourne Sea Scouts group when my son Danny was a member. He was pleased to know that Danny's son Joe has also enrolled as a cub at Southbourne. We swapped stories about birds. He told me about a close encounter with a Sparrowhawk the wings of which brushed his face as it chased down a Woodpigeon. Both none the worse for their experience.

I also met up with Dave Mead who I had not seen for many years. Dave was the RSPB leader of walks and talks in Portsmouth for many years and a very skilled and knowledgeable birder. We had a chat about the local birds. I told him to look out for our very colourful triple-ringed Black-tailed Godwit.


THURSDAY JANUARY 10 - 2019

Nore Barn
I arrived at Nore Barn at 11.30am with about 2 ½ to high water and stayed for an hour as the tide gradually pushed in - the perfect time for watching birds at this prime local spot. When I got there the bay was simply teeming with Brent Geese, Teal, Wigeon and Black-tailed Godwits, their distinctive calls wafting across the declining mudlfats. Although it was chilly, the sea was calm and little wind and there was no sun which helped with photography.
Encouraged by a report from Liz Cook who had e-mailed me to say she saw a Spotted Redshank in the Nore Barn stream yesterday afternoon, I made my way to the stream which was filling up nicely. And, hey presto! There it was - our famous Spotted Redshank which had been giving some of us a little concern over its recent absence. But no need to worry, it is back! Here is my first photo of the bird plus a video clip of its typical behaviour.

Video clip of the Spotted Redshank in the Nore Barn stream . . . https://youtu.be/tA0_O7G4-fY

Its feeding companion the colour-ringed Greenshank (G+GL) was also present in the stream and when I left about an hour later the two of them were feeding together at the top of the stream near the bridge. How fortunate we are in Emsworth to be able to see such a fine pair of birds at such close quarters. Incomparable!

For the full history of the Emsworth Spotted Redshank go to . . . http://familyfellows.com/x-spotted-redshank.htm

I positioned myself on the path south of the woods to watch the rising tide push the Godwits, Brents and Teal into the creek. It was from here that I spent a magical 30 mins or so watching 50 or so Black-tailed Godwits furiously jabbing their long bills beneath the water and into the mud, rather like over sized Dunlin, usually coming up with morsels of food.

The rather frenetic feeding beahaviour is shown well in the following video clip . . . https://youtu.be/EEyFq_0zUDg

Meanwhile flocks of Brent Geese sailed serenely by and distant Teal whistled to one another. Among the 100 or so Brent Geese I counted 7 juveniles in families of 3, 2 and two ones (I think) which is not bad for what has clearly been a poor breeding season. Here is a photo of one of the families of two adults and one juvenile.

I kept a look out for any colour-ringed Black-tailed Godwits and spotted an 'old friend' with 3 coloured rings on each leg ROL+RLR - unmissable! This bird has been visiting Emsworth each winter for the past 10 years since it was first ringed 27-Oct-08 at Kingsnorth Power Station, Medway Est. Kent as an adult male. Astonishingly, this was my 106th sighting of this bird in Emsworth. I last recorded it here on 06-Nov 2018.


WEDNESDAY JANUARY 9 - 2019

Redshank
Following the concern expressed by Peter Milinets-Raby over not seeing the Spotted Redshank for a few days I nipped into Nore Barn on the way home from my stewarding stint at the Pallant Gallery to have a look for it. I arrived at 1pm when the tide was almost full, not ideal for seeing the Spotted Redshank. I could just make out what was clearly a Redshank resting on the edge of the saltmarshes. But was it the Spotted? I studied it for some time with my bins, trying desperately to turn it into a Spotted Redshank, but but no luck. It was definitely a Common Redshank. I managed to get a distant photo of the bird with my Lumix on full zoom.


Warblington shore
Peter Milinets-Raby visited the Warblington shore this morning and had an amazing close encounter with two young Roe Deer bucks. He says . . .

I was standing on the beach by the wall looking into the SSSI field. Then out of the marsh grass bounded two Roe Deer, coming directly towards me (As my head was barely visible above the wall, the deer obviously could not see me). They bounced up to the wall and stopped to contemplate whether to jump it? They were literally less than 20 feet away. It really did feel as if they were about to leap, but suddenly they noticed me and off they bounded back as quickly as they came. It was three to four minutes of an exhilarating wildlife encounter. I don't think I have even been so close! (see photos). I think this is only the third time (in six years) I have seen Roe Deer in this area.

