NEWSLETTER Spring 2018 Editor: Tony Bates

Transcription

1 NEWSLETTER Spring 2018 Editor: Tony Bates RSPB New Forest Local Group FRANCHISES LODGE The RSPB now has a reserve within the boundaries of the New Forest National Park. The 953 acres Franchises Lodge reserve is at the northern edge of the New Forest and in the county of Wiltshire. The area was acquired in two tranches, a gift to the nation, the Moffatt Reserve, which is the largest single gift from a living donor received by the RSPB, and a land purchase made possible through a legacy that specified it was for land purchase. The National Park Authority and Friends of the New Forest also contributed to the land purchase. The reserve lies north of Roger Penny Way (B3078) and includes Franchises Wood, Cloven Hill Plantation and Pimlico Bottom. The area is largely woodland, comprising both broad-leaved woodland and conifer plantation. The site is important because it provides and bridge between the protected areas of the open forest, Loosehanger Copse and Langley Wood. Parts of the site are designated as SSSIs on account of their lichen population, but still a lot is still to be learned about the other flora and fauna that inhabit the area. As little is known about the nature and it has not had public access for many years, it is being regarded as a secret forest. In relation to birds, we do know that there is a good range of woodland bird species using the site, including firecrest, wood warbler, hawfinch and goshawk. As there are no facilities on site yet, there will be no public access other than organised visits for some time, but there are public rights of way traversing the site, including part of Black Lane.

2 What does this mean for the local group? The RSPB staff will need volunteer help in managing the reserve and to undertake surveys of the flora and fauna, help guide organised visits, help with habitat management rhodiebashing, and so on. The RSPB New Forest Local Group field trip on Tuesday, 22 May 2018 will start at Telegraph Hill car park and follow a virtual circumnavigation of the reserve on public rights of way. This walk has an early start, 7.00 am to allow us to better hear the spring woodland birdsong. RSPB will be developing its management plan over the coming months when more is known about the area, but in principle will focussing on maintaining the existing broad-leaved woodland, enhancing areas of wood pasture and recreating open heath. Meet the RSPB Site Manager in the pub Please come and meet us in the pub to chat and ask us questions about the site. We will have maps of the reserve to show you and will answer any questions you may have. Please just drop in, no booking necessary Thursday 26 April: Woodfalls Inn, Woodfalls, 19:30-20:30 Thursday 10 May: Lamb Inn, Nomansland, 19:30-20:30 Meet the RSPB team on site Meet us on site near the entrance to the reserve to have a chat, ask us questions about the site and we will point out how you can explore further and what to look out for. Also, there will be an opportunity for a short guided walk off the rights of way to explore the habitats and species. The walk will be slow paced, and cover a short distance, but may be muddy so wellies or walking boots will be needed. Due to limited parking availability please book by calling Nick Tomalin, Site Manager, on Dates: Friday 27 April, Saturday 28 April, Friday 11 May or Saturday 12 May Chat from 10:30 to Walk starts at return by 15:30.

3 DATE WITH NATURE IN THE NEW FOREST A Date With Nature is now running again at the New Forest Reptile Centre. The event is a collaboration between the RSPB, the New Forest National Park Authority, the Forestry Commission and Carnyx Wild. The nestcam display has run daily from the beginning of April to the end of August, 10 am to 4.30 pm, since It is planned to have a live webcam on the nest of a pair of goshawks and we are keeping an eye on a nest where a male goshawk has made some preparation and a female has shown some interest. At the time the project began on 30 March the female had not yet settled but egg laying usually takes place at the beginning of April, so we are hopeful that the live feed will begin in April. The nestcams let you witness the family life of this secretive species, up close and personal, from egg to first flight. Each year brings new surprises and species and a team of volunteers is on hand to help you learn about bird behaviour. Also, there is an interactive touchscreen display on New Forest birds; perfect for children (or even adults) who want to know more about the species that call the New Forest home. Based at the New Forest Reptile Centre, this Date with Nature is also home to every native species of lizard, snake, frog and toad in the UK! Come and meet them - you'll be able to see them all in special reptile 'pods. If you re lucky you might even arrive for feeding time! There are miles of nature trails to explore too: keep your eyes peeled for deer, squirrels, mice and the notorious New Forest ponies as you wander the site, or stop for a picnic near the bird feeders and marvel at the flashes of colour as tiny birds come searching for treats. During the school holidays, we also offer Wild Wednesdays, a midweek arts and craft session for children, where they can get creative with the RSPB, Forestry Commission and New Forest National Park Authority. Come and make something to help you and the kids get closer to nature. This year, the New Forest Local Group will be running Date with Nature on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. There are still opportunities for volunteers to get involved as we are still short of people to help on Wednesdays, in particular. Live images at: For further information and highlights from previous raptorcams and carcasscams visit

