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September 2022

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September is perhaps the busiest month of the year although my only Knot of the autumn so far were these four juveniles feeding quite close by on the Old Spit Outflow on the 2^nd.

Ospreys were seen throughout the month, mainly in the Beaulieu River but also along Warren Shore. The peak count was three birds on the 3^rd but more often than not it was a single bird sat on one of the dead trees on Inchmery, often with a fish. Spotted Redshank numbers were good throughout September, starting with three on the 2nd and building to six by the 27th. September started with Black-tailed Godwit numbers in three figures on Venner but it dropped gradually during the month.

Almost all of my Grey Wagtails are birds overhead giving their presence away with a harsh penetrating call. It was therefore nice to see four birds settled on the muddy fringe on Venner on the 4^th.

August’s long staying Wood Sandpiper remained on Venner until the 6^thand the Ruff, also on Venner, left the same day.

At least one Common Sandpiper remained on Venner until the 6^th while another one was seen along Warren Shore on the 9^th. A juvenile Little Ringed Plover also remained on Venner until the 9^th

Other than hirundines the Wheatear is one of the most visible of migrants. They were seen regularly throughout the month with a peak of 11 on the 9^th, this included five near the Boardwalk Bridge and five along the Point Gorse Bushes.

Most Bar-tailed Godwits are seen on exposed mud along the estuary and so three on Great Marsh was slightly unusual on the 10^th.

A late Willow Warbler perched up nicely halfway along the Main Hedge on the 11th. Redstart passage continued until the 11th with single birds seen on seven different dates. Also on the 11th there were 13 Yellow Wagtails in various parts of the reserve. I didn’t manage any photos this year as most birds were calling flyovers.

It was good to find two Dartford Warblers on Gravelly on the 11^th. One or both of these two birds were then seen within a hundred yards of here on three subsequent dates.

Graham managed to trap one of the two birds and although, in the field, I’d guessed they were first winter birds, possibly from this year’s successful breeding pair, in the hand Graham commented that “it was in wing moult and it had an amber iris. A juvenile would not be moulting its wing feathers and it would have a muddy brown iris. Therefore the Dartford we ringed this morning was an adult female”. A third Dartford Warbler was heard calling along the Shore Hide fence line on two dates in the last week of the month.

adult female Dartford Warbler photo by Graham Giddens

Interesting WeBS counts on the 11th included 120 Curlew on Inchmery Saltmarsh, 91 Black-tailed Godwit around Venner and 89 Oystercatchers also on the saltmarsh. Four Spoonbill were seen flying over De L’Orne Scrape and the first Grey Plover of the winter, a group of three, were on the saltmarsh. Also a Hobby on the 11th was my last of the autumn. The Marsh Harrier over Black Water looked like an adult male which augers well for breeding next year.

All my Tree Pipit encounters are heard only or occasionally a distant bird flying high overhead. On the 11th, however, a Tree Pipit called loudly and then landed in a hawthorn tree opposite me. I managed a few quick photos. The last of the autumn were three flying over Great Marsh Groynes on the 16^th.

On Tuesday 13^th I decided to head around to the south side of Pullen via Mary Monts to check the brambles and gorse. I walked slowly to the slightly barer clearing and a bird flew up to my left, it landed on an exposed branch and through the binoculars I was amazed to see that it was a Wryneck. This is the peak time of year and I’d always had in mind that this area looked good for Wryneck but it was still a shock to find one. Quickly it flew into a small hawthorn at the edge of the reeds and began preening for a few minutes. I managed to get some photos before it slipped out of the back of the tree and I didn’t see it again. A real birding highlight.

Green Sandpipers remained in the Black Water area throughout the month with a peak count of four on the 16th. My first Brent Goose of the autumn was a single bird flying west past Mary Monts on the 18th, my earliest record. A drake Eider also headed west the same day. A late Swift flying over the Flooded Fields on the 20^th made me double take.

September is the peak month for Whinchat. The last was seen on the 20^th along Kingfish Ditch with the peak being seven birds on the 10^th. Blackcaps are resident but numbers are swelled with autumn migrants and they are a regular sight during September with nine birds being my peak on the 20^th.

