Trip reports
Coach Trip - Titchfield Haven, Hampshire - 17 October 2009
Saturday, 17 October 2009
27 of us set off by coach for this Hampshire County Council managed National Nature Reserve. The weather forecast a few days before suggested wall-to-wall sun. This was amended to 'sunny periods' the day before. We had a few, but they struggled to show. It was, however, dry. On my recce with Gillian on the Wednesday before, we arrived about 3 hours after high tide, but the water was still high enough to get close views of waders feeding on the shoreline. This bode well for Saturday, but when we arrived an hour before high tide, the water was too high for them. High tide drives them up onto the reserve, where turnstones for instance then stand around rather than turn stones over to find food.
The reserve covers 369 acres of the Lower Meon Valley. It has a variety of habitats, including reedbeds, willow carr, scrub, flood meadows and scrapes. There are six hides, all but one with wheelchair access, and a network of level gravel paths and boardwalks. There is also a tearoom and toilets.
67 species of bird had been reported on the reserve or at sea close-by in October up to the 16th. Collectively, the group saw 56 and heard two more, many of them on the list, but also some that were not. A few unidentified terns were also seen. We failed to see any of the 35 bearded tits that had been seen frequently in October. Nor did we see the yellow-browed warbler that arrived near the Suffern Hide that morning, close to where a firecrest was reported a week before. We saw many of the 670 Canada geese, including the cackling Canada goose that was with them. Apart from the common race of Canada goose, there are 4 others including the cackling, which had been seen at the reserve and we saw it on the recce. John and a few others saw it. Also with the Canada geese was a Cape Barren goose, assumed to be an escapee as it comes from South Australia and Tasmania! The vagrant fulvous whistling duck was also pointed out by a warden to some in the group. Other geese included brent, barnacle, greylag and Egyptian.
The highlights for many of us were very close views of snipe feeding rather than sleeping, water rail, and black-tailed godwit, and good views of most of the rest. Highlights away from the water included goldcrest, treecreeper and stonechat. Cetti's warbler was heard frequently. Apart from the more common gulls, there were Mediterranean and Great Black-backed.
On leaving the reserve, we had another sea watch and a male eider duck was spotted by Liz and Rod. The tide was also right for the waders, so we found turnstone, ringed plover, redshank and dunlin. A passer-by asked me what one of them was. When I showed them to her through my telescope, she said "It made my day".
Alan Barrett