Is it autumn yet?

It's always tricky to get back into the swing of things after any trip away from home, and returning to the later stages of summer in Sussex after a week away in Spain has proved no exception.

Of course, July can be a very exciting time of year, with spring migration well and truly done and dusted and the first subtle hints of return migration beginning to get into gear as the breeding season starts to wrap up for a lot of species. 

Certainly it felt rather longer than a week we had been away, when one sees how things have progressed in the natural world at this time of year. Take the Purple Emperors at Knepp for example, which were just a fortnight into their season when I was last there at the start of July, and are now already burning out fast like a spent firework as I write this in the third week of the month. 

The birds too are rapidly coming to the end of their various breeding cycles, with the cacophony of song that defines April, May and early June now reduced to just a few bursts, and most migrant species now just content to give their various whistles, tacks, croaks and squeaks in the bushes as we pass.

So it is to this backdrop of summer winding down and autumn just beginning to poke its head above the parapet that we ease into this rather brief summary of a somewhat unspectacular ten-day period of local birding. It's still been good, but don't expect any fireworks!

10th July

Our first full day back in the UK and, after dropping B at nursery, I decided to swing by Pulborough for a quick look at the North Brooks (I didn't have time for the full reserve loop today) which produced a tasty selection of waders: 2 each of Greenshank, Green Sandpiper and Avocet, 10 Black-tailed Godwits, at least 8 Little Ringed Plovers and a single Common Sandpiper. 

A short walk and skywatch round the local fields at lunchtime produced a light trickle of Sand Martins moving through, roughly south, and my first UK Painted Lady of the year nectaring on bramble flower. 

11th July

A check of local water bodies today proved fairly quiet. A Common Sandpiper was at a private site, while Burton Mill Pond yielded juvenile Grey Wagtails and Reed Warblers from a quick look in passing. An afternoon check of Waltham Brooks yielded just usual fare.

In fact, the resounding highlight of the day was not a bird but a butterfly - a Brown Argus, to be precise - which briefly alighted on a Viola in our garden at lunchtime, just as I had sat down to eat my sandwich! My first record for the garden here.

Brown Argus

12th July

A sweep of local water bodies today either side of a garden safari at Knepp. The afternoon saw some lively showers moving through with one in particular producing a substantial amount of rain. A private site near Petworth produced a Common Sandpiper and two juvenile Little Ringed Plovers, while a Common Sandpiper was also found on the pool at Southlands Farm, West Chiltington on my way back from Knepp.

Common Sandpiper

Knepp itself was good too (it always is, to be fair!) with heard only Lesser Spotted Woodpecker calling in trees near the Walled Garden and at least one Spotted Flycatcher about too. 

13th July

Another busy non-birding day but I managed to squeeze out for an hour round the local farmland and a brief look at Waltham Brooks at lunchtime. Highlights included the two White-tailed Eagles soaring together north of Greatham Bridge (the first time I've seen both together for quite some time), at least a dozen Sand Martins feeding over the main lake and a few Swifts trickling south-west. 

14th July

A cool, grey and squally day, more akin to October than mid-July. A whizz round Pulborough this morning proved quite productive, especially for waders. Highlights were 28 Black-tailed Godwit, 9 Green Sandpiper, 3 Greenshank, 2 Little Ringed Plover, 2 Common Sandpiper and 2 Avocet. A Grey Wagtail flew over Green Lane as I was walking back to the car park, and around 8-10 each of Sand Martin and House Martin were feeding over Uppertons Field, Fattengates and the South Brooks.

North Brooks looking autumnal

15th July

A particularly autumnal day with severe winds (gusting up to almost 50mph), leading to the cancellation of various summer fayres and other events (Goodwood Festival of Speed included). I was also looking after B all day, so no birding today.

16th July

For the first time in a while I got out early for the loop up the river from home to Waltham Brooks and back past the sewage works. The clear highlight of an otherwise relatively uneventful couple of hours was a Grasshopper Warbler reeling intermittently on the north-western side of Amberley Wildbrooks, just across the river east of Thorndale Bridge. It was hard to pinpoint exactly where it was, given the still blustery wind, but it was unmistakable nonetheless. My first record of the year, taking the local year list to 147 and the 1km area list to 117.

Also of note were a female Teal with six juveniles on the main lake at Waltham Brooks and a family group of Nightingales flitting about and calling constantly in the scrub right next to Thorndale Bridge. There was just a hint of some south-westerly movement of Swifts overhead throughout the session, but still nothing spectacular - still waiting for a really big day for these this summer. A pair of Stonechats were by the railway crossing at Waltham Brooks and there were several juvenile Whitethroats about. 

Stonechat

Despite the wind, there were plenty of butterflies out, even at this early time of day, including a couple of box fresh Peacocks sunning themselves on a fence near home. There seem to be so many of these and Red Admirals about at the moment!

Peacock

17th July

A day where I was all over the place but didn't squeeze in a whole lot of birding. Perhaps the most notable bird of the day was at least one flyover Crossbill (heard only) while I was surveying some private land near North Chailey in East Sussex - only my second record of this species anywhere this year!

At Knepp in the afternoon, the remarkable Turtle Dove summer there continued with a single bird low over the heads of my safari group in the Southern Block - a pleasing Knepp first for one of the staff members present. Also of note here was my first Willow Emerald of the year. 

On the way home a quick look at Southlands Farm in West Chiltington produced a Green Sandpiper, while a family group of 5 Peregrines were noisily flying around over Amberley Station as the female brought back prey. 

Green Sandpiper

18th July

No birding today. 

19th July

An early walk from home out to Waltham Brooks and back proved fairly quiet, aside from the usual fare at the main lake (7 Shoveler, Cetti's Warbler, Water Rail) and 25 Swallows perched on the telegraph wires near home. 

Later in the morning I headed out to the private site near Petworth which produced a single Common Sandpiper and 25 Egyptian Geese, including two striking leucistic individuals. 

Egyptian Geese

On the way home from Knepp in the afternoon I stopped at Southlands Farm to check the pool there, which again held a Green Sandpiper, presumably the same bird from a couple of days ago.