12/01/14. Pagham Harbour near Chichester. 15 additions to year list

12th January 2014
Selsey Bill, Pagham Harbour and Shoreham Harbour
Paul James and group. (5)

I was on the road again early today, joining Paul, Andrew and Sandra before heading off to Selsey where Chris joined us.  We did a stint of sea watching then moved on to Pagham Harbour before finishing at Shoreham Harbour where we hoped to spot the Glaucous Gull that has been around for a couple of days.

• There were several birds to be seen at Selsey, despite the choppy seas.  For me the pick of the bunch was the Red-throated Diver that flew east.

Red-throated Diver
library picture only

• At Pagham Harbour we didn't see the Firecrest we hoped for but we did see a Goldcrest and a female Goldeneye.  There was a good selection of birds on view.  We moved to the North Wall with the Spotted Redshank the highlight of the visit.

Spotted Redshank
library picture only

We had no luck at Shoreham Harbour.  The Glaucous Gull had been reported present here twice today but it did not show for us. A Purple Sandpiper provided some consolation.

Purple Sandpiper
library picture only

A really good day with a high species count of 58 including 14 additions to the 2014 Year List.

Today's species list:

Additions to 2014 year list
Common Scoter   (94)
Peregrine   (95)
Fulmar   (96)
Red-throated Diver   (97)
Goldeneye   (98)
Long-tailed Tit   (99)
Goldcrest   (100)
Lesser Black-backed Gull   (101)
Knot   (102)
Bar-tailed Godwit   (103)
Spotted Redshank   (104)
Dunnock   (105)
Reed Bunting   (106)
Greenfinch   (107)
(14)

Other species:
Bar-tailed Godwit
Black-headed Gull
Blackbird
Blue Tit
Brent Goose
Buzzard
Carrion Crow
Chaffinch
Common Gull
Coot  (10)
Cormorant
Curlew
Dunlin
Gadwall
Gannet
Golden Plover
Goldfinch
Great Black-backed Gull
Great Crested Grebe
Great Tit   (20)
Grey Plover
Greylag Goose
Herring Gull
Lapwing
Little Egret
Little Grebe
Magpie 
Mallard
Mute Swan
Oystercatcher   (30)
Peregrine
Red-breasted Merganser
Redshank
Ringed Plover
Robin
Rock Pipit
Rook
Shag
Shelduck
Shoveler   (40)
Teal
Tufted Duck
Turnstone
Wigeon

Today's species count = 14+44 = 58



On a drab, windy day we managed to enjoy a really good birdwatching experience.  Lovely!