SE Nature Notes for w/e Feb 6th
8 February 2010
Portsmouth & Portsdown
On Wednesday the Portsdown Conservation workers found spurge laurel in flower and velvet shank fungi in compartment 2 in front of the old ASWE building.
A black redstart is still present in Wykeham Rd Portsmouth. Another is in the usual eastern end of the Hayling Island promenade.
On Saturday morning there were up to 14 purple sandpipers and a rock pipit at Southsea Castle and a Mediterranean gull on the sea.
There is a growing amount of song to be heard particularly from song thrushes and great tits, greenfinch, chaffinch and others are increasingly common in many locations.
Havant hayling & Emsworth
A Rowlands castle garden has had two blackcaps recently and in a central Havant garden dunnocks are displaying.
At the oyster beds the velvet scoter and black-necked grebes have been noted most of this week.
The Nutbourne Bay avocets totalled 13 on Monday.
A red-necked grebe was seen drifting into the Emsworth Channel from Black Point on Monday and Tuesday. A great northern diver was in the same area at lunch time on Wednesday. There were 2 GN divers off Gunner Point on Friday.
The Budds Farm green-winged teal was showing well on Wednesday and the rest of the week. On Friday there were also 42 gadwall there. There were more gadwall in the Emsworth channel on 6th.
Firecrests and a woodcock were at Sandy Point Hayling Island on Thursday.
At Sinah Warren on Friday a pale-bellied Brent was present and 4 Mediterranean gulls including the Eastney 'withered leg' bird flew in to roost.
A green sandpiper and a water pipit were on Southmoors on Friday and 2 Sandwich terns were off shore.
Four Slavonian grebes were in Hayling Bay on 6th.
A flock of around 300 waders in the Emsworth Channel off Thorney Island on 6th were thought by the observer to be knot.
There were 23 black-necked and a Slavonian grebe and a velvet scoter visible from the Budds Farm mound on Sunday 7th.
Fareham and Gosport
A Black brant Brent goose was on the HMS SULTAN playing fields on Tuesday.
Velvet scoters have been seen off Hill Head or Titchfield Haven all this week.
A marsh harrier was at Titchfield Haven on Friday.
Elsewhere
The four whooper swans that spend their nights on the Chichester lakes were present from 3rd to 5th this week
