A walk with the dogs by the Harbour Entrance & a Black Redstart in my garden.

Friday 26th December 2025.

The female Black Redstart in my garden this afternoon.

Over the last few days, it was very tempting to go off birding to grab two potential ‘Hampshire ticks’ with a Cirl Bunting at Wicor, Portchester and the Tundra Bean Geese on Farlington Marshes; but if I did, I would probably be facing a divorce!!! Hopefully, both species will be around tomorrow, so for now, I took my dogs for a pleasant, but very cold, walk around the harbour entrance at Eastney. Again, it was overcast at 8am this morning though the cloud was soon thinning and by 11am, there was a sunny blue sky over Southsea.

Harbour entrance, Eastney:

The Sandwich Terns by the jetty at Eastney Outfall.

It was damn cold while birding down by the harbour entrance and thankfully, the brain kicked into gear as I eventually put my gloves on my numb hands. From the spit near the Hayling Ferry Terminal, I found a pair of female Red-breasted Mergansers between Lock Lake and the northern end of the harbour, busy fishing, but no sign of any male birds in the area. Further south, a pair of Great Crested Grebes were swimming in the channel while on the mudflats (it was low tide within the harbour), Curlew, Redshank, Oystercatcher and a single Grey Plover were seen busy in search of food. Again, there were numerous dark-bellied Brent Geese on the mudflats and skeins of the same species flying overhead. Always busy here with birds at this time of year.

Above, beams of light bursting through gaps in the cloud off the Outfall. Below, the wrecked scaffolding holds up the old seawall near the Jetty.

Above, four of the five Oystercatchers on the jetty this morning and below, while checking out the above birds, a flock of Brent Geese were seen flying over heading east.

The harbour entrance itself was rather quiet, though a single Great Crested Grebe was seen to fly north from the Solent and into the harbour. A large number of House Sparrows were squabbling about in the car park as did a small flock of Starlings and the Gulls present here included Black-headed, Herring, a couple of Common Gulls and a single juvenile Great Black-backed Gull.

Above, the jetty that attracted the Oystercatchers and below, two of the Oystercatchers on the shoreline.

Above, a large rock pool is created when the tide is out here and below, a Common Gull on the shoreline.

I took the short drive to the Ferry Road Beach car park, which was near empty and clean (!!!), got the dogs out of the car and took a walk by the Eastney Pier, so the dogs could have a good run on the sandy beach there. There were no sea fishing guys on the Pier this morning as I checked out the sea for anything of note. I found at least three distant Great Crested Grebes just off Gunner Point, Hayling Island and nearby, up to 5 Oystercatchers were on the jetty busy in search of shellfish among the seaweed. Behind the jetty, a pair of Sandwich Terns were resting on posts, which was a pleasant surprise.

Above, a flock of House Sparrows were 'dusting' by the car park and below, a Black-headed Gull is flanked by Starlings.

Above, a juvenile Great Black-backed Gull on the beach by the car park and below, looking back south to the Ferry Road.

Above, a pair of Great Crested Grebes within Lock Lake and below, the pair of female Red-breasted Mergansers swimming out of Lock Lake and into Langstone Harbour.

Above, another photo of the Mergansers and below, a small flock of Brent flying north.

There were hardly any passerines were noted within the Perimeter Fence, but before we left the car park, a Greenfinch and a Meadow Pipit were heard calling somewhere nearby to round off my trip here this morning.

The female Black Redstart in my garden.

When I got home, I was checking the garden for the Blackcap that had been around recently and soon found something interesting up in my neighbours tree. At the speed of light (well, something like that), I grabbed my binoculars from indoors and managed to check the bird out. It wasn't the Blackcap that I first thought, but was in fact a female Black Redstart!!! The bird then flew off over my head and landed on my roof and then flew off north. I rushed back indoors to grab my camera, but there was no further sign of the bird. Hurrumph! Still, a superb ‘garden tick’ nonetheless.

Above and below, the female Black Redstart.

