Adam, Matt and I arranged to meet to do some work on the scrape at Great Marsh. The Avocet Islands have sunk gradually since Adam created them four years ago. The aim of today was to add another 6-9 inches of mud onto the raised areas so that they wouldn’t be submerged even after heavy rain and high tides. We also created several additional large islands. This should give the Avocets and Black-headed Gulls more opportunities for breeding.
Before we met I spent an hour watching the sea and another 45 minutes after we’d finished. There were three Slavonian Grebes and nine Great Crested Grebes strung out along the Solent. Three Razorbill and one Guillemot were also on show but the highlight was a pair of Goosander heading west. A Dartford Warbler was calling from Great Marsh scrub just before we started work.
Patch Birding 