Today was my first solo Breeding Bird Transect. I walked 7.5 miles across all areas of the reserve. By the end of 12 weekly visits I should be able to confirm breeding populations and success for the key species around the reserve including Lapwing, Redshank, Avocet, Oystercatcher, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Reed Bunting and Cetti’s Warbler. The separate Shoreline Breeding Survey surveys the Ringed Plover breeding population and also Oystercatcher and Peregrine success.    

I headed out across the private area around the Gins. I heard what I was sure was a Garganey calling and sure enough a few minutes later a drake drifted out into view. This is probably the same male that has been on De L’Orne Scrape and Lagoon and does seem pretty mobile.

As I headed towards the houses just south of the Yacht Club I heard a Brambling calling from the trees but I couldn’t find it. It called again 10 minutes later and I managed to see it flying over towards Black Water. On the river the Peregrine pair were active and the young female came fairly close by.

I spent a while in Venner Hide and was rewarded with excellent views of a juvenile Goshawk scattering ducks and geese as it powered over the top of the hide. I finished the circuit by heading back to the screen at De L’Orne and the drake Garganey was on show again, this time feeding happily close by.

My initial thoughts are that there are 20-25 Lapwing territories and 10-15 Redshank territories but it’s difficult to be accurate especially this early in the season with some birds maybe not paired up yet, some winter visitors still to leave and lots of coming and going across the reserve.

There had been a small arrival of waders with two Spotted Redshank now on the scrape including a new bird which is starting to acquire some summer plumage. There were also two Greenshank.

The remaining Dark-bellied Brents were gathered around the scrape with some of them on the grassy bank nearer to me. One of the Pale-bellied Brent Geese was here and I got some nice photos. Last year one of the Pale-bellied Brent Geese was also one of the last Brents to leave. The ‘hrota’ birds ought to be returning to Greenland to breed but I’d imagine that this individual will stay with the Dark-bellied Brents and so will likely head with them to northern Russia.

The breeding bird transect goes up through the private areas on Gravelly Marsh. A lovely newly arrived summer plumaged Greenshank had the flooded pool to itself. A little further ahead an unexpected Green Sandpiper suddenly picked up from the ditch and flew out of view towards the flight pond. It didn’t call and I couldn’t relocate it. This is my first spring record, all 28 of my Green Sandpiper sightings in 2021 (some may relate to the same bird) were in the autumn.

As I reached the end of the Flight Pond I was hoping that I might see the male Little Ringed Plover again. Even better, the female had now joined him.

You can see that the female (above) has browner feathers in the ear coverts, a less obvious white crown band and the yellow eye ring isn’t so vivid.

Last year I found the nest on the 9th May and given that the three chicks hatched on the 31^st May the eggs were obviously newly laid when I found them, that could mean it was a second attempt, or perhaps they delayed for some reason.

Once I’d walked Great Marsh I headed back to the car via the area that a male Dartford Warbler has been singing. I found him again, it does appear that all the recent singing records relate to the same male with a ring on its right leg. I hope that there is an elusive female in the area.

I find that the pools around Mary Monts often attract birds that are newly arrived but don’t stay too long because of the relative disturbance of the site – it isn’t possible to give the pools a wide berth. I often visit here early in the day to see if anything has dropped in. On this morning I scanned the pools and the first bird I came across was a stunning male Garganey and with a female alongside. He was giving his dry rattling call, they were both alert and wary and I’m sure they were newly arrived. They took off before I could get a photo, wheeled around and headed off in the direction of Black Water.

I carried on past Mary Monts Pools to check Wheatear Corner, unfortunately still no Wheatear this year. A quick scan over the Solent produced a newly arrived Swallow making landfall, this is two days earlier than my first record last year. Behind me a Red Kite drifted over Pullen.

I scanned the distant fence posts and noticed something I couldn’t identify immediately. I switched to my scope and was delighted to see a Black Redstart drop down into the grass. I used the gorse as cover so that I could get much closer. A hundred yards later and I was within ‘good photograph’ range and I slowly rounded the final gorse bush, there was no sign.

I then spent 20 minutes searching and I was about to give up when I noticed it again still on fence posts but much closer to Shore Hide. I stalked it again and this time managed some good images. I think it may be a 1st summer male given the pale panel formed by whitish edges to the tertials and secondaries. This is only the second Black Redstart here in the last seven years.

Linnets were singing all over the reserve and there were half a dozen pairs of Stonechats and a similar number of Reed Bunting pairs around Pullen, Black Water and the Reedy Ditch.

The three year old male Marsh Harrier drifted over Pullen reedbed and a characteristic call had me turning around to watch a pair of Red-legged Partridges disappearing into the gorse, they’re getting harder to see here.

Near Pullen a blackthorn twig hosted two rare lichens right next to each other, Teloschistes chrysopthamus (Golden-eye lichen) and Physcia leptalea (with the raised black cups)

21 Herring Gulls were scattered along the low tide beach line and nearer Mary Monts there were 30 Mediterranean Gulls including three 1^st winter birds.

Highlight on the sea was a Velvet Scoter which spent most of the morning drifting offshore straight out from the Shore Hide. The yellow bill sides and lack of white facial spots indicate that this is a male.

Velvet Scoter breed on Scandinavian coasts, particularly northern Norway, and they winter along the Baltic Coasts. Some reach the south and east coasts of the UK. There have been up to six along the Hampshire Coast this winter and there have only ever been half a dozen recorded at Needs Ore including three birds together from the Sailing Club in early December 2021.

