Building a non-motorised list of birds seen during the calendar year has become a bit of an obsession for me over the last 5 years. So once again in 2025 I set out with high hopes of beating my 2021 record of 224 species seen travelling under my own steam (on foot or by bike). Despite my best efforts, each year since then I have ended the year with a consecutively lower total - 222 in 2022, 218 in 2023 and a dismal 209 in 2024.
A number of factors have played into these apparently diminishing returns, of which I like to think sloth is the least important. First, looking back 2021 was a very good year for birds in Dorset - an excellent spring for overshoots, an ok autumn for migrants and a late cold snap which delivered an exceptional 9 new species for the yearlist in December. Second, the slightly more subjective matter of luck - everything I went for seemed to stick, to an extent that it hasn't really done since. Third, the hangover of the pandemic meant that spending most days working from home meant more opportunities to get out on the bike after work. And fourth, there is the delicate matter of my advancing years - it turns out that cycling 2-3,000 miles a year is a lot easier when you're 52 than when you're 56!
In truth, conditioning and effort do have some part to play - I was doing a lot more cycling for cycling's sake back then, whereas now it's more restricted to birding trips. So as the year began, I didn't really think a shot at the record was likely, but I thought I would be happy if I could at least buck the trend of perennial decline in the year list since the heady days of 2021.
January - 157.87 miles cycled, 99 species added to the yearlist
The New Year started as the old one ended with a quick dart to see the obliging Snow Bunting at Hamworthy Park which was first located on New Year's Eve. The weather was foul but it blew the cobwebs off after a party the night before. A couple of days later on 3rd Jan in better conditions a fruitful trip to Studland added potentially tricky species including Long-tailed Duck and Eider, and the following day I made my way the opposite way around Poole Harbour where a Purple Sandpiper was on the groynes at Sandbanks and a Black-throated Diver was off Whitecliff Park. I didn't have to wait long for my first bike tick of 2025 with a Lesser Scaup at Longham Lakes.
My first long distance run of the year came on 25th, when I headed for Abbotstbury Swannery, picking up a bonus Marsh Tit and Goosander en route. On arrival at the Swannery, there was no sign of either the long-staying, presumed escape Whooper Swan nor its wild congener which had been keeping it company for the winter. After a couple of hours watching distantly from New Barn Road I was getting cold and losing hope, but then a bout of honking revealed the presence of the Whoopers which had been hiding behind a bush! On the way back I detoured via Chickerell for a Glossy Ibis to cap a good day.
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| Photo of the month: Snow Bunting, Hamworthy, 4th January |
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| Bird of the month: Lesser Scaup, Longham Lakes, 25th January |
February:156.67 miles cycled, 22 species added to the yearlist
Progress continued in February even without the bike as Short-eared Owl, Barnacle Goose and Jack Snipe were all seen within walking distance of home but a long-distance dip for Hawfinch at a chilly Wytchampton on the 9th was disappointing. The disappointment was overcome the following weekend when another Hawfinch played ball in the churchyard at Lytchett Matravers - a site which I had checked out on the way home from Wytchampton, but clearly not thoroughly enough! The month ended on a bit of a low with another long distance dip - this time to Maiden Newton, where the usually reliable Dipper failed to put in an appearance despite a four hour vigil on the banks of the Frome.
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| Photo of the month: Grey Wagtail, Maiden Newton, 22nd February |
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| Bird of the month: Hawfinch, Lytchett Matravers, 15th February |
March: 230.32 miles, 24 species added to the yearlist
March got off to a flyer with a second trip to Maiden Newton for Dipper on 1st, this time successful, and later that evening I hobbled down to Swineham where a Bittern at dusk rounded off another good day. Ring-necked Parakeet has been pretty reliable at Studland since I started yearlisting by bike but the flock seemed to have dwindled to a single bird by the turn of the year. I caught up with it hiding in a hole several miles from Studland on 9th! Early spring migrants started turning up from mid-month, one of the best of which was a very early Dotterel which saw me tearing down to Ferrybridge to enjoy intimate views. Frustratingly I was at work when the Forster's Tern returned to Arne for the third year running but after a brief sojourn in Lancashire it was reported on Brownsea on 31st March. That was enough to tempt me into the short run to Shipstal Point at Arne that evening in the hope it would put in an appearance - and it did.
