Stanpit Marsh – Stephen's Wildlife

The easing of the lockdown in the UK gave an opportunity to revisit nature reserves for the first time in a few months. The last time I visited Stanpit Marsh was to see the Glossy Ibis last November. It had been raining heavily and was very wet underfoot. The Ibis is still on the reserve. I saw it in the distance silhouetted against the sky and dropping down into an inaccessible part of the Marsh.

It felt good to be reacquainting myself with this site. A real breath of fresh air. I’ve also upgraded my crop sensor DSLR camera to a full frame camera. I could not justify the expense of a mirrorless camera, but I chose a second hand Nikon D750 because of its low light capability. I know its not cutting edge, but the technology is proven, the cost of these DSLR cameras has fallen and the image quality for stills is exceptional. This visit gave me my first real chance to give the camera a workout.

This Jackdaw seemed almost tame. It landed very close and was unconcerned with my presence.

Miggy, the cat, unimpressed with the flooded garden

It really did not look promising. The back garden was under water and the rain did not look like it was going to stop, ever. A pyjama day with the TV remote in one hand and a snack in the other was the most likely scenario. But, the forecast offered a glimmer of hope. Filled more with hope than confidence in the met office prediction my son and I headed out on a 20 minute drive to Stanpit Marsh.

We arrived and the rain stopped! A lot more of the nature reserve was under water than usual. It was difficult to see where the land finished and Christchurch harbour started. The light was both fascinating and challenging. There was cloud cover one moment followed by bright sunshine casting long shadows. Every photo needed a different set up and we were fighting with the controls all afternoon.

We were rewarded with a joyous two and a half hours of exploring the accessible parts of the reserve. We saw waders, egrets, herons, ducks, geese, pipits, wagtails, sparrowhawks, kestrels. It was noticeable too, I don’t think I imagined it, that the birds were noisier than usual.

Back at the car park we compared sightings with another birdwatcher. He used binoculars rather than a camera and was enthusiastic to hear what we had seen. He had seen a hen harrier, which we missed. We had both heard reports of a glossy ibis on the reserve, but neither of us got a sighting this time.

Satisfied, we got back in the car and headed home. We got as far as the first roundabout a few hundred yards and I had to turn on the windscreen wipers as the heavens opened again.