My year list is a bit of a curates egg so far. Before today it was 234, which is pretty good and my third highest July total. There are some big gaps (Scotland specialities, redstart, long-tailed duck....) so I took the chance to have a swing down to the south coast to top it up a bit. There were two main targets, both of which would be "second in the country" ticks. The first was a whiskered tern at Fishlake meadows near Southampton. My only other one was last May at Abbotsbury when I managed to combine a visit to see my mother-in-law with a twitch! I've had a chequered history at Fishlake, dipping a caspian tern , purple heron and osprey there before. It's a funny old site, very large but with quite challenging viewing options. The main sites for the terns, including this one, are two small areas down a slope off the main road. Not so much a viewing area as a gap in the trees, with room for only about 5 birders. I parked up in the housing estate opposite, eschewing the carpark which is 30 minutes walk away. I later discovered a "map" pointing to this on my car left by a disgruntled local who is apparently fed up with birders parking on "his" public road. Anyway, a 3 minute walk and a scramble down the bank got me to the point where I could see the lake.
As you can see, its pretty challenging but the tern had been faithful to this area for a few days so I was hopeful. First up, all I could see was a very large number of egrets and herons, including four or five great white egrets, a strangely common sight nowadays!
By now two other birders had joined me and we scanned the lake for any sign of the tern. After 10 minutes I got onto one flying very distantly at the back of the lake, way too far off to be identifiable though. After another wait it returned and this time decided to come nearer and perch on a dead tree. This enabled us to positively identify it as the whiskered tern.
Whiskered terns are closely related to the marsh-terns (black tern etc) rather than the common or Arctic terns we see most frequently. They are notable for their swallow-like flight picking insects off the surface as well as eating fish and small amphibians. They are normally to be found much further south, in Spain or Italy or across to Asia. They are bulkier than black terns and, as you can see in the photo, have a very strong, dark-red bill.
The demarkation line of the black cap is very pronounced and its belly even at distance showed as being dusky black. It spent most of its time just sitting on trees, mainly at some distance away, but every 20 minutes would have a fly around for something to eat, never coming more than halfway across the lake towards us.
It was now getting close to 9.30 and with the rush-hour traffic hopefully subsiding I called it a day here and went for my second target, a squacco heron. This was another bird which had been around for quite a few days, this time in a ditch near Shoreham. My only previous UK bird was ages ago, 2011, near Nottingham in a rainstorm! I was hopeful this one would be a bit easier. Following excellent directions from the CT WhatsAppp group I parked up near the farm and had a 10 minute walk across some fields to a river bank where 10 birders were 'scoping a wet area in the field.
Behind us was tidal salt-marsh and the bank marked the dividing line.
What was immediately noticeable was the sheer number of herons and egrets around - both little and cattle egrets as well as grey herons.
You can see why the squacco would like it here! Anyway, the birders on site said it has been showing only 5 minutes before in a patch of reeds straight out from us. I got my 'scope on the area and waited. After 15 minutes I could see a buffy-coloured shape moving at the back.
Not the best views but enough to make it out as the squacco heron. This is another waif and stray in this country, normally found in southern Europe or there coast of northern Africa, where it is relatively common. It is a small bird, much smaller even than a little egret.
Its buffy colouration and crest together with its broad beak mark it out. I spent over an hour watching it, during which time it followed a clear pattern. Stand in one place for ages not moving whilst waiting for something to come nearby that it could eat.
If that didn't work, fly a short distance to another place and try again.
and then repeat this again!!! Despite there being lots of egrets around it seemed to not like them and chased them off if they came close. It only tolerated a couple of godwits and a gull to be near it.
Finally it flew, not far but round the corner in the ditch and out of sight. I took that as a sign to leave and headed back to the car.
A good two-tick day with a couple of very good birds. Some nice craic with the other birders and I managed to get home before it got too hot!
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