Wildlife Highlights
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RALPH HOLLINS NATURE NOTES FOR 2008 SUMMARY FOR DEC 22 - 28 (WEEK 51 OF 2008) Highlights: Early signs of spring this week include Shags raising their crests in display and a pair of Buzzards in aerial display while a Blackbird has joined the list of songsters. New behaviour (new to me!) came in a report of a Kestrel mugging a Short-eared Owl, but failing to steal its prey, and in a description of 800 Rooks taking a dawn cold bath in a stream at Lymington. Rarities include the first reported Golden Pleasant in Hampshire since 2002, and oddities include a black and white Coot at West Ashling pond. Here in Havant 40 Golden Plover were on the Langstone mud and at Southsea Castle the Purple Sandpiper count increased to 15. More Waxwings have arrived at seven south coast sites. Moths continue to come to traps and this week I learnt that at least one species that does not normally appear until February (Hebrew Character) has a trick that allows it to take advantage of any warm spells earlier in the winter. Instead of a gradual development of the adult moth throughout the pupation period it becomes fully formed within the pupa at an early stage (late autumn) and can thus emerge as soon as conditions are right. We have not quite reached the 100 mark with the December flowering plant list but are on 94, and this week added Meadow Buttercup, Common Ramping Fumitory, Dog Rose and Cow Parsley plus Water Forget-me -not, Blue Fleabane and Red-hot Poker as well as the first fully open cultivated Daffodils. Other wildlife also has news of Great Crested Newts having already having laid their first eggs and Frogs already back in garden ponds. We also have a biology lesson on the development of Swan Mussel larvae. BIRDS Great Crested Grebe: The flock off the Titchfield to Warsash shore is normally spread out over a large area and is difficult to count but it had at least 161 birds on Dec 24 Slavonian Grebe: The highest count so far of the flock on the sea off Pagham Harbour was of 28 on Dec 24 Black-necked Grebe: The flock in Langstone harbour was seen south of Budds Mound on Dec 22 when it had 13 birds in a tight line-ahead group. On Dec 26 it was seen again from the Hayling Oysterbeds, the count then being of 12 (on Dec 1 there was a count of 14 from here) Shag: Birds at Durlston are already displaying, raising their prominent crests. Bewick's Swan: No recent reports from the Arundel area but there were 11 on Amberley Wild Brooks on Dec 21, probably in addition to 6 at Pulborough Brooks. A family group of three were at the Blashford Lakes on Dec 26 and 27 Whooper Swan: One of these was a surprise visitor to Pulborough Brooks on Dec 23 Black Swan: A passing look at West Ashling pond (west of Chichester) on Dec 23, found only one of these birds on view Whitefront Goose: Three reports of birds flying east over the Isle of Wight on Dec 26 may have been separate groups of 5, 6 and 7 birds respectively - one may have stayed to be seen at the Bembridge Marshes on Dec 27 Pale Bellied Brent: Ferrybridge at Weymouth had a total of 33 on Dec 27, the biggest group anywhere so far this winter. Brant: The Farlington Marshes bird was again seen near the reserve building on Dec 22, the Pagham Harbour bird was seen on Dec 26 and the Gosport bird was on the Sultan Playing fields on Dec 27 Red-breasted Goose: The Lymington bird was back again in the Normandy area on Dec 27 after a week in which it seemed to have left the area. Velvet Scoter: A first winter bird has been on the Solent between Titchfield and Warsash from Dec 22 to 27 at least Smew: The Dungeness RSPB reserve had six birds (including one male) on Dec 22 Goosander: The number roosting at the Blashford Lakes was up to 85 birds seen leaving at dawn on Dec 23. A new report this week was of five on the Dorset Stour downstream of Blandford in the Shapwick area on Dec 21 Hen Harrier: One was hunting in the Kingley Vale area north of Chichester on Dec 21 Goshawk: After a recent report of one at Ebernoe Common (north of Midhurst) on Dec 17 one was seen over the Lewes Brooks on Dec 23 Buzzard: A pair were displaying in the West Grinstead area near Pulborough on Dec 21 Kestrel: I am aware that Kestrels will 'mug' Barn Owls