Sunday 21st September

The continuing easterlies have brought the wintering wildfowl back early with a good site count of 1649 Wigeon in Shutterton Creek this evening with 52 Brent Geese over Bull Hill earlier in the day. Disturbance over the evening tide from kite-surfers in the Bight, meant wader counts couldn't be completed but there were eight Knot and three Curlew Sandpiper in with the Dunlin and Ringed Plover with 28 Black and 20 Bar-tailed Godwit, three Common Sandpiper and a Greenshank also on the estuary. New migrants included 10 Wheatear with single Willow and Sedge Warbler, whilst the Redstart remained on Warren Point and the Rose-coloured Starling made a surprise reappearance with the Starling roost at the Golf Course pond. Elsewhere the Osprey caught a fish in the estuary mid morning, and overhead 440 House Martin headed NW with 64 Meadow Pipit, three Yellow and two Grey Wagtail going east along with a flock of 13 Jackdaw.

Curlew Sandpiper - Lee Collins

Saturday 20th September

An overnight fall saw a good site count of 35 Chiffchaff with 17 Blackcap, three Goldcrest and single Redstart, Wheatear and Whitethroat the only other grounded migrants. Overhead 270 House Martin, 125+ Meadow Pipit, eight Chaffinch, five Grey Wagtail and two Skylark. In the estuary wildfowl continued to arrive with 1014+ Wigeon, 134 Teal, 14 Brent Geese and a Gadwall in Shutterton Creek, wader numbers however remained stable with 408 Dunlin, 125 Ringed Plover, 14 Black and seven Bar-tailed Godwit, two Grey Plover, a Common Sandpiper and a Curlew Sandpiper. Also in the estuary an Osprey mid evening, 13 Common Tern, four Mediterranean Gull, two Kingfisher and the Slavonian Grebe.

Kingfisher - Lee Collins

Wildlife News: Six species of butterfly were on the wing with Common Blue and Wall Brown both on third broods.

Friday 19th September

A juvenile Rose-coloured Starling, the second of the autumn,  was feeding around the Go Karts briefly early morning beofre headed offsite towards the village. Other migrants were in lower numbers than yesterday but a Redstart was on the Point, a Sedge Warber was in Skipper Meadow and a Wheatear was in the Buffer Zone. In the estuary a Curlew Sandpiper was with 400+ Dunlin, 120 Ringed Plover, 31 Sanderling, four Knot and a Grey Plover with nine Black-tailed Godwit flying through. Over head there wre three Yellow Wagtail, 35+ Meadow Pipit and a Chaffinch.

Redstart - Lee Collins

Wildlife News: A Water Vole showed well on the Main Pond mid evening, collecting and feeding on Mare's-tail.

Thursday 18th September

A couple of hours early morning revealed a small fall with 17+ Blackcap, 15+ Chiffchaff, two Goldcrest, two Whitbethroat and a Wheatear around site with the Treecreeper in the Entrance Bushes. Overhead there were a couple of Grey Wagtail, 20+ Meadow Pipit, 40+ House Martin and a Chaffinch.

Wednesday 17th September

The Slavonian Grebe was in the estuary from Cockwood Steps with 178 Great Black-backed Gull, nine Bar-tailed Godwit, an adult Mediterranean Gull, a Greenshank and a Kingfisher.

Tuesday 16th September

Overhead in the first hour there were 75 House Martin, 25 Swallow, four Grey and two Yellow Wagtail and a single Chaffinch. Around the Entrance Bushes and Main Pond there were 13 Chiffchaff, nine Blackcap, two Reed Warbler and single Whitethroat and Willow Warbler.

Monday15th September

The Wryneck was still on Warren Point this morning with a couple of Whinchat and a Wheatear. Overhead another Hobby passed through with 90 House Martin and 60 Swallow. In the estuary counts included 293 Dunlin, 120 Ringed Plover, 31 Sanderling, 21 Teal, just 10 Sandwich Tern, nine Bar and six Black-tailed Godwit, seven Knot and three Greenshank with two Kingfisher and the Slavonian Grebe around the wreck. Elsewhere the Treecreeper was still in the Entrance Bushes.

Sunday 14th September

The Wryneck remained on Warren Point continuing to frustrate and entertain in equal measure, also on the Point three Wheatear, two Yellow Wagtail and a Whinchat. Overhead an adult Osprey flew in off the sea and there was the first decent hirundine passage of the autumn with 150 House Martin, 120 Swallow and three Sand Martin east, these in turn attracted the attention of two migrant Hobby. In the estuary there were 546 Wigeon, 221 Dunlin, 128 Great Black-backed Gull, 75 Ringed Plover, 27 Sanderling and singles of Slavonian Grebe, Pintail, Curlew Sandpiper and Little Stint.

 Wryneck - Lee Collins

Sanderling - Lee Collins

 

Wildlife News: A Grey Seal was in the estuary and and good numbers of the third brood of Small Copper were on the wing.

Saturday 13th September

The Wryneck remained on Warren Point but was elusive, other migrants included three Whinchat, five Wheatear, a Garden Warbler, 13 Chiffchaff, 12 Blackcap and five Whitethroat with an Osprey, a Hobby, six Grey Wagtail and a couple of Sand Martin overhead. Elsewhere a Little Stint and four Curlew Sandpiper roosted on the beach with 217 Dunlin, 102 Ringed Plover and 21 Sanderling. In the estuary the counts included a site record 731 Canada Goose roosting late evening, 600 Wigeon, 530 Curlew, 340+ Redshank, 11 Bar and five Black-tailed Godwit, three Common Sandpiper, a Gadwall, a Brent Goose, a Greenshank and the Slavonian Grebe.

Little Stint - Lee Collins

Friday 12th September

Counts from the estuary included 387 Redshank, 360+ Wigeon, 170+ Dunlin, 80+ Ringed Plover and 43 Sandwich Tern, also present a Little Stint, three Knot and a Black-tailed Godwit.  Elsewhere the Wryneck remained on Warren Point all day but was always elusive.