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| Photo of the month: Dotterel, Ferrybridge, 28th March |
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| Bird of the month: Forster's Tern, Arne, 31st March |
April: 257.56 miles cycled, 35 species added to the yearlist
April started well with a patch tick in the form of a Pink-footed Goose on 3rd - a rare bird in Dorset - which I relocated at Swineham after it was seen earlier in the day in flight over Lytchett Bay. Two days later I implemented a long-standing plan to add Lesser Spotted Woodpecker to the year list for the first time since 2021. This involved an early start to a nippy New Forest where a female eventually performed for the camera. Little Gull at Blashford Lakes on the way home was an added reward for my efforts.
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| Photo of the month: Corn Bunting, St Aldhelm's Head, 21st April |
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| Bird of the month: Pink-footed Goose, Swineham, 17th April |
My first serious seawatch took me to Portland Bill on 14th and produced a good haul for the yearlist - Little Tern and Little Owl were expected, but my first Puffin of 2025 was unexpected and my first Great Skua since 2022 was a huge bonus. I found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time on 17th when a pair of Cranes were reported on my home patch at Swineham as I drove back through the New Forest. Fortunately one of them hung around long enough for me to catch up with it. Another seawatch at the end of the month added Arctic Skua to the yearlist but not much more. Work commitments meant I didn't even get to go for a 'one night only' Little Bittern on the River Stour on 24th - an incident which had me wishing away the years to retirement!
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| Other April highlights: Crane, Swineham, 17th April |
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| Other April highlights: Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, New Forest, 5th April |
May: 398.14 miles cycled, 16 species added to the yearlist
The seawatching theme continued into May with a trip to Durlston on 1st which added the third skua species of the year - Pomarine - and the first Manx Shearwater. I was mid-way through cooking a Sunday roast on 5th May when news broke of a White-fronted Goose on the patch at Swineham. Not wanting to ruin the Yorkshire puddings I hooned it down and back, discovering in the process that it's possible to twitch Swineham Point from home in 20 minutes. 10th May was a red-letter day when a couple of Stone Curlew were found by Phil Saunders at St Aldhelm's Head. Seeing them involved abandoning a bike ride to Normandy Marsh and the chance of both Roseate Tern and Woodchat Shrike at the 20 mile mark, jumping on the train at Christchurch and returning home to re-set the journey clock before heading to the Purbeck coast for a coveted bike tick.
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| Photo of the month: Nightingale, undisclosed location, 9th May |
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| Bird of the month: Stone Curlew, St Aldhelm's Head, 10th May |
My most easterly trip of the year took me to Acres Down in the New Forest on 24th May where I was please to catch up with a Wood Warbler - an increasingly rare bird in the south. By contrast my most northerly trip of the year saw me heading back to Martin Down on the Dorset/Hampshire border on 28th where a purring Turtle Dove was followed by a (heard only) Quail at Tarrant Rushton airfield on the way home, pointed out by Rich Stephenson as he bombed around on his e-bike. May wasn't all plain sailing though and a Bee-eater at Durlston caused a bit of heartache by doing a bunk when I was just a few miles away.
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Other May highlights: Bearded Tit, Swineham, 14th May
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| Other May highlights: Russian White-fronted Goose, Swineham, 6th May |
June: 90.54 miles cycled, 3 specie added to the yearlist
The only new birds added to the yearlist in June all came on the same day - 8th June. My main target was a Sooty Shearwater which had been seen consistently off Portland Bill for most of the previous week. An early start was therefore required and as I rolled down towards the Bill just before 0800, the ping of a text alerted me to a sighting of Bee-eater along the east cliffs some time before my arrival. Just as I was thinking 'well that could be in France by now' I heard a 'bloop' and there, sat in a bush next to the road, was a spanking multi-coloured Bee-eater! Flushed with success I pressed on to the Bill where a few Balearic Shearwater were new for the year. The Sooty took a bit longer to see but was eventually picked up by James Lowther and we watched it bob away on the tide.
