Floodgates?

11th April

Just brief bits of birding today as I was back at my desk after a week off. An early walk out from home proved very rewarding though, with two 'new in' singing male Nightingales setting the tone for what turned into a great hour or so session. There had clearly been an arrival of Sedge Warblers overnight, with at least six singing males around the reserve at Waltham Brooks. Other bits of note here included singing Cuckoo, Willow Warbler and two male Tufted Ducks on the main lake. Best of all though, as I left the reserve and headed back out across the fields towards home I heard the unmistakable sound of a reeling Grasshopper Warbler in a bramble clump a short distance west of Coldwaltham sewage works. A 10km and 1km area year tick and a first for the local hotspot, it was also the first singing male I have found for a few years. Clearly there has been a pretty huge arrival of this species in recent days, with birds turning up all over the place (five already in Surrey this month, which is remarkable really).

Later in the morning I checked the scrape over at Hadworth/Bignor Park which held another new Willow Warbler, four Tufted Duck, and a couple of House Martins feeding in among at least eight Sand Martins. 

12th April

Another early start this morning and it was already pleasantly mild as I headed out just before 06:00. There was sadly no sign of yesterday's Gropper, unsurprisingly, but there was still plenty of song again from Cuckoo, Nightingale, Whitethroat and multiple Sedge Warblers. New for the year in the reeds at Waltham Brooks was a rather hesitant Reed Warbler.

Sunrise at Waltham Brooks

As it turned into a beautiful spring day, I couldn't resist getting out again in my lunch break. First up I checked the scrape at Bignor/Hadworth which is rapidly drying up now it's finally stopped raining. The long-staying Green Sandpiper seems to have finally departed as do the deep water birds such as Tufted Duck. A pair of Teal were still present along with a single drake Gadwall. 

A stroll round the woodland at nearby Waltham Park was very pleasant but relatively unremarkable on the bird side of things, aside from eight Redpolls and a Raven flying over. In the now warm sunshine, however, invertebrates were much in evidence including Tawny Mining Bee, various bumblebee species and lots of butterflies including Peacock, Red Admiral, Brimstone and Orange-tip (including my first female of the year). A Holly Blue was also enjoying the Ceanothus in our garden when I got home.

Holly Blue

Late afternoon I received a message from Chris and Juliet Moore alerting me to a beautiful male Pied Flycatcher they had just found at Black Wood at Pulborough Brooks. Once I had finished work I dashed over and was very pleased to catch up with the bird still flitting about in the pines there, at times elusive but typically posing well from time to time. After spending an enjoyable half hour with the bird I made my way down to Hail's View to check out some of the waders on offer on the South Brooks including my first local Grey Plover of the year, two Ruff, at least 20 Black-tailed Godwits - many looking resplendent in their breeding plumage - and a heard-only Little Ringed Plover. 

Pied Flycatcher

13th April

A tour of a few water bodies this morning. First up, the reservoir near Petworth which was quiet aside from a couple of Swallows. Burton Mill Pond proved rather more lively with highlights of Kingfisher, Woodlark, 50 Tufted Duck, Gadwall, two Red-legged Partridge and a 'singing' Water Rail). Finally, the scrape at Bignor Park which continued hosting the Green Sandpiper but also two each of Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Teal and Little Egret, and five each of Swallow and Sand Martin. 

The best of the bunch from a late morning session at Pulborough (tea terrace/visitor centre area only), meanwhile, were six Avocet, a single Ruff and a singing Nightingale.

14th April

An early session at Pulborough Brooks this morning with Steve Baines produced 63 species including my first local Ringed Plover (4) and Common Sandpiper (2) of the year among the usual breeding waders - three pairs of Avocet again on the South Brooks, multiple Lapwings and Redshanks and a heard-only Oystercatcher. There were still three Snipe kicking about too, including one flying low over the Hanger viewpoint. A flock of 24 Mediterranean Gulls north over the South Brooks was quite an impressive sight, sadly a bit too far away for us to hear them! Nightingales were much in evidence and making themselves heard as were multiple Sedge Warblers and a couple each of Whitethroat and Willow Warbler.

