Hobby Spotted At Arne + Patch Update

4th July
Yup, it's that time of year when I'm swamped with work and I simply can't find time to get out. It also doesn't help that my local patch is incredibly quiet at this time of the year.

Still, I'm on holiday this week and I kicked it off by going to Arne as Ospreys were regularly showing there. I arrived with my wife eager to see the birds, only to be told that they don't tend to show up until the afternoon. Damn.

Olly Frampton identified this as a Black-Tailed Skimmer.

Sadly it was a pretty quiet day and there were few birds around. We reached the first lookout point where the ospreys could be viewed from and started scanning the area, but there was nothing to see. My wife then pointed out a bird to me and said, what's that?

It was too small for an Osprey but I excitedly blurted out Hobby. I couldn't tell because the light glare was so harsh, but I couldn't think of what else it could be. I started having doubts that it was a Kestrel, but the wings didn't look right.

My first ever Hobby, such a handsome looking bird.

We walked down to the hide where we saw a pair of Sika Deer and a large number of Shelduck, but it was otherwise quiet and we headed back and went to Wareham river. It was relatively quiet there as well, although I saw plenty of Reed Warblers and around 20 Swallows that were perched in a bush in a bid to escape the rising heat.

One of the deer we spotted from the hide.

Swallows are a lot easier to photograph when they land!

Several of the Swallows that were resting. A bad pic as sun was directly in front of me.

5th July

I headed to Longham in the late afternoon, but it wasn't the best time of day as it was absolutely sweltering. It was also a pretty unexciting walk around the lake, although it was nice to see a large number of baby Tufted Ducks on the two lakes.

Highlights for the day was a glimpse of my first Kingfisher of the year, around 70 Starlings that were hanging around the industrial site and a lone Sandwich Tern, my first record at the sight, which was a rather pleasant surprise.

A very distant Sandwich Tern and my first seen at Longham.

6th July
I went down to Poole Park today because I'd seen a Swan Goose and wanted to get better pictures. It's a weird looking goose and very distinctive due to its large heavy bill. It's typically found around China and Russia, so this one was most likely an escapee. The big surprise is that as I was watching it blend in with a small flock of Greylags and Canada Geese it was soon joined by a second!

One of two Swan Geese that I saw at Poole Park.

I headed down the lakes again this evening but it was another dull day, most likely due to the insane heat. Highlights were 9 Lapwings on the small island (the most I've ever seen there) and around 120 Starlings in the car park when I first rolled up. I also saw 5 Song Thrushes bounding around the car park.

I love how natural this Song Thrush looks.

7th July
Another trip and this time I went with Martin Wood, who also has his own blog. It was easily the quietest trip out of the three, with the only real excitement being provided by a Roe Deer which was grazing in the bushes at the end of the causeway. Oh and we saw a Tufted Duck with a staggering 17 chicks.

I've had a pretty quiet week, but that was through my own choice. I was tempted to got to Nottingham to see the Bee-eaters, but travelling around the UK for birds is a dangerous game that I'm not prepared to play just yet. I'm simply happy pottering around Dorset.

Whitethroat hiding in the reeds at Longham Lakes.

I quite like this reflection shot of a Great-Crested Grebe.

Week 34 07-12-2014 Birds Spotted: 1

It was a pretty poor week for me this week. Despite spending plenty of time at Arne and Hengistbury Head, I've struggled to take decent shots. Pretty much anything I take at great distance is extremely blurry, meaning I've little decent to share this week. I'm unsure if it's my technique or the pathetic low light (the sun set at 4pm today!) but what I do know is that it's not a great time of the year for taking photos. Still, I did get one new bird, so here it is.

Avocet
It's another record shot due to it being extremely far away. Still, there's no mistaken this incredibly striking bird. The flagship bird of the RSPB used to be something of a rarity in the UK, but it's numbers have slowly increased since its return in the 1940s. It's a medium-sized wader with distinctive black and white markings and a long upcurved bill. Around 7,500 birds winter here each year now and it successfully breeds at various strongholds throughout the UK.

Not the greatest shot, and the image is blurry, but it's an Avocet.

Another shot, highlighting just how deep the water was.

So that's it for another week. I'm now up to 126 photographed birds, with another 146 to find.

I saw another Dartford Warbler at Arne.

As well as a very distant Marsh Harrier hunting.

Brent Geese were numerous.

And there were lots of Godwits and Teal about.

I caught up with a Pied Wagtail at the barn.

And so another at the head.

There was a distant Pheasant in one of the fields.

And I spied a Goldcrest in the woods.

Black-Headed Gulls were numerous.

I caught a Wood Pigeon taking off.

And discovered an inquisitive Carrion Crow.

Week 28 26-10-2014 Birds Spotted: 1

Sorry for no update last week but I'm being hit by the harsh reality of the British weather.

One thing I've noticed about creating a blog around bird photography is that you need half decent light in order to stand any chance of getting a half-decent shot. With the weather being largely terrible for the past couple of weeks, I've had less and less opportunities to get out. And once' I'm out the light has generally been so poor I've been forced to use higher iso levels that I'd typically be happy with.

Still I did manage to get one new bird in the past two weeks of general pain and suffering, so let's take a look at it.

Dartford Warbler

I've had so many near misses with this elusive little bird. Every time I've been to Arne, I've heard them, but never been quick enough to get a photo of them. A quick tail flash is all I've normally seen, and I was giving up hope of getting a half decent shot as the weather turn.

