SE Nature notes w/e Oct 15th

Portsmouth & Portsdown

Tawny owls continue to be heard and one at Hookheath is regularly calling in broad daylight.
Sickle medic is still flowering on Portsdown.
Roe deer pooh was found in a Portsdown garden on 13th.
Two ring ouzels were seen above the Paulsgrove chalk pit on 13th.
At Farlington Marshes bearded tits continue to show well.  Other birds present at the end of the week included peregrines, sparrowhawk, kingfisher, swallows, knot, 2 avocets, curlew and green sandpipers, Brents up to 450 with juveniles, pintail, ruddy shelduck, and an arctic skua on Shutt Lake.
Milton Common has also been good for birds this week with lesser redpolls, siskins, chiffchaffs, gadwalls, shovelers, woodlarks and a short-eared owl on show. Offshore greenshanks and around 300 black-tailed godwits were present.
A large basil thyme plant still has flowers on Portchester Common.

Havant hayling & Emsworth

On 11th birds at The Kench on Hayling Island included 6 greenshanks, a male scoter, 30 bar-tailed godwits and 150 knot.
On Thorney Island on 12th the cattle egret was still present.  Other birds included bearded tits, swallows, stonechats and whinchats.  There were also lots of red admirals.
Two firecrests were seen on the edge of Middle Park way close to Leigh Park Gardens on 12th.
A peregrine was at Havant Thicket and a kingfisher on the Staunton CP lake on 15th.
On 16th there were single stonechats, whinchats and wheatears at Sinah Warren.
A kingfisher and a green sandpiper were seen at Budds Farm on 16th.
Small groups of wigeon are appearing on our shores now.
A flock of 250 golden plover was off the Thorney Island Great Deeps this week.
Notable flowers this week in the Havant area included marsh marigold and yellow iris at South Moors orchid fields, sea rocket at Black Point, common milkwort on Hayling  and Portsdown, small flowered cranesbill in Havant, hairy vetchling at Broadmarsh, dog rose at South Moors and Ray’s knotgrass at Sandy Point

Fareham and Gosport

A black redstart  was at Newlands Farm Stubbington on 16th.
A great northern diver  was on the sea at Stokes Bay  this week.

Waterlooville and South Downs

An albino squirrel at Frogmore Lane Horndean on 12th is a report from further north locally than I have heard of before.
A ring ouzel was seen on Butser Hill on 14th.