Just taking the Ibis!

Saturday 15th January 2022.

Redwings in the trees north of Pook Lane, Warblington.

It was a grey day with a lot of cloud cover, especially in the afternoon and the temperature remained about 5 degrees, therefore, warm weather gear throughout the day was essential. I had a plan to see three species of Owls today, but when a group of 3 Glossy Ibis was found at Warblington, I opted for the rarer of the species and made our way to Warblington first. 

More Redwing by Pook Lane, Warblington.

Despite our attempts to see the birds, they proved very elusive for both Andy and myself along with several other disappointed birders. Apparently, they settled in a field close to Pook Lane among the many Cattle and Little Egrets present, but were spooked several times by either passing Buzzards or hassled by Crows. So, on our first attempt there, we did see good numbers of Redwings in the fields and the Egrets put on a good show, but no ‘star’ bird. Andy did see his first Grey Wagtail of the year; a bird I picked up by its call flying fast and heading east.

The Little Owl at Fort Cumberland.

Sanderling on the beach with an onlooking Common Gull. 

After our first attempt, we drove down to Fort Cumberland to see if we would have better luck with the Little Owls there. This time, we were in luck as one of the Little Owls was in its usual south facing hole in the wall of the Fort. There it simply sat, hardly moving at all and making the most out of the weak sunshine. The tide was up in the Solent and the sea was fairly calm, but we could not find anything of note upon it. The local Sanderlings put on a nice show down by the shoreline, trying their hardest to avoid the many dog-walkers along the beach and the birds were joined by several Turnstone. When we got back to the car, I found a pair of Stonechats close by and managed a few nice shots of the birds. Checking the Whatsapp on my phone, the Ibis had reappeared in fields just north of Pook Lane and so my intended target of the Barn Owl at Posbrook Floods had to be put on the back burner for now.

Above, a female Stonechat by the car park at Fort Cumberland. Below, the male bird was not too far away either.

It didn't take long to get to Warblington, but after parking in Pook Lane, there was still no sign of the Ibis anywhere. We searched all the neighbouring fields in the area that were by the muddy roadside, but to no avail and by 1.30pm, I decided to abandon looking for them and head to Thorney Island for the Short-eared Owls instead. I counted at least a dozen Cattle Egrets in all while I was here and they do seem a lot more tolerant with human presence. A Common Buzzard drifted over, upsetting a lot of birds, though they soon settled again to resume feeding among the Cattle.

One of at least a dozen Cattle Egrets present at Warblington today.

I parked up at Eames Farm again, like the last time I was here, and propped myself up on the iron fence overlooking the fields to the west. I could see a group of birders already positioning themselves for a 'Short-eared Owl show', heavily armed with their large long-lens cameras on the seawall. A large flock of both Brent and Canada Geese were grazing in the field, including one Brent with a lot of white on the back of the head, which looked a little unusual. Grey Partridge are around in the area, but all we found were lots of nicely marked Pheasants. After 15 minutes or so, we crossed the road to view the fields and the Great Deeps to the east and from here, I caught sight of my first Short-eared Owl of the year. The bird was very distant and was being harassed by a Black-headed Gull, but there was no mistaking the Owl as it lazily flapped over the distant field and reedbeds, close to the seawall. On the nearby Great Deeps, at least 10 Little Grebes swam on the water and a large flock of Wigeon were grazing in the nearby field, mixed in with a large number of Lapwing.

The Green Woodpecker was added to Andy's year list.

Brent Geese coming into land in the fields over on the west side of Thorney Island.

Back over the gate looking west, at least one Short-eared Owl was up and after 10 minutes or so, there were at least 3 birds in the air at one time. Sadly, they all remained fairly distant, so my record photos from what I took of the birds really does not do them justice. Still, such a joy to watch anyway. One bird flew up and high over the road and headed off east towards the ‘Landing Lights’ to round off our trip here. Earlier, Andy grabbed yet another ‘year-tick’ with a Green Woodpecker that was perched on a bush near where the Owls were performing. The Owls now put me on 109 species for the year and I was pleased with that, though the Glossy Ibis would have been nice. I saw my father this morning for a chat and he told me that he had a male Blackcap in his garden earlier this week.    

Some of my photos of the Short-eared Owls at Thorney this afternoon. Shame they were distant.