4 GARDEN BIRD SURVEY October to December 2017 In the last report for July to September, I mentioned that the figures for long-tailed tits had shown a considerable increase when compared to the same quarter in A few days after I had sent out that report, I received the BTO Garden Birdwatch report, which also mentioned an increase in long-tailed tits in our gardens and speculated that the wet weather in the summer may have driven them onto our feeders. Our autumn figures for our survey show that for us the trend of an increase in long-tailed tits has continued: long-tailed tits were seen in 97% of our gardens in the autumn compared to 78% in the summer and 87% in autumn 2016; for the birdweeks figures for this quarter we had 54.3% compared to 35.8% last summer and 26.6% for autumn I have certainly noticed an increase in long-tailed tits in my garden and initially put it down to some hedge and shrub removal nearby, but it does seem to be a wider trend and definitely a pleasure to see these delightful little bumbarrels * so regularly. Other species that showed increases since last year were: house sparrows, goldfinch, coal tit and pied wagtail. Chaffinches were seen in the same number of gardens but less regularly, whereas greenfinches were seen in fewer gardens but fairly regularly. Nationally, greenfinch numbers are struggling because of the trichomonosis disease but locally we don t seem to be suffering quite so badly. Jackdaws were seen a little less often as were great spotted woodpeckers which fell from 60% of gardens to 51%. However one lady reported having six great spots in her garden at the same time but also confessed to having six nut feeders! Sparrowhawks visited 40% of our gardens and nearly as many (37%) recorded goldcrests. Whilst we hope to see the occasional goldcrest in our garden, this quarter three people had a firecrest; a few years ago this would have been very surprising but recent surveys in the forest have shown that firecrest numbers are increasing and so we all now need to look for the broad white supercilium and dark eyestripe which distinguishes the species. Late summer visitors seen were chiffchaff, garden warbler and blackcap, although some of these do overwinter. Winter visitors were redwing, fieldfare and brambling but in very small numbers. Some of us don t see many different species in our gardens but we had a record this quarter with one person seeing 38 different species followed by another person with 36! Other species reported during the quarter were goldcrest and stock dove (8 gardens); siskin (7); bullfinch and redwing (6); marsh tit, grey wagtail, rook, jay, herring gull, tree creeper and tawny owl (5); feral pigeon, chiffchaff, blackcap and pheasant (4); firecrest (3); mistle thrush, brambling and grey heron (2); garden warbler, fieldfare, reed bunting, kestrel and common buzzard (1 garden each). *Bumbarrel old Hampshire name for long-tailed tit!

5 Table 1: Percent/Birdweeks Table 2: Percent/Birdgardens 1 Blackbird Robin Wood pigeon Blue tit Dunnock Great tit Magpie House sparrow Goldfinch Coal tit Starling Collared dove Long-tailed tit Chaffinch Greenfinch Nuthatch Carrion crow Wren Gt spotted woodpecker Song thrush Jackdaw Pied wagtail Stock dove Feral pigeon Black-headed gull Blackbird Robin Blue tit Great tit Wood pigeon Coal tit Long-tailed tit Dunnock Goldfinch Magpie Collared dove Starling Wren House sparrow Song thrush Chaffinch Carrion crow Greenfinch Nuthatch Pied wagtail Gt spotted woodpecker Jackdaw Sparrowhawk Black-headed gull Green woodpecker The percentage figure in Table 1 is calculated by adding the percentage of weeks that each observer records any species and dividing by the number of observers. If an observer records a species for 9 weeks in a 12 week period this is 75% for that observer. If the total of all the percentages for 50 observers is 3000 this gives a percent/birdweeks figure of 60. If half of the observers each record a species for half of the weeks we would get 25% for the percent/birdweeks figure. of recorders and multiplied by 100. The percent/birdgardens figure is simply the number of gardens in which a species has been recorded divided by the number The last column in each table gives the corresponding rank position for the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