The rest of the morning was dull in comparison (9am to 10:35am - low tide).

Ibis Field: 2 Cattle Egret and 1 Little Egret briefly before they flew north towards their favourite field to the west of the water cress bed. 6 female Pheasant, 1 Green Woodpecker, 1 Oystercatcher. 11 Skylark in the big field to the east of the Ibis Field

Conigar Point: 8 Grey Plover, 6 Dunlin, 1 Red Breasted Merganser, 9 Shelduck, 4 Wigeon, 1 Greenshank.

Off Pook Lane: 183 Dunlin, 6 Grey Plover, 27 Shelduck, 15 Red Breasted Merganser, 26 Wigeon, 63 Teal, 195 Brent Geese, 31 Black-tailed Godwit, 11 Lapwing. A pair of Pintail. 1 Great Crested Grebe.


Avocets at Farlington
Mike Wells spent two very cool hours walking around Farlington Marshes this morning. Highlight was seeing approx 42 slumbering Avocets in the harbour just south of Kendall's Wharf (Eastern Road).

Mike also sent photos of Pintail, Lapwing and Wigeon.


TUESDAY JANUARY 8 - 2019

Emsworth Harbour
This morning Peter Milinets-Raby had a walk around Emsworth Harbour and Nore Barn ahead of an incoming tide - 9am to noon. Here is Peter's report . . .
At Nore Barn I bumped into Andy Johnson who was counting people and dogs in connection to the Bird Aware Solent group. It was his second day at the site. The interesting information he parted, was that the Spotted Redshank was not present yesterday and today with 'ideal' conditions and 1 Redshank, 1 Greenshank (the usual bird G//R + GL//-), 3 Black-tailed Godwit and several Teal in the steam outflow, the Spotted Redshank was again NOT present. What does this mean? Where has it gone? Has a bird of prey or a even a dog taken it?
The birds of interest from my walk this morning were as follows:
Beacon Square: 152 Brent Geese, 63 Wigeon, 5 Teal, 21 Black-tailed Godwit, 2 Grey Plover.
Emsworth Harbour: 15 Turnstone, 159 Dunlin, 15 Grey Plover, 578 Brent Geese, 7 Little Grebe, 4 Shelduck, 4 Sandwich Tern feeding with hefty plunge dives, 10 Black-tailed Godwit, 45 Teal, 6 Lapwing, 43 Coot with 29 Coot on the Mill pond with 2 Little Grebes, 2 Gadwall, 1 Black Swan by the sluice gate by the town (see photo).

Nore Barn: 2 Grey Plover, 76 Black-tailed Godwit, 5 Pintail, 279 Wigeon, 127 Teal, 27 Lapwing, 1 Greenshank (usual bird - G///R + GL//- What has he done with his friend?), 220+ Brent Geese, 44 Shelduck, 1 Sandwich Tern (probably one of the four from around the corner).

Brian's note: re Spotted Redshank
I don't think we should be too worried about the Spotted Redshank's absence at Nore Barn over the past two days. I have found in past years that the bird does disappear for several days running before making a welcome reappearance.
However, I would be grateful for any sightings of the bird over the next few days. The best time to look for the bird is 2-3 hours before and after high water. Tomorrow (Wed Jan 9) high tide is at 13.22 so look from 11.00 onwards.


MONDAY JANUARY 7 - 2019

Emsworth Waxwings
I am grateful to Colin Vanner for letting me have this fine image of one of the Waxwings that turned up in the garden of the Sussex Brewery in Emsworth last Friday (Jan 4). I trust Colin enjoyed a pint of best to celebrate. Are they still there?


Prinsted Fox
Romney Turner went for a walk at Prinsted and got a couple of fine images of a Red Fox sunning itself down a bank. Romney says the Fox was not in the slightest bit worried about her being up on the bank and had a good yawn showing me a good set of teeth!


SUNDAY JANUARY 6 - 2019

Brook Meadow Work session
It was a cold and dull morning, so I wrapped up well for the work session on Brook Meadow at the new earlier start time of 9.30. There was a good turn out of 12 people led by Colin Brotherston who outlined the main tasks to be carried out.

Main job was to make a bonfire to burn up twigs and small branches that have been left from earlier work sessions. Everyone loved the bonfire, as did I.

