Peter Moore's Wildlife Blog: 2019: some Dorset highlights

Friday, 27 December 2019

2019: some Dorset highlights

Time for a series of posts looking back on the year about to end, starting with some memorable moments from the birding year in my home county of Dorset. I added just two species to my Dorset list this year, neither massively rare, but one, Bee-eater, sported a rare plumage and the other, Marsh Warbler, a rare voice. Title of rarity of the year for the county though went to the long-staying American Black Tern at Longham Lakes. This characterful juvenile entertained birders and photographers over a period of several weeks in the autumn.

American Black Tern at Longham Lakes - first record for Dorset

American Black Tern is currently regarded as a sub-species of the more familiar Black Tern

Bee-eater - one of seven in a flock at Durlston in May - an overdue Dorset tick

Marsh Warbler - this amazing mimic entertained visitors to Lodmoor in June

Marsh Warbler

Other notable county rarities in 2019 included an obliging Penduline Tit at Lodmoor, a brief Black-winged Stilt at Radipole, a drake Ring-necked Duck which matured into a fine specimen over the course of several months and an elusive Common Crane which was best seen waiting for it to fly in to roost at nearby Middlebere.

Penduline Tit, Lodmoor - February

Penduline Tit

Black-winged Stilt, Radipole Lake - May

Ring-necked Duck, Radipole - April

Common Crane, Middlebere - January

Red Kite, North Dorset - March

It was a good year for displaced waterfowl turning up in slightly unusual places around the county, including a juvenile White-fronted Goose which spent most of the winter of 2018-19 hanging out with Greylags around my local patch at Swineham. Usually distant, one afternoon it strayed close enough for a decent photograph. Towards the end of the year a Pink-footed Goose at the other end of the county in West Bay made for a good species pairing of the rarer (by Dorset standards) 'grey' geese for the year.

White-fronted Goose, Swineham - March

Pink-footed Goose, West Bay - October - nice to bump into Tom Brereton looking for this bird

Ruff at Lodmoor - March

A personal highlight for me was a close encounter with a drake Common Scoter, normally seen steaming past Portland Bill at some distance, on the calm waters of Radipole Lake. Photographing birds has always been an absorbing pass-time and this one turned up at a time when the distraction from 'real' life was most needed. A great morning with my good friend Jol Mitchell, followed by the quintessential birder's breakfast at Quiddles café in Chesil Cove. A few days later the two of us headed to Weymouth & Portland again and enjoyed another close encounter with a female of the same species at Ferrybridge.

Common Scoter (male), Radipole - September

Common Scoter (female), Ferrybridge - October

Common Scoter (female) Ferrybridge - October

Lesser Yellowlegs, Lodmoor - March

Most photogenic Dorset bird of the year was probably a long-staying Lapland Bunting at Portland Bill. I managed to pay it a visit during a spell of early morning sunshine as it scrabbled around in the dirt with a small group of admiring photographers. Second place went to another Portland special - a Short-eared Owl hunting the Bill slopes in broad daylight - and third to an unusually close Golden Plover at Maiden Castle.

Lapland Bunting, Portland Bill - October

Lapland Bunting

Short-eared Owl, Portland - February (thank Pete Coe for the loan of the lens!)

And finally, just the one patch tick this year - a Red-necked Grebe - reflective of the lack of effort expended on birding Swineham, which remained somewhat in the doldrums thanks to management practices which leave something to be desired. The creation of some new scrapes - currently indistinguishable from the rest of a very water-logged Frome Valley - offers some hope for an improvement in 2020.