Greenshank were pretty vocal and present in good numbers throughout the month, the peak of 14 on the 20th was my highest ever count on the reserve.

A Barnacle Goose was associating with a Snow Goose x Canada hybrid at the back of Venner on the 22^nd. Virtually all Barnacle Goose records here are from feral populations, this is only the sixth time I’ve seen a Barnacle Goose in the last two years and the first I’ve seen in 2022.

On the 24th every bird I got on to seemed to be a migrant Stonechat, I’d estimate close to 50 birds across the reserve. There is often a good finch passage along the spit in October and a calling Siskin here on the 24^th was my first since April. The same day my first Golden Plover of the winter was calling overhead near the Shore Hide.

While unsuccessfully trying to find a Spotted Crake at Pullen Hide I watched this Grey Heron with a large fish. For fifteen minutes it couldn’t decide if it could manage it and kept dropping it back into the shallows. Eventually it swallowed it down, pretty exhausting to watch.

I found a juvenile Little Stint on De L’Orne Scrape on the 24^th. I first saw it with a small group of Ringed Plover but it quickly walked away before flying off south. This is my fourth on the reserve.

I watched another Wood Sandpiper next to NFOC Islands on the 24^th. It is two weeks since I last saw the August bird and so I’m certain this bird must be newly arrived.

Spotted Flycatchers continued with a late juvenile (retained pale mantle feathers) seen near Gravelly Crossroads on the 24^th.

A Great Spotted Woodpecker was calling from the tallest tree in the Cottage back gardens on the 20th.

Swallows (and a Sand Martin) photo by Dimitri Moore

It was very encouraging to see high number of hirundines passing through during the month. The approximately 350 House Martins feeding over the sea out from Mary Monts on the 24th was quite a spectacle. There was also a count of 400 Swallows on the 10th.

At this time of year checking the noisy Long-tailed Tit flocks is worth the time and usually means standing still and watching them all come past. Marsh Tits, Coal Tits, Chiffchaffs and my first Firecrest since May were all picked up this way. Hoping for a Yellow-browed Warbler at some stage!

The first returning Rock Pipits were three birds at the Sailing Club on the 27th.

Nearby, this adult Herring Gull was in heavy primary moult spending most of the month on Sluice Gate Saltmarsh. On two occasions I watched it bringing in a crab to eat on the grass near the Sailing Club.

As usual Sandwich Terns were hanging on and some will no doubt winter, three were fishing in the Beaulieu River on the 27th. Nearby, the wintering Kingfishers were seen along the water bodies and channels on the eastern side of the reserve.

A large movement of Meadow Pipits occurred on the 27th and included at least 150 individuals moving west past Mary Monts in a single flock.

Chiffchaffs were very common on several dates in the last ten days of the month, probably exceeding 40 individuals on at least two dates.

Other departing warblers included fairly late records of Lesser Whitethroat on Great Marsh on the 16^th a Whitethroat on the 22^ndand a Reed Warbler around Black Water on the 27^th. The yellow soles to the feet and the pale-tipped primaries made me briefly wonder about Marsh Warbler. Marsh Warblers, however, are normally a colder greyer brown with more extensive white tips to the primaries and the tertials overlap the secondaries although in hand measurements are usually needed for safe identification.

Wintering dabbling ducks were returning by the month end and Venner seemed to be the favoured initial arrival spot. There were three figure numbers of Teal, 30-50 Wigeon with 10-20 Pintail and Shoveler.

Sparrowhawks were seen regularly throughout the month often dashing low in ambush flights.

September is the peak month for Clouded Yellows and I saw them on eight occasions during the month. They were usually within a few meters of the sea often dashing past but occasionally stopping to nectar where they could find Thrift flowers.

The extended flight period of the Common Blue includes a second brood which keeps them on the wing until October. This male was seen near Great Marsh on the 10th.

Other September butterflies included Small Copper, Small White, Red Admiral and Painted Lady.

There were a few Common Darter on the wing, they last long into the autumn but Migrant Hawker is the most abundant dragonfly at this time of the year although it’s usually the males you see.

female Migrant Hawker photo by Dimitri Moore

Moth numbers start to fall from September onwards although I did manage a new moth in September, Portland Ribbon Wave.

