The forecast was for showers and looking out across the Solent there were dark clouds on either side of us and a clear patch that we were hoping would mean we stay dry, for now any way.
A pair of drake Eider flew past heading to the exposed shingle bar opposite the sailing club.
The Lapwing were once again flying up from the Scrape on the reserve. The numbers increasing as it became lighter. Th separate groups would all meet up to create a large flock that would move backwards and forwards over the reserve.
When I arrived there were no gulls on the Meon and also no sign of any Brent Geese on the sea. The gulls started to appear as did the geese coming in from Chilling. It was still gloomy but by taking the geese in black and white made it look acceptable.
The patch of clear sky did indeed make its way across us and this produced some spectacular clouds to the east, lit up also by the sun that was now rising.
The sun finally broke above the clouds producing a splash of wonderful light across the reed bed of the reserve.
With the sunshine came the birds. Both male and female Marsh Harriers could be seen hunting over the reserve and this upset the Lapwing even more. To make matters worse once the harriers had gone a Peregrine appeared and made two unsuccessful attacks on the Lapwings before heading off north.
The sun now was bursting shards of light out across the Solent and the Isle of Wight.
We decided to walk down to the beach at the back of the harbour. The tide was out and the gulls were collecting in the shallow water to feed, bathe and just rest in safety from the marauding dogs on the beach.
With the sun low it cast different light across the small waves rippling in across the shingle and sand giving the look of gold in the water.
In the week there had been an adult Ring-billed Gull and Kittiwake just off the beach here so we started to go through the gulls. The easy ones first though a very smart adult Great Black-backed Gull.
The Common Gulls were inspected closely but you know immediately that they are not Ring-billed if they have that "nice" look, almost dove like. Ring-billed are quite an scary looking gull, a bit like a smaller Herring Gull.
The Eider were still offshore, and three males went back and forth.
Sanderling were about, but I had managed to resist them until this single bird came close to the beach.
When a Sanderling flock flew around off shore and made a couple of aborted attempts to land on the beach we decided to make our way back up the beach and around to the harbour to leave them able to land.
There was no sign of the Kingfisher, in fact it has been a while since I have seen it from the bridge. Turnstone and a single Dunlin were on the mud in the harbour, this Turnstone though preferring the bladder wrack on the groyne.
From the harbour we walked back to the cars, from there we decided to walk the canal path, we were after the Russian White-fronted Geese that have been around for ten days. The path was extremely muddy but this means that not too many people walk the path. After passing through the gate we came across a gathering of tits, a couple of jays, Redwing and this single Great Spotted Woodpecker that just about showed itself.
It was quiet and we had to endure a quick hail storm, the storm passing over and heading away to the north east.
Behind the branches at first scurrying around catching flies and midges that had appeared in the sunshine, but then it came out into the open.
The floods were high, but there was little wildfowl about. In fact the only duck to see at first were four drake Tufted Duck, not that common here. However scanning the edge of the flood the duck started to appear, Wigeon, Shoveler, Teal and Pintail. The Wigeon coming off the dry land and into the water.
One or two Pintail in the open, deeper water.
Rather than head for the fields close to Posbrook Farm for the geese we carried on to see if the Barn Owl was in its tree. Further evidence of a showery day was a Rainbow in the north east sky.
As I reached an open part of the canal a bird flew at me and then into the tree alongside the path. With rain threatening I had covered up the camera. The bird was a Sparrowhawk and it was sitting alongside me. I struggled to get the cover off as it was about six feet away, but just as I managed to get the camera out it was off. It half flew half walked through the branches, as it did so the alarm calls rang out, then we lost it in the scrub.
There was no sign of the Barn Owl in the split tree so we turned back, intending to head for the geese, but as we passed the area where the hawk had been there were still alarm calls. Thinking the Sparrowhawk must still be close by I stopped, then saw it it on a small branch at the back of a willow. The view was not very good, a large bough above it and I was having to focus through many branches.
It was fanning the tail feathers to help balance on the branch as the wind was quite fresh, but it was also preening so I would imagine it had bathed in the canal and was now finishing off its ablutions.
Here using the bill to straighten out the wing feathers.
But all the time the yellow eyes were watchful.
Sexing and aging the bird was difficult, you default to calling it a she due to the brown plumage, but it wasn't a particularly large bird, however it lacked the extensive barring that you see on first yea sparrowhawks. I would plump for an adult female unless I am todl any different.
The view wasn't that good and it was frustrating that the twigs and branches go in the way. The large bough too would mean sometimes you could not see the head. I moved to the right where there was a little bit more of a window in the branches and also some blue sky in the background. She gave me a look as if to say you are disturbing me as she straightened out the tail feathers.
The preening continued.
The tail constantly fanned to aid balance in what was a strong wind now.
Here some lovely views of the preening process, again running the bill over the feather to set the barbs.
I then let Ian get to use the window and returned to the original position shooting through the branches.
Then she was off, to a chorus of alarm call, around the back of the tree and then over our heads and out across the field to the reed bed where she flew low across the top of the the reeds in what looked like hunting mode.
Finally we were off to find the geese walking up the track from the bridge to the footpath that runs parallel with the canal path. On the east side an arable field while on the west a stubble field that was once maize, this was where the geese had been seen.
Walking south with the sun being low it was difficult to see clearly. I scanned the field and on a second past picked out a couple of shapes that had to be geese. As I watched more heads appeared with a white forehead and then the bodies.
I called to Ian and he got on them too. However I wanted to see them in better light so decided to walk on and get beyond them so they were lit by the sun. But as we did this is the view we were scanning and we had lost them.
Frustratingly we could not find them, we were both scanning but there was no sign. A little further along there was a a set of tracks that led through the field and was all mud. We decided to walk down this. A lot of Skylark and Meadow Pipits came out of the stubble but no geese. I scanned all the way around as did Ian but nothing. I was just beginning to feel I had imagined seeing them when I turned to look down one of the wheel tracks.
It would appear they had been watching us!
Since the beginning of December there has been a considerable influx of Russian White-fronts and the Tundra Bean Geese we saw last week. They have arrived along the east coast and headed across the country. There were nine here in amongstthe stubble, seven adults and two juvenile birds.
There are two subspecies, originating from Siberia or Russia and Greenland. The Russian White-fronts have pink bills compared to the orange bills of the Greenland birds. These birds moved from the wheel ruts to the stubble and immediately would disappear.
WE decided to walk back along the canal path rather than continuing on the footpath. We were always hoping for something across the fields but it never happened. We stopped for a couple of Roe Deer in the filed that we would expect to see Water Pipit in.
It was sunny then, but very quickly a heavy rain shower hit us and it really came down. It was still going as we reached the sea wall and the wind was whipping up the high tide and sending the waves over the sea wall. We re-positioned the cars and they were able to act as cover as we waited to see what to so.
The rain eased but there were dark clouds out in the Solent that looked very threatening. The break though did produce a single Golden Plover and a full rainbow over the Haven. At one moment I decided to look out at the sea from the shelter of Ian's van and I picked up almost immediately an adult Kittiwake heading east quite close in. Frustratingly I had put the camera in the car to keep it out of the rain, but there we go that's life!
And that was the last activity of the day. Rain was clearly coming and with only forty five minutes to sun set we decided to call it a day. What we were not aware was that the country once again was about to be turned upside down by more restrictions which amounted to the cancelling of Christmas. Fortunately getting home early allowed us to be able to meet Katie at Chobham Services on the M25 to exchange presents before the majority of the south east was locked down in much tougher restrictions.
Merry Christmas everybody wherever you are and what ever you are doing!
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