With Martin and Alison

Wednesday 5th January 2022

I spent the day showing Alison some of the birds I had seen earlier in the week

• She was very keen to see the Bewick Swans at Burpham so we headed there first.  This time we saw 6.

courtesy of Alison Playle

• After a quick lunch at RSPB Pagham Harbour we visited the Ferry Pool where I picked up Avocet, Gadwall, Golden Plover, Goldfinch and Shoveler for my year list.

courtesy of Alison Playle

• In the afternoon we saw the Red-breasted Mergansers on the sea at Church Norton.  Once again there was no sign of the Slavonian Grebes. 

courtesy of Alison Playle

• In the harbour on the way back there was a very showy Snipe.

Year total =  74

An exciting day, especially by the sea at the very high tide!

Thursday 6th January 2022

Martin joined us today for a jolly in East Sussex.

First stop was Bo Peep car park on the South Downs near Alciston to twitch the Snow Bunting.  

• Sadly, things didn't work out as the bird was clearly not very well.  It was listless and hardly moving, making no effort to eat any of the seeds that were placed nearby.  
• After using the local WhatsApp link to get some good advice we picked up the bird and headed off to the East Sussex Wildlife Rescue & Ambulance Service at Whitesmith on the A22, not far from my home.
• Alas the lovely bird had died by the time we got there.  The lady in charge told us it was way under weight which probably was the cause of death.

We then carried on birding, heading down to the coast at Eastbourne to look for a couple of birds that had been reported at Sovereign Harbour.

• It didn't take long to find the long-staying Great Northern Diver.  It was in the outer harbour but off to the east on the opposite side to us.  We decided to go round and get the best views.

courtesy of Alison Playle

• There were 2 Guillemots in the inner harbour to add to the glamour of the occasion.

courtesy of Alison Playle

Polegate Service Station on the A27

On the way home, as the weather deteriorated, we called in at the service station at the Polegate roundabout.

• The order of the day was to twitch the Hooded Crow which has been around for months.  Within minutes of arriving we saw it, low down in its favourite tree, trying to keep out of the rain.  Thankfully it flew to the top of a nearby tree just as we were leaving enabling Alison to get her picture.

courtesy of Alison Playle

Year total =  74

A dramatic day today!