Pennington Marsh - 21st February

On a bright sunny morning I had a few hours to spend at Pennington Marsh. It is sometime since I had been down to the marsh and so I was looking forward to my time here. I walked a pretty standard route taking in Butt's Lagoon, Fishtail Lagoon, Jetty Lagoon and out to Oxey Lagoon. As expected there were excellent numbers of waders and wildfowl to be seen on the falling tide with highlights being 250 Golden Plover off Pennington Lane, four Ruff, Peregrine, Marsh Harrier, the long staying Purple Sandpiper on the mudflats just east of the jetty, two Slavonian Grebe off Oxey Lagoon and also a Red-necked Grebe off Oxey Lagoon. Also just off Oxey was a seal, I didn't see it very well but I think it was a Common Seal, and a little more surprising was a recently dead Common Dolphin, see here.

After a couple of hours on the marshes I headed into the New Forest and spent an hour at Denny Wood seeing little but for the standard resident woodland species many of which were in full territorial song. A Red Kite soared overhead, still a relatively uncommon species in the forest.

Purple Sandpiper - By the jetty at Pennington Marsh

Roe Deer sporting fine fresh velvety antlers - Pennington Marsh

The Lapwing are just starting to display on the marshes - Pennington Marsh

A fine male Pintail - Pennington Marsh

Red-breasted Merganser - Oxey Lagoon

Red-breasted Merganser - Oxey Lagoon

Red-breasted Merganser - Oxey Lagoon

Red-breasted Merganser - Oxey Lagoon

Red-breasted Merganser, male displaying to the female - Oxey Lagoon

Red-necked Grebe - Off Oxey Lagoon

Slavonian Grebe - Off Oxey Lagoon

Brent Goose - Pennington Marsh

Red Kite - Over Denny Wood

Treecreeper - Denny Wood

Coal Tit - Denny Wood

Mistle Thrush - Pig Bush