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