6 UPCOMING FIELD TRIPS If possible, please car share, particularly on the more distant visits. Ordnance survey grid references are given below for car parking areas for the field trips. If you want to convert these to co-ordinates or post codes for your SatNav, enter them into Winterbourne Downs Tuesday, 10 April 2018 This is our first visit to the reserve since it was opened to the public. We are hoping for farmland birds and spring migrants as well as spring flowers. Park in the reserve car park at SU Durlston Country Park Monday, 23 April 2018 It s a few years since our last visit to Durlston which can be a good site for Dartford warbler, stonechat, fulmar, peregrine falcon and guillemot. At this time of year, the early spider orchids should be in flower. Meet at Durlston Country Park car park at SZ Pulborough Brooks Saturday 5 May 2018 A spring visit to RSPB Pulborough Brooks is a chance to see and hear nightingales and migrant warblers, also there may be hobby hawking for insects. Meet at the reserve car park at TQ Garston Wood Friday 11 May On this our first visit to this RSPB reserve, we are hoping for woodland birds in full song. Parking is very limited, so please car share if possible. Parking at the car park on Dean Lane at SO This has been entered in the programme as a full day visit (10.00am to 3.00 pm) but it is unlike we will want to spend that long at the reserve, which has no facilities. We may therefore make a second stop at another site, possibly Martin Down. Telegraph Hill Tuesday, 22 May 2018 This is an opportunity to have a look at the new RSPB Franchises Lodge Reserve. Starting at 7.00 am, the plan is to slowly circumnavigate the reserve on public rights of way, listening for singing woodland birds including treecreeper, nuthatch, woodpecker (could there be lesser spotted present?), goshawk, firecrest, goldcrest and, possibly, wood warbler. Telegraph Hill car

7 park, at SU , is small, so please prepare to park close to other cars and block in other members of the group. Martin Down Wednesday, 6 June 2018 Our annual pilgrimage to Martin Down in search of turtle dove and corn bunting. The area is also good for scarce butterflies such as small blue, Adonis blue and marsh fritillary and orchids including bee, burnt tip, greater butterfly, common spotted and fragrant. Meet at the end of Sillens Lane, west of Martin Village, at SU Goatspen Plain Saturday 16 June 2018 This is the day of our summer social at the Anderwood BBQ site at SU Meet at 6.30 pm for the BBQ, contribution of 3.00 per head towards the cost of fuel and hiring the site. Bring your own food to cook and share. We ll tidy up the site at 8.30 pm and head off at about 8.45 for Goathead Plain car park at SU , where we will hope to hear and see churring nightjars. TRIP REPORTS Blashford Lakes Friday, 12 January 2018 A good turnout of members saw 26 of us gathering outside the Tern Hide at Blashford Lakes. The weather was overcast but dry and not too cold. We started our trip by crossing the road onto the woodland side of the reserve, stopping to watch a flock of goldfinches and chaffinches foraging on the ground by the parking area and spotting two song thrushes on the open ground that more usually holds mistle thrushes. Robin and blue tit were in song heralding the somewhat distant spring and snowdrops were in flower alongside the path. Tits and finches were active in the trees and an unseen woodpecker was calling. As it was a large group, we split into two to visit the Woodland and South Ivy Lake Hides, swapping places after half an hour. The feeders at the Woodland Hide were attracting a range of birds including blue, great, coal and long-tailed tits, siskin, chaffinch and greenfinch, great spotted woodpecker, nuthatch, jackdaw, reed bunting and woodpigeon with a male brambling probably being the star bird. Bank vole scurried around under the feeders. Meanwhile, those at Ivy South were treated to a fleeting view of Walter, the great white egret that has been