A group of five Sika Deer was an unexpected find near the Reedy Ditch layby on the 2nd. I wound the window down for a photo but they quickly disappeared into the reed bed. Brown Hares were more obliging.

The regularly seen pale Common Seal was loafing in the sun on Inchmery on several occasions in the month.

While mist netting Graham caught this long-eared bat species. Nik Knight the County Recorder commented that it looks like a Brown long-eared bat as the tragus is relatively narrow, the thumbs are foreshortened and the colouration also seems to rule out Grey long-eared bat.

Brown long-eared bat photo by Graham Giddens

Monthly Summaries

July 2022

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The first sign of autumn is often the returning waders and Green Sandpiper is one of the earliest. After a late June individual there were three on the 10^th July on Venner Island. Then several other birds around Venner and also several calling over Pullen during the rest of July.

The first Black-tailed Godwits were on De L’Orne Flood on the 3^rd July all summer plumaged, presumably females returning first from Iceland. The males stay to finish the care of the juveniles. By the month end most of the adults were moving into winter plumage but no sign of the juveniles yet.

A Greenshank heard at Gravelly Marsh West in the first week of July was the first returning bird of the autumn with numbers building to six on De L’Orne Lagoon by the month end.

The first Spotted Redshank this autumn was a lovely summer plumaged adult on the 14th. There were three further sightings of Spotted Redshank during the rest of the month, all around Black Water.

2022 has been a long breeding season with early failures and good (if dry) weather meaning that birds have had second and third attempts. Eight Avocets fledged from Great Marsh and in mid-July they started wandering over to the De L’Orne area. Some late broods on De L’Orne Scrape meant that two have fledged here with another younger chick looking like it might become the third. Eleven in total would be a good result after last year’s single juvenile.

The Lapwing chick from Gravelly Marsh West was flying in the first week of July. As far I know only four Lapwing chicks fledged from the reserve this year.

The Oystercatchers on Beach House Beach fledged at least one chick although they were often difficult to see, it was usually the parents behaviour that indicated that there was a chick around. The chicks respond to the parents agitated calls by hiding in the groynes.

I saw two Redshank chicks on Great Marsh on the 2^nd July and there was undoubtedly another unseen chick from another pair on the other side of the marsh. A fully grown chick looking a bit Wood Sandpiper-like was on the back of De L’Orne Lagoon on the 21^st.

Little Grebe bred successfully on Venner, Black Water and Pullen with up to ten different chicks/juveniles seen including this pair of juveniles on Venner in the first half of July.

A pair of Common Terns were displaying, nest scraping and chasing off Black-headed Gulls from De L’Orne Lagoon early in the month before flying off over Black Water. They last bred here in 2019.

Adam found a Nightjar nest on the 18^th with two chicks being brooded, I saw them briefly from my car on the 21st. Unfortunately it seems that they were predated in the days that followed.

In 2022 I spent a good deal of time watching the schedule one Little Ringed Plover pair.

A protective cage and camera were placed on their nest as soon as I found it in early June. The cage prevented an early demise with the camera catching the sinister sight of a Fox staring through the bars on 26th June.

Fox staring at the Little Ringed Plover nest

The next morning the cage protection was bolstered with a pegged down wide fringe of chicken wire. All four eggs hatched on the 2^nd July and the chicks were ringed under the appropriate licenses and with consent from Natural England.

Little Ringed Plover chicks photo by Graham Giddens

The water on Gins East quickly dried up and it was all gone by the 15^th July. This was before another blisteringly hot spell and so I was pleased to see them again on the 21^st. All four had survived and at 19 days old were almost ready to fly. On the 26^th July there was no sign, my guess is that the whole family had moved away to find some exposed mud. The reserve is clearly a stop off point for Little Ringed Plover as they begin their journey back to Africa. I saw up to seven other juvenile birds on various parts of the reserve during the month.

The Ringed Plover nest at the Sailing Club hatched three chicks on the 27^th but unfortunately one of them was very badly deformed and the other two healthy chicks were predated within a day or so, probably by Gulls or Crows. Sad news but the second half of this season has been a success for the Ringed Plover mainly due to our new cage and camera system. More on this and a full summary of the breeding bird news will be published here and also in the autumn Newsletter due in early September.

