Once Bittern........

There was heavy rain before dawn this morning, but the stiff south west breeze soon pushed the remaining clouds away, while otherwise there was once again a mild feel to the day. If proof were needed of the latter then reports of Swallows already in Kent and Cornwall would endorse this as Dotterel and Hoopoe have also been seen in Cornwall.

A blank was drawn in the cemetery, so onward to Radipole where I was prepared to invest a couple of hours to see if a Bittern would emerge from the reeds. In the event it was mainly the usual with no more than 5

Pochard feeding in the shallows,

Moorhen as ever,

while the male Marsh Harrier was up and about early quartering the reeds

until finally settling in its favoured tree.

Shelduck were also present along with

good numbers of Gadwall,

Shoveler and

Dunnock were also present but the wait for the elusive Heron was in vain. The old adage is quite clear that 'if the mountain won't go to Mohamed' then catch the

X53 service to Poole and search for it elsewhere! Before boarding it was noted there were a few Merchant Vessels in Weymouth Roads, but with no adverse weather to keep them there than it was probably due to commercial reasons they were anchored there.

A selection of vessels at anchor off of Weymouth. Alighting at the

it was thought there would be a good chance of Common Sandpiper here

but with the fresh breeze blowing directly along the railway embankment, both bank of this along with the rocky foreshores of Holes Bay were turned into a 'splash zone'. The walk around the perimeter takes a little more than an hour, but with little more than

Wigeon and

Oystercatchers to report it was time to move on. A bus from the Poole Station to Broadstone put me within a couple of miles of

Hatch Pond where I might get a second go at Bittern.

Only a small water course, there have been as many as 4 reported here in recent days

so there was an even better chance than at Radipole.

These 2 Cormorants had just completed a bout of fishing and where drying their wings as a Kingfisher flew by and also present were Tufted Duck, Great Crested Grebe, Teal, Mallard and Common Snipe. It was something of a wait but sure enough

this Bittern revealed itself, flying half way across the lake.

Only by a stroke of luck did i arrive back at the Poole Bus Station with a full hour to wait for the return X53 to Weymouth, so decided to retrace my steps in the hope of the Sandpiper. This was not to be, and apart from getting caught in a rather severe but short lived hail storm, the journey home was uneventful. One more species to add so

The Year (January) List now stands at 192

Stranger In Paradise - Tony Bennett

On the first day back on home soil there were no prizes for guessing where I was heading, so for the fourth time this year it was back to

Lyme Regis

in search of that pesky American Wader. The weather was fair with a moderate breeze from the south west, chilly but comfortable as the full cloud cover released occasional bursts of light drizzle.

A lone Kite Surfer was taking advantage of the wind, while all I was finding was the expected fare such as

Pied Wagtail,

Rock Pipit and then on the eastern sea wall

Purple Sandpiper.

There were a dozen of them in total

and as this lovely little Wader often is

tolerant of human presence,

but it was the 'rarity' I was after and almost to order

there sharing a rock with the 'Purps' was the Spotted Sandpiper. It seemed fairly mobile today allowing shots of

Front,
Back and
both sides and also flighty

aerial views as well.

Eventually, it flew, along with the other Sandpipers, out to the rocks awash where this Oystercatcher and Black-headed Gull were perched.

Black-headed Gull II. A search was then made for the Dippers and Grey Wagtails but neither were found, There seems to be something about the course of the River Lim as, not for the first time, workmen were in the river repairing and surveying buildings.

All that was seen was this fine looking male Mallard

along with his female.

The skeleton at the bottom of the river was thought to be that of a Mute Swan, going by neck length and bill size, but may have been a Goose.

Feral Pigeons are ever present while a

a female Blackbird looked down from her lofty perch.

A final look at Golden Cap

and this Herring Gull before boarding the X53 back to Weymouth and a look for Bittern on the Radipole Reserve.

On the way back a bus stop coincided with this view of a working Thatcher, but at the Reserve there was no sign of the Heron.

Instead, there was another Black-headed Gull this one already in full breeding plumage and

the Hooded Merganser was directly under foot at the main bridge.

how could anyone resist a photo shoot of such a staggering bird?

The Year (January) List now stands at 191

Finally, I should title this item

Be Sure Your Sins Will Find You Out

A couple of years ago my friends Paul & Tess down in Emsworth, Hampshire fell under the spell of 'bird watching' with me always asserting that I am a 'birder; and not a 'twitcher'. How then are they able to believe this when a friend of there's saved a newspaper cutting relating to the Spanish Sparrow at Calshott earlier in the month. The headline was enough to shatter my credibility but to see me at the head of the pack was the final nail in the coffin. I could hardly blame them for appending their own headline to which I have no answer - touché