I went outside to my garden about 30 minutes later, this time armed with some dried Mealworms, and again saw the Black Redstart and this time I also had my camera. The bird was most obliging, though a bit tricky to photograph as it perched up in my neighbours tree. Also, the Blackcap briefly showed itself and a little later, gave excellent views but I didn't have my camera to hand this time. Hurrumph again!

A very cold day that produced a few surprises.

Wednesday 24th December 2025.

An early start this morning around my local patch.

It was bitterly cold today with a biting strong north-easterly blowing over Southsea as I took my dogs for their walk around Highland Road Cemetery before I headed off to work. Arriving around just after 8am, the sun had not quite risen over from the east and therefore, it lit up the few clouds with an orangy hue. I must admit, finding birds to photograph was a bit of a struggle at first, with only the local Herring Gulls and Wood Pigeons mostly being on show and amazingly, I did not see one Robin during my 45 minutes here.

Highland Road Cemetery, Southsea:

Wood Pigeons high up in one of the Horse Chestnut trees. 

As mentioned, birds were hard to come by for a decent photo, but eventually, a few showed relatively well that included several Blackbirds and a Great Tit (see photos). A small flock of four Greenfinch flew over but they did not settle this time around. I think I notched up around 15 species in all, though a lot of them were simply brief sightings as the smaller birds remained elusive throughout the morning. 

Above, the Jay showed fairly well and below, a Great Tit within a Buddleia Bush.

Above, this 1st winter Blackbird was vocal and below, a pair of Collared Doves was within the Conifer within the south-east corner.

A single Jay put in a brief appearance and I managed to grab a couple of photos of the bird with a clump of Buddleia bushes. Yet again, there was no sign of any Woodpeckers and I strongly believe that the regular Green Woodpecker here has gone for good. The cold strong wind did make it feel a tad uncomfortable walking around my local patch, but nonetheless, it's always enjoyable here whatever the weather. Even the dog-walkers were far and few between and all were quite friendly (and their dogs too!).

Above, Common Knapweed was growing in the south-east corner and below, the old lady feeding the Herring Gulls and Feral Pigeons.

Above, this male Blackbird popped out and showed nicely and below, the orange hue on the clouds made this a more interesting photo.

An old woman (a regular here) came in with a bag full of bread and fed the local Herring Gulls and Feral Pigeons and the sight of so many Gulls was quite something. Sadly, nothing unusual among them, but the sheer numbers and noise of around 100+ Herring Gulls was notable. 

One of many Wood Pigeons here in the Cemy this morning and below, flowering Smooth Sow-thistle were abundant around the graves.

Of the plants still in flower, it included a clump of Ox-eye Daisies, Smooth Sow-thistle, Common Groundsel and I even found a small clump of Common Knapweed, which took me by surprise. Not surprisingly, there were no insects on show today here in the Cemy. Yes, it was cold, but it was always a pleasure to be here.

In Hampshire today:

The male Cirl Bunting at Wicor, Portchester today. Photo by Andy Friend.

For those birders escaping the Xmas shopping, what better than getting a Hampshire ‘tick’ with the male Cirl Bunting showing well at yesterday’s site of Wicor, in Portchester. The bird was found again this morning and got a good steady stream of admirers. This is a real gem of a bird to get in Hampshire and just a pity that I was working most of the day. Could it hang around a few more days? Another amazing find was a pair of Bean Geese that was found by Jason Crook on Farlington Marshes today. The birds were with a pair of White-fronted Geese and a further 18 more White-fronts were also on the Reserve!

The Hayling Oysterbeds hosted a variety of notable species that included a showy Long-tailed Duck. Up to 5 Great Northern Divers were in Langstone Harbour along with the female Scaup and a Whimbrel on the Oysterbeds too. I don't think this year is quite done yet for more potential ‘year-ticks’!

Blackcap in my garden & a cold trip to the Harbour Entrance.

Tuesday 23rd December 2025.

It was cold and grey at the Langstone Harbour entrance this morning.

