I had planned to go to Portland today but the weather forecast was bad with rain until 08:00, heavy showers thereafter and a F7-8 west wind. I was hesitant until in the car at 06:00 and semi-committed to the journey, rain lashed the car as I drove and the trees were being thrashed by the wind. It was my Birthday today but I struggled to find any optimism that I would find a rare bird - always my aim on my Birthday.
Arriving in the car park at the Bill at 08:00 I began the morning with a seawatch, large numbers of Gannet were offshore, around 25 Kittiwake passed, there were good numbers of Razorbill and Guillemot and a single male Common Scoter passed east. I gave it around an hour but there was little to excite. I then wandered around the Bill area and out to Culverwell. I recorded 17 Wheatear, 35 Swallow moving west, around 75 Meadow Pipit moving west and a single Chiffchaff at Culverwell. It was very slow going and the wind was not abating. At 11:30 my parking ticket was about to run out and I decided to head to the east coast of Portland where I birded the Pen Castle and Church Ope area but saw little but for a couple of Goldcrest and a Yellow Wagtail passing south. I decided to start heading towards home via Lodmoor.
Comma - Church Ope, Portland, Dorset
Raven - Portland Bill, Dorset
Common Kestrel - Portland Bill, Dorset
I spent around an hour at Lodmoor where there had been a long staying Long-billed Dowitcher but I had no luck with this bird. I wandered along the west path there were three Great White Egret, five Yellow Wagtail, a couple of Sandwich Tern, 25 Mediterranean Gull, 15 Black-tailed Godwit, five Dunlin and a white headed Ruff.
Sandwich Tern - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Ruff - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Mediterranean Gull, a first winter bird less advanced to winter plumage than the
next two birds - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Mediterranean Gull, first winter - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Mediterranean Gull, first winter - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Mediterranean Gull, second winter - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Mediterranean Gull, second winter - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Great White Egret - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
Great White Egret - Lodmoor RSPB, Dorset
It was 13:15 and I decided to head back to Hampshire and spend an hour or so at Pennington before collecting Tobias from school. I walked from Lower Pennington carpark out past Fishtail Lagoon, along the southern edge of Butts and Jetty Lagoon and back past Shoveler Pools. It was very quiet, I saw 10 Lapwing, a single House Martin and nothing much else. The lagoons were devoid of birds. I called it a day, headed for a coffee, collected Tobias from school and chilled with Sarah for the evening.
