The beach around Brownsea is sandy and pebbly, except for the western end of the island, where it is overlain by pottery and brick.

You can often see a wide range of seashore wildlife and plants including sea thrift, sea lavender, frosted orache and sticky groundsel. There are also many shells, and evidence of crabs, sandhoppers and other creatures.

Oystercatchers
Brownsea is now the major nesting site in Poole harbour for oystercatchers. They are the only waders seen here in the summer probing the mudflats with their red bills, in search of ragworms and other small invertebrates.

In winter they are joined by curlews, sandpipers, redshanks and turnstones.

Other bird species
Herring gulls nest in the cliffs, and other species such as dunnocks, chaffinches, and wrens nest in the gorse and birch on the south-facing slopes.

Summer and winter visitors
Summer visitors from Africa include willow warblers and whitethroats.

In winter the following birds from northern Europe may be seen: red-breasted merganser, goldeneye, common and velvet scoter, eider duck, great-crested and slavonian grebes, and divers.

In spring and autumn migrating birds may be spotted including wheatears, redstarts, garden warblers and pied flycatchers.