Tag Archives: Avocet

Ducks and other birds at Titchfield Haven Nature Reserve

A few weeks ago I booked a ticket for a concert by Ross & Ali in Emsworth in the south of Hampshire. That’s about an hour and 15 minutes drive from where I live in West Berkshire. As the concert took place on a Saturday I thought I should combine the long drive with something else. And decided it was time for another visit (there third if I counted correctly) of Titchfield Haven nature reserve.

A variety of birds was around, in particular quite a few ducks. Some of the pictures I took in this gallery:

Unfortunately didn’t see a Kingfisher this time, hope to see one again next time. A lot of the waders kept quite a distance, not sure if that was seasonal or just coincidence. The Marsh Harriers did’t come as close as I had hoped, but were still nice to watch in the distance. Quite a few Magpies around, hopping in the marsh outside one of the hides. Also saw a Fox brazenly making its way through the reserve, I think at one point it made a half-hearted attempt to get a bird (either a Goose or a Cormorant, can’t remember), but wasn’t successful. Unfortunately didn’t manage to get any decent pictures of it, at the time I was more focused on watching it through my binoculars (it was quite far away and better to see through the binoculars).

Before leaving for Emsworth for the concert I had a nice meal at The Osborne View (of course a burger). It being March it was too cold to sit outside, but I managed to get a table with a nice view over the Solent. I hope I can sit outside again for one of my next visits.

Avocet in shallow water at Titchfield Haven

As promised yesterday in the post about the Kestrel I spotted at Titchfield Haven nature reserve here are some more pictures of another bird I watched. This time it’s an Avocet, spotted from the Pumfreet Hide feeding in the shallow waters of the South Scrape:

Click on the pictures for the large versions (with captions).

Interesting fact: The Avocet is the RSPB’s emblem. There are about 1,500 breeding pairs in the UK, some at Titchfield Haven.