Roasting with a Roseate

The start of the recent heatwave seemed as good a time as any to do a 50+mile bike ride to Portland. In truth, I hadn't really planned to go that far, but when the dice fell my way last Saturday morning my sense of adventure took over. 

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

The day started badly with me sleeping through a 0500 alarm and waking instead at 0600. The plan was to make an early start and beat both the heat and the traffic to Lodmoor, where Roseate Terns - a highly desirable addition to my non-motorised year list - had been appearing sporadically all week. I was out of the house by 0615 and set myself a target of completing the 17 mile journey to Lodmoor by 0730, the time at which a Roseate Tern was reported as flying out to sea the previous morning having been on the reserve earlier.  

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

I just about met my target arrival time, requiring a respectable average of 13.5mph to be maintained in the rising heat of early morning. I needn't have rushed though as when I pulled up to the viewing shelter a few others had already been looking for Roseate Terns without success. But I was prepared to devote all morning to the search if needed, and the shelter at least provided some respite from the baking sun and a cool concrete bench on which to perch. 

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

It was a treat to watch the comings and goings of the Common Tern colony, which seems to have had a decent breeding season judging by the number of newly-fledged birds flying around. But there was no sign of a Roseate. Every now and then the colony would take to their air, 'shuffling the pack' and giving the three of us still scanning renewed hope. After a couple of hours of this, and yet another shuffle, Chris Courtaux picked out a dark-billed tern at the back of the scrape - Roseate!

Common Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

Common Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

The Tern did a bit of wing-stretching, treated us to a fly around and extended views on the deck before eventually flying out towards Weymouth Bay. Time for a decision then: call it a day and head back, or head to Portland Bill and try to add Balearic Shearwater to the year list? I was feeling pretty fresh and, with panniers well stocked with fluids and food, decided on the latter. 

Common Tern (juv), Lodmoor, 17th July

Common Tern (juv), Lodmoor, 17th July

It was another 10 miles to the Bill, and arriving in the peak heat of the day would not be ideal timing for a seawatch. But, despite the obligatory Weymouth puncture slowing progress momentarily, I was committed so pressed on. Stopping to see what a guy was filming, I jammed in on another Roseate Term, but it had moved on before I could even get the camera out.

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

Roseate Tern, Lodmoor, 17th July

The climb up to Portland Heights was rewarded with a sighting of a Chalkhill Blue, and after pausing for a few photos of that I was setting up the scope by the famous obelisk shortly after noon. The seawatching was uneventful, but eventually Harbour Porpoise became the first and only entry on my cetaceans-seen-by-bike list. A large feeding frenzy of gulls on the edge of the race provided the only other interest, but they were too far out to identify anything to species level, let alone pick out a Shearwater.

Chalkhill Blue on Portland

Chalkhill Blue on Portland

After a couple of hours it became apparent that the gull flock was coming closer, requiring a higher level of scrutiny than I had previously given it. The scrutiny paid off as a dusky brown, pot-bellied Shearwater soon appeared among the thronging larids - Balearic! Number 195 for the non-motorised year list had been added, and the Balearic became the 3rd addition to the year list for the difficult month of July.

Marbled White on Portland

Chalkhill Blue (male) on Portland