Itchen Birds
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Green Sandpiper
 Picture - Colin Bates
Regular spring and autumn passage migrant but in small numbers,individuals occasionally winter. Flickering flight and distinctive white rump heading in the opposite direction is the best ID feature! |
Little Egret
 Picture Colin Bates
First recorded in Hampshire in 1957 only 32 were recorded over the next 31 years. Subsequent years saw numbers soar and the Little Egret is now regularly seen on our coasts and rivers with many recent Itchen records reaching double figures. Fairly common in winter, occasional in summer.
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Kingfisher
 Picture - Colin Bates
Resident
Most often glimpsed as a blue flash low over the river the Kingfisher can be found on most stretches of the Itchen. Scarcer in winter when some birds move to the coast although large territories mean locating regular fishing perches is the best way to observe this bird at any time of the year.
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Reed Bunting
 Pictures Colin Bates
Resident
Fairly common waterside bird also found in drier areas and sometimes gardens. Handsome male unmistakable with black head, female also attractive with subtler streaky head markings.
Old regional names – Black Cap (Hants) male, Spear Sparrow (Hants) female.
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Wheatear
 Picture Alain Fosse
Seen as a passage migrant in spring and autumn the Wheatear can be found moving up the Itchen in small numbers as early as mid-march. Sleek handsome birds usually seen on the ground or low vantage points. Bobs & flits wings and tail, white rump and tail seen in flight.
Old regional names – White Ass (Cornwall), Horse Smatch, Horse Musher (Hants), Furze or Fuzz Chat (Sussex), Jobbler (Dorset).
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Peregrine Falcon
 Picture Raniero Massoli-Novelli
Rare, may visit early summer.
Although the Peregrine Falcon is usually thought of as a coastal bird with a little luck they can sometimes be found inland, there are many records of Peregrines being associated with tall buildings. Here in the Itchen Valley they can occasionally be found sitting high on electricity pylons. Even on an open structure such as a pylon a Peregrine can conceal itself well but if a bird is known to be in the vicinity a little patience and searching may well be rewarded with good views of this magnificent bird of prey. |
Grey Wagtail
 Picture Colin Bates
A resident bird, not to be confused with the Yellow Wagtail a more unusual summer visitor. Distinguished by an over-long fanned tail swung up and down on the ground and a long bounding flight. Will readily nest on man-made structures such as bridges and walls.
Old regional names – Winter Wagtail (South England), Dishwasher (Sussex), Dun Wagtail (Sussex), Cow-bird (Sussex), Yellow Molly (Hants).
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Pied Wagtail
 Pied Wagtail
Picture Michel Rogg
Favours farms, villages and sewage farms but in winter reed beds hold roosts several hundred strong, the birds circling the reeds several times before eventually suddenly dropping in to roost.
Old regional names – Lady Wagtail (Somerset), Dishwipe; Dishlick (Sussex), Molly Washdish (Hants, Somerset).
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Sedge Warbler
 Picture Richard Ford
April to September
Common in most areas of reed bed and surrounding waterside vegetation. This typical Itchen bird is easiest to find from mid April to mid May. Full of its exuberant song of mixed jangles and mutterings the Sedge Warbler will sidle up to the top of reed stems, produce a short active flight all without pausing before disappearing back into the reeds.
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Reed Warbler
 Picture by Colin Bates
A summer visitor similar in song and habitat to the Sedge Warbler but Reed Warbler is usually confined to reed beds and their margins. Visual identification is the best way to separate the two in these circumstances. A popular host for the cuckoo.
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Water rail
 Picture - Colin Bates
A secretive bird which is never easy to see. Most likely to be found in the winter although a few summer birds do occur with occasional breeding records(this bird was photgraphed in July). Freezing conditions will force the Water rail out into the open to feed. |
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