in attempts to rob them of prey they are carrying, and are sometimes successful but I had not heard of them doing this to Short-eared Owls until Dec 26 when one was photographed making an unsuccessful attempt. Golden Pheasant: On Dec 24 a female was flushed from Ampfield Woods (north east of Romsey) to become the first to be reported in Hampshire since a single male was seen near Ropley in east Hants in 2002. Crane: Birdguides reported a party of four Cranes flying south over Lyndhurst on Dec 27 - so far no other sightings of them Coot: A leucistic bird seen at West Ashling pond (west of Chichester) on Dec 23 had the normally all black plumage of its mantle and wings broken up by a regular pattern of white lozenge shapes Avocet: Around 20 were seen at Farlington Marshes on Dec 22 (same count reported on Dec 13) Golden Plover: A flock of around 40 was on the mud east of Langstone Mill Pond on Dec 27 (a flock of 80 appeared on the Sultan playing fields at Gosport that same day) Purple Sandpiper: A count of 15 at Southsea Castle on Dec 26 was the highest at this site this winter and was one more than a count of 14 made by another observer on that day. On Dec 27 only 12 were seen there Black-tailed Godwit: A count of 214 at Pulborough Brooks on Dec 27 was by far the highest there this autumn (previous max of 70+ on Nov 30) and easily exceeded the early year maximum of 170+ on Feb 1 Med Gull: A few of these may have flown west in reponse to recent cold weather but the effect so far has been marginal - the number at Pagham harbour is reported to have gone down from 85 on Dec 16 to 60 on Dec 27; on Dec 26 Portland reported 28 passing the Bill while the number at Ferrybridge increased from 28 on Dec 26 to 109 on Dec 27 (though there had been 132 there on Nov 16) Lesser Blackback: These seem to be moving east in response to the cold - following mid-month reports of passage east over the Isle of Wight a flock of 800+ was at Arlington Reservoir, north of Beachy Head, on Dec 20 while the number coming to roost at the Blashford Lakes near Ringwood was up to 2500 at dusk on Dec 23 Glaucous Gull: One at Ferrybridge (Weymouth) n Dec 21 was the first reported in Dorset this winter. Auks: 316 were seen heading south past the North Foreland in Kent on Dec 25 when 80 were seen off Christchurch Harbour (going east) and on Dec 27 a total of 750 were reported passing Hengistbury Head Great Spotted Woodpecker: One drumming in a Tree of Heaven 'somewhere in Sussex' on Dec 25 was the fifth to be reported drumming since the first was heard on Nov 19 Waxwing: Since Dec 21 small parties of these have been seen at seven new sites - Folkestone (6 birds), Brighton (5), Firle village north of the Sussex Downs (1 passing), Beaulieu (12 birds stopping a group of racing cyclists in their tracks), Lordshill in Southampton (6), Christchurch Harbour (5 over on Dec 26) and Gosport (16 on Dec 27). The 6 birds at Folkestone on Dec 21 had increased to 27 on Dec 26 Stonechat: A possible sighting reported from Warblington Farm on Dec 27 (on posts of shoreline fence east of Pook Lane) Blackbird: Song was reported at Bosham on Oct 10 and in the Worthing area on Oct 14 but no further reports until Dec 24 when one was again heard in the Worthing area Song Thrush: Song reported in the Highcliffe area of Christchurch on Dec 20 and at Emsworth on Dec 23 Blue Tit: These have been singing regularly in the Emsworth and Havant area since Dec 23 (Great Tits have been heard since Dec 10) Great Grey Shrike: One was seen at a new site for Sussex on Dec 27 (Glynde Reach of the Ouse near Lewes) to become the seventh Sussex site at which there have been sightings this winter. In Hampshire only 3 birds were found in the New Forest survey over the weekend Dec 20/21 and Lee Evans tells us that he is only aware of five different birds currently in the county (all of them in the New Forest). Rook: I recently learnt of the Rook's winter bedtime routine of congregating on areas of open grassland at dusk and only flying into their roost trees when it is effectively dark. Now, on Dec 27, Colin Allen tells us that he was in the Keyhaven area at dawn and was impressed by a congregation of some 800 Rooks at the mouth of the Avon Water stream in which they were having their morning bathe.