birds and birdwatch,

Boats, Dog Walkers, Joggers & Birdwatchers.

/ Andy Finnegan / 3 Comments

A Sunday morning walk up the Hamble River from Warsash, with the tide coming in, and some good views of waders.

The well-made-up footpath is a Sunday morning favourite for many from Joggers, walkers, dog walkers and cyclists. The cafe in the boat yard at each end of the walk does a good trade in cakes and coffees. As the tide comes in, many waders move closer to the path and seem not too bothered by the people hurrying along the path. For bird watches, this gives us a chance to get some close views of birds that may normally be far off on the tide line.

Curlew. The Curlew is the largest European wading bird, found on estuaries in winter and moors in summer. 

Little Egret. 5 or so Little Egrets were along our walk today, a bird 1st recorded in the UK in 1989. Today, over 600 pairs breed and 4500 winter here. I still recall when they were a rare sight.

A Greenshank with a Spotted Redshank in winter plumage, fishing for small invertebrates.

Cormorants drying their wings.- As their wings are less waterproof than other waterbirds, they are often seen drying their wings.

Flycatcher.

/ Andy Finnegan / 2 Comments

This year has been the best year I can remember for Spotted Flycatchers in the New Forest. Almost on every walk, I see at least one. I think this year, the number of young birds that have fledged has helped boost the numbers on several occasions. I have seen family groups of at least 6

birds.

Hide in a hide!

/ Andy Finnegan / 3 Comments

Heavy rain continues, and the forecast predicts ongoing showers most of the day, so the advantage at Titchfield Haven is that you can dodge the showers and keep dry in the bird hides.

Finally spotted a Kingfisher, although some 60 metres away, they have been avoiding me for the past couple of months.

Another first for me and a rare sighting in the UK. A very distant Grey Phalarope.

An Arctic-breeding wader that sometimes arrives on UK coasts after storms. Under 200 birds are seen each year.

I also saw a Ruff, one of two that are at the Haven at the moment, now in their winter plumage; they are still a good-looking wader.

Below is a post showing the Ruff in summer plumage.https://skylid.travel.blog/2025/06/17/ruff/

Ruff.

Ruff’s are a member of the sandpiper family – some Common Sandpiper were also at the Haven this morning.

From a Hide.

/ Andy Finnegan / 5 Comments

This morning, I made an early start with the aim of spotting some Kingfishers from one of the hides at Titchfield Haven. There are several well-placed posts which are often frequented by Kingfishers.

As nothing goes to plan, there was not a Kingfisher in sight. However, a Sparrowhawk decided to land on one post. Then, within a few minutes of the Hawk leaving, a Little Egret landed on another of the posts.

Cattle Egret.

/ Andy Finnegan / 1 Comment

Occasionally, I see Cattle Egrets; numbers in the UK are rising. They often spend time close to livestock, such as cows, and they grab the insects and worms that their hooves disturb. Cattle Egrets have yellow or greyish legs and a yellow beak,

Some distant pictures of an alone Cattle Egret at Titchfield Haven yesterday.