15/09/2015 Ospreys in Sussex at Thorney Island

Tuesday 15th September 2015
Thorney Island, West Sussex
Paul and Group   (7)

On a day not conducive to finding migrants we managed to eke out quite a good list of sightings.  The weather was wet and windy early on but by mid morning things were brighter and by lunchtime the winds had eased considerably.

• The undoubted highlight of the day were the Osprey sightings at the start and end of our outing.  2 were seen, both perched on posts about 100 metres away.  It is so good to see them here in Sussex - it adds to the smashing views I had at Bassenthwaite in the spring.

• There were scores of migrant Wheatears around and they were with us for most of the way round this  7 mile circuit.  At least 2 Whinchats and 6+ Stonechats were seen which pleased everyone.

• We had a glut of Kestrels, a couple of Buzzards and a Peregrine.

• The main estuary birds were Dunlin, Green Sandpipers, Common Sandpipers, Oystercatchers, Sanderlings, Curlews,  a Whimbrel, 4 Brent Geese, a couple of Shelduck, Redshanks and a Ringed Plover.

The Ospreys made this a very special occasion and was one of over 50 birds seen today.  Thorney Island has to be the premier site to see Ospreys in Sussex.




As an added bonus we were perfectly placed to witness the aerial display of Spitfires and Hurricanes to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain

On the way home I called in at the Ferry Pool at Siddlesham, Pagham to twitch the Pectoral Sandpiper which had been around for several days and a newly arrived Grey Phalarope.  This was compensation for missing the East Grinstead RSPB outing last Sunday due to us witnessing a nasty motorbike accident en route and deciding not to travel any further.






Additions to BUBO 2015 UK Bird List:
Pectoral Sandpiper   (253)
Grey Phalarope   (254)








Pectoral Sandpiper

•  Breeds on arctic tundra from western Alaska across extreme northern Canada to the Hudson Bay; also found in Siberia. Spends winters in South America and Australia. During migration, may occur throughout North and Central Americas. Preferred habitats include marshes and grassy pools.

• They are promiscuous: males mate with multiple females, and females mate with multiple males

Grey Phalarope

• Migrant visitor to the UK. Most often seen in winter, blown ashore by storm winds.

• Breeds in arctic areas of Greenland and Iceland and winters in southern oceans near Antarctica. On passage may be seen in coastal areas.

• This bird usually stays far out to sea.

09/09/2015 Crow Link

Wednesday 9th September 2015
Crow Link
Brighton RSPB Local Group   (14)


Spent 4 hours on the south coast again, this time with the Brighton RSPB local group.  Just like yesterday, the conditions were not conducive to us seeing large numbers of migrants.

• The highlight for me was the altercation between a Buzzard and several corvids including at least one Raven.  Other birds of prey included a Sparrowhawk and a Kestrel.

• We saw several Wheatears, a Whitethroat, a Redstart and several Chiffchaffs.

• We had our lunch overlooking the sea where we saw Curlews, Oystercatchers, a Little Egret, Great Black-backed Gulls and a couple of Fulmars.

A lovely outing!

08/09/2015 Into the 300 Club with a Honey Buzzard!

Tuesday 8th September 2015
Beachy Head, East Sussex
Paul and Group  (8)

Episode 3 of our hunt for migrant birds on the south coast took us to Beachy Head.  Starting at Birling Gap we headed east, taking the low level paths passing Horseshoe Plantation, spending some time at Shooters Bottom before turning at the Old Ringing Station and returning on the high level paths.

The migration was not happening in a big way, with lower than expected numbers of most species and an absence of some.  The outing however had a real surprise in store and it turned out to be a momentous one for me.  

• As we were approaching the Old Ringing Station, at the half way point, a Buzzard was spotted in the skies above us.  It was being chased by a couple of crows.  Gradually it dawned on us that it was, in fact, a Honey Buzzard!  After 25 to 30 hours spent this summer looking specifically for this species, there it was in all it's majesty flying east!  We could not have wished for a better view.  Thanks to John Cooper for allowing me to use his smashing images of the bird.

