A windy day at Keyhaven

Paid Keyhaven another visit yesterday as OH wanted to take some photographs.  There was lots of lovely sunshine but it was incredibly windy.  In fact it was so windy that it was difficult to hold the bins or camera still!  The tide was out when we arrived and so most of the birds were too far away to see.  Drat! 

Saw a a flock turnstones in the small harbour area and an occasional redshank but otherwise it was fairly quiet.  We walked on anyway and I spotted some lapwings on a bank.  I fell into conversation with a lady carrying a scope and she kindly allowed me to look at the lapwings through it.  What lovely birds, their feathers all glinting in the sun and the scope made such a difference.  After we parted I took some photos even though the birds were rather far away and when reviewing them later I saw that there was a snipe in the picture, possibly a jack snipe but I am not certain of that.  I didn't spot it in the afternoon as they are so well camoflaged.  The pic is too grainy to crop very much I'm afraid. 

Closer to us and easier to see was this rock pipit. 

Just as we were thinking of turning back we came upon an area of beach teaming with birds. There were dozens of oystercatchers, dunlin, turnstones, redshanks, ringed plover and gulls with a few godwits and curlews for good measure.   Fantastic! 

I would like to have watched for longer but the tide was coming in and soon the beach was under water and the birds were gone. 

Flocks of brent geese started to come in to roost and a few teal, wigeon and shelduck began to arrive on the mudflats. 

Finally, as we neared the harbour OH spotted this skylark, all lit upby the sun. 

 After an unpromising start it turned out to be a good visit after all.