Weymouth/Portland area- 22nd November

On the 22nd, I decided to try to see as many bird species as possible within a 12 mile radius of Weymouth, which would include Portland Bill to the south, Maiden Castle to the north, Abbotsbury to the west and Ringstead Bay to the east. Sadly, I ran out of time to search the latter two places properly, but I had some great success in the areas I did visit. 

I started at 10 30 at Maiden Castle. Here, I hoped to pick up some farmland species that may be difficult to find later on in Weymouth. The first bird of the day was Carrion Crow, shortly followed by a flock of approximately 300 Golden Plovers flying overhead and a number of the more regular countryside species, including Buzzard, Fielfare and 200 or so Lapwings. The highlight here for me was finding ten or so Corn Buntings, nowadays a very rare bird in Dorset.

Corn Bunting, Maiden Castle

This plump bird was once abundant in Dorset, but due to changed farming methods, the species has declined enormously and now has a very small and fragmented range in the county. Thankfully, the bird seems to be doing well around Maiden Castle.

My next stop was Lodmoor RSPB in Weymouth. I hoped to pick up heaps of wetland birds here, and I was not disappointed. A number of the more common waterfowl put in an appearance, along with three Common Snipes and, best of all, a Marsh Harrier. I had also managed to find the potentially-difficult Goldcrest here and my first Cetti's Warbler for a couple of years. A single Mediterranean Gull was present along with several Common Gulls.

I then travelled to Ferrybridge in search of the waders which had been virtually completely absent from Lodmoor. Sadly, someone had decided to start digging for fishing bait right in front of the visitor centre and had consequently flushed all waders and geese from the area. I managed to find some (very) distant Dunlin, Brent Geese and Red-breasted Mergansers, along with a single Redshank and a couple of other new species for the day. I knew this was basically my only chance at picking up such waders as Ringed Plover, Sanderling, Grey Plover and Knot, but sadly there was no sign of any. On the other side of the road, I picked up my first Turnstones and Rock Pipits, along with a fantastic hovering Kestrel. Four distant Grebes in Portland Harbour were most likely Little Grebes, but they were far-too-far away to eliminate something more interesting. 

Portland Castle was next, where a Great Northern Diver was swimming around offshore, along with a Shag. Divers are among my favourite birds and it was a real pleasure to watch this great species. Sadly I was unable to locate the Black Guillemot that had been seen there earlier in the morning. Two great Black Redstarts made for a fantastic sight, which more than made up for missing the guillemot.

Black Redstart, Portland Castle

The trees behind the castle were bizarrely empty compared to last weekend, when they had been teeming with not only Black Redstarts, but also Chiffchaffs, thrushes and finches. Today they were virtually empty.

I then continued on to Portland Bill. Immediately, I found a Peregrine Falcon soaring above the rocky cliffs- this was a good start. I walked down to the Pulpit Rock, in search of Purple Sandpipers, which can often be found around this area during the winter months. I quickly found several waders scurrying about the rocks, though they turned out to be Turnstones.

Turnstone, Portland Bill

Though often ignored, this really is a remarkable species, with a breeding range extending across the entire Arctic, from Alaska and Canada to Scandinavia and Greenland and everywhere in between. It then travels south for the winter, commonly as far as South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. What an awesome bird!

After a long search, I eventually found a single Purple Sandpiper, and quickly four more appeared.

Purple Sandpiper, Portland Bill

Watching these birds as they fed perilously close to a large swell was an awesome experience. They would regularly have to fly rapidly away from their perch to avoid being swept away by the powerful waves that were breaking over the rocks. Like the Turnstones, their camouflage is truly remarkable- they are almost impossible to spot against the rocky background. This was only my second sighting of this Arctic-breeding species and it was awesome to watch the birds from such a close distance.

I still had several easy species to pick up from the Bill, so I soon had to drag myself away from the Purple Sandpipers and continue my search. Finding a Stonechat proved to be easy, the others, however, proved to be much more difficult. I ended up wasting a considerable amount of time in finding Raven and Gannet and sadly no Fulmars had appeared. My next stop was the Obs Quarry, where I was extremely lucky to have a brief view of one of the Little Owls- my second sighting of this species in as many visits to the Bill after dozens without seeing them. I had no such luck during my search for Short-eared Owls in the top fields behind the observatory- my first Skylarks of the day being the only compensation- it didn't really make up for it... I then decided to head to Radipole, stopping off at Portland Castle and Ferrybridge again on the way. At the castle, I eventually found the Black Guillemot and a huge number of Ringed Plovers had returned to Ferrybridge. Sadly I had missed Sanderling, Grey Plover and Knot though... Arriving at Radipole, new birds for the day continued to appear, including a Shoveler and dozens of Black-tailed Godwits at the visitor centre. The Hooded Merganser was unfortunately hiding, so I quickly moved on, further into the reserve. A number of very common birds were still missing from my day's list, but sadly only one of them- the Greenfinch appeared. I didn't care at all though, as I chanced upon a flock of 35 or so Bearded Tits, undoubtedly one of Britain's coolest birds. Genetic testing has shown that they have no close relatives anywhere in the world, and the species is consequently in a family of its own. Sadly, they were moving too fast for a photograph, but I happily settled for watching this great species really close. Rushing back to the carpark, I happened to find a Water Rail creeping about some reeds- what an awesome few minutes it had been! Sadly, the Hooded Merganser was still absent and with darkness fast approaching, I hurried to Abbotsbury hoping to add a couple more species to the tally. It was virtually completely dark by the time I arrived, and as a result it was impossible for me to try and pick up any Pochard or Pintail in amongst the large flocks of waterfowl at the swannery. A large number of Pheasant  and a single Sparrowhawk were my only consolidation...

 Shoveler (top) and Shelduck, Radipole Lake RSPB

I ended up seeing 80 species, which I felt was not too bad. Had I started earlier in the day (thus avoiding some of the traffic) and allowed myself some more time, I think that 100 species could have been feasible. I missed a number of very common species, including Song Thrush, Redwing and Great Crested Grebe and with a bit more luck, finding twenty more species shouldn't be too hard. I shall try again at some point....

 Here is a list of species seen.