I had a well earned day off today so decided to have a look around Portland and Weymouth.
Portland Harbour, Dorset
I stopped here first in the hope of some Grebes or Loons but was a tad disappointed with what was on offer. The only species that made the note book were a solitary Sandwich Tern and a few Red-breasted Merganser.
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Sandwich Tern
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| Red-breasted Merganser (Male) |
Reap Lane, Portland, Dorset
My next stop was a look for the Siberian Lesser Whitethroat. Again there wasn’t a lot on offer except for 2 fly through Barn Swallow and the usual House Sparrow and Common Starling.
Chesil Cove, Portland, Dorset
With the brisk South Easterly winds, I thought this sheltered side of the island would be a good place to check out. I wasn’t wrong either as I got on to a Male and Female Garganey sat close in on the sea. My first of the year and always a pleasure to see. Also around were a small flock of Common Scoter, 1 Razorbill, a few Common Murre and Northern Gannet.
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| Garganey (Male and Female) |
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| Garganey (Male and Female) |
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| Garganey (Male and Female) |
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| Garganey (Male and Female) |
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| Common Scoter |
Bowleaze Cove, Weymouth, Dorset
I popped here quickly in the hope of a Red-necked Grebe that’s been seen off there a few times but again my luck was out. This was open to the winds so everything was obviously sheltering elsewhere.
Lodmoor Reserve, Weymouth, Dorset
Next, Lodmoor. This reserve is great for its Common Tern colony and Marsh Harrier. Today both were on offer. The Common Tern have only just started to arrive, so I only managed 2 birds in flight on arrival. They did a short circle around then headed off to sea. The Marsh Harrier, however put in a much better performance. With a Male and Female hunting quite close. There wasn’t much else of real note.
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| Tufted Duck (Male and Female) |
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| Black-headed Gull |
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| Marsh Harrier (Male) |
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| Eurasian Coot |
Radipole Lake Reserve, Weymouth, Dorset
This was probably the most productive part of the day for me. 15 Common Pochard, 1 Cetti’s Warbler, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Eurasian Reed Warbler, lots of Common Chiffchaff and best of all a Siberian Chiffchaff. The Siberian Chiffchaff was on the Budleia Loop near the shelter / viewing platform. It called and showed beautifully at times. However, frustratingly couldn’t get that decent photo. Every time I got it in my sights, someone with either Dogs or Kids came round the corner. Don’t get me wrong, I have 3 kids myself. So I appreciate it’s great to be out with them and enjoying the wildlife. I’m also not totally against Dogs but do hate ones that aren’t controlled in the correct manner (there were some examples of this today). I’m not going to rant and I appreciate people that read this will have dogs but at a wildlife reserve, they surely have to be controlled?
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| Grey Heron |
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| Rock / Feral Pigeon |
Black Hole Marsh, Seaton, Devon
On the way home I had a very brief stop off (to stretch my legs) very little on the lagoon so I headed back to the car. I was greeted by the friendliest European Robin I have ever come across. It came with 2 feet of me and I think if I had any food on me it would have fed from my hand.
"Give us a lift mate!"
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| European Robin |
"Got any grub?"
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| European Robin |
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| European Robin |
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| European Robin |
Mudbank Lane, Exmouth, Devon
As I was leaving Black Hole Marsh, I received a call from Terry Smith to say he had just got an Osprey on the Exe. So I knew I could get there and manage about 30 minutes to check it out. Based on what Terry had told me, I decided to pitch up at Mudbank Lane. I scoped the Estuary over and over but didn’t see it. Thank for the call though Terry and a nice sighting. The
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