Another visit to Brownsea Island with red squirrels, wading birds and too close an encounter with a sika deer - 13th October 2026

It was another rainy morning in Poole but I still headed off for the quay and ferry to Brownsea Island and, fortunately, the weather cleared up and it was a beautiful warm day

I was greeted by a Red Squirrel in the shade of a tree

and then in the sunlight while it gathered up a chestnut

An Avocet in the lagoon was being blown about in the wind

Oystercatcher searching for food in the shallow water

Greenshank marching in front of the bird hide

Greenshanks and Redshanks were gathered together 

I then walked along the path past the bird hides and got carried away photographing a young male Sika deer that was feeding near the path

It obviously was not pleased with being a model and came slowly towards me and head-butted me!  

I fell over and was helped to my feet by a man, who also made sure that the deer was not near me. 

I was lucky and just received some bruises and a couple of small holes in my jeans, but a jogger in shorts was not so lucky and had been previously spiked by the deer and his leg was bleeding.  

This photo was taken as the deer approached me!

On moving on up the hill after the Sika deer incident, I saw a Red Admiral butterfly on the ground

and a Migrant Hawker dragonfly on the leaves of a shrub

Back at the lagoon, a Meadow Pipit was moving around on one of the little islands

I left the Dorset Wildlife Trust area and saw the Peacock resting on the ground near the church

A Red Squirrel was holding a chestnut at the edge of the woodland

The Peacock stood up and I managed to get a close-up photo of his head

Female Pheasant standing on chestnut-strewn ground in front of the churchyard

Male Common Darter dragonfly resting on the wall round the churchyard

I went back to a bird hide at the lagoon and found two Redshank in the shallow water

a posing Avocet

a group of male and female Northern Shoveler ducks

Drifting Shelduck

Little Egret and Northern Shoveler

Group of Avocets

Large group of Avocets in the distance

Male Eurasian Teal with reflection

Before leaving the island, I went back to the woodland where a Red Squirrel was looking down on me

 

Birds at Lodmoor nature reserve, Weymouth - 12th October 2026

It was a very wet morning, so I did not go out until about 11.00 when I got the bus to Poole and then travelled by train to Weymouth.  I walked along the seafront, past this row of coloured houses

and then took a stroll in Greenhill Gardens to look at the wonderful flower display

and then past some Art Deco buildings

On arrival at Lodmoor nature reserve, I first saw this Bar-tailed Godwit wading in shallow water

Dunnock standing on a bench in the reserve

The head of a distant Great White Egret was poking up out of the reeds

The Great White Egret flew away!

Little Egret and Godwit in the shallow water

Lapwing on land

and another Lapwing at the edge of the lagoon

Great White Egret standing on a narrow spit of land in the lagoon

Cattle Egret in the distance

View of part of Lodmoor nature reserve

Sandwich Tern in the water

and then in flight

There were lots of Golden Plovers on the other side of Lodmoor

Golden Plovers and a Little Egret

Golden Plovers and three Dunlin

Golden Plover in the foreground and houses on the hill in the background

Black-tailed Godwit standing in the lagoon

Pretty blossom in front of the water

Godwit with an itch!

Little Egret with a little fish

I walked back to the station along the windy sea front with some tankers on the horizon