Birds around the UK South Coast harbours
Harbours are not just for boats, birds need them too. They provide a sanctuary and food supply for some migrants, a breeding ground for others and normal habitat for residents. Seagulls, in their many formats, are often seen as unwanted scavengers of human spaces, but we humans have denuded the seas of their primary food ...so they return the insult!
Waders, from heron and egret to redshank and oystercatcher still find plenty of fry. Little dunlin and sanderling gorge on the mud-based intertidal worms and molluscs - as do the larger curlew, godwit.
Dunes and rocks give shelter and food to the skylark and pipets. Yachts provide perches for swallows and starlings.
The pretty terns nest here on exposed shingle and quickly raise their young before flitting off to warmer climes. Brent geese from Siberia overwinter here, temporarily dispossessing ducks of various kinds. But there is room for all, the moorhen and coot and teal have their preferred places in creeks and harbours alongside the swans.
I am fascinated by the unique beauty of each species, their colours and calls, their flight style and fighting spirit.
What I have attempted to do is to represent the way in which each finds its unique place in our harbour environment.
Paul Adams LRPS