For the full report plus more photos and video go to . . . https://www.brookmeadow.org.uk/conservation-news/

Video clip . . . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9GbnBu2aBo


Peter Pond
I had a stroll down to Peter Pond where I found David Gattrell busy digging out the channel on the east side of Peter Pond. He's doing a fine job.

David tells me he saw Elisabeth Kinloch before Christmas. Elisabeth is the owner of Peter Pond and was an early member of the Brook Meadow Conservation Group committee. Sadly, she now suffers from dementia and has full time care in her Westbourne home. We send her our best wishes.


Wildlife observations
Bird song on Brook Meadow included Robin prominent as usual, plus a Wren on the river bank and a splendid Blackbird near the Lumley gate. I also heard a Woodpigeon song for the first time. This Robin took advantage of the clearance work done by volunteers to explore for wintering insects.

The Alder sapling near the Lumley Stream is adorned with purplish catkins and old knarled cones from last year.

Dan told me about a male Blackcap that had stunned itself by flying into his patio window. Fortunately it recovered and flew off. This will be one of the wintering population of Blackcaps that visit the UK from the Continent and feed mainly in gardens. They are a different population Blackcaps from the summer visitors which migrate here from Africa in the spring.


Waxwings
No more sightings of Waxwings in Emsworth today, though the local news reported that about a dozen of these attractive birds had been spotted in red berried trees in the Asda car park at Totton near Southampton where birdwatchers were assembling to see them.


SATURDAY JANUARY 5 - 2019

Waxwings hunt
Peter Milinets-Raby went looking for Waxwings that were reported yesterday in the garden of the Sussex Brewery pub just over the county border in West Sussex. The birds were not present though other birders present said they had flown west. So, Peter scoured the streets of Emsworth in Hampshire for the next hour visiting all the pink berry bushes he could remember. He did not find them, but is sure they are in Emsworth somewhere, so please keep a look out for them and let me know of any sighting.


Winter Red Admiral
Yesterday, Mike Wells had the welcome sight of a Red Admiral sunning itself on ivy in his Waterlooville garden with a temperature of just over 2 degrees! Although most of these beautiful and resourceful insects perish with the onset of winter, an increasing number are managing to survive in warmer areas. Locally, I have often see one fluttering around the Nore Barn Woods area in mid winter.


FRIDAY JANUARY 4 - 2019

Waxwings in Emsworth
Ralph Hollins alerted me to the report of 4 Waxwings seen today in the Sussex Brewery car park by L. M. Fuller from 13:50 to 15:30. Report on the HOS Sightings page at . . . https://www.goingbirding.co.uk/hants/birdnews.asp
Ralph added that in the past few days Waxwings have been reported at several south coast sites (including Totton, Plymouth, and Kingley Vale). So keep a look out for them on the red berried trees.

No local photos yet, but here's one from our old friend Richard Somerscocks in Scotland to whet your appetites


Black Swans over Thorney
Christopher Evans saw two Black Swans flying over by the sluice gates on the east side of Thorney. He also got a brief glimpse of the regular Kingfisher and a Fox with what could be someone's lunch. No Owls today.


Avocets at Nutbourne
Sue Thomas enjoyed a flock of 28 Avocets on a beautiful winter morning at Nutbourne at the bottom of the Farm Lane footpath. Sue managed to get a group of 5. She was also pleased to see a small flock of 3 Yellowhammers.


THURSDAY JANUARY 3 - 2019

Winter Hedgehog
Joyce Sawyer reports that two nights running she has seen a Hedgehog in her garden in Denvilles. The photo shows the hog with its eyes closed but Joyce says it is very much alive as it had been eating cat food at the hog feeding station and was just enjoying a drink to wash it down.

Brian's note: Joyce's Hedgehog does not look very well to me, as if it wants to go to sleep, but is not in a suitable place. Seeing a Hedgehog outside in winter is not good as they really should be hibernating.
The Hedgehog guide at . . .
http://www.thehedgehog.co.uk . . . says that with our warmer winters many Hedgehogs are not going into hibernation until well into January, so this might be the case for Joyce's animal. However, if the weather turns really cold (like it did last year with the 'beast from the east') then they need to find somewhere warm and cosy to hibernate otherwise it is curtains. Putting food and water down all the time is recommended.