8 visiting for the past twelve years, along with goosander, gadwall, wigeon, teal, shoveler, tufted duck, pochard, cormorant, mute swan, great and little grebe. On changeover between the hides, a kingfisher was spotted flying into bushes and it remained to give an opportunity for people from both groups to see it. Ivy North Hide provided some good views of a water rail and glimpses of the great white egret and distant telescope views of a green sandpiper. We ambled back to the Tern Hide for lunch and spent the afternoon in the hides overlooking Ibsley Water. From Tern Hide there was already a large gathering of lesser black-backed gulls, with a few herring, common and blackheaded gulls amongst them. A few goldeneyes were diving for food, including one male. Canada and greylag geese were on the far side of the gravel pit as was a very large flock of lapwing and a few black-tailed godwits. Duck species included a few pintail, but otherwise was similar to Ivy Lake. A small group of fallow deer were disturbed as we walked to the hides. A water pipit was seen from Goosander Hide and from Lapwing there was a group of 19 goosanders around the end of a spit. As the afternoon wore on the numbers in the gull roost increased but we were unable to pick out any of the rarer species. Species list: Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Canada Goose, Wigeon, Gadwall, Teal, Mallard, Pintail, Shoveler, Pochard, Tufted Duck, Goldeneye, Goosander, Cormorant, Great Egret, Grey Heron, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Water Rail, Moorhen, Coot, Lapwing, Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit, Green Sandpiper, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Wood Pigeon, Kingfisher, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Magpie, Jay, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Goldcrest, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Nuthatch, Wren, Starling, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Redwing, Robin, Dunnock, Pied Wagtail, Water Pipit, Chaffinch, Brambling, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Siskin, Bullfinch, Reed Bunting Poole Harbour Bird Boat Sunday, 21 January 2018 Despite heavy rain and with more and continuous rain forecast, 19 people joined the boat at Poole Quay. Several people were wearing their sailing heavy weather gear rather than their usual birdwatching green. The boat headed firstly to Brownsea Island where we landed to visit the Wildlife Trusts hides and explore the island. Several shag and red-

9 breasted merganser were see on the way out. Avocet, dunlin, black-tailed godwit and other waders were seen feeding in the shallows while a number of duck species were present. As we didn't stay as a group, each person's experience was different. A red squirrel was seen by most people visiting some bird feeders. After the stop on the island, many headed below for hot chocolate or coffee, while those that remained on deck saw goldeneye, spoonbill, guillemot and several more shag. Hayling Oyster Beds Saturday, 3 February 2018 With a chilly weather forecast oscillating between light rain and heavy rain, it is unsurprising that only 5 people braved the elements to drive down to Haying Island. The tide was low but rising and there were a number of species feeding on the mudflats in front of the car park, including Brent geese, grey plover, oystercatcher, redshank, curlew and dunlin. Out in the harbour red-breasted mergansers and great crested grebes could be seen through the haze and drizzle and a flock of birds, whose identity could not be confirmed at that distance and conditions, but looked like black-necked grebes. There was a distinct lack of passerines in the bushes on the shore-side of the path, but we did see wren, robin and song thrush. On the oyster bed lagoons, a group of three little grebes were interacting very loudly, while further out a sedate group of three Mediterranean gulls floated on the water. A pair of mergansers was fishing close-by and gave excellent views. A walk round the lagoons gave us much better views of the black-necked grebes - always difficult to get an accurate count as they are seldom all on the surface at the same time, but our maximum count was 14. Large groups of dunlin were feeding on the exposed mud and large group flew by as they were disturbed by the rising tide. A stroll along the old railway line added kingfisher and greenshank to the day's list. With the persistent drizzle getting heavier we strolled back to our cars seeing a green woodpecker and group of chaffinch on the way. Species List: Mute Swan, Brent Goose, Shelduck, Wigeon, Mallard, Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Cormorant, Little Egret, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Black-necked Grebe, Oystercatcher, Grey Plover, Dunlin, Curlew, Greenshank, Redshank, Turnstone, Black-headed Gull. Mediterranean Gull, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Wood Pigeon, Kingfisher, Green Woodpecker. Magpie, Carrion Crow, Great Tit (H), Wren, Starling, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Dunnock, Chaffinch.

