Red (Grey) Phalarope (Phalaropus fulicarius) at Hayling Island

Thursday 4 September 

Dancing in the afternoon at Southsea Pier and an invite to the launch of the new BYD full electric car in Southampton at 6pm would I have time to make a quick "pop in" at Hayling Island to see if the visiting juvenile Red (Grey) Phalarope would be still present for a third day? We had left home with the promise of showers but suggested sun and clear by mid-afternoon.  In the event, it was beautiful on the outward journey but up leaving Southsea not long after 3.30 the first light shower arrived!  Such is life.

Still, took a chance and arrived at the top car park at 4.15.  The tide was out exposing the mudflats n front of the car park but just a handful of Black-headed Gulls on show and not a single Back-tailed Godwit. No bins or camera but a light shower so time to retrieve a waterproof from the boot and pleasantly discover that I had left my small scope in the car.  However, it would still be a hope of finding a fellow birder on site with his/her binoculars to help search of the target bird. Time to walk along to the "Billy Line" trail and access the former oyster beds in search of the phalarope.  And at this point a fellow member of HOS appeared behind me with the same bird in mind and carrying her bins; lucky me!

The pond on the left at the start of the trail held a handful of Black-headed Gulls and four Redshank so onto the oyster beds. No luck but we did find our first Curlew and a Little Egret a the back.  Moving on to the next bed a Carrion Crow off to the left and upon arrival more Redshanks and an Oystercatcher but no phalarope. Similarly again at the third bed but we did find, as well as another Redshank, a foraging Magpie on a bush half-way down the left bank.

So to the main lake holding the gull nesting banks where all that was to be found was a single Common Sandpiper.  That now left only the large muddy bay in front of the lower car park so time to really search amongst the muddy creeks and grasses. First a Curlew then a small flock of Ringed Plovers and a single Whimbrel. A couple of Woodpigeon wheeled away from the bushes behind us closely followed by a score of Starlings and in the distance on the sea bank a lone birder making his way back towards us. So, leaving my companion behind I walked over to meet him and asked if he had had any luck in finding the Red Phalarope.  Oh yes, he replied and pointed out the spot, not hours but minutes ago, and proceeded to show me the excellent photograph he had captured.  There upon we all gathered to find the bird that was foraging in the the narrow creeks between the grassy banks.

Juvenile Red Phalrope Phalaropus fulicarius (from Internet)

It took some doing with a mixture of bins, scope and eyes but soon we had our bird as it moved in an out of the grasses.  But as always it appears, leave the camera at home and find the bird!  So, for all three of us, our first Red Phalarope of the year.  Making our way back to the car a trio of Long-tailed Tits in the bushes just before the car park and already 5pm so leaving little time to drop off Jenny at home and head into Southampton.  Was I impressed with the new BYD electric car?  Lots of new gismos but the car achieves 70 miles less per full charge than my present car and the new updated model coming out at the end of the year only improves by another 20 miles per full charge.  So not really impressed, even with the (relatively) price tag.

Birds seen:

Little Egret, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Whimbrel, Curlew, Common Sandpiper, Redshank, Red Phalarope, Black-headed Gull, Woodpigeon, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Starling.

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