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| Photo of the month: House Sparrows bred in my Wareham garden - at least the Swift nest boxes are getting some use! |
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| Bird of the month: Bee-eater, Portland Bill, 8th June |
July: 120.12 miles cycled, 3 species added to the yearlist
I usually pick an overcast, still day in July to look for Golden Pheasants on the Furzey Island slipway, viewed distantly from Redhorn on Studland, but for the first time in the modern era there were no sightings of this species in Purbeck this year, so I made just one half-hearted attempt. More positively, July brought another bike tick in the form of a Purple Heron on 18th. It took a couple of attempts, but eventually appeared at dusk coming in to roost at Little Sea on Studland. Bouyed by this result, and despite the late finish, I was up early the following morning to look (successfully as it turned out) for Grasshopper Warblers with Garry Hayman near Swanage. Yellow-legged Gull at Swineham the next day completed a hat-trick of year ticks in consecutive days.
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| Bird of the month: Purple Heron, Little Sea, Studland, 18th July |
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| Photo of the month: not a great picture, but a nice comparison of Yellow-legged, Lesser Black-backed and Herring Gull, Swineham, 20th July |
August: 189.31 miles cycled, 3 species added to the yearlist
This pattern continued into August with Yellow Wagtail (St Aldhelm's), Wryneck (Wareham Forest) and Black Tern (Blashford Lakes) on 23rd, 24th and 25th respectively.
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| Bird of the month: Wryneck, Wareham Forest, 24th August |
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| Photo of the month: Spotted Flycatcher, Swineham, 27th August |
September: 197.33 miles cycled, 5 species added to the yearlist
September got off to a flyer with an after work dash to Ferrybridge adding Grey Phalarope and a sadly moribund Arctic Tern to the yearlist. A bit of low hanging fruit remained to be plucked later that month in the form of Knot (Ferrybridge), Little Stint (Swineham) and a couple of Ring Ouzel (Middlebere), having failed to catch up with the latter species in the spring.
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| Bird of the month: a rather poignant choice as this Arctic Tern at Ferrybridge on 1st September was later taken into care but didn't make it through the night |
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| Photo of the month: Whinchat, St Aldhelm's Head, 6th September |
October: 59.55 miles cycled, 2 species added to the yearlist
To maintain the not-far-off-record pace which I had set by this point I would need a good October but sadly it wasn't to be - I didn't miss much whilst away in Shetland for the first week of the month, and although the discovery of a Baikal Teal at Abbostbury offered the chance of a bike tick - I eventually saw it on 18th - it was one of only two additions to the yearlist during the month.
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| Bird of the month: Baikal Teal, Abbotsbury, 18th October |
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| Photo of the month: Common Sandpiper, Abbotsbury, 18th October |
November: 97.56 miles cycled, 2 species added to the yearlist
November repeated the pattern of October being a victory of quality of quantity - Pallas's Warbler in Swanage and Desert Wheatear at the Bridging Camp near Chickerell being the only new birds for the year, the latter being a bike tick. Less positively, I experienced a painful dip for the Pine Bunting found at St Aldhelm's Head by Phil Saunders later in the month.
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Bird of the month: Desert Wheatear, Bridging Camp, 29th November
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| Photo of the month: Desert Wheatear, Bridging Camp, 29th November |
December: 90.02 miles cycled, 5 new species for the yearlist
By December, although relatively 'easy' species like Merlin, Woodcock, Scaup and Velvet Scoter remained to be seen, it became pretty clear that I was not going to beat my 2021 record, and I began to rue missed opportunities to catch up with Pied Flycatcher, Honey Buzzard, Roseate Tern and Woodchat Shrike earlier in the year which might have put me within striking distance. I did eventually catch up with a Velvet Scoter at Jerry's Point, though only at the cost of wet feet as it required me to negotiate a section of National Cycle Route 2 near Greenlands Farm, passage through which now appears to be literally tidal!