Caroline French replies: Although we would expect hedgehogs to be hibernating at this time of year, they can and do emerge to seek food, especially during mild periods. There is evidence of one being around in my garden recently. As Brian says, it is good to leave out some suitable food (eg dried cat food or a bespoke hedgehog food ) if possible in case a hungry hedgehog is in need of it. Fresh water is also really important.
It's not clear from the email whether this animal's eyes are permanently closed or just closed in the photo. If closed all the time I would suggest contacting Brent Lodge Wildlife Hospital for advice. The same applies if it is seen out during the daytime.
Hopefully though, this animal is just taking the opportunity to feed up a bit. Good to know they are still around the Denvilles area.
Other good sources of advice are the Hedgehog Street website and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society.
Let's hope s/he makes it through the winter to breed successfully next spring. If enough of us do our bit to help by providing food and suitable nesting and hibernating habitat we may be able to stem their decline.


Barrie's news
Barrie Jay reports it has been a very quiet winter, bird wise, so far in his Waterlooville garden, though he has had a couple of Song Thrushes. Lucky old Barrie, I have not seen one of those in my garden all year.
Today Barrie went to Lee on The Solent and on the fence of the Airport he spotted a female Black Redstart and got a distant shot of it. Barrie also got this fine image of a Meadow Pipit along the Promenade.

But most astonishing was Barrie's photo of four Red Kites taken at Popham Airfield near Basingstoke where he said there are now 8 resident Red Kites. Barrie regularly sees one in the sky over West Waterlooville and thinks it can only be a matter of time before these magnificent birds will become common over our skies in the South! Now, that is a nice thought to start the New Year with.


Warblington shore
Peter Milinets-Raby was out on the 1st of Jan for a quick wander around Warblington and the shore. He managed 65 species: The highlights were:
2 Cattle Egrets and 3 Little Egrets in the Ibis Field until the farmer unavoidably flushed them when he came and fed the cows

Off Pook Lane: 350 Brent Geese, 13 Black-tailed Godwit, 10 Grey Plover, an impressive flock of 400+ Dunlin, A pair of Goldeneye, 1 Greenshank, 1 Great Crested Grebe. 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Buzzard, 5 Lapwing.
A pair of Grey Herons together on the Number One Holm Oak nest looking very lovey dovey. 1 Canada Goose on the Langstone Mill Pond. 2 Mute Swan.


Peter's report of 2018 Birds of Emsworth & Warblington
An end of year summary of the Birds of Warblington & Emsworth in 2018: A personal review by Peter Milinets-Raby

The total number of species for the area is currently 179. There were just two additions to the list in 2018, these were Egyptian Goose and Black-throated Diver. My personal list for the area stands at 153. I managed 118 species this year, which is about the norm for the last six years. Below is an abridged review of the key species of the area.

Shelduck:
A new maxima count for this species was achieved on December 14th when 109 were present along the Sweare channel surpassing the January 2017 record of 103.

Egyptian Goose:
The first of just two new species to the area was a flock of six Egyptian Geese that were observed heading north inland over the Warblington castle tower on December 11th.

Mandarin Duck:
There were two sightings of this species this year bringing the total of sightings for the last six years to just four. The first was of two female/eclipse types on Langstone Mill Pond on August 29th and the second sighting was of a female also on the Langstone Mill Pond on September 17th.

Teal:
A male was present on Langstone Mill Pond in the middle of summer on June 4th. This was a truly unprecedented observation as normally the months of May and June have zero records.

Pintail:
An indifferent year with numbers down on 2017, with 14 being the highest count seen at Nore Barn during March.

Goosander:
The Juvenile/female discovered in November 2017 was still around on Emsworth Mill Pond on January 1st and again on 7th. In the late year on November 26th a female with four juveniles was observed feeding in the stream outflow by Emsworth town wall.

Black-throated Diver:
The second new species for the area with one seen at high tide diving very close to the Langstone Mill Pond on January 2nd.

Cormorant:
An amazing fishing flock of 36 birds was observed off Conigar Point on November 23rd. This is over double the best count over the last six years.

