16th January - Sandy Point and the Oyster Beds, Hayling Island, Hampshire

Thursday saw some really heavy prolonged rain, so it was very welcome to see the sunshine this morning.  After an appointment at 9.00 this morning I headed south, I was keen to catch up on some winter visitors around Hayling Island.  Knowing that the birds were likely to be distant I was relaxed about the fact that today would be a birding day and not photographic.

First stop was Sandy Point and as I walked around the rocks I was surprised by a juvenile Little Gull flying past me, of course I wasn't ready and missed the photograph.  Fortunately they had been reported earlier in the day.  Despite searching through the morning I wasn't able to find the gull again.

Mid channel there was a Red-throated Diver negotiating the waves in a strong southerly wind.

The Red-throated Diver then disappeared, but was relaced by a larger diver, a Great Northern Diver.

 

the token diver wing flap.

I walked up to the sailing club and took the footpath around the beach.  The tide was falling and wasn't that high, but there was a huge roost of Sanderling at the edge of the water.  There was one large concentration and a couple of break away groups.

Well aware that photographs are going to be sparse I decided to have some time with the Sanderling on a completely different location.

There was a few of the Sanderling feeding along the water's edge.

The roost remaing in place.

I positioned my self on the beach, getting low down and with the sun behind me and just waited and as is usually the case the Sanderling came to me.

A red RIB in the water reflected nicely in the tide.

And a yellow buoy.

This Sanderling found a cockle or whelk in front of me.  It opened it and was very keen to keep it away from any other Sanderling.

A quick shake.

Then dispatched.

They would speed past me with their clockwork like action.

While others waded in deeper water.

More birds joined the feeding flock, flying past me.

I walked back still checking for the missing Little Gull.  The tide had fallen and the waves were crashing on the rocks.

I left Sandy Point and headed to the car park by the Oyster Beds.  I had to park on the road that leads to the hotel.  Out on the water were six Avocet.

I scanned the harbour at the bend and found two Goldeneye, many Red-breasted Merganser and a Sandwich Tern.

Pintail were in the first lagoon along with three Shoveler.

A little further along there was a Greenshank.

And the now almost resident Whimbrel.

I walked to the end of the beds and scanned the water of the harbour.  One of my first successes was the Scaup, a drake but very distant.  I tried to digiscope but not very well I am afraid.

With the Scaup secured I scanned for the Black-necked Grebes and found two, and then a big prize a Red-necked Grebe but even further away than the Scaup.

Walking back I was put on to a Long-tailed Duck aagin a long way off but definitely a Long-tailed Duck.

So not a lot of photographs, but some special Sanderlings.  A good day though for special year ticks.

20th January - Titchfield Haven, Hampshire

I left home in the dull damp overcast conditions that seem to have settled in once again, but as I came through Droxford the skies cleared and the sun appeared.  It was beautiful as I pulled up along Cliff Road, the view out across the beach at Hill Head quite stunning and extremely welcome.

A pair of Eider were on sea off the sailing club building.

With the sea so calm I took my scope and walked around to the sea wall opposite the reserve entrance on the west side.  I found the Velvet Scoter and Common Scoter that had been reported, but felt I would be better off going p to Brownich Cliffs to view.

The views were marginally better but good enough to pick out the distinguishing features.  There were four Velvet Scoter and they stayed quite close together, every so often diving.

The Velvet Scoter is bigger than the Common and has an angular head very similar to that of an Eider.  The easy distinguishing features though is the white hindwing panel that is seen well in flight and when the birds wing flap on the water.  Through the scope it was possible to see a stripe of white as the birds was at rest.  The males have a white spot behind the eye, while the females have two white patches behind the eye and the same white hindwing panel.

The Common Scoter were two males appearing all black on the water.

I picked up two Great Northern Divers, but had arranged to meet Ian and he was on the Rainbow Bar watching another so I decided to join him, but became distracted by a group of twenty Sanderling feeding on the beach.

Several were feeding away from the water's edge and I was able to get down close to them.

A couple of children were on the beach and ran at the flock spooking them and they flew off.  I was annoyed but in retrospect they probably saved me having to process hundreds of images.

I joined Ian on the Rainbow Bar, but the Great Northern Diver was now quite distant.

We went on to the reserve and the Meon Shore Hide and were greeted with the news that there was a darke Goosander on the South Scrape.

Goosander are a difficult bird to get close to for photographs, but with the hide and the fact this bird was probably the one that has been around since the summer there was a great chance for some good shots.

It found it hard to settle and would swim around chasing the Shelduck.  Every so often it would look as if it was about to fly off, raising the head as if alarmed.

While other times it looked as if it was displaying to the Shelduck, here pointing the bill skywards.

Not sure what was going on here.

While here it shows off the serrated edge to the bill that gives it the name of "saw bill".

It would threaten to come closer to the hide but then turn and swim around the islands.  My attention then turned to others on the scrape.  This pair of Shoveler right in front of the hide.

There were a total of twenty eight Snipe on the "Snipe Island", but I decided on this part of the island for the photograph, I like the symmetry in the shot.

The Goosander then started to come a lot closer, but was still looking as if it was about to fly off.

Looking as if to fly again.

Then eventually it did, flying straight at the hide.

But not going far, dropping back down amongst the Shoveler.

But it didn't stay long, eventually taking off once more and circling the scrape.

And then flying towards the hide, but turning as if to fly back to Brownich Pond from where it probably came this morning, probably more fish there.

So it was back to the regulars on the scrape.  A smart drake Teal

A Redshank roosting on one of the crossbars of the goal posts.

And the Shoveler pair photographed earlier were still present, but had moved a little bit.

We decided to head over to the east side.  Walking past the harbour there was a single Dunlin on the mud.  Dunling seem to be plentiful all around the shores of the Solent except for here so it was an opportunity to photograph one.

We walked up to the Meadow Hide, with very little about.  On the way two immature Spoonbill flew over and headed north east.  There had been some significant clearing work around the Walkway Pond which looked interesting but other than a Wren, no birds.

From the hide we saw two Marsh Harriers and a Buzzard.  There were Wigeon and Gadwall on the river, but that was all.  We decided to bring an interesting day to an end, Great to finally get some worthwhile shots of Goosander.