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| Bird of the month: Smew, Brands Bay, 31st December |
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| Photo of the month: Greenshank, Redhorn Point, 31st December |
Just as the year seemed to be fizzling out, a late cold snap brought things back to life and got me and others out searching again as a wave of rare geese starting appearing across the country. I found a small flock of 5 White-fronted Geese at Swineham on Christmas Eve (not a year tick thanks to the Swineham bird in May) and then relocated a previously mobile flock of 6 Tundra Bean Geese in a field near Ridge on Boxing Day (with a 38 strong flock of White-fronts) which became a mecca for geese with 6 species visiting over the next few days. The Beans brought the yearlist to 216, just two short of my 2023 total, so on 30th Jol Mitchell and I headed out in the cold and dark on a successful search for Woodcock. Rob Johnson's sighting of a Scaup at Studland earlier that day inspired me to try one last roll of the dice on New Year's Eve.
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| Other December highlights: Russian White-fronted Goose, Ridge, 28th December |
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| Other December highlights: Tundra Bean Geese, Ridge, 26th December |
I set off early on the bike into the bitter cold and by the time I reached Studland my toes felt positively frostbitten. On reaching Jerry's Point I was struggling to get warm despite a change of clothes. There was no sign of the Scaup, and a stiff breeze was rattling my scope - with that and shivering I was on the point of giving up when Phil Bentley arrived and the ensuing conversation helped take my mind off the cold, and with some welcome company and an extra pair of eyes I resolved to persevere.
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| Redhead Smew over Redhorn Point, New Year's Eve |
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| Drake Smew over Redhorn Point, New Year's Eve |
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| Drake Smew over Redhorn Point, New Year's Eve |
Before Phil arrived I had seen a tiny duck-shaped white dot way over in front of the Goathorn peninsula, and although Smew did briefly cross my mind, I'm ashamed to say I threw it away as with the distance and the tripod shake I couldn't stay on it or indeed rule out Aylesbury Duck! Fast forward 10 minutes, by when we had been joined by Graham Armstrong, and Phil said 'Hang on, is this a Smew?'. He directed me on to the bird which was roughly where I had seen my white dot but now a fair bit closer. Just as Graham and I were coming to the same conclusion that it was indeed a drake Smew, I found myself saying 'Yes it is - and there's a redhead with it!' So having thrown away the drake, at least I could still claim a find of Smew for the day!
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| Scaup from Jerry's Point - my last year tick of 2025 on New Year's Eve |
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| Avocet, Redhorn Point, New Year's Eve |
We relocated to Redhorn Point where views were closer and the light was kinder. The Smew proved to be very popular with the locals and caused quite a twitch, including one local mariner who literally abandoned ship to get it on his year list! To cap a brilliant day the same man overboard then relocated the Scaup - my final year tick of 2025 bringing the total to a respectable 219. A Merlin on the way home would have been nice to get me to 220 but the cold was returning and to be perfectly honest I just wanted to get home to a warm house so I didn't look that hard!
All in all then, it was not a bad year for the non-motorised yearlist - 219 species were seen (214 in Dorset, the rest in Hampshire) including 7 'bike ticks' (Lesser Scaup, Pink-footed Goose, Stone Curlew, Crane, Purple Heron, Baikal Teal and Desert Wheatear) and 2,054 miles cycled. Many thanks are due to the friends and strangers who found good birds for me to chase - even if it dragged me out on cold, wet days into gale force winds, it was still appreciated. As I said at the start of this post, it's not getting any easier, and I briefly considered giving myself a break from year-listing by bike in 2026 - but with all these wintering geese around I fear temptation will be too great so come back soon to see how I get on...
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| White-fronted and Bean Geese, Ridge, 26th December (click to enlarge) |
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