27th April - Pig Bush Inclosure, New Forest, Hampshire

Another warm sunny morning and having receives some news on the possibility of Nightjar in the New Forest at Pig Bush, I made my way there.  Car parking charges are now in force around the New Forest and this was my first visit since they came in.  I was pleased to see that they have made arrangements for payment, should there not be any signal in the area and that the main payment method was through Ringo.  I successfully made payment and then set off around the wood.

As I came out at the bottom of the wood a Willow Warbler was singing at the top of a small bush and allowed me to get quite close.

Note the length of the wings, the primary tips extending beyond the rump, the similar Chiffchaff's wings are shorter, only reaching the rump

This was the first of many Willow Warbler i heard singing around the inclosure, numbers appear to be a lot higher than in previous years.

As I walked along the outside of the wood I came across a Nuthatch foraging along the branches of an Oak tree.

I crossed the open heath and then into the next wooded area.  A Cuckoo called from the trees to the north.  On reaching the tree where the Nightjar is seen I searched all the branches without any luck.  I also used the thermal camera which was not that easy with the sun warming the boughs of the Oak.  Eventually I gave up and decided to return later.  Walking on, this Song Thrush appeared in front of me, clearing having been searching for food for young, traces of mud on the beak.

I walked into the small copse close to the railway line and explored the area where there was dead wood.  There wasn't any sign of Redstart here, but I could hear one singing over by the cattle gates.

It took some time to locate, but I eventually found ithigh in an Oak, not the best views of the lovely summer visitor.

As I sat and listened and watched the Redstart I took the chance to have lunch, as well as the Redstart singing there was also a Treecreeper singing close by.  The song, a light whispery trill.  It was in a fallen tree that was still in leaf and showed quite well as it sang and foraged around the bark.

The Redstart had moved to a position in the open once more, but still quite high up in the oak.

As I turned to walk back I noticed what I thought was a Redstart at the foot of a tree a fair way off.  But a closer look revealed the bird to be a lot chunkier with a large head and bill.  Taking a record shot it turned out to be a Hawfinch.  However as I got closer it flew up into the tree and out of sight, so this remained the one piece of evidence for the sighting.

As I walked back across the heath I hoped for Tree Pipit, but only got Willow Warblers.  AS I entered the main wood known as Rowbarrow, I did pick up a male Redstart at the base of a tree.

It flew up and out of sight, so I walked on and checked the tree once more for Nightjar, again without any luck.  I was going to head back tot he car, but a Redstart singing close by had me searching for it and this time it showed low down on the lower branches of an Oak and stuck around to continue singing.

A bird of deciduous woodland, the Redstart gets its name from the colour of its tail, 'start' being an old colloquial name for tail.

The Redstart is a summer visitor to Britain & Ireland, arriving in April and departing through September and October for its wintering location in trans-Saharan Africa. The male is a striking bird, pinky-red below with a black face, silvery-white forehead, grey back and striking red tail, whilst the female has pale orangey-red underparts, pale brownish upperparts and slightly duller tail.

Redstarts can be found breeding across the UK, although their strongholds are in the west. However, this species is only a rare breeder in Ireland. UK numbers declined in the late-1960s due to drought in this species' Sahelian wintering grounds. Numbers subsequently recovered, and now fluctuate.

It could be that these birds have already paired up and have a mate sitting on eggs, they like to nest in holes in trees and later into May will be seen feeding young.

Leaving the REdstart I walked back across the heath.

There is a line of trees that follows the Bishop's Dyke and the small stream.

With forty minutes left on my car parking I decided to have a look at the heath area on the other side of the road.  Again I was hoping for maybe a Tree Pipit, but this time found a Meadow Pipit, this one carrying a caterpillar for young close by.

Stone chat were calling from the top of the gorse.  This one a male.

While here both the male and female at the top of a gorse bush.

There wasn't any sign of Tree Pipit and a Cuckoo was calling far way to the east.  A Buzzard took off from a tree, but struggled to get good lift and ended up circling in an attempt to get height just above my head.

My time coming to an end I made my way back to the car.  I hadn't succeeded in finding my target bird today, but did manage some great views of Redstart once more.

4th December - Southsea Castle, Hampshire

I had wanted to try the Purple Sandpipers at Southsea Castle once more.  Having checked the tide times today seemed to be the best day.  Its best to arrive about three hours before high tide.  Today it was at 13.00, I arrived around 9.30.  The day before the whole area was closed down due to an unexploded bomb found by the construction workers.  Fortunately all was now safe so I parked in the D-Day car park and walked around the castle to the sea wall.

The first thing I saw as I reached the esplanade was a Shag sitting on the rocks.

Another factor in my decision to come back was over the last few days there has been some lovely light and I wanted to get the sandpipers in better light than I had before.  However today was overcast, the sun was there but not providing the light I was after.

I scanned the rocks near the water but no sign of any Purple Sandpipers.  However there were small birds that turned out to be a Black Redstart.

It looks like an immature bird as it shows plenty of white in the wing, the body yet to go the grey black.  The tail however was a bright red and it flicked as it moved around the rocks.

Spent time fly catching around the sea weed.

Every so often it would spring up into the air from the rocks chasing insects.

Showing off brilliantly the bright red tail.

From the rocks to the grassy area around the castle.

It then flew into the castle and out of sight and I resumed my search for the Purple Sandpipers, but without any luck.  out on the water the Shag was now fishing.  I wanted to try and catch the Shag as it dived. it is very diagnostic, the bird leaping high out of the water.

However timing it was difficult, always missing the leap in the air.

But with patience, the sandpipers were not showing, I persisted and in the end managed the sequence.

I walked towards the Blue Reef Aquarium, in fact I did the walk several times.  At the east end there were two more Black Redstart, again one looked like an immature male.

Chasing the insects once again and showing the red tail.

On yet another walk back there were now two Shags on the water.

Something different, the Blade Runner next to one of the Napoleonic sea forts.

What I hoped was a Rock Pipit turned out to be a Meadow Pipit.

So no Purple Sandpipers, where do they go?  But some interesting stuff anyway, Black Redstarts and the Shags.