After a successful evening watching Common Terns off the Beach at Meon Shore on Friday, this morning we return for a few hours of bird watching.
Terns fishing.
the Solent & Southampton Water,
Common Terns.
Families of Common terns fishing off Meon Shore. Adult birds have orange bills, while juvenile birds have black and Yellow Bills
.
Evening terns.
With the heat wave earlier in the week we stayed by the sea to catch the cooler sea breeze . Common Terns were fishing off the beach.
Holly Hill.
Holly Hill Park is situated on the eastern banks of the River Hamble, north of Warsash. The land is now owned by the council but was once the gardens of a long-lost mansion. As part of this, the mansion the grounds were landscaped, the stream was dammed to form a large lake and further damming was done to create a series of terraced lakes within the valley, rocky outcrops, cascades, and a grotto were made by Pulham Company. They made artificial rocky outcrops with their ‘Pulhamite’ mixture of Portland stone and cement poured over rubble, and individually moulded into shape. {date around 1870} A sunken garden was added in 1936 on the site of a large glasshouse. The building suffered from neglect and was eventually demolished. Fareham Borough Council purchased Holly Hill in 1954.
Skylark.
Male skylarks will rise almost vertically from grassland, salt marshes and moorland. They hover effortlessly, singing from a great height. Normally, a speck in the sky, but a treat to hear. This bird was keeping its feet on the ground, singing like mad.
UK Conservation status: Red
& the rain returned.
After nice bright weather for a couple of weeks, we had a wet, grey day today, and the forecast says it is with us until early next week. On the positive my water butts in the garden are now full of water.
So, pictures today from Titchfield Haven are more like pictures from a winter’s day. Not very nice under sail in the Solent.
Grey Heron.
Little Egret.
fledgling Reed Warbler.
Take off.
Kestrel hunting by the Beach at Titchfield Haven.
One of the few books I had to read at school.
A Kestrel for a Knave is a novel by English author Barry Hines, published in 1968. The book is set in an unspecified mining town in Northern England. It follows Billy Casper, a young working-class boy troubled at home and at school. He finds and trains a kestrel, whom he names “Kes”. It was made into a film directed by Ken Loach and produced by Tony Garnett,
Sad find.
A dead 3-foot shark on the beach – A Smooth Hound, also known as Grumpy Shark and a Smut. Listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Sadly, fishing killed this fish. It was held in the water by 4 lead weights and 30 feet of broken fishing line.
Fishing line is a major hazard on our local beaches, especially to waders and Swans.
Feathers.
During the Victorian times, Little Egret feathers were highly valued for fashionable headgear. This led to a massive decline in the bird population. The demand for Egret feathers was immense. The birds were farmed and hunted extensively. The plumes were worth more than gold. This unsustainable trade ultimately spurred the creation of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Living History.
Today we had an exciting fast boat trip from Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. On High Speed Launch 102.
A calm sea and sunny weather added to the experience.
102 is the only survivor of the 100 class in the UK. She was launched in 1936. She was one of the first, fast offshore rescue boats in service with the Royal Air Force. She was one of the most technologically advanced production craft of the day, She saw active service in WW2. Off Calshot, she was damaged by a Messerschmitt 109 which also killed her radio operator. 1943, she transferred to the Royal Navy for target towing. She was sold off off in 1946. She became a houseboat. She was restored between 1993 and 1996 at Fawley. Now she is in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.
Continued Reflections from my World. 