Hengistbury Head - 19th December

The weather was foggy, but the sun kind of broke through occasionally. There was also a cold wind. Highlights were Red-throated Diver flying past and a male Goldeneye far out in the harbour.

5 people met me in the car park at Hengistbury Head. As we set off it was very quiet, foggy and cold. A couple of Black-headed Gulls were in the air and Blackbirds, Great Tits, a Magpie and some Woodpigeons were in the trees nearby. We stopped to look over the marsh opposite the barn. It was misty! After a little initial confusion with a plastic bag, we could pick out a Little Egret, some Wigeon, Teal and Coot through the mist. 2 Gadwall were with a few Mallard in a channel and we heard a Water Rail calling.
The wood was very quiet. Just a couple of Jays, Blackbirds, Blue Tits and Great Tits. We did hear Chaffinch and Goldcrest, but didn’t see them. The Spindle bushes in the woods looked great with their pink berries on.
At the lagoon near the end of the head there were several Redshank and Black-headed Gull with 1 Herring Gull. We carried on towards the end of the spit and the marshes here had a couple of Little Egret, a flock of Wigeon and some Mallards, while Mute Swans, Redshank and Pied Wagtail were on the shoreline. As we got to the end of the head we saw something flying over – a single Red-throated Diver! Just after this John joined us. He had seen a great view of a Kingfisher on a post back near the barn, so we thought we would head back and see if it was still there.
We walked back along the seaward side of the spit. Cormorants and Great Black-backed Gulls sat on the posts at the end of the groynes. We searched for Purple Sandpipers on the groynes, but to no avail. However there were 3 Oystercatcher and 2 Grey Plover on one of them, a Shelduck flew in off the sea and Stonechat and Rock Pipit were feeding on the beach. We also saw a single Dunlin sheltering on the beach – trying to hide from us behind a small stone!
On the way back we saw more of the same, but did see a female Pheasant just outside the wood. Back at the marshes opposite the barn we scanned for Kingfisher – none around, just 1 Heron. There was 1 Little Grebe on the water and way off in the harbour Tracy found a male Goldeneye.
We had seen more than we initially thought on a cold and misty morning!
Simon Curson