Little Egret:
I hope this year was a one off and not the start of a downward trend. It was, in truth, a disastrous year with breeding numbers at Langstone Mill Pond down by 50%. The first signs of breeding were noted on April 10th when a pair were displaying in the Holm Oak and loitering by an old nest. The colony blossomed three days later, with nineteen birds present in the colony with ten nests occupied! On April 19th there were 22 occupied nests with three of them on the island. Things then, inexplicably slowed down and by April 23rd only one nest was occupied on the island and around 20/23 nests were occupied in the main colony. Alas, by May 10th the nest on the island had been abandoned, leaving roughly 20 to 23 occupied nests, which was 50% down on last year! The first chicks were noted on May 24th, with at least four nests occupied and by June 1st at least 11 nests held young. On June 12th I counted 31 juveniles in the colony. The annual autumn roost count on August 29th produced only 136 egrets flying into roost (down by an average of 50+ birds of the last few years). I wonder what 2019 will bring. Will the colony return to its glory days or is this the start of a disquieting downhill trend?

Cattle Egret:
One was observed in the cattle fields around Warblington on eleven dates from January 1st until February 22nd. The onset of snow probably moved it on. Almost certainly the same bird was seen in the flooded horse paddock north of Langstone Mill Pond on January 5th. In the late winter period a Cattle Egret was discovered in late November. It was a very elusive bird, associating with a small group of Little Egrets in the very muddy private cattle field west of the Warblington cress beds and was noted on two dates from November 21st until December 3rd. On this date it was joined by a second bird and the pair continued to be elusive until the year's end with just five further sightings.

Grey Heron:
At Langstone Mill Pond there were 11 confirmed pairs (one pair bred twice). Only the success of eight of them was known. There were 19 young successfully reared. Brief details of each are found below.
Nest 1: Top of Holm Oak:
The pair were observed mating on the nest on January 2nd 2018 suggesting that the earlier attempt at breeding in November 2017 had failed? Confirmation of breeding occurred on February 9th when an adult bird flew in and started to regurgitate food items into the nest. The other adult stood up and the faint sound of chicks could be heard. Three grown young noted on March 16th, which were getting ready to fledge, with wing flapping observed. A single juvenile of the second brood was noted on July 17th and two fully grown young noted still on the nest on August 14th. This pair have always managed a second brood in every year they have bred.
Nest 2: Lower down the southern edge of the Holm Oak:
An adult was observed sat on the nest on January 18th. Two juveniles were observed standing on the nest on April 9th.
Nest 3: South of the Holm Oak, obscured and to the rear, in the lower branches of tall tree: Not used.
Nest 4: In between Nest 3 and the Holm Oak, at the rear, high up in a slightly taller Holm Oak. Two adults were observed on the nest on January 5th and an adult was sitting tight on the nest on 27th. Alas, a Magpie was observed eating something on this nest on February 21st (probably eggs). Thankfully an adult was back sitting on the nest on March 8th. Two tiny young were noted on May 10th.
Nest 5: About 1.5 metres south from Nest 3: Two birds were standing on this nest on January 5th. Two young were observed on this nest on April 28th.
Nest 6: In front and slightly below Nest 3: Not occupied.
Nest 7: At the back of the main stand of trees and to the south of all the other nests: This nest was destroyed by the storms and re-built very quickly and took shape by March 16th. Three young were confirmed on May 25th.
Nest 8: At the rear of the Holm Oak, just below Nest 1: An adult was observed sitting on this nest on March 27th. It was very difficult to view this nest. On April 21st a small juvenile was seen being fed by an adult. And confirmed as just one on May 25th.
Nest 9: Now the furthest nest to the south of the colony: On January 27th an adult was observed sitting tight on the nest, with just its forehead and bill sticking out - on eggs no doubt. Two adults were noted feeding young on March 8th (just movement, no numbers noted and no further sightings).
Nest 10: At great height, in-between the two Holm Oaks: This nest was totally blown away by the storms in late February, with not a single stick remaining. It was rebuilt in six days in early March and by 14th an adult was firmly sat on the nest. On May 8th two juveniles were confirmed.
Nest 11: The other Holm Oak (above and slightly to the left of Nest 4): On March 8th an adult was sitting tight on this nest. Alas the nest was obscured by foliage by April 9th and no further sightings were made.
Nest 12: Above nest 9 and slightly below and to the left of nest 7: Built up in the first week of April and had an adult sitting on it on April 9th. Three young observed on May 25th.
Nest 13: At the rear of the Holm Oak, below Nest 1, but further away from Nest 8 at the very rear: A new nest under construction on March 27th with an adult bringing sticks in on quite a regular basis. An adult was sitting on the nest on April 9th. Alas there were no further sightings because of the foliage cover.

