Ashdown Forest Bird Group Outing to Pulborough Brooks

 

Here's a copy of the report I wrote for the Ashdown Forest Bird Group's latest trip.

Sunday 11th July 2021

RSPB Pulborough Brooks, Sussex

Ashdown Bird Group

(9 members present)

Trip Report

July is perhaps the hardest month in the birdwatching calendar.  Spring migration has finished, there is little bird movement and most birds have stopped singing.  So it was quite an achievement to record just over 50 bird species – well done everybody! 

At Pulborough Brooks you are guaranteed a good variety of birds and so it turned out for us:-

·         We saw several raptors including red kites, buzzards, a kestrel and a sparrowhawk.  Unusually, we did not see a peregrine.

·         There were a few sand martins flying around the brooks and a few swifts but no house martins or swallows.

·         Wetland birds included nesting lapwings, mallards with chicks and shelducks with chicks. A few of us caught sight of the common sandpiper as it flew left.  Ian managed to pick out a female mandarin with chicks in with a group of mallards.  2 black-tailed godwits showed off their summer plumage to good effect and 8 Egyptian geese were also seen.

·         As we walked in the woodland area we heard the unmissable sounds of the ubiquitous wrens, blackcaps and chiffchaffs.  A nuthatch was our best sighting, closely followed by the great-spotted woodpeckers.

·         The hedges gave us sightings of linnets, whitethroats and reed buntings. 

·         Bird of the day was a lesser whitethroat.  Martin picked out an unusual bird song before John recognised it and the ID was confirmed visually when Ian spotted the bird and pointed it out to us.

 

Butterflies also generated quite a bit of interest.

·         The marbled whites were numerous and were the highlight with meadow brown, small skipper, ringlet, red admiral and gatekeeper also seen, as was a lovely cinnabar caterpillar.  A white admiral flew through the car park at lunch time.

 

Flora and fauna also abound at Pulborough.

·         We saw several of the melanistic fallow deer which are well known at Pulborough Brooks, much darker than the usual ones.  A weasel, rabbits, squirrels and a whole host of beautiful wild flowers to add to the richness of our visit.

A very interesting and much appreciated trip!

Bob Hastings