10 Eider headed east while a pair of Red-breasted Merganser were still lingering off shore. Common Gulls were also heading east but there’s been no sign of Slavonian Grebes since 25^th February.

I walked onto the private areas to survey for Lapwing and Redshank and was delighted to find a Little Ringed Plover. It was within 20 yards of last years nest site and is no doubt one of the returning Little Ringed Plover from last year, he has been to Senegal and back since I last saw him in August! A real highlight.  

The Dartford Warbler was calling and singing nearby. I wasn’t able to see if it was ringed but I presume it was the first winter male which Graham ringed here on January 22^nd and which has been seen and heard on several occasions over the last two weeks.

There were 17 Avocet on Great Marsh including AX, they were inspecting the newly created islands. I’m sure that good numbers of Black-headed Gulls will also use them.

I saw the Little Ringed Plover again, now on Great Marsh, feeding in an area which last years birds used regularly and where their three off spring spent most of their time. I’m pretty sure that only one bird has returned so far and that it is probably the male given the blackish face and breast band which appears to lack any brown feathers.

Little Ringed Plover adults don’t usually leave their breeding areas together and so it is unlikely that they maintain their bond in their wintering quarters. Pair bonding mainly happens after arrival back on breeding grounds although some pairs are already established on arrival like our pair from last year.

The Peregrine pair were on show on Gull Island including a very vocal display flight with stoops, tumbling, mock food passes and talon grappling. Shortly afterwards a procession of three Peregrines dashed past me heading towards the cottages. I think it was a new male being chased off by the resident male with the young female following close behind.

A pair of Common Seals were hauled up on the other side of the river, one of them looked like the same blonde individual that I had seen last month.

A Grey Wagtail called as it flew overhead near the Sluice Gate but I didn’t see it. Most of my records at Needs Ore seem to be autumn migrants with the odd winter record, this is my first spring record. Nearby a Small Tortoiseshell landed briefly near the Sluice Gate and a Comma was missing part of its wing, perhaps the victim of a bird strike.

Another Comma was basking in the sunshine along the Main Hedge, there were also two Peacocks here. Lots of queen bumblebees were active nectaring on various blossoms, most of the ones I saw well were B. terrestris, Buff-tailed Bumblebee and also B. lucorum, White-tailed Bumblebee. 

I was pleased to see that at least one of the drake Garganey was still here although given the number of Garganey that moved through Hampshire on Monday this could conceivably be a new bird. It was resting on the fringe of the island opposite De L’Orne hide and then ventured closer before hiding behind one of the newly created islands, it was much closer than when I had seen the group of three on Saturday.

Garganey are early spring migrants on their way from their wintering grounds in Africa to breeding areas all across Europe and Russia with around 100 pairs breeding in the UK mainly in the south and east.

The Spotted Redshank was still present on the scrape near the roosting stones and then later hiding along the Sluice Channel viewable from the Sluice Gate. The wintering Greenshank was also hiding here.

The Brents had been grazing on De L’Orne South but something flushed them on to the water where they were easier to count, there were 252 which is probably most of the remaining Brents on the reserve. There were only 100 Brents left in April on last year’s WeBS count.

My highest Avocet count so far this year was a combined 45 birds with the 17 earlier on Great Marsh and another 28 here on De L’Orne scrape/lagoon. Ominously there were two adult Great Black-backed Gulls standing close by, a sign of things to come, as the Avocet numbers increase and they start to nest so will the Great Black-backed Gull numbers increase.

22 pairs of Black-headed Gulls were already very noisy around the rafts. In a month’s time Adam will put out two extra rafts and set up a Common Tern tape lure to try and encourage them. Three pairs raised five young here in 2019. Holding the rafts back until the Common Terns have arrived from Africa means that they are less likely to be reserved by the Black-headed Gulls.

Adam accompanied me around the Breeding Bird Transect route which includes the private areas around the Gins. I will walk the transect once per week for 12 weeks, primary targets species will be Lapwing and Redshank. The walk around the Gins today produced at least 30 Snipe.

There were three pairs of both Pochard and Tufted Duck on Venner, both species bred here last year so it will be interesting to watch progress over the coming weeks. A Red Kite flew purposefully through the reserve as we sat in Venner Hide. Five Spoonbill on Venner included the 1^st winter bird.

As Adam and I got back to the viewing gate Mike said he had just seen a Black Swan on Venner. It took a while for it to show again and in fact there were two. They are a native to Australia and have escaped from wildfowl collections in the UK. Just like Mandarin Duck they have become self-sustaining and are well established in the wild and so are likely to be officially added to the British Avifauna at some stage soon.

As I drove home I paused along Warren Lane to look into Droveway South and was pleased to see a flock of wagtails which included at least one White Wagtail.

Wheatears and Sand Martins are two of the species that you look out for at this time of year but White Wagtails are usually just as early. They are subtle but attractive birds which are often overlooked. They are a passage migrant through Britain from early March to May. Most are heading to Greenland and Iceland and most of the Icelandic population of 50,000 pairs is believed to pass through the UK.

The key features are shown nicely in the above photo. A clean demarcated black line across the nape, a pale/pure grey mantle, pristine white flanks and greyish (not blackish) rump. It was the 25^th March that I first saw White Wagtails last year.

Another wagtail looked superficially similar at first glance but showed a slightly darker mantle, duskier flanks, a blackish rump and blackish mantle feathers coming through thus making it a moulting 1^st winter Pied Wagtail.