It was a typical grey, overcast and cold wintry day with virtually no sunshine at all, but that didn't stop me from taking the opportunity for a quick spot of birding early this morning. Before I went off to do some work, I decided to take a drive down to the harbour entrance at Eastney to see if I could find anything of note. 

A few Starlings were seen by Ferry Road at the harbour entrance.

The dogs got their walk early this morning around the block and on the way round, I noticed a good number of calling Redwings flying over in the dark. Yesterday, I put some apple halves out in the back of my garden after I saw a male Blackcap flitting about in the bushes. I do hope it returns soon.

The Harbour Entrance, Eastney:

This Great Crested Grebe in Lock Lake was still in summer plumage.

Yesterday, I was in the Eastney area and noticed good numbers of Brent Geese flying over in large flocks and so I thought I would take a drive down Ferry Road and view both the harbour entrance and Lock Lake to find something unusual. Sadly, that was not to be, but it is always a pleasure, despite that cold north-easterly wind blowing over the harbour, in just being there checking out the birdlife.

Above, Oystercatchers and Black-headed Gulls by Lock Lake and below, the Great Crested Grebe drifted in by the Oystercatchers.

The tide was out as I approached the harbour entrance and so parked up and gave the area a good scan. The only bird of note within the harbour entrance was an adult Shag busy fishing on the choppy water and the occasional flock of Dunlin flying into the harbour at great speed. The light at 8.15am was poor and it didn’t look good for the next hour in brightening up, but there were plenty of birds out on the mudflats within Lock Lake. At least a couple of hundred Brent Geese were out on the mudflats and nearby, the likes of Oystercatcher, Redshank and Curlew were busy searching for food.

Above, the northern end of Lock Lake and below, Brent Geese on the mudflats. More were flying over in the distance.

Above, an Oystercatcher on the shoreline and below, the summer plumaged Great Crested Grebe.

The small creek nearby held a single Great Crested Grebe, of which was interestingly, in full summer plumage! I didn't hang around too long as it was bitingly cold here and so went eventually back to the car after 30 minutes or so. In truth, I was hoping for an Auk within the harbour entrance for I have not seen one in Hampshire this year at all, which is quite incredible really, seeing that last year I had seen so many. I think the 30 minutes was enough today and so I got back in the car and got ready for work.

In Hampshire today:

There was incredible news of a male Cirl Bunting found this morning at Wicor, Portchester, which was found by a fellow ‘Lazee Birder’ birding his ‘local patch’. It was apparently flushed, along with several other birds, when a Buzzard landed nearby, but it was not relocated again; however, it still could be in the area and so hopefully, someone might get lucky and find the bird tomorrow.

Between 250-300 Fieldfare came into roost along the Titchfield Canal Path late afternoon (an amazing number), with another 40 at Burgate Manor Farm, Fordingbridge today.

A stunning Short-eared Owl on Elmley. Film footage by Matt Parkes.

And now for some great news:

A gorgeous Fox. Photo by Emma Parkes.

At last, this Government has finally listened to the majority of the people in the UK in banning ‘trail-hunting’ with dogs. This barbaric, cruel act has finally been exposed for the disgusting activity it has been hiding under. Do the pathetic Hunting Lobby really think that the great British public are so stupid to get away with this? Well, with the successful lobbying in Parliament by the public, it finally has come to pass. Along with Grouse & Wildfowl shooting, their days are numbered.

Some Sunday news.

Sunday 21st December 2025.

A Short-eared Owl on the Isle of Sheppey. Photo by Emma Parkes.

Though I never did any ‘proper’ birding today, I was up a ladder putting up the outside Xmas lights, when I heard a singing Grey Wagtail overhead and sure enough, a pair of birds were flying over the rooftops heading east. Sadly, no photos of the birds this time, but I would like to put a few photos of Emma Parkes, who made the trip with her husband Matt to Kent.

The Black Guillemot in Sovereign Harbour, Eastbourne. Photo by Emma Parkes.

