25th September - Farlington Marshes and Warblington, Hampshire

After the gloom of Thursday came clear, calm, warm and sunny conditions on Friday, would this be the case on Saturday?  Of course not.

Again the drive Saturday morning was through drizzle and low cloud, there was still drizzle in the air when I parked in the lower car park at Farlington Marshes.  Sun rise was a non event, the gloom just got a little brighter.  The tide was out and this added to the conditions, the green and grey of the estuary adding to the monochrome cloud cover.

We walked around the sea wall towards the lake, with the tide out there were very few waders other than Snipe at the back of the lake and a few Redshank, definitely no sign of any Curlew Sandpipers reported through the week.  The duck present were mostly Mallard, Teal and Gadwall, but there were a few Wigeon and six Pintail.

Leaving the lake we were intrigued by two tall masts attached to the fence a little further along.  As we approached them there was a wire slung between the masts at the top and below a man with a laptop.  It turns out he was sending radio messages, the salt water and sea helping the radio waves bounce through the ionosphere all the way to China.

Back to the birds of which there were very few, Curlew could be heard out on the mud and we were treated to this flock of Wigeon, 54 in total flying out to the harbour.

Walking around Point Field there were several singing Robins.  In the field we found a pair of Stonechat, a single Whitethroat and an immature Kestrel perched on one of the bushes.  Looking out across the harbour there was a single Great Crested Grebe in the main channel, while the main waders visible were Oystercatchers and Curlew.

It was very much a case of watching the bushes and bramble to see if anything moved.  There was a trickle of Meadow Pipits overhead.  Eventually the movement revealed birds, two Chiffchaffs were catching flies around a Rose bush and then onto the surrounding fence.

Teal and Gadwall were on the pools at the Deeps and scanning out across the mud once more we picked up at least four Bar-tailed Godwits feeding.

Every so often there would be a wave of drizzle pass through, but there was no wind to speak off, the chimney on the incinerator over in Portsmouth sending up a vertical stream of smoke.

More staring at the bramble in the ditch along side the sea wall saw Ian find a Reed Warbler.  It put in brief appearances as it moved amongst the reeds, we were able to track its progress by the moving reed stems.

As we walked we talked about the number of White Storks seen the week before and Ian pointed out the radio mast one had perched on.  As we looked at it we realised there was a bird on it this morning, a closer look through the scope revealed a Peregrine Falcon surveying all around it.

The stream at the visitor centre had Teal and a few Mallard, walking through the bushes there was a Shoveler with not long to go until it assumes the familiar plumage

And about six Wigeon in a similar condition.

As we approached the sea wall there was a large group of Linnet in the bushes alongside the Lake.

Looking across the lake there was a good number of waders, with two large roosts of Black-tailed Godwits and Redshank at the back of the lake, Scanning along the reeds at the back of the lake we could see up to four Bearded Tits feeding at the base of the reeds on the mud.  Several more were seen flying across the reeds, but never quite coming close enough to photograph.

The Snipe were very visible at the edge of the reeds and in the stubble and mud in the far south east corner.  Scanning along the reeds at the base also produced a Water Rail.

With the tide out the waders were moving to and from the harbour mud, interestingly the Redshank would take a different route to the Godwits, the Redshank flying to the right of us while we watched, the godwits to our left.  This gave us the opportunity to photograph the waders in flight.

The Redshank were the more difficult, flying low across the lake and then up and over the sea wall and dropping quickly on to the mud.

The Black-tailed Godwits would fly higher which then posed a problem with the grey sky.  Over exposing helps, but I think in these conditions they look much more effective in black and white.

As the large groups of waders cleared out a smaller wader was feeding at the back of the lake to the north.  A supercilium and pale wash on the breast stood out as it walked slowly along the edge of the water, a Curlew Sandpiper.  Very distant though.

So in order to get an acceptable record shot I had to use my phone and telescope, the result wasn't bad, acceptable I would say.

As second Curlew Sandpiper appeared and they proceeded to feed together.  The pale peachy wash on the breast aged these two birds as juveniles.  There is always the confusion with a Dunlin, but the Curlew Sandpiper has a much cleaner appearance, while the Dunlin has dark markings that extend from the breast down to the belly and legs

The Pintail on the lake, despite still being in eclipse plumage looked really good, the elegance the duck has in full plumage still there in eclipse.

The Curlew Sandpipers disappeared, but then turned up in the south east corner amongst the Black-tailed Godwits, presumably moving there when some of the Redshank all went up.  They soon though flew across the lake, showing off the distinctive white rump.

A Glossy Ibis has been present around the village of Warblington for just over a week, I haven't scrambled to see it as it would have meant a special trip, and my success with Glossy Ibis in this country has been very poor.  I have though seen many in India and Africa, another reason for my ambivalence.  However today we decided to give it a go, there had been reports from the previous day, but nothing so far today.  As we parked close to Castle Farm the drizzle was back.  We walked around the church and picked up the South Coast way.  There was no sign of the Ibis in the reported farm, but just as we were about to pass through the next swinging gate, Ian called me back, he had seen it in the next field.

Unmistakable it was walking through the stubble amongst Crows, Rooks and Woodpigeons.  We decided to see if we could get closer by using the bales as cover.

It then walked past the bale.

