RSPB Arne and Studland Bay 26th August 2016

RSPB Arne and Studland Bay 26th August 2016

One of the highlights of the rserve is not the cafe and shop which sits slightly uphill of the visitor centre. This used to belong to afarmer but they persuased him to move to a building a few hundred metres away so they could convert the farmhouse into a visitor cafe with shop and toilets. Apparently there had been a Nightjar roosting in a tree near the cafe and it had been roosting for a good length of time. THe bad news for us, though, was that it seemed to have moved off. Still it gave us an excuse to have a cup of tea while we scanned the trees for it.

Our search for a Dartford Warbler, unfruitfull in the New Forest, was surely going to be satisfied here where we spent most of the day. Well, it wasn’t to be despite looking long and hard. When we got going properly, we started on the Coombe Heath walk which is regarded as the best spot for Dartford Warblers. I perhaps got a millisecond glance of a bird of the right size and colour and in the right place but it was so brief that I could not regard it as a “tick”. Such is life. Again, these birds are easier to see earlier in the year when they have to display. However it was a warm, sunny day and we had a few hours of walking amidst the lowland heath that you just don’t get up north.

Looking backwards from one of the viewpoints overlooking Middlebere Lake we saw a what looked like a bird of prey on a dead tree in the far distance. The scope at full stretch indicated that it was an Osprey, so when we had completed the Coombe Heath walk we took the spur to the “seasonal Raptor Hide”. The “seasonal” part probably means that the track reverts to marsh every winter but the going wss good underfoot. When we eventually got to the hide (it is a long way down the path) we could see the bird a little better but it was still rather distant. We had had many better views of an Osprey recently so we did not spend too much time before walking back up to the visitor centre for another cup of tea.

After refreshments we took a walk in the other direction, towards the sea and Shipstal Beach taking an add mixture of the “short north trail” and the ” short south trail” It was a lovely walk with interesting views of Arne Bay but not very productive of birds. Eventually we needed a break so we returned to the car and set off for Studland Bay.

This too was a bit quiet for birding but we did get a good Raven kronking above and a nice group of Sand Martins. It was really hot byu now so we enjoyed an ice lolly before heading back home. Like so many of our days so far on this holiday, we had been a bit disappointed by the lack of birds but the environment is so interesting and beautiful that we were hard pressed to feel disappointed in any way.

Bird Sightings : RSPB Arne

Bird Sightings : Studland Bay