From a birding perspective, my recent trip to Weymouth and Portland was my most successful so far, with 85 species logged, and the unforgettable thrill of seeing, albeit fleetingly from the train, my first ever White-tailed eagles perched like statues on the edge of Poole Harbour. In this last blog from that trip, I want to feature some of the also-rans, the birds I loved seeing and managed to photograph that didn’t get their own blog but still deserve to be admired.

One of the many Blackcaps that were passing through on migration.

On a blustery day when birds were mostly sheltering, this delightful Dunnock appeared and posed nicely.

Though there are quite a lot of trees around RSPB Lodmoor, and a small woodland to the north in Lorton Valley Country Park, I was still a little surprised to hear this Great spotted woodpecker pounding at a tree trunk right by the water.

A Great white egret looking statuesque in the soft morning light.

Lodmoor was looking quite autumnal, and this female Marsh harrier sitting on her lookout post seemed to blend right in.

RSPB Radipole was mostly a disappointment this time around, a site that’s suffering from the neglect of the RSPB, who steadfastly fail to see the potential of one of their most accessible reserves to help the general public become more aware of and appreciate the wonders of Nature. It seemed appropriate that, on my final afternoon in Weymouth, the last bird I saw there was this Pheasant.

This was the day of the Stonechats! During a walk of the path along Portland’s east cliffs and the fields around the Bill and the Obs, I counted more than 20; the next day almost all were gone, braving the English Channel to migrate south for the winter.

I didn’t see many Wheatears this time around but this beauty popped up on top of a bush right in front of me one morning at Ferrybridge.

I think you can tell there was an autumn chill in the air this early morning just from looking at this Woodpigeon.