Then all the Woodpigeon and corvids went up it joined them, circling around the field.

Despite the still overcast conditions, the glossy petrol like colours of the plumage were visible as it banked around above me.

Having seen plenty of photographs of it on the ground it was nice to see it up in the air.

It circled around again and then came down on the far side of the field. A hedge separated the two fields and the hope was that we could go down the side of one field and be able to look through a gap.  This though wasn't to be, but on walking to the end of the field there was a gap and on reaching it I had the briefest view before it took off again, this time dropping out of sight close to the shore line.

We walked on through the field, the drizzle returning which also combined with a fall of many Meadow Pipits in the hedges.  We finally managed to get down to the sea wall, but there was no sign of the Ibis anywhere.  A Greenshank did appear though, feeding in the rising tide.

So we decided to walk back along the coastal path which led alongside a field of maize.  At a gap in the field we saw the Ibis once again, probably in the same place as we had originally seen it.  We had walked all around only to find it had come back to where it started.

I managed to get one shot of it in the field.

We walked on in the hope that there was a gap once again, there wasn't so we ended up at the bottom of the field where we had started earlier.  But the Ibis wasn't there, I caught sight of it dropping down over the horizon.  So we decided to walk back to the shore.  The tide was much higher now and we checked the field which now had cattle in it and the associated ditches we no luck.  The only birds of note were two Sandwich Terns calling over the rising tide.

Reconciling ourselves to the fact that we had seen the bird well and in flight we decided to walk back and go off to look for some Cattle Egret.  As we crossed over from the maize filed to the marshy fields just before the church we found the Ibis in the field it always seems to return to according to the reports.  It was stationary and preening.  After having given us the run around here it was not far from where the cars were parked.

Lots of images were taken of the same pose, so any distraction was good, a Sparrowhawk flew through, a pair of Grey Wagtail flew over, a chalk stream runs through the field.  While a Great Spotted Woodpecker and this Green Woodpecker flew over.

The Ibis then became a little more animated, pausing the preening to have a walk around and some feeding.

The scientific name uses Greek and Latin words for sickle which refers  to the distinctive shape of the bill.  The Glossy Ibis is the most widespread of any of the Ibis species, being found in the warm regions of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and the Atlantic and Caribbean areas of the Americas.

As you can see this a smallish all dark Ibis, close up though the plumage is more of a chestnut brown and as was seen in the flight photographs, the wings and tail are glossed with green and purple.  Unfortunately without sunshine here the glossy impact of the plumage was missing.

The Ibis appeared to favour the same spot and not walk around or any closer.  When a pair of crows came down and started to drink the reason became clear, this part of the field was very marshy and ideal habitat for a bird that is generally associated with shallow streams and floods.

The streaking on the head and the lack of a distinctive white border that surrounds the facial skin of an adult around the eye and base of the bill point to this bird being a juvenile.  The Glossy Ibis is a very gregarious bird, being usually found in large flocks.  This could account for it associating with the Crows and Rooks, they having the dark plumage and a similar grunting call.

They typically feed by burrowing the bill into water or the mud to feel for prey in the same way as a Curlew.  They frequent any wetland environment with shallow water or exposed mud, but will also feed in farm fields or open areas where the soil is moist.  Clearly this field was damp and a suitable habitat, but the other fields were very dry so it probably reinforces the attraction of the corvids.

We had stayed with the Ibis in hope of some different behaviour, but after a while we decided to move on, we were keen to find some Cattle Egrets so set off around the lanes and fields.  Plenty of Starling were gathering together in the dead trees.

We came out on to the coast path and as we returned to the church graveyard we decided rather than cross diagonally the field, to walk to the fence to look into the next field where there was a small herd of cows.  There was no sign of any egrets and with the sun coming out we decided to head back to the church to see if the Ibis was still around, hoping to get a glimpse of the plumage in the sunshine.  Suddenly I kicked up a yellow butterfly, I was so surprised to even see a butterfly considering the type of day we had that it took a little time to register what it was, then it kicked in, a Clouded Yellow.  There then ensued a mad dash by two grown men around the field following the butterfly.  It would drop to the grass and then take off again as we approached.  Finally it settled and stayed long enough to get the confirmation photographs.

Then it was off again and the mad dancing started all over again, turning this way and that has the butterfly teased us by settling then taking off almost immediately.  Then it decided it quite liked a piece of thistle and we were able to move in close for some of the best photographs I have taken of a Clouded Yellow.

The Clouded Yellow is primarily an migrant butterfly to the UK, originating from north Africa and southern Europe, with numbers varying greatly from year to year. In more recent years, it has been shown that this species has successfully overwintered in the south of England. However, it is believed that the majority of individuals perish, since both larva and pupa of this continuously brooded species are easily killed by damp and frost. In good years this species can produce up to 3 generations in the UK. In flight, this species is often mistaken for one of the commoner "whites", but the orange-yellow colour is quite distinctive, even in flight, and unlike any other species. The Clouded Yellow has a distribution befitting a highly migratory species and can be found anywhere in the British Isles. Many of the migrants remain near the coast where they feed, mate, and lay eggs.

And finally the butterfly flew off providing a very unexpected end to a day that despite the paucity of birds and poor weather did indeed deliver.  We returned to the field by the church but there was no sign of the Ibis, in its place a herd of cows.