10 Arne Monday, 19 February of us gathered at the Arne RSPB Visitor Centre on what began as an uninspiring day, weather had been misty and threatening rain on our journey there, but though cold, it brightened up a bit once we had got started. Having been treated to blue tit, great tit, coal tit, siskin, chaffinch, greenfinch at the car park feeders, we started out on the long trail red route to Shipstal point, thence via the high ground observation point to the north hide overlooking Arne Bay, returning to the car park for lunch. On route, we had good sightings of great spotted woodpecker, green woodpecker, blackbird, robin, crow, jackdaw, redwing, grey heron, teal, wigeon, avocet, great crested grebe, red breasted merganser, Brent geese, stock dove, wood pigeon, starling and at the hide, spoonbills, shelduck, cormorant and a group of lesser redpolls. After lunch, when we were treated to a nuthatch on the feeders, we went anticlockwise around Coombe Heath, stopping off at the high level viewpoints looking south-west and west and the hide. On this section, we saw more spoonbills, curlew, lapwing, redshank, little egret, Canada goose, black tailed godwit and mallard Also on our way round we had sightings of mistle thrush, goldcrest, herring gull, great black-backed gull, pied wagtail, magpie and dunnock. Total; 42 species Acres Down Saturday, 3 March 2018 Cancelled due to snow. Portland Bill Thursday, 29 March 2018 Cancelled due to forecast of heavy rain and strong southerly winds, together with slow spring migration.

11 SNIPPETS from Pete Smith & Chris Robinson Peregrine numbers soaring The latest UK population estimate for the peregrine shows that numbers are at a historic high. An analysis of the latest survey, undertaken in 2014, gave an estimate of 1769 pairs, 22% greater than the previous one, which was carried out in As might be expected, the increase is largely due to increases in lowland areas where they are making use of man-made structures for nesting. Out of 500 monitored pairs in England, over a quarter were on sites such as buildings or pylons, mostly in areas where there were no suitable cliff faces for them to use and where they would have traditionally been absent. However, it is not all good news. In their traditional areas, such as Scotland and the Isle of Man, numbers are falling, whilst in Wales numbers are only stable. The greatest increase has been in East Anglia where numbers have gone from zero to an estimated 44 pairs. I think that is an infinitely great increase if I remember my maths correctly! Iceland Gull What s in a name? There was a very obliging Iceland gull on a field off Lye Lane in Keyhaven for a couple of weeks in February. It occupied the field with horses, totally ignoring the owner, Lisa Morgan, as she tended her steeds, (much to her amusement). But, naturally, you would assume that an Iceland gull would come from Iceland, wouldn t you? Well, according to the text books they breed in Greenland and Arctic Canada, only some visiting Iceland in winter when they mix with Thayer s gulls. The weather conditions must have driven them southwards as both Iceland and Thayer s gulls were at Blashford, along with ring-billed and glaucous gulls, both Artic/American species. The fact that they only visit Iceland in winter whilst not breeding there caused me to ponder on some of the other common names that we use. Dartford warblers were presumably first shot (the preferred method of identification back in the day) on Dartford Heath, but they haven t been there for probably 150 years. Kentish plover? Much the same. The odd vagrant might turn up in the south but the nearest breeding colony is in south-west France (near Bordeaux). Anyone for Camberwell beauty or Deptford pink?

