On the 16th August, I headed down to Portland for my final visit before I left. Ferrybridge, for the first time in ages, was teeming with waders. The majority were Dunlin and Ringed Plovers, along with several Oystercatchers, though eight Turnstones, a Sanderling, a Little Ringed Plover (my first at Portland) and, bizarrely, a Common Snipe feeding on the shoreline. A large group of Mediterranean Gulls brought me one closer to 600. I then moved on to the Bill, where one of the resident Little Owls was showing fantastically well in the Obs Quarry.
Little Owl, Portland Bill
There were also some early signs of Autumn, with six Wheatears and five Whinchats present around the Bill, however the area was very quiet overall. A brief sea-watch produced no more than a few Shags, a Kittiwake and some Gannets. And so ended my final visit to Portland!
Six days later, I visited Lodmoor RSPB, hoping to come upon some migrant waders. There were plenty of them present, virtually all of which were Black-tailed Godwits and Lapwings. It was very nice to find three Ruff on the reserve, my first in Dorset.
Left-to-right: Black-headed Gull, Black-tailed Godwit and Ruff at Lodmoor
Selection of Lodmoor's birds: a Lapwing in the foreground, with a Teal, a Ruff and a Green Sandpiper (an addition to the challenge total- four or so were present) behind, with Canada Geese and more Teal further back
Ruff and a female Tufted Duck at Lodmoor
My other addition to the challenge total- Common Sandpiper. At least five of these were seen.
I then headed to the Fleet, hoping to find a Redshank, one of the few remaining common Weymouth birds missing from my total. A long search around Butterstreet Cove produced only three waders- all of which were Oystercatchers, along with two Wheatears and numerous Willow Warblers and Chiffhcaffs. But no Redshanks. An enormous flock of Mediterranean Gulls was a great sight- approximately 150 birds were present. It is incredible to think that in the 18 years of my life, this bird has developed from a rare migrant to a really rather common bird along the south coast.
A small section of the large Mediterranean Gull flock at Butterstreet Cove. On top of the c.150 feeding in the field, a further five or so were on the beach
Wheatear at Butterstreet Cove
As I was heading back to my car, I clumsily tripped over my tripod, creating enough commotion to flush three Green Woodpeckers from a hedge. This was a very pleasing bonus addition to my challenge total to end the morning with!
Green Woodpecker at Butterstreet Cove
On the 24th, I made a final visit up to the Somerset Levels. The weather was attrocious, with virtually non-stop torrential rain, however Meare Heath was teeming with birds. In amongst the many Teal and Mallards were four Garganey and with the large Black-tailed Godwit and Lapwing flock were several Green Sandpipers, four Ruff and, best of all, five Wood Sandpipers, only my second sighting in the UK!
Wood Sandpipers with Lapwings at Meare Heath
Great White Egrets have become such a sight on the Levels that they barely merit a mention nowadays! This bird on Meare Heath was one of three seen at Shapwick Heath, while a personal record of nine were seen together at Ham Wall.
Besides the group of nine Great White Egrets, Ham Wall was something of a disappointment, with four more Green Sandpipers and a Snipe the only birds of any note seen, while a large group of hirundines included several Sand Martins and a few Swifts.
On the following day, my last in Dorset, I crossed over the border into Somerset to visit Yeovil's Ninesprings Country Park, where my target, the Mandarin Duck, was quickly found- at least twenty were present. These birds can fly (I have seen them!) and consequently as a category C species in the UK, can count towards my challenge total. Just. In the afternoon, literally an hour before we left Hilfield, I decided to give the garden a final search. It was a magical experience, with numerous Tits (Long-tailed, Blue, Great, Coal and even several Marsh), Blackcaps, Nuthatches, Spotted Flycatchers and (best of all), three Treecreepers (my first of the challenge) putting in an appearance. It was a very nice way to leave the place that I had lived for the last eight years- just under half my life!
The next morning, I visited London's Hyde Park to try and add a final few birds to my total before leaving the UK. Greylag and Egyptian Geese were both quickly found (again, both can fly and nest here, so they count!). With a decent number of species showing, I decided to try and photograph as many as possible around the park. Here is how that went:
1. Greylag Goose
2. Great Crested Grebe
3. Coot
4. Mute Swan
5. Moorhen
6. Black-headed Gull
7. Lesser Black-backed Gull
8. Starling. They were a long way away!
9. Carrion Crow
10. Grey Heron
11. Ring-necked Parakeet
12. Cormorant
13. Magpie
14. Woodpigeon
15. Egyptian Goose
16. Mallard
17. Pochard
18. Tufted Duck
19. Canada Goose
20. Feral Pigeon
21. Herring Gull
22. Jackdaw
23. Red-crested Pochard. Another dodgy feral bird, but still a pleasing one to see and one that took me closer to my aim of 600! A flock of approximately 30 flew in and landed briefly before heading on.
24. Pied Wagtail
I also saw Blue and Long-tailed Tits and a Robin, so not a bad total for a small park in the middle of London!
Later on in the afternoon, I flew to Nairobi, saying goodbye to the UK. It was incredibly exciting to be starting the next phase of my life.
No comments:
Post a Comment