In other news a pair of Marsh Tits opposite the entrance to Stagg’s Wood on the 28^th July were my first ones of the year and a pair of Great White Egrets showed nicely on De L’Orne Lagoon on the 21^st July being joined by a third bird on the 26^th.

The three Pochard ducklings survived and grew to look like mum by the end of the month. Gadwall also did well again in 2022 with at least five broods were seen, mainly on Venner, with a maximum of 25 chicks.

On the 28^th July a juvenile Redstart near the Cottages was a nice surprise flicking up from the gorse to reveal its red tail. I saw an early juvenile close to here last year as well, on the 11^th July.

Sand Martins began to move through in the third week with approximately 75 feeding over Venner and then the Flooded Fields on the 21^st July. Juvenile Swallows and House Martins were also seen over Venner mid-month.

The first Wheatear of the autumn was on De L’Orne Lagoon on the 26^th and Spoonbill numbers grew to 10 by the 29^th July.

July is a peak month for moths and Needs Ore produced some huge counts including plenty of moths only rarely recorded in the county. In July I ran traps on 12 nights and on the 16^th I caught 951 moths of 167 different species. The following records were particularly noteworthy.

I caught four darts which looked good candidates for Coast Dart which would be the first records for the county if confirmed. Similarly a Eucosma aemulana would be the first adult ever recorded in the county although this may have needed dissection for 100% certainty on the identification. Two Ringed Borders at Sims Wood were the third county records and likely to be the first breeding records. A Crescent Striped was only the 4^th in the last 14 years. There were no records in Hampshire last year of Epermenia aequidentellus or Euchromius ocellea and the following three species were recorded only once last year in Hampshire – Cosmopterix lienigiella, Gelechia sororculella and Crescent.

In addition to the above the following moths were recorded on fewer than five occasions in the county in 2020 – Acleris kochiella, Saltmarsh Plume, Anarsia spartiella, Small Clouded Brindle, Brown-veined Wainscot, Dingy Mocha, Goniodoma limoniella, Psoricoptera gibbosella, Olive Crescent and Balsam Carpet.

The first Silver-studded Blue was on the wing on the 2^nd July and Purple Hairstreaks were flitting above Warren Lane’s short oaks on the same day.

Visiting Sims Wood on the 16^th July provided three new butterfly species for me on the NNR – White Admiral, Essex Skipper (you can see the black undersides to the antennae in the photo below) and Silver-washed Fritillary. This sees my NNR butterfly list climb to 29.

The first Black-tailed Skimmer was seen in front of Pullen Hide on the 2nd and a Broad-bodied Chaser was perched near Black Water Hide on the 14th. Common Darters and Ruddy Darters were also seen in the month although I didn’t see any Emperor Dragonflies during July.

The dragonfly highlight of the month was undoubtedly a male Southern Migrant Hawker seen patrolling the ditch adjacent to the Shore Hide from the 21^st July until to the end of the month at least. The brilliant blue eyes and blue abdomen (no brown) separate this from the far commoner Migrant Hawker which is on the reserve in large numbers from late July onwards.

This is exactly the same place as last year’s August male. It seems very likely that Southern Migrant Hawkers are breeding here, amazing given that they have only just colonised the south east. The ditch is totally dry now and so they may struggle this year. Southern Migrant Hawker is a univoltine species, that is to say it completes its life-cycle in one year and so this individual could well be the offspring of the male I saw last August.

Queen bumblebees at this time of the year switch egg production from workers to males/daughter queens and so this large female Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum) may well become a queen with her own nest in due course.

July and August are the peak months for seeing grasshoppers. This is a Mottled Grasshopper showing the characteristic mottling and the pinched in pronotum markings (the cream-coloured lines on the back of the neck are squeezed in very sharply).

I placed my bat detector near Black Water House and all the common bats were recorded as well as the rarer Grey long-eared bat, Barbastelle and Leisler’s bat.

birds

June 2022

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Twenty Sanderling were feeding along Gull Island on the 7^th June which is quite late to be this far south and so perhaps they are non-breeders especially given their lack of breeding plumage. Two juvenile Spoonbills, including the Dutch-ringed bird, remained around Black Water and De L’Orne for the month.

