arn-0829-11-12_arne id (shipstal hide)
TRANSCRIPT
The world’s biggest gull is a
heavy black and white bird
with a massive beak and a
white head.
Great black-backed gull
The same size as the herring
gull but with a much darker
back and yellow legs. It is
mainly white, but with black
and white wingtips.
Lesser black-backedgull
This is the typical seaside gull.
Look for its pink legs and the
red spot on its yellow beak.
Herring gull
Mediterranean gull
This bird used to be a rare
sight here in the summer;
now there are over 100
breeding pairs. Look for its
white wingtips and eyelids.
Large, active and noisy,
mainly white bird with a
spiky crest and a long,
sharp black beak.
Sandwich tern Spoonbill
This small, slim gull only has
its dark brown “black head”
from spring to summer; in
winter it just has a dark ear
spot. Look for its red beak
and legs.
Black headed gull
Watch this small silvery tern
hovering over the water before
it plunges in for fish.
Common tern
Look for this large, black diving
bird swimming very low in the
water with its head and long,
hooked bill pointing up, or
standing with its wings spread
out to dry.
Cormorant
Grey heron
Watch this lanky bird wading
stealthily through the water on
fishing missions.
Its name is the clue! Like a
white heron. Watch out for it
flying with its neck outstretched
and the unmistakable long,
broad tipped beak.
Watch this duck push its huge,
spade-like bill through the
water to sieve out food.
Shoveler
When this pretty egret bred
here in 1996, it was a first for
Britain– now they are
widespread. Look for its
striking head plumes and
bright yellow feet.
Little egret
Their long necks help these
stunning ducks reach deeper
when they up-end to feed on
plants in the water.
Pintail
Look for this big, striking duck
feeding on the grass or in
shallow water.
Shelduck
Mallard
The big duck that most of us
know, look for the mallard’s
bright orange legs and small
blue patch on the wing.
Very big, streaky cream and
brown bird of prey, with
short, round head, round tail,
long, broad wings; soars with
wings slightly uptilted.
In the 1950s Poole Harbour
had around 50% of the UK’s
breeding marsh harriers;
today we mostly see them
in winter. Look for it gliding
low with its wings in a
shallow “V”.
Marsh harrier
In the mid 1990s Poole
Harbour barely hosted 500 of
these ducks; now there are
well over 5,000. Their round
heads and small beaks should
help you to recognise them.
Wigeon
This is the smallest duck to
feed on the surface. It looks
dark with a slim grey beak
but in good light look for the
male’s colourful head.
Teal
This very large, broad-
winged, short-tailed bird of
prey calls here to feed during
its migration. Look for it over
the water and diving for fish.
Osprey
Buzzard
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The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales no. 207076, Scotland no. SC037654. ARN-0829-11-12
ARN-0829-11-12_Arne ID (S)_Layout 1 27/02/2012 10:57 Page 1
Look for this slender bird of
prey gliding with raised
wings. The male and female
are quite different.
Hen harrier
Look for direct dashing
flight, with several flaps
between glides or soaring
higher on spread wings. The
wingtips are blunt and the
slender tail square-tipped.
Sparrowhawk
This small bird of prey hovers
as if it’s on string, or sits on a
post or wire
Kestrel
Hobby
You may see this small
falcon swooping and diving
effortlessly as it chases
dragonflies or other large
insects. It is only here in
summer.
A winter visitor to Arne, this
is the UK’s smallest bird of
prey. It tends to perch or fly
low down as it hunts.
Merlin
Poole Harbour boasts one of the
biggest winter flocks in the UK
of these unmistakably elegant
wading birds with their delicate
upcurved beaks. Look for them
in the Middlebere Channel.
Avocet
This small, dark curlew look-
alike only visits here in spring
and autumn on migration.
Whimbrel
Oystercatcher
Look for a boldly black and
white wading bird with a long,
orange beak like a carrot!
This large wading bird is here
all year. Look for its long,
straight beak and long legs,
which trail behind its tail in
flight. It’s less colourful in
winter.
Black-tailed godwit
This elegant winter visitor is
named for its long, pale grey-
green to yellow-green legs.
When it flies, look for dark
wings and a white “V” shape
on its back.
Greenshank
In winter, look for this
energetic wading bird running,
diving and even upending in
shallow water. Try to spot its
long, vivid red legs.
Spotted redshank
Lapwing
With its elegant head crest
and green tints, this pigeon-
sized bird is unmistakable in
a good light.
The brilliant blue flash of a
kingfisher is unmistakeable if
you are lucky enough to see
one, but it may be smaller
than you imagined – it’s no
bigger than a starling.
You may see it in winter,
running along the mud and
stopping suddenly when it
finds food. Look for black
“armpits” when it flies.
Grey plover
Look for a small, grey-brown
and white wading bird
plodding quite slowly as it
searches for food in the mud.
Dunlin
Beaches and estuaries
are this little wader’s
favourite places.
Ringed plover
Kingfisher
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from Shipstal Hide
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales no. 207076, Scotland no. SC037654. ARN-0829-11-12
Its long red legs and beak
are brightest in summer.
When it flies, it shows its
white rump and trailing red
legs.
RedshankLike its black-tailed cousin, this
bird also has a very long
beak, but has shorter legs and
is only here during spring and
autumn migration.
Bar-tailed godwit
Europe’s biggest wading bird.
Look for its amazing long,
down-curved beak – ideal for
probing the wet grassland
for juicy creatures to eat.
Curlew
Watch out for this extremely
fast and powerful bird of
prey. It has long, broad wings
and is blue-grey above with a
finely spotted white breast.
Peregrine falcon
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