By the end of September Jackie and I have managed to edge above our 2025 year list and are just 3 species off 200 for the year which is our annual target, but we are missing a couple of species which we would usually run into Pied and Spotted Flycatcher, There is an outside chance that we might still pick one up but it is looking unlikely now. Saying this there is a chance of a few more annual autumn species that might come our way and one or two species that will winter to see us creep over that. target figure.
We managed to see 113 species in September adding nine to our year list. We made a couple of visits to Keyhaven and Pennington Marshes once with friends and the second at the end of the mouth on a twitch.
Our first visit on 2nd Sept. saw us add Eider, seeing four out on the Solent, all were young birds and this site is very good to see this species of more northerly duck in the summer as a few non-breeding birds can often be found here. We also added Knot a species we missed in the early part of the year along with good close views of a Ruff.
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| Ruff over Fishtail Lagoon Keyhaven © Nick Hull |
On the 6th Jackie and I popped down to Devon and visited Black Hole Marsh part of the Seaton Wetlands. A Pectoral Sandpiper had been found there, an American wader which is one of the more common transatlantic visitor to the UK, but one we hadn't't seen for a while. We arrived at the board walk that takes you out to the main hide and I had a quick look through the screen and found a small sandpiper and a juvenile Ringed Plover feeding almost under the hide and I said to Jackie "I think I've the Pec" she had a look and agreed and said "we should get a good view from the hide" but as she said this it took off and we lost it as it went behind the hide out of view.
From the hide there were a variety of waders present so we started looking through them to try and find the 'Pec'. We found Spotted Redshank, Curlew Sandpiper a Common Sandpiper and then a Wood Sandpiper and we began to think it had left. Then a lady in the hide to my left asked what is this bird down here, When I looked it was The Pectoral Sandpiper feeding right under the hide opposite side to where it had been when we arrived.
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| Pectoral Sandpiper, Black Hole Marsh © Nick Hull |
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| Wood Sandpiper Black Hole Marsh © Nick Hull |
Our next highlight was on the 16th Sept along with Fran and David we took a trip from Swanage to the Isle of Wight on the Steam Paddle Ship the Waverley. The Trip out was fairly uneventful with only Gannet being seen but on our return Jackie spotted a dark bird chasing a Herring Gull off the Needles. When I managed to get onto it, it was obviously a Great Skua I just managed to see a white wing flash as it turned a really fortunate sighting.
Next Day we were due to go out birding with our godson Nat but unfortunately Jackie wasn't feeling very good so I went as he wanted to see the Little Stint that was seen the previous day at Lodmoor, also to try for a Wryneck on Portland. We started at the Bill for an hour's sea watch other than a lot of Gannet feeding of the Bill and a few auks there wasn't much going on, so we headed to Kings Quarry for the Wryneck but we dipped on this as well. Whilst we were there news came on that there was one possibly two Grey Phalarope seen from Chesil Cove. We arrived at Chesil Cove and almost saw a single Grey Phalarope straight away bobbing around in the surf just off the beach. I took Jackie back the next day with my camera and managed to see both individuals.
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| Grey Phalarope Chesil Cove Portland © Nick Hull |
After we headed off to Lodmoor as the Little Stint had been seen again on the Post Box Pool and our luck was in. The first bird I put the scope on was the Little Stint but by the time Nat got looked through the scope it had moved behind the reeds. With a little patience it eventually reappeared for him to get another lifer, his third for the day.
On the 22nd We were on one of the first Autumn Safari birdbaths with Birds of Poole Harbour starting a little late as it was very foggy and waited for it to lift so started off but returned to look over Brownsea Lagoon to give the Wareham Channel a chance for the fog to lift. Brownsea had a good number of Spoonbill present.
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| Spoonbill Brownsea Lagoon © Nick Hull |
Later as we were heading back towards the Wareham Channel and crossing the central harbour I spotted an eagle over the Wytch Channel which headed across Arne RSPB towards Wareham and disappeared out of sight. But a little later Paul Morton found it sitting in one of its favoured trees along the Arne Shoreline. I managed a couple of poor shots of it but it was a little too far away even for my 500mm lens.
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| Male White-tailed Eagle Wareham Channel © Nick Hull |
On the 25th Sept Jackie and I joined the Birds of Poole Harbour tractor tour of Middlebere Farm. It was interesting to see the Farmers view of conservation on his land and what he is doing to encourage wildlife and why he chose the breeds of cattle, pigs and Konik horses to graze the heathland, marsh and what was heathland now grazing fields, which are now important for wax cap species. Whilst on the tour we visited Middlebere and along with the usual waders and duck found there we had an adult Yellow-legged Gull which was a nice addition to the year list.
On the 27th Jackie and I having not seen a Semipalmated Sandpiper for some time thought we would make the effort to go and see one on Pennington Marsh. When we arrived it started to rain quite heavily but we were told the bird in question was showing well on the Jetty lagoon. When we were around half way there a flight of waders took off and landed in the Butts Lagoon which was where we eventually found it along with a Little Stint neither were close enough for a half decent shot. So just to show you a Semi P here is one from our Texas holiday back in 2004.
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| Semipalemated Sandpiper - Texas © Nick Hull |
As for September Butterflies and Moths.
September seemed to have continued for Clouded Yellows with many being seen everywhere including our wildlife garden along with Painted Lady's. Wall Brown had a second emergence and we had our first for the year having missed them early with two at Swineham on the 1st Sept.
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| Wall Brown - Swineham © Nick Hull |
The garden moth trap was still producing some nice species some new some more scarce and a few which are common but not for me. I managed to have the trap out six time in the month and caught 23 species which were new for the year and 5 species that were new for the garden.
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| Top left - Pink-barred Sallow Xanthia togata Top right - Centre-barred Sallow Atethmia centrago Bottom Left - Barred-Sallow Tiliacea-aurago Bottom right - The Sallow Cirrhia icteritia |
The first species new for the garden was a Centre-barred Sallow on the night of the 3rd Sept. The second was a Many-lined (Costaconvexa polygrammata) this is a species that became extinct in Britain in the 19th century but recently there has been several records along the south coast with a number of records locally, but still a nice one to add to the garden list. Also on the same night I caught a Dewick's Plusia (Macdunnoughia confusa) this is a species considered as a migrant with records in Dorset peaking in September. The next was on the 13th this time it was a micro but one of the large species called Wood Sage Pearl (Anania verbascalis) which is a species of the acid heaths around Poole basin has the designation of Nationally scarce B. The last another micro called Madder Pearl (Mecyna asinalis) this is a local species of the coastal chalk and is another Nationally scarce B species.
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| Top left - Dewick's Plusia Macdunnoughia confusa Top right - Gold Spot Plusia festucae Bottom - Burnished Brass Diachrysia chrysalis |
Of the other species were caught during the month which I have only recorded and handful of times has Middle-barred Sallow (Oligia fasciuncula) and Barred Sallow (Tiliacea aurago). Yellow Shell (Camptogramma bilinear), Olive-tree Pearl (Palpate vitrealis), Oblique Carpet (Orthonama vitiate), Gold Spot (Plusia festucae) and Burnished Brass (Diachrysia chrysalis).
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| Many-lined Costaconvexa polygrammata and Oblique Carpet Orthonama vittata |
I also thought I would include this very pink Vestal to finish with.
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| The Vestal Rhodometra sacraria |