I was finally able to find some young Redshank chicks, there were three along the southern edge of Great Marsh. I first saw them on the 23^rd and they looked a day or so old. The female Pochard started the month with four chicks and still had three by the month-end. Black Water is one of very few breeding sites for Pochard in Hampshire.

Three Little Terns were regular company as we walked to the end of Gull Island on the 7th. They were clearly prospecting and landed several times near the end on a perfect sandy/shingle section. They also fed close by along the river. They may have failed elsewhere and were looking for somewhere else to try but unfortunately there was no subsequent sign of them, perhaps the roosting gulls deterred them.

With only 1 pair of Kestrels on the reserve it was great to see the young chicks being ringed. The nest inspection and ringing was done under the appropriate licenses and with consent from Natural England.

A Green Sandpiper on the 25^th seen flying low over Wigeon Fields was the first returning wader of the autumn.

An eventful month for the Little Ringed Plover pair. Having had their first nest attempt predated in late May, presumably by a Fox, by early June I was watching them on Great Marsh mating with the male displaying with a raised tail and then engaging in several flight displays before chest-burrowing several scrapes. What was probably the same pair were then seen on the Gins. I saw a bird clearly sitting here and with Adam guiding me in, under his schedule one licence, I was able to find the nest with three eggs.

Again, with Adam’s assistance a camera and a cage were placed around it which proved a wise move as a Fox was later photographed trying to dig under the cage to get at the eggs. The cage protection was bolstered with a pegged down wide fringe of chicken wire which the Little Ringed Plovers quickly accepted. The eggs are due to hatch in early July, fingers crossed (July edit – Four chicks hatched on the 2nd July and they were still feeding OK on the 10th. The water levels are dropping fast on the Gins and with the current heat wave the flood could well dry out. If this happens, hopefully, the adults already know where they will walk the chicks).

Remarkably 10 Little Ringed Plover were seen near the nest on the 23^rd. The group included three fully flying juveniles. It is not clear whether these are birds on the move having bred elsewhere or if there is more than one pair breeding at Needs Ore. There were still four adults and two juveniles on the 25th.

juvenile Little Ringed Plover on Great Marsh

Gadwall bred again on Venner with at least two broods here and with 12 chicks still present at the month end. I saw another female with six smaller chicks at the start of the month on the road at the Reedy Ditch. Overall therefore at least three broods.

The Mute Swans appeared to have had their five cygnets predated. In late May I saw the family including four cygnets squaring up to a pair of Great Black-backed Gulls on Venner South but over the subsequent few weeks the number of cygnets appeared to drop each time I saw them.

A group of eight Swallows were feeding over Venner in the rain on the 27^th, they included six short-tailed juveniles. I think these may be from Mary Monts. The Swallows were joined by ten House Martins which also included several juvenile birds.

More successful Stonechat breeding with three juveniles at the Warden’s Hut and a second brood on LRP Beach near the beach hut. Also plenty of Meadow Pipits, Pied Wagtails and Reed Warblers seen carrying food or faecal sacs in various places around the reserve.

The Lapwing chicks that I saw newly hatched on Warren Shore subsequently moved to the splash near Mary Monts to feed up and on the 23rd I saw all three of them fully flying in the Wheatear Corner area. The only other success on the reserve appears to be the single chick on Gravelly West which also appears close to flying. Not a great return from twenty five breeding pairs. Our camera data suggests that Badgers and Foxes appear to be the main predators and so Adam has secured a budget to buy 10×100 metre electric fences to be used next year.

At least four juvenile Little Grebe were seen from Venner and Pullen and the male Nightjar was heard churring at 10am on three occasions from the Gravelly Crossroads area.

There’s been lots of Shelduck breeding activity with 4 or 5 broods located in the 2nd half of the month. Total ducklings probably around 20 individuals although it’s difficult to be precise as there is constant movement between Venner, De L’Orne and Black Water. When they’re showing distantly on De L’Orne Scrape the young can look surprisingly Avocet-like.