Honey Buzzard
Pictures courtesy of John Cooper

Honey Buzzard
Pictures courtesy of John Cooper

 

• The main migrants were Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs, Common Whitethroats and  Lesser Whitethroats as well as a couple of Wheatears and a Spotted Flycatcher.

• Migrating into the country, of course, at this time of the year are the Siskins and we saw plenty of evidence for this with several flocks seen overhead in the skies.

•  Hirundines were present, of course, with hundreds of Swallows, scores of House Martins and small numbers of House Martins. 

• Other birds of prey included Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel and Peregrine.

• On the sea the main activity involved Gannets and Fulmars.

• Other birds seen included a couple of Rock Pipits and a Skylark.

Butterflies Too!

Clouded Yellow
Library picture



Painted Lady
Library picture

Comma
Library picture

So pleased to join the 300 Club today and what a bird to bring it about!
 
So fitting it should be with Paul and Andrew who have been instrumental in all of this. 





Addition to BUBO Life List of UK Birds:
Honey Buzzard  (300)

Addition to BUBO 2015 UK Bird List:
Honey Buzzard   (252)

 

 

 

European honey-buzzard range

The European honey-buzzard is a highly migratory species, breeding in countries across Europe during the summer months, before migrating south to spend the winter in Africa. During migration, the European honey-buzzard makes its way primarily overland, with most migrating individuals crossing into Africa through the Straits of Gibraltar.  From there, migration continues into areas throughout sub-Saharan Africa, where the European honey-buzzard will overwinter.



 

 

 

 

 

 

04/09/2015 Long wait is over - Black Stork!

Friday 4th September 2015
Bexhill, East Sussex

At the third attempt and after nearly 8 hours of observation I finally got my reward when I saw the Black Stork flying over the Little Common Recreation Ground at Bexhill.  I very nearly missed out though!



Black Stork
Library picture

I arrived at 11.45 to find I was the only birder present.   Unbeknown to me, some 15 minutes earlier, the stork had been seen but went down north of the usual viewing point so the birders had relocated to try and find it again.  After nearly an hour, without success, they came back to where I was.  At this point I was nearly out of time and needed to get home.  I started to move towards my car, cursing my bad luck, only to be called back because the stork was showing again.  For a good 5 minutes or so we enjoyed good flight views before it went down again behind the trees.

What a relief!

Addition to BUBO UK life List of Birds:
Black Stork   (299)

Addition to BUBO 2015 UK Bird List:
Black Stork   (251)

What a rarity in the UK!

• The black stork (Ciconia nigra) is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It is a widespread, but uncommon, species that breeds in the warmer parts of Europe (predominantly in central and eastern regions), across temperate Asia and Southern Africa. This is a shy and wary species, unlike the closely related white stork. It is seen in pairs or small flocks—in marshy areas, rivers or inland waters. The black stork feeds on amphibians and insects.

• During the summer, the black stork is found from Eastern Asia (Siberia and China) west to Central Europe, reaching Estonia in the north, Poland, Lower Saxony and Bavaria in Germany, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy and Greece in the south, with an outlying population in Spain and Portugal. They are not abundant in these western parts of their distribution, but more densely inhabit the eastern Transcaucasus. A population of black storks is also resident in Southern Africa.

• The black stork is a strong migrant, wintering in tropical Africa and India. A broad-winged soaring bird, the black stork is assisted by thermals of hot air for long distance flight, although are less dependent on them than the white stork. Since thermals only form over land, storks, together with large raptors, must cross the Mediterranean at the narrowest points, and many black storks can be seen going through the Bosphorus. They fly approximately 100 to 250 km (62 to 155 mi) a day with daily maxima up to 500 km (310 mi).

• The storks migrate from the middle of August to the end of September. They return in the middle of March. About 10% of the western storks choose the passage Sicily - Cap Bon, Tunisia. The common route goes over Gibraltar. Many birds are fly around the Sahara next to the coast. Most birds are wintering in the wetlands of Nigeria or Mali. The eastern birds take the route Bosphorus-Sinai-Nile to Africa. Birds that summer in Siberia winter in northern and northeastern India. In Southern Africa, black storks that nest in the central montane areas perform season winter movements to warmer coastal and subtropical zones.