12 Long-tailed Tits doing well Amongst all the gloom and doom about falling bird numbers it is nice to find a bird that is doing well. One bird which has increased in numbers is the long-tailed tit, which has increased by 79% in the last 25 years according to breeding bird surveys. Since 1995, the highest increase has been in urban areas (so why do I only see them very occasionally in our garden?) They are, however, susceptible to severe winters when their numbers can fall by 80%. They usually bounce back quickly though. When looking for a nest site, they perform a hovering display that consists of vertical flight and then dropping back downwards. The nest is made out of moss, hair, and cobwebs, then covered with lichens for camouflage and lined with hundreds of feathers. The nest is made by both birds early in the year and can take more than three weeks to build. It is not unusual for active nests to have additional birds present helping to bring up the young and assure a good percentage of young surviving More increasing numbers! Here are some conservation success stories from the RSPB from the last twelve months. Cirl Buntings The stand-out success for the RSPB and partners has been the increase in cirl Buntings to over 1000 pairs ten times more than in the 1980's. This is due to a successful reintroduction project in Cornwall and partnerships with farmers in Devon. This work was supported by Natural England and grants for nature-friendly farming. Booming Bitterns The number of boomers has reached a record high of 161 at 76 sites. Bearded Tits The numbers of beardies has reached nearly 800 pairs the highest count since records began Golden Eagles The latest golden eagle survey showed that their population had increased to 772 pairs in the UK. This was a 15% rise since the last survey in Heathlands For the second year running both nightjar and woodlark were at their highest ever numbers on RSPB heathland reserves

13 Heronries A census of heronries in Hampshire has identified 21 sites. The largest is on private land in the Avon Valley and has 72 nests followed by the Fawley Oil Refinery site with 42. The third largest, with 21 nests, is near Basingstoke in private woodland and was only reported in 2016 although it has evidently been in existence for at least 20 years! So if you know of any heronries tucked away somewhere please report it to Brian Sharkey at briansharkeyuk@yahoo.co.uk Glossy Ibis Just before the Beast from the East hit us, a glossy ibis paid a visit to Sturt Pond in Milford on Sea. These are interesting birds as, out of the breeding season, they wander. Like the cattle egret, they have conquered every continent under their own steam, except Antarctica, though our nearest regular breeding colonies are in Spain and North Africa. Several were reported in various parts of the southern half of Britain, always along the coast. They like their saltmarshes! Our one looked very unhappy to have chosen the New Forest area just when it was about to become very cold and snowy and, sensibly, didn t hang around long. Historically, they have turned up in some surprising locations including Iceland! They also vary where they nest more than any other recorded bird, the breeding distribution changing almost annually. I have seen them in Northern France, Dungeness and Minsmere, and this one at Milford just before it thought better of it and flew off. Still, we may well see some more over the coming years. There is no reason that, say, the Somerset Levels or the Norfolk Broads couldn t sustain a few breeding pairs, until they decide to move on again. Most ibises are not as dispersive as the glossy. Sacred ibises were introduced to the Loire Valley and, apart from a few that stray down into Spain (and get shot they don t want them as they eat anything that moves and can have a very detrimental effect on the local wildlife) have stayed put. It used to be common practice in European zoos to have free-flying colonies of various ibis species precisely because they tend not to stray, although a few years ago an American white ibis turned up at Sevenoaks and stayed over winter. It did not come from America as this is a bird that does not spread far from its home range. It shared a field with some sheep and seemed quite content as it didn t move off until the spring.

14 INDOOR PROGRAMME 11 April 2018 Inspired by Birds by Peter Holden MBE A visit from RSPB s Peter Holden is always a treat. Author, conservationist, brains behind the Big Garden Birdwatch, Peter will talk about how birds and wildlife have provided inspiration for works of art. 9 May 2018 AGM and Members Evening + A presentation on Franchises Lodge by site manager, Nick Tomalin Come a learn more about the RSPB s newest and nearest reserve. After the presentation by Nick there will be a short formal meeting to conduct the business of the AGM, followed by a chance to see what your friends and colleagues have been up to with images and videos from home and abroad. 13 June 2018 Catalonia Spain s North Eastern Corner by Gordon Small Local group member and wildlife photographer, Gordon s illustrated presentation will follow his travels in Southern Europe. All images by Chris Robinson or Tony Bates unless otherwise credited The RSPB is the UK s largest nature conservation charity, inspiring everyone to give nature a home. Together with our partners, we protect threatened birds and wildlife so our towns, coast and countryside will teem with life once again. We play a leading role in BirdLife International, a worldwide partnership of nature conservation organisations. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales no , Scotland no. SC037654