Osprey:
There was just the one sighting this year on September 17th when a bird was seen circling over Brook Meadow for a few minutes before it drifted off south towards Thorney Island.

Hen Harrier:
The only sighting of the year was of a ringtail heading west along Emsworth Harbour on October 28th.

Hobby:
There was only one record this year, bringing the total number of sightings of the last six years to just eight. On May 12th a single bird flew south over the SSSI field at Pook Lane before it headed further south across the Sweare Deep to Hayling Island.

Avocet:
There were four sightings of this emblematic bird. Two were feeding on the low tide mud off Pook Lane on March 4th, 5th and again on 8th. And in the late winter period three were seen along the low tide line off Pook Lane on December 17th.

Ringed Plover:
There were three birds observed with colour rings. The details are - on Peter's web site address at the end of summary.

Golden Plover:
Another poor year with just four sightings. Where have the large winter flocks gone? Four were present on the low tide mud off Pook Lane on February 9th. After light snow on March 18th, two flocks were noted moving due to the cold weather - 24 east at Conigar Point and 29 north over Pook Lane. In the late winter period five birds were on the muddy shore of Pook Lane on December 11th.

Snipe:
The average number of sightings of this species per year over the last six years is three. With just one record in 2018, it was thus a relatively poor year. The only record was on March 18th, after light snow, of a bird heard calling as it flew over the Warblington cemetery.

Knot:
There were no large flocks encountered, just a handful of records and nothing above 20!

Black-tailed Godwit:
Not as regular as previous years, with numbers generally down, however a record count of 381 was achieved at Pook Lane on August 29th. There were seven colour ringed birds seen throughout the year. See details on Peter's web site address at the end of summary.

Bar-tailed Godwit:
A very poor early winter period with 47 being the maximum count on March 4th off Pook Lane. In the late winter period sightings were again sporadic, however large numbers did briefly occur along the Pook Lane shoreline during mid-November with 126 on 9th, 58 on 14th and 104 on 19th.

Greenshank:
A new maxima for the month of August was set with 16 birds together in Emsworth Harbour. There were 19 colour ringed birds noted this year See details on Peter's web site address at the end of summary.

Common Sandpiper:
Over the last six years this species is only ever recorded once or twice a year, so this year was no exception with one record. A juvenile was in the Langstone Mill Pond outflow stream on August 28th.

Redshank:
There were 18 different colour ringed birds noted in 2018 (See details on Peter's web site address at the end of summary.

Spotted Redshank:
A second bird briefly joined the usual long stayer at Nore Barn on January 18th.

Water Pipit:
There were three records. One was feeding in the rotting hay mound in the fields east of Castle Farm on January 7th, with two there on February 11th. And finally one was observed in the flooded horse paddock north of Langstone Mill Pond on January 10th.

Stonechat:
A typical year with a couple of records. One was in the SSSI field at Conigar Point on September 25th and two males were active along the main hedge at Pook Lane on October 10th.

Wheatear:
The only two sightings of this species were both in autumn. The first was a bird along the shore at Conigar Point on August 29th, with the second also seen at Conigar Point on September 28th.

Firecrest:
One was seen briefly at Langstone Mill Pond on January 18th. Four were in Nore Barn Wood on January 25th, with one noted there on February 18th.

Spotted Flycatcher:
One typical autumnal record of a single bird in the main hedgerow at Warblington on August 4th.

Bullfinch:
A female was seen at Langstone Mill Pond on November 5th. This is only the fourth record of this enigmatic species in the last six years.

Yellowhammer:
On March 18th after a light sprinkling of snow, a splendid male Yellowhammer was found feeding on the main seawall path by Pook Lane, giving exceptional views and photo opportunities for twenty minutes or so before a dog walker with two dogs flushed it and I could not re-find it. This is a new addition to my patch list and a species that I did not think would ever return. The species was a relatively regular breeder in the area up to the turn of the century, but there have been no records since the spring of 2003!

Reed Bunting:
A poor season with no suspected breeding at Langstone Mill Pond. A handful of sightings of a male half-heartedly singing during the first two weeks of April, but nothing beyond 21st.

For details of the colour ringed birds and photos go to Peter's web page . . . https://peterspurplepages.wordpress.com/


 For the previous entries go to . . December 1-31