The power of a sunny Spring day
A few warm spring days have brought singing Wrens, Robins and Rooks(!) to my garden. I love hearing the Rooks - although not the most tuneful of voices, they definitely have character!
Bird of the Week - Ruddy Turnstone
The Ruddy Turnstone is considered to be a wader, but unlike most other waders, it uses its shortish, sharp bill to turn over stones, shells and seaweed when searching for food, rather than probing the ground for invertebrates.
My Birding this week
Last weekend I had one of those wonderful birding days where, not only did I see a new lifer bird, but there was so much of interest to see in the many species I encountered.
We had decided on a weekend away combining a trip to the coast on Saturday with a woodland day in The New Forest on Sunday.
At Keyhaven and Pennington Marshes a frosty start soon melted into a sunny day with a blue sky. Two male Marsh Harriers flew close together, mirroring each other's manoeuvres, possibly in a territorial skirmish. A beautiful Redshank was lit up by the morning sunlight, its legs bright red. And a Little Egret was causing a disturbance amongst several others by chasing another bird around a cluster of tall grasses.
The sound of Brent Geese babbling (I'm not quite sure how to describe their call - honking does not seem correct) could be heard everywhere, and during the day more skeins of geese flew in.
There was a good variety of ducks to be seen on the lagoons: Wigeon, Mallard, Teal, Gadwall, Shelduck, Tufted Duck, Shoveler and my favourite, the Pintail. Also present were Avocet and Little Grebe.
Out on the open water, a small raft of Eider could be seen, the sunlight helping show off the pale green plumage on the back of the drakes' necks. Excitingly, not only were Red-breasted Mergansers and Great Crested Grebes nearby, but also two Slavonian Grebes - a lifer species for me.
On the beach as the tide went out I watched Ruddy Turnstones turning over stones, as they do, and a couple of them bathed in the shallow water. Oystercatchers piped loudly on the beach, and I watched several bow their heads while piping, walking quickly backwards and forwards around each other in what I assume was a courtship display.
A surprise Bar-tailed Godwit fed on the beach and I looked up to see a big flock of Golden Plover fly over, the birds shimmering as the sunlight picked out the gold and white of their plumage as they flew - a beautiful sight!
As the sun lowered in the sky, the light winds calmed down, and we stopped by a reed bed in the hopes of seeing Bearded Reedlings (also known as Bearded Tits). We were in luck! A photographer had already spotted one or two and kindly pointed them out to us. Although we only had fleeting glances, it was wonderful to see these tiny birds.
My day's total species count was 65 - a good start to March!
Despite the next day being just as sunny in the woodland setting, it seemed much harder to find birds.
I did add 4 more species to my March list with good sightings of Woodlark, Eurasian Treecreeper, Common Raven and Mistle Thrush. My UK 2025 year list now stands at 107 species.
Latest podcast episode
Celebrating Women Birders
For International Women’s Day 2025 we hear from women birders from around the world.
They share the motivations behind their birding passion and provide insights into the impact of birdwatching on personal well-being.
We hear about:
Kristina's love for learning about birds in Germany,
Emily's passion for birding that was sparked by watching herons in her parents' garden
Sarah's joy of observing garden birds in Essex,
Colette's lifelong passion for birds that has led to postgraduate learning and extensive birding travels
Nish's enjoyment of birding providing connection to nature and her appreciation of online community
Steph's commitment to recording data from hawk watches to assist conservation
Chiara's transformative journey finding healing through birding,
Kate's peaceful birding adventures on Phillip Island in Australia,
Charlie's exploration of nature in the UK and her appreciation of the warm welcome from women birders she has met
and
Kirsty's commitment to creating supportive birding communities in Australia and sharing diverse voices in the birding community.
Recommendations and shout outs!
For last year' International Women's Day, bird photographer Chiara Talia presented a survey she had conducted among women wildlife photographers about the barriers they face. Do take a look (You Tube link below)!
You can hear more from Chiara in episode 125 of The Casual Birder Podcast
The Casual Birder Bird Club
The Casual Birder Bird Club is an online bird club that meets every month.
If meeting up with a group of friendly people from around the world to talk about the birds you've seen sounds like something you'd like to do, you'd be very welcome to join us.
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Until next week, happy birding!