A foggy start to the week.

Monday 9th March 2026.

Fog was present all morning including when I walked past Highland Road Cemetery this morning with my dogs. 

There was a warning yesterday about thick fog here on the south coast and how right they were. Foghorns were going off all day out in the Solent, but that didn't put me off from putting my Moth Box on overnight and I wasn't to be disappointed. There was some light rain on and off throughout the morning, but not on the scale we have seen last month. Again, I was keeping a good eye and ear out for migrants, but in this fog, I was lucky to see so many species of birds today. My dogs got their early morning walk this morning and as I passed Highland Road Cemetery, I heard a Mediterranean Gull calling overhead, but could not see the bird in the fog and the same goes for a Greenfinch flying over.

My Moth Box:

The Common Quaker was my second in my garden this year.

There were no Plume Moths this morning, but there were two ‘macro’ moths; a Hebrew Character and a Common Quaker. It is still early days yet with the Moths, but we should be getting a few different species very soon with the likes of Angle Shades and Early Grey. Who knows, maybe something rarer?

Also my second Hebrew Character of the year in my garden.

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

Thick fog when I arrived at Pembroke Road this morning. The Royal Garrison Church was only just visible in the gloom.

The beginning of the working week was a foggy one and I really didn't think I would see that much in Pembroke Road this morning; it was very foggy! The fog horns sounding off the Solent was so loud at times, even the school kids were wondering where the noise was coming from! The fog did lift a little while on my afternoon shift, but the Solent remained near invisible.

Despite the thick fog, I still notched up 11 species this morning and that included a singing Goldcrest in the Holm Oaks. I was hoping for a singing Chiffchaff this morning, but hopefully, one will be present later on this week. I have been keeping an eye out on the grassy areas for a possible Wheatear as a few already have been seen in Hampshire over the past week.

A further 4 more species were seen in the afternoon that included Starling, Black-headed Gull, Great Tit and Dunnock; the latter two species were both singing around by the Bowling Green.

In Hampshire today:

Not surprisingly, there were very few bird reports on both Hants Birding website and Birdguides in Hampshire today. But local birder, Mark Francis, found a 1st winter Little Gull at Hill Head. 

This superb Goshawk was photographed in the New Forest recently. Photos by Daz Gorman.

Yesterday, birding pal Geoff Farwell went to Bushy Copse, which is a woodland complex just south of Longwood Warren. From there, he had sightings of 7 singing Firecrest, a Blackcap, Marsh Tit, Siskin and 80+ Chaffinches. Last Saturday, while Andy Fisher and myself were enjoying Blashford Lakes, Geoff was down Farlington Marshes. From there, as well as doing the Wetland Bird Survey, he saw 120+ Avocets, Green Sandpiper, 100+ Med Gulls on the Deeps area, a Light-bellied Brent Goose (I wondered where it went!), singing Chiffchaff and he heard the Bearded Tits.

Adult Med Gulls over Hayling Oyster Beds. Photo by Andy Friend. These are virtually seen every day now flying over Southsea, with their distinctive 'mewing' calls heard overhead.