On the way there, they first stopped off at Sovereign Harbour, Eastbourne, for the long-staying Black Guillemot, which was a ‘lifer’ for both of them and Matt's 300th bird species in the UK, then onto the Isle of Sheppey for a weekend break. Some of the birds they saw included up to 4 Short-eared Owls, Marsh Harriers and a Little Owl. 

Above, a Short-eared Owl and below, a Little Owl. Both birds photographed on the Isle of Sheppey this weekend. Photos by Emma Parkes.

In Hampshire today:

The now renamed Great-tailed Grackle (previously Boat-tailed Grackle, but after DNA evidence was achieved at Aberdeen University, the results came back as a different species altogether!) was again still at Holbury, Southampton and up to 7 Great Northern Divers were off Weston Shore. The two Slavonian Grebes were still near the islands from Broadmarsh and the Black-necked Grebes and female Scaup were off the nearby Oysterbeds. There was just the one Purple Sandpiper that had been seen at Southsea Castle this morning. Amazingly, the very long-staying Great Grey Shrike is still residing in its usual place near Beaulieu Road, New Forest.

No 'Fudge Duck', but a good day's birding.

Saturday 20th December 2025.

Geoff overlooking Langstone Harbour from Budds Mound.

Geoff Farwell, Andy Fisher and myself went to three destinations today and seeing the weather was a bit similar to last Saturday (bright and sunny, with little wind), it was a pleasure to be out and about today. Our target bird was to be yesterday’s drake Ferruginous Duck on Brownwich Pond and then play it by ear for the rest of the day. Emma and Matt Parkes were staying on the Isle of Sheppey this weekend and so it was just us three in search of avian goodies.

Brownwich Pond,  near Titchfield:

Brownwich Pond. There was no sign of the Ferruginous Duck throughout the day here.

We eventually parked up in the small Car Park by Chilling Barns, which was full of very large puddles and extremely muddy before taking the long walk to Brownwich Pond. The only time I have ever been to this site was when a Bittern turned up and showed well many years ago one Winter. The location was a new one for both Geoff and Andy and it was quite an impressive sized Pond.

Above, some of the Canada Geese in the field south of the footpath with a large tanker passing by out of Southampton Water. Below, Rooks and Carrion Crows take flight north of the footpath.

Above, the drake Goosander at the back of the Pond with a Black-headed Gull looking on.

The maize stubble fields held a large flock of around 60 Canada Geese to the south of the footpath and it also held a large number of Skylarks searching for seeds etc in the field. The numbers of Skylarks varied at times, but when a pair of rogue dogs started running over the fields owned by some irresponsible owners, they flushed all the Skylarks and Geoff estimated about 120+ birds all told. Very impressive. To the north of the footpath, there were large numbers of Corvids around in the trees, that included mostly Rooks and Jackdaws. Small numbers of both Chaffinch and Pied Wagtails were seen close to the footpath; but not a great deal else along the footpath to the Pond.

Above, the poor female Tufted Duck that had a fishing hook through its bill. Hopefully, it will be rescued soon. Below, a Mute Swan came up to me for a close up.

Above, some of the many Skylarks flying over the maize field.

On reaching the Pond, a good search for the Ferruginous Duck drew a blank, but a drake Goosander at the northern end of the Pond showed very well at times after being very elusive in the small reedbed. Apparently, the Ferruginous Duck was associating with Tufted Ducks, but apart from one unfortunate female bird that had sadly got caught up with a hook and fishing line, the other Tuftied and the ‘Fudge Duck’ had departed. We were joined by some other birders who told us that the Fishing Bailiff had been informed of the unfortunate Tufted Duck and hopefully will be caught and have the hook removed.

Above and below, more Skylarks appeared when a pair of dogs ran across the same field.

Above, a pair of Chaffinches by the main footpath and below, several Pied Wagtails were nearby.