Still a visit to Arne on Saturday saw my luck was in and the distinctive churring alerted me to the nearby warbler. I was able to get a good 20 feet towards him (or her) and it showed no signs of being scared. In fact it hung around for a good 3 minutes and only flew off when a young family came close.

This gorgeous bird is only found in a few locations in the UK and Dorset is one of its hotspots. Noted for its long tail, buff breast and red eye markings, it's a very distinctive warbler that has a distinctive churring call. It's very rare due to its limited habitat and there's thought to be just over 3,000 breeding pairs.

This is the closest I could get, around 20 feet away, which shows just how small it is!

And here's a crop of the little fellow.

So that's it for birds this week. I'm now up to 120 photographed birds with another 152 left to find.

Spotted what I suspect is a Meadow Pipit.

A fuzzy Long-Tailed Tit in flight.

A Mistle Thrush. As noted earlier, the day was overcast for the most part :(

A selection of geese and waders at Middlebere.

I also went to Stanpit late Sunday afternoon, but the light was even worse, which made for some pretty disappointing shots.

A group of Brent Geese.

Another that refused to pose for me :)

A group of Lapwings.

Lapwings in flight.

The back of a Redshank.

And a Cormorant.

Week 20 31-08-2014 Birds Spotted: 5

Hooray, it's migrant time, one of the most interesting times for bird spotting.
To celebrate my birthday I decided to go to Arne as I heard that an Osprey was currently in residence there while it stocked up on reserves to get it back home. I went out eager and was not disappointed...

Osprey
Okay, I was disappointed because my shots are terrible :). I was fighting heat haze and an incredible long distance, so these shots are strictly record shots.
What an incredible bird though. It's huge in size, and has been a big success story for the RSPB, thanks to numbers continuing to increase in Wales and Scotland. It''s also started breeding in England, supported by large stretches of water. It feeds primarily on fish and is famed for grabbing them, in its long powerful talons. Unfortunately this one was quite happy to spend all his time on a feeding station, meaning I didn't get to see it fly. It's unclear how long it will stay in Arne, (it's residing on Midllebere Lake) so I feel lucky to have spotted it, even if my pics aren't the best.

Not the greatest shot but you can clearly make out the white head and underbelly.

Another shot of the Osprey from the Canon 400mm

And one using my powershot SX50.

Whimbrel

I uploaded about 12 photos of suspected Whimbrels to Birdforum.net. So a big thanks to Nutcracker for confirming the one I suspected to be this rare migrating bird. It typically breeds in Scotland each year, flying through during the sping and winter. It's identified by darker wings, a slightly shorted bill and (this is my own personal identification tag) a more serious look than the Curlew. Up to 500 pairs breed each year, but it's still on the RSPB's red list. Like the Curlew it eats molluscs, invertebrates and even tackles crabs. If you don't leave in Scotland or the Orkney islands then you need to get lucky and hope one flies through your local patch.

It's call is a good way to identify the Whimbrel. The head markings are quite distinctive too.

And another passing shot, making it a little easier to identify.

Here's a Curlew for comparison. Look how happier and lighter it looks.

Greenshank
This is another migrating bird that is typically seen on passage. I knew it was about due to its piercing call, which is impossible to mistake. Unfortunately I couldn't see any on the ground, but managed to get a couple of shots in flight. Again, they're not perfect, but do identify this wader. It gets its name thanks to its long green legs and is a medium-sized, fast-flying wader. This one is possible a passage bird, but they do apparently winter in the area according to the RSPB's website.

You can just about make out its legs in this shot!

A better shot of its distinctive white rump.

A second bird I saw a little later.

Teal
This was an absolute piece of luck. I didn't notice the ducks until I enhanced the photo in lightroom. Even if I had saw them first time around eclipse plumage meant I wouldn't have recognised them. Teal are small dabbling ducks, typically found all year around in most parts of the country. During the summer males have very distinctive chestnut heads with green eye stripes, but they're not seen in this shot. Most of the North Wintering popular from Europe is found in the UK, so the RSPB has awarded it amber status.

I was looking at the Egrets and didn't see the Teals fly past.

Sandwich Tern
I've already spotted Common Terns, so it was nice to get this one before it headed home for another year. It's another amber status bird, with small breeding populations in certain parts of the UK. One such site it Brownsea island where these birds must have come from. I saw a juvenile and an adult. You can recognise them over other terns due to their black bills which finish with a yellow tip. Around 12,000 pairs breed in the UK and it can be seen from March to September, meaning these must be soon flying home.

Here's an adult Sandwich Tern.

Diving for some tea.

The young wasn't having as much success.

Another shot of the adult. Lovely bird.

So that's it for another week and I felt like it's been a good one. I am now up to 108 birds with 164 left to find. Something tells me it's going to start getting tougher!

Redshank looking for food.

A Stonechat was having a fight with an unidentified warbler.

Little Egrets were flying.

Swallows were still flying around as well.

With this one being particularly acrobatic.

A Vulcan from the air show that was on in Bournemouth.

More planes I don't recognise.

A flock of Redshanks.

A flock of Curlew.

Curlew were everywhere.

Eating crabs...

Flying...

And pretending to be Whimbrels...

A fuzzy Buzzard via the Powershot.

Fuzzy Black-Tailed Godwits.

And a Green Woodpecker stopped by.

A possible Greyling Butterly.

Spoonbills. I need a tripod for stronger shots.

A shot to highlight how far away the Osprey was.

Possible Fallow Deer.

A Sika Deer.

A group of fuzzy Shelduck.