Friday 6th January 2023 RSPB Pagham Harbour a.m. The Burgh p.m.

Friday 6th January 2023

with Martin, Mark and Elizabeth

What a contrast - bright sunny conditions in the morning at Pagham Harbour followed by a wet and windy situation on the slopes of The Burgh.

Pagham Harbour   

We met up at the visitor centre at 09.30 and made our way along the western path towards Church Norton, calling in at the Ferry Hide on the way.  It was almost high tide.  The lighting conditions were excellent for our photographers.  Conditions underfoot were somewhat soggy after the heavy rainfall of recent weeks. 

Over 40 species were seen - nothing rare but all very welcome.  18 additions were made to the year list:

Avocet

Black-tailed Godwit

Brent Goose

Buzzard

Chaffinch

Curlew

Goldeneye

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Lapwing

Little Grebe 

Marsh Harrier

Meadow Pipit

Redshank

Shelduck

Snipe

Stonechat

Teal

Tufted Duck

• The Godwits, Avocets and the Brent Geese provided the main excitement and it was nice to see a distant Goldeneye near the mouth of the harbour.  

After an early lunch back at the visitor centre we relocated to the Burgh, near Arundel.

The Burgh

While we were enjoying lunch, the weather deteriorated and by the time we parked at The Burgh it was raining and the visibility was poor.  

• Nevertheless we plodded on and added a further 5 species to our year list, including a stunning Barn Owl.  

Barn Owl

Grey Partridge

Linnet

Red Kite

Skylark

• The Red Kites stole the show though - despite the poor conditions they were quite ubiquitous.

It was great to be out with friends again.

2023 species count = 69