Apart from Mallards, Coots, a few Moorhens and a pair of Mute Swans, all was quiet here, though Geoff saw a Chiffchaff (we dipped on that) and a Cormorant dropped in to settle on the water. After a good hour here, we made our way back to the car where we watched the large flocks of Skylarks flying over the fields and up to 6 Chaffinches feeding close to the footpath. A Great Spotted Woodpecker flew overhead and landed distantly in nearby woodland.

Posbrook Floods & the Canal Path, Titchfield Haven:

A female Marsh Harrier flew over the Bridge Street Floods to flush most of the birds off it.

On arrival within the Car Park, we had lunch and then made our way firstly up to the Bridge Street Floods, north of the road,  where yesterday, the Glossy Ibis, Water Pipit and a ‘Siberian’ Chiffchaff were seen. Apart from a Carrion Crow, we saw absolutely nothing! So we turned back and made our way south down the Canal Path. The weather was still excellent with bright sunshine as we checked out the Bridge Street Floods where a large number of wildfowl and waders were enjoying the calm weather. However, when a female Marsh Harrier passed overhead, that signalled the bird life there to all take flight. This included not only a large number of Black-tailed Godwits flying over, but also flushed the 5 Glossy Ibis which circled several times before landing back down on the floods.

Above and below, Teal on Posbrook Floods.

Above, a male Kestrel by the Canal Path and below, the Reserve looking south-east.

Above, a Grey Heron coming into land and below, four of the five Glossy Ibis taking off after being flushed by a female Marsh Harrier.

Above, one of the female Marsh Harriers over the Reserve this afternoon.

It was to be a good afternoon for raptors as not only did we see up to 5 Marsh Harriers (including two males) all in the air together, but also a Red Kite flying over, at least four Common Buzzards, a female Kestrel and a male Sparrowhawk while walking down the main footpath. We did check out Posbrook Floods thoroughly for the possible sighting of the Ferruginous Duck, but all we could find was a Little Grebe and a Grey Heron. On the way back, the same Floods soon held a large number of Teal, Wigeon and Shoveler and a pair of Gadwall dropped in too. 

The female Marsh Harrier over the Bridge Street Floods and below, the flushed and the flusher! Four of the five Glossy Ibis having been flushed by the Marsh Harrier at the bottom of the photo.

Above, a sleeping Grey Heron and below, a mixture of birds on the Bridge Street Floods.

Above, we have a mixture of Canada Geese, Wigeon, Cormorants, Pintail, Black-headed Gulls and Black-tailed Godwit on the Bridge Street Floods. Below, the male Kestrel near the main footpath.

A Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen briefly flying over the reserve and a second bird was heard calling as it passed overhead as we walked through the wooded area along the footpath. At least two Stonechats were seen by Posbrook Floods, but too distant to see what sex they were but most likely a pair. Both Cetti’s Warbler and Chiffchaff were heard (though not seen) and also a Water Rail was heard several times from the reedbeds over on the east of the Reserve.

Budds Mound and Langstone Harbour, Bedhampton:

Andy overlooking Langstone Harbour this afternoon.

It was now around 2.30pm and I wanted to round the day off at Budds Mound as there were some interesting sightings around here early this morning that included a pair of Slavonian Grebes associating with a pair of Black-necked Grebes. Also, a couple of Great Northern Divers were also present as well as the female Scaup.

Above, a Redshank by the seawall on the receding tide and below, as was this Grey Plover.

Above, a Common Gull about to land on the water in front of us and below, the distant Great Northern Diver in front of Long Island.

When we arrived, we parked up and with my scope, I carefully checked out the harbour for the birds mentioned. Despite a lengthy search, plus the light was getting darker with large clouds now going through, the only notable bird seen was a single Great Northern Diver swimming just north of Long Island. Good numbers of both Red-breasted Merganser and Great Crested Grebes were picked up through the scope and a Little Grebe was seen swimming near the seawall. Below us, there were a few waders seen feeding along the shoreline that included Oystercatchers, Redshank and a lone Grey Plover. A Common Buzzard was seen perched on Long Island and a Kestrel was hunting in the fields near the Car Park to round off our sightings  for today.