Updates: American Golden Plover, Wood Sandpiper, Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers and Spotted Redshanks.

Things tend to go very quiet at this time of year and I have to travel quite a bit to see any new birds for my 2024 Year List.  On 3 out of 4 occasions I had to head west to Pagham Harbour, near Chichester - a round trip of over 100 miles each time.

Friday 7th June 2024  -  Pagham Harbour East, Sussex

 An American Golden Plover was reported on Wednesday and, after initially resisting the urge to twitch this bird, I finally succumbed and made the trip.  I joined a group of 5 birders who were looking for it at low tide, along the channel near White's Creek.  After a few minutes I found it in the scope and alerted the others.  It was very distant and was associating with the Grey Plovers.

Friday 14th June 2024 - Ferry Pool, Pagham Harbour, Sussex

A week later I made the same trip, this time to the Visitor Centre and the Ferry Hide to see a very close Wood Sandpiper.

Monday 1st July 2024 - Ferry Pool, Pagham Harbour, Sussex

The Spotted Redshanks proved more problematic.  Initial attempts were unsuccessful - each time I arrived too late, the birds having left earlier.  Today however I arrived at 06.00 and found both birds, in breeding plumage, showing very well, close to the hide

Tuesday 25th June 2024  Weir Wood Reservoir, Sussex

If all the above were out-and-out twitches, this one certainly was not.  After completing my weekly snake survey I was walking back through the woods to the car park when I met up with 4 of the other volunteers.  They were looking for a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker that Ian had seen near the top of a nearby tree.  Quite soon we got a sighting - of two birds, probably juveniles, in the canopy.  When they took flight we got a clear view of both of them.  What a bonus - right here in our own back yard!

2024 species count=188

Cirl Bunting in Sussex!

Monday 3rd June 2024

Portslade, Sussex

News came out of a cirl bunting on the South Downs just outside of Portslade so I made the short journey down the A27 to see it, arriving there about 4.30 pm.  

Boy was it worth it.  The bird was showing very well, and singing away, at the top of a tree barely 30 metres from the group of onlookers.  

Courtesy of Richard Allan

After 15 minutes or so it made a short flight to another tree and started singing again.  Just after 5 pm it took off and was lost to sight, temporarily, before returning.

This is a bird is normally seen in Devon and possibly Cornwall but hasn't been seen in Sussex for over a quarter of a century, when it was a regular breeder -  no wonder it caused such a stir.

I never thought that I would see this bird in Sussex - marvellous!

2024 species count=184

Honey Buzzard in the Ashdown Forest

 31st May 2024

I invited Martin to join me for a morning trip to the newly announced raptor viewing point in the Ashdown Forest. 

• Despite some concerns about the deteriorating weather we were rewarded with a spectacular view of a honey buzzard, with the bird following a flight path from SE to NW and passing directly overhead.

Courtesy of Martin Jeffree

Courtesy of Martin Jeffree

Courtesy of Martin Jeffree

Just the Job !

2024 species count=183

Chichester Visit

Thursday 30th May 2024

RSPB Pagham Harbour

• A lovely red-necked phalarope visited the Ferry Pool today and I was fortunate enough to see it, despite an horrendous drive down to Chichester.  The bird was busily moving around the back end of the pool.

Courtesy of Dave Carlsson and X

Courtesy of Dave Carlsson and X

Church Norton

A short drive round to Church Norton where I added whimbrel to my 2024 list, with 2 birds showing well at low tide in the harbour.

Medmerry

A longer drive, this time round to Medmerry to twitch little ring plover, where I had great views of 2 of this lovely wader.

2024 species count=182

Yellowhammer in Uckfield

 Uckfield

Phil and Jem sent me a message about some yellowhammers they had seen on their local walk in Uckfield so I went there a few days later and saw them for myself.