The Avocets at Great Marsh are doing well so far with eight individuals getting to the flying stage, this is from around six pairs. There were also 2-4 smaller chicks present at the month end. De L’Orne was harder going even though twice as many pairs bred here. A group of roving Ravens were probably responsible for wiping out most of the chicks. At the month end there were three small chicks but nothing older than a few days. Our camera footage suggests that most eggs do hatch but subsequent observation suggests that Ravens and other avian predators take most of the chicks. It’s difficult to develop a strategy to deal with this.

The two Oystercatcher chicks which hatched from underneath the boats at the Sailing Club were still around at the end of the month often seen feeding close by with the adults over on the adjacent saltmarsh.

Another well advanced chick was seen through to the month end on LRP Beach. Graham and Ellie managed to ring it. As always the ringing was done under the appropriate licenses and with consent from Natural England.

Oystercatcher chick from LRP Beach photo by Graham Giddens

The Oystercatcher broods on De L’Orne Scrape were hit by avian predators mainly Ravens we think but also an opportunistic Black-headed Gull nesting close by which was caught on camera grabbing an Oystercatcher chick. There were two very small chicks who had just hatched on one of the small islands at the month end with another two adults sitting.

Two chicks hatched from the triangular groynes on Beach House Beach. I subsequently found it difficult to keep a track on these birds although the agitated reaction of the parents suggested one or both were still present at the month end. The two pairs on Venner Island weren’t successful and all the Oystercatcher nests along the spit were predated, probably a mix of Foxes, Gulls and Crows. Five large chicks is actually not a bad return given how long Oystercatchers live for but it would be good to increase this productivity and we are looking at how we can adapt cages to better protect them next year.

Ringed Plover mating at the Sailing Club

The Ringed Plover brood at the Sailing Club, the first to be protected by our cage and camera set ups, was still doing well at the month end with all four young birds now able to fly.

juvenile Ringed Plover at the Sailing Club

Three of the four juvenile Ringed Plover at the Sailing Club

The two chicks on LRP Beach were still around and the adult was still sitting at the western end of the reserve. Adam, Mike and Kate walked the spit on the 27th finding that all 4 caged Ringed Plover nests were doing well with clutches of eggs (4,4,4 and 3). Another new Ringed Plover nest was found on the walk at the end of Gull Island.

Almost as though they were waiting for June the first male Azure Damselfly and Common Blue Damselfly were on the wing on the 1st and then on the 7th the first Common Darter appeared near Gravelly Crossroads, a teneral individual with silvery wings.

The first Ruddy Darter appeared next to Shore Hide on the 25th, a lovely male showing the deep red colouration, waisted abdomen and black legs.

These were the only dragonfly species seen in June as Hairy Dragonflies had already finished by the end of May and we are still waiting for the first Emperors and Black-tailed Skimmers.

The first Meadow Browns appeared on the 4th feeding on Corky-fruited Water Dropwort on the Flooded Fields. There were up to 100 around the reserve within a week. Painted Ladies were in good numbers in a warm spell mid-month and Marbled Whites appeared from the 23rd looking for thistles. Small Skipper also merged that day, on brambles near Thrift Corner.

Interesting moths caught during the month included White Colon which had not previously been seen anywhere in Hampshire since 2017!

Also unusual with no more than 15 annual records in Hampshire were Anarsia spartiella, Lilac Beauty, Calybites phasianipennella, Silky Wainscot, Goat Moth, Shark, Hedya salicella, Obscure Wainscot, Blackneck, Scarce Merveille du Jour, Opostega salaciella, Platytes cerussella, Schoenibius gigantella and Rosy Wave. All 14 of these rarer moths are photographed and captioned below.

I managed to get another good recording of a potential Grey long-eared bat from Pullen Hide. The acoustic bat expert Jon Russ commented that, despite some overlap with Brown long-eared bat it certainly fits within the parameters and that it is a good candidate.

If I can narrow down the search and home in on a building then the next step is an emergence survey, with several people around it to locate the exit point(s). It does look like we have a small population of Grey long-eared bat on the reserve and DNA from droppings will clinch the ID.