Acres Down & New Forest

Leader: [TBC]

Meet: Cheapside Car Park, Stroud, at 07:00, returning around 5.30pm
Venue: Acres Down car park, near Minstead, New Forest, Hampshire [check postcode]

About the day
Early March is the best time of year to watch birds of prey displaying over the New Forest, and Acres Down is one of the best raptor watchpoints in southern England. We’ll spend the morning on the ridge above the car park, scanning across a wide sweep of forest canopy. On a bright, calm morning, goshawks soar and display as the air warms, often alongside buzzards, sparrowhawks and ravens. After lunch we’ll move on to Blackwater Arboretum, where the tall conifers and old woodland hold some of the Forest’s specialities. We’ll finish on the open heath and bogs around Beaulieu Road Station, one of the best places in the Forest for Dartford warbler. Our key targets for the day are goshawk, lesser spotted woodpecker, firecrest, woodlark, hawfinch and Dartford warbler. Early March, before the trees come into leaf, is one of the best times to find them.

What we might see
Key birds:

• Goshawk: soaring and displaying over the canopy from the Acres Down ridge, best on sunny, still mornings as the air warms
• Lesser spotted woodpecker: drumming and calling in the old oaks and birches in early spring, before the leaves hide it
• Firecrest: in the hollies and conifers around Acres Down and Blackwater, singing from early March
• Woodlark: song flights over the clearings and heath at Beaulieu Road
• Hawfinch: best looked for in the tall conifers and yews at Blackwater Arboretum, especially early in the day
• Dartford warbler: perched up on the gorse at Beaulieu Road, most visible on still, sunny afternoons

Other raptors: common buzzard, sparrowhawk, red kite, raven, kestrel, with peregrine possible
Woodland: crossbill, siskin, lesser redpoll, brambling, goldcrest, marsh tit, nuthatch, treecreeper, great spotted woodpecker, mistle thrush
Heath and bog: stonechat, meadow pipit, reed bunting, snipe
Possible: hen harrier (a late wintering bird), curlew (returning to breed on the bogs), early chiffchaff

Also look out for: fallow deer and New Forest ponies

Cost and booking
There’s no event fee. Organisation and car sharing will be arranged through the group’s WhatsApp channels.

Parking
Acres Down car park is free and next to Acres Down Farm. In the afternoon there’s parking at Blackwater and at Beaulieu Road Station [check charges].

Facilities
Acres Down Farm, next to the car park, serves cream teas [check opening]. Blackwater has toilets [check]. There are no facilities on the ridge or on the heath at Beaulieu Road.

Practical information
There’s a short uphill walk on a gravel track to the viewpoint on the ridge. The afternoon walks are on level forest tracks and heathland paths, and the paths around the bogs at Beaulieu Road can be wet, so wear waterproof boots. Bring a telescope for scanning, and a folding stool if you have one, as there can be long waits at the watchpoint. Bring warm layers, as it’s cold standing still in March, plus a packed lunch and water. Please stay on the paths during the ground-nesting season.

If the trip has to change
Cancellations or weather changes will be shared on the group’s WhatsApp channels. Goshawks display best on sunny, still mornings, so on a wet day we may switch the order around.

Further reading
Birdfact: Acres Down (New Forest)