2024 species count=179

Stodmarsh with the Ashdown Bird Group

 Saturday 18th May 2024

This was another excellent turn out.  For many of us it was the second visit in a month. When we arrived it was dry and overcast but the sun did come out – eventually!  We recorded a very impressive 70 bird species and today the headlines were made by a couple of familiar birds and some very noisy frogs.

• Bird of the day, for me, was a garden warbler.  As we were walking towards the Tower Hide, one was singing away just a few metres away and when it showed our superb photographers grasped the opportunity to get some memorable images of this most skittish of birds. 

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

It is only on rare occasions that we get good views of Cetti’s warbler.  Today we did, albeit for a very short time.  

Courtesy of Alison Playle

• We saw at least 6 hobbies, less than half of what we would normally expect here at Stodmarsh. Nevertheless we got some spectacular views of this gorgeous summer visitor.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

• One very pleasant surprise was a distant view of a yellow wagtail.  We normally see this bird on return migration in the autumn.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

• Earlier, at Feast’s Hide, we saw at least 6 marsh frogs on the lily pads on the surface of the water.  We had heard them several times previously but this was the best view by far.  They gradually submerged as we continued to watch them but not before we took some cracking pictures.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

Other news:

• Terns, mainly common, were abundant.  If you look at the ramp in the photograph below you will also see a common sandpiper – a first of the year for some of the group - as well as the common terns on the main platform.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

A very enjoyable trip with many memorable moments.

2024 species count=178

Minsmere 2024 with the East Grinstead RSPB Group

Sunday 12th May 2024

RSPB Minsmere

This was another good turnout from our members who braved the early start and the long coach trip to enjoy seven and a half hours bird watching at this flagship RSPB reserve on the east coast of Suffolk.  Their reward was a massive species count of 80 with some stunning birds.  The weather was fine throughout with sunshine and a gentle breeze.

Our first port of call was the artificial sand cliffs just outside the café to look at the breeding sand martins.

• We got a huge shock as there were no sand martins around at all – all we experienced was an eerie silence in an area which was previously always noisy with the frantic sound of birds toing and froing in the nesting area! 

Apparently, this year they had chosen to breed a few miles further north, on the cliffs at Dunwich Heath.  Let’s hope this was just a blip and that they return next year. 

• All was not lost however as we saw plenty of sand martins flying over the scrapes while we moved around the reserve and they were by far the most ubiquitous of the hirundines. 

 

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

• Everyone enjoyed seeing a lesser whitethroat singing out from the top of a nearby bush. Alan Loweth managed to get this lovely picture using his mobile phone!

Courtesy of Alan Loweth

• Some waders of course change their appearance drastically in summer. like this  grey plover

Courtesy of Ian Hodgson

and this turnstone

Courtesy of Martin Jeffree

and, better still, this red knot, my bird of the day!  What a contrast with the knot still in winter plumage!

Courtesy of Martin Jeffree

• The rarest waders we saw were 2 Temminck’s stints from the West Hide.  Alas, they were so far away from us it was difficult to make the ID with any degree of certainty.   Fortunately, a local birder/volunteer who had been following them all day and had seen them when they were closer, pointed them out to us.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

• We saw 3 tern species,  2 distant little terns were seen on the scrape but not photographed

• As we walked along the western path our eyes were directed to the skies where the hobbies finally put in an appearance with at least 6 on show.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

By far the most popular areas of the reserve are the Bittern Hide and the Island Mere Hide and they were jammed full with visitors when we got there.

• We still had time to wait for the bitterns to appear.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

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A small group of us decided to try and find the stone curlews at the north-west area of the reserve on the heath by the exit road towards Westleton. 

• Our luck was in again as Phil soon spotted 2 of them in the field adjacent to the track we were on.  What a great view we had of these pre-historic looking birds with their distinctive yellow eye-ring.

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

Courtesy of Phil Aylen

• As a final gesture, a nightingale sang for us from the bushes just a few metres form the coach as we assembled for the departure.

A superb trip!

2024 species count=175