4th April - Warsash, Hampshire

An American Golden Plover had been found on the Hamble Estuary just east of the village of Warsash.  It had been around for a few days and this weekend was the first opportunity to go and try and find it it.  As I was driving to Warsash positive news came in the bird had been seen early morning.  However the weather was awful with very low cloud and drizzle. 

I parked and waited for Ian who was arrived a few minutes after me.  From the car park we took the footpath that runs along the east side of the Hamble and goes through the area known as Bunny Meadows, a notable winter roost site for waders.

It was grey and the wind had picked up and was blowing quite strongly from the west.  There wasn't any sign of the plover to start with, there were plenty of Black-tailed Godwits feeding on the edge of the tide and a few Redshank, but no sign of any plovers, apparently it has been associating with Grey Plover.

We walked as far as the Chinese Bridge, a domed bridge over an inlet into the river.  Walking back I stopped for a pair of breeding plumage Black-tailed Godwits.

Walking back as far as the first bridge there was a birder viewing the mud with a scope and as we got closer we could see four plovers out on the mud close to a large mound, behind which they could have been as we walked past at the beginning.

There were three Grey Plovers and the American Golden Plover with them.

The light was poor and the plover was distant but it was possible to make out the distinctive features.  The overall tone of the bird was greyish with a prominent dark caop and a white stripe above the eye.  Overall the bird is slightly smaller than the Golden Plover with longer legs, but bigger than the other "Golden Plover" the Pacific Golden Plover, which I had been able to watch closely recently in Sri Lanka.  The wing tips extend beyond the tail, a clear feature.

There is a dark patch in front of the eye with a pale spot to the base of the bill.

We watched as it moved further away almost behind the mound where it sat with a Grey Plover and preened.

We waited to see if it would move once again, but it seemed set in the area with the Grey Plover.  We decided to walk around to the Warsash harbour where there has been an adult Yellow-legged Gull recently.  Th etide was coming in and there were more Godwits feeding around the mud.  We walked to the furthest pier where Ian found two large gulls perched on the pir railings.  A closer look the closest gull was a little darker grey on the mantle, but was also sporting a pair of smart yellow legs.

Both adult birds the question has to be was the Yellow-legged associating with the Herring Gull, if so and there were young this would be an interesting identification problem in the area.

The Herring Gull flew off, leaving the Yellow-legged Gull, showing off those smart legs.

Encouraged by the find of the gull we decided to head back for the plover, the sun was out and the light so much better.  On the foreshore were several Brent Geese, time now to enjoy them before they head back to Siberia later this month.

Walking towards the spot where the plover had been there were several Black-tailed Godwits in the shallow water, as we passed they took off giving some nice flight shots all the birds in their smart breeding plumage.

We were then greeted with the news that the plover had come closer and we could see that the weather was changing with the mist returning putting us back in the gloom once more,  The American Golden Plover was with the three Grey Plover, maybe a little closer than earlier.

There have only been eight records of American Golden Plover in Hampshire, with the last being at Farlington Marshes in June 2021, an adult in summer plumage.

This was the best image I could get in the gloom.

Not a life or UK tick, but a county tick which is always nice.  The drizzle was picking up and the plover moved further away once more.  As a result we decided to move on, hopefully being able to return on another day soon when the light is better.