02/09/2015 Autumn Migration Outing 2 Pagham Harbour, East.

Wednesday 2nd September 2015
Pagham Harbour, East
Paul and group (11)

After the recent wet weather it was nice to get out in sunshine and experience dry conditions.  I enjoyed a smashing day out with friends, seeing 60+ species including a Yellow-legged Gull to bring up my 250th UK bird of 2015.

Today we  concentrated on the eastern side of the harbour including White's Creek which was a new stretch for me.   Unusually, we started at 10.00 so we could catch the waders along the North Wall on the large afternoon high tide.

There  were lots of highlights:

• Perhaps the most unexpected sighting was the Short-eared Owl that was flushed out as we made our return to the cars at Little Welbourne - unusual in that we would not normally see this species here at this time of year.  A real bonus!

• Obviously the Yellow-legged Gull was a treat for me and a landmark sighting for my 2015 Year List.  This was one of the first birds we saw as we walked along White's Creek - thanks to Paul who had  obviously targeted this species for me.



Yellow-legged Gull
Library picture

• A group of 6 Mediterranean Gulls provided the best spectacle of the day; I have never ever seen a  flock of these birds for quite some time now - 1's or 2's usually.

• Migrant passerines were well represented with good sightings of Wheatear, Whinchat and Linnet.

• Pagham Harbour is always a great place to see ducks, waders and gulls.  As well as a few Wigeon and Teal we saw a couple of Pintails.  The 2 Spotted Redshanks were perhaps the pick of the waders, closely followed by the Grey Plovers and Turnstones in there stunning summer plumage. 

Summer plumage Grey Plover
Library picture

 

Summer plumage Turnstone
Library picture

 

• As well as scores of Black-tailed Godwits there was also  at least 1 Bar-tailed Godwit. a Ruff, a Sanderling,  20+ Ringed Plovers, 20+ Knot, 20+ Dunlin, several Greenshanks and a couple of Golden Plovers.

 

• Birds of Prey included Buzzard, Peregrine, Kestrel and Sparrowhawk but alas not Osprey on this occasion.

• I managed to miss the Kingfisher on 2 occasions.

• Swallows provided a magnificent backdrop throughout our visit.

• A Whimbrel was seen along with loads of Curlews, Herons and Little Egrets.

A really good birding experience.  Pagham never ever disappoints and today was no exception with good weather, lots of birds to see including a couple of "specials".



Addition to BUBO 2015 UK Bird List:
Yellow-legged Gull   (250)

• The yellow-legged gull has only recently been recognised as a species in its own right, having previously been considered to be a race of herring gull. 

•  Adults have darker grey backs and wings than herring gulls, but are paler than lesser black-backed gulls. They have more black in the wing tips than herring gulls and smaller white 'mirrors'. The legs are bright yellow, there is a red ring around the eye and the bill is yellow with a large red spot. In non-breeding plumage, the head is less streaked and whiter than herring gulls. 

•  Juvenile yellow-legged gulls are very similar to juvenile lesser black-backed gulls, but tend to be whiter-headed and start to gain a grey 'saddle' on their backs quickly as they moult to first winter plumage. Immature birds gain adult-like characteristics as they mature over the course of five years with the legs turning yellow and dark grey feathers replacing the brown and black immature feathers.

Overview

Latin name

Larus michahellis

 

 

Family

Gulls (Laridae)

 

Where to see them

Yellow-legged gulls can be found on reservoirs, on rubbish tips, in fields, on coastal marshes and in large evening gull roosts on reservoirs and lakes. They are most often found among large gatherings of lesser black-backed gulls.

When to see them

A northward spread from the Mediterranean and an increased awareness among British birdwatchers of how to identify yellow-legged gulls means they are now a regular sight in many parts of Southern Britain. They can be found throughout the year in varying numbers, but there is a marked peak in numbers during late summer and autumn when both adults and immature birds disperse after nesting.

 

 

What they eat

Ominivorous - a scavenger.

Population

Europe	UK breeding*	UK wintering*	UK passage*
-	1 pair	1,100 birds	-