Starting the New Years Birding

The first day of the new year is somehow always special in the birding calendar to get your year list off to a good start.  Liz joined Jackie and I for a walk around part of our local patch of Lytchett Bay.  Jackie had Blue Tit, Carrion Crow and Goldfinch, and Liz had Reed Bunting before I had started.  I soon caught up then hearing a Curlew and seeing Herring and Black-headed Gulls.  Walking through the wood out to the bay added Robin and Blackbird and as we approached the shoreline a Reed Bunting popped up and down into the reed bed.  Scanning over the bay we quickly added Marsh Harrier, Shelduck, Wigeon, Teal, Redshank, Greenshank, Oystercatchers, Common Gull and a Little Egret beat against the wind as it crossed the water toward Holton.  We continued to watch for a while and I picked up a small flock of waders in flight heading across the bay, getting the 'bins' on them I wasn't sure of their id until they changed direction and headed east.  They then showed black auxiliaries confirming they were Grey Plover, a species that is a very scarce visitor to the patch.  In fact there was only one record of a single bird in 2013 and 2014 and I know 18  flying over was a great start to the year.  

By the time we had finished our patch walk we had clocked up twenty six species so we headed off in the car to Baiter Park.  Here we looked over the railway into Poole Park lake and added Gadwall, Goldeneye, Tufted Duck and Coot, then looking over Baiter's grass field a good flock of Dark-bellied Brent were present along with Meadow Pipits and Pied Wagtails.  We searched around the beach for Turnstones without any luck but added a nice Mediterranean Gull to our list.  We continued on by driving through Poole Park adding Canada and Greylag Geese grazing on the lawn followed shortly after by Moorhen, Black-tailed Godwit and Grey Heron.  It was then on to Shore Road where the only new species was Sanderling time was getting on by now and we had a boat to catch.  So we retraced our route back through Poole Park and managed to add Turnstone, with three feeding at the edge of the large lake.

Over several years now friends, Mark and Mo, have invited local Poole birders and a few from further afield to join them on a boat trip around Poole Harbour on New Years Day. We boarded the boat and heading off towards the harbour mouth checking off the usual harbour species Shag, Cormorant, Great Crested Grebe and another Med Gull (well for us anyway) also a distant Great Northern Diver.  Coming alongside the Brownsea Lagoon we quickly added Avocet, Bar-tailed Godwit, Great Black-backed Gull, Spoonbill and Shoveler.  Our cruise continued on via the harbour mouth across Brand's Bay and to as far as Green Island. On the way seeing many Red-breasted Merganser, Goldeneye and Black-necked Grebes, then Steve picked up the first winter Little Gull that had been hanging around the Furzy Island slipway. Unfortunately the tide had dropped so much we couldn't navigate the channel around the back of Green Island so we returned back towards the harbour mouth and as we passed Furzy Island a second time I found a Kingfisher sat atop of one of the jetty posts. 

It was probably fate that turned a hand in dropping the tide so we had to retrace our route back via the harbour mouth because as we approached the Brownsea Jetty a shout from the back of the boat of 'Black Guillemot behind' was called out.  As this is a bird that had probably only been seen up to this point by around three people it was very sought after by the Poole Harbour listers which included us.  A quick word with the skipper and the boat was turned around to make another pass of the area where the bird was spotted. It didn't take long for to be re-found but it did take a while for everyone to get to see the bird and it's white and black plumage worked well to camouflage it on the choppy sea.

Black Guillemot Poole Harbour Mouth © Steve Smith

After we finished enjoying this harbour rarity we had another look over Brownsea Lagoon and moved around the northern edge of Brownsea where we had the Great Northern Diver earlier.  Magnus soon picked it up again and then there were two then when I looked there were three.  It wasn't long before we were back at the quay and in the car to do some more birding around Hartland Moor area.

Norden Sewage works gave up Grey Wagtail, Chiffchaff and Pheasant, moving on to Middlebere we added Jackdaw and Greenfinch, at Arne Great Tit, Coal Tit and Green Woodpecker.  We moved on to Soldiers Road where we had a little luck when we stopped to chat to friends we had excellent views of a female Hen Harrier which quartered the moor for several minutes opposite the car.

Our last bird to go on the list for the day was Lapwing flying off our Lytchett patch going to roost.

I'd just would like to thank Steve Smith for allowing us to use his shot of the Black Guillemot you can check out more shot of the harbours birds and some from much further afield on his blog which you can find at -  Http://BirdingPooleHarbourandBeyond.blogspot.co.uk