Nightingales

Mid-afternoon I again met up with Steve B and Paul D for a walk up at The Burgh. All the usual species were much in evidence including at least half a dozen pairs of Lapwing, 15 Red Kite, 20+ Skylarks and a few Yellowhammers. Bird of the afternoon though was a ringtail Hen Harrier quartering the fields near the dew pond. 

15th April

A classic April day of spells of very pleasant sunshine interspersed with some very squally showers, sometimes with added hail! A check of Bignor Park scrape before work produced the lingering Green Sandpiper again, while at the River Rother in Fittleworth I found a Swallow, singing Whitethroat and a flyover Little Egret. There was also a pair of Mallard with ducklings, with a Grey Heron in tow...

A brief check of Amberley en route to Woods Mill yielded another single Swallow and a pair of Egyptian Geese with eight young. Duck numbers are still fairly high here with minima of 90 Shoveler and 80 Teal, plus smaller numbers of Wigeon and a pair of Pintail. 

A lunchtime walk in the sunshine at Woods Mill produced only my second Reed Warbler of the year and my first Lesser Whitethroat of the year plus a pair of Common Whitethroat. 

After work I stopped off at Pulborough briefly which was unbirdable in high winds and heavy rain. Just a few minutes down the road though, I found Waltham Brooks bathed in pleasant sunshine, the rain and wind having already moved through here. A 25-minute whizz round near the lake and roadside scrub produced a Nightingale singing near the railway, two each of Swallow and Sand Martin, three Sedge Warbler, and three Tufted Duck on the lake. 

16th April

A leisurely check of Hadworth Farm and Burton Mill Pond before work took a wholly unexpected turn when news broke of a drake Green-winged Teal on the North Brooks at Pulborough, found by young RSPB volunteer Toby Stapleton. A bird I had always dreamed of finding there (or elsewhere locally), the first in the Arun Valley for 19 years, and in fact a UK tick for me. There was no way I was going to miss this! Luckily I had a bit of a window of opportunity so dashed straight over and soon joined Toby himself and Marc Read at Jupp's View where we enjoyed good views of the bird swimming about in the open with a few Eurasian Teal and Shoveler. 

Green-winged Teal

Other bits of note from my hour on the reserve this morning included four Avocet, two Black-tailed Godwit and singles of Ruff, Little Ringed Plover and Common Sandpiper. 

A brief lunchtime walk round the local farm fields proved fairly quiet aside from four Swallows whizzing around near the stables - the first proper little flock I've seen back in the 1k area this year. 

17th April

I was down in Brighton for a work event for most of today but did manage a quick hour out in the 1k before I left. Waltham Brooks was relatively quiet aside from a couple of Nightingales and at least six singing Sedge Warblers. A pair of Shoveler were still around on the lake along with four Gadwall and three Tufted Duck. I wonder if one or more of these species will attempt to breed here again this year after last year's successful Shoveler breeding. The bird of the session here though was a Barn Owl which cruised through the main grassland area of the site and off towards Greatham Bridge. Always nice to get a surprise dawn Barn Owl!

Barn Owl

Bird of the morning though, was reserved for the very smart male Redstart in one of the paddocks on River Lane - in fact the very same paddock I saw a male in on 12th April last year. Redstart can be a tricky bird to encounter round here in the spring so I made sure to relish the moment. Having grown up close to some major heathland sites, it's all too easy to take them for granted, but they really are one of the best looking spring migrants, for my money. 

Redstart

18th April

Another check of the fields near home this morning failed to turn up any more migrant surprises, though it was nice to see several Swallows about, including one back on its favourite perched on a telegraph wire a stone's throw from home.

Swallow

A brief look at Amberley Mount on the way to Woods Mill proved similarly quiet, two Common Gull flying north indicative of the fact that we are not quite free from more wintry species just yet, and the keen north wind a good reminder of the same! Other bits up here included an immature Peregrine which flew north-west and a Kestrel checking out a nest box at Downs Farm.

Despite the cold wind on the Downs, by lunchtime it had turned into a glorious spring day and a lunch break stroll at Woods Mill was almost more notable for the butterflies than birds. A Siskin flying north-east as a Lesser Whitethroat rattled in a nearby hedgerow was an interesting clash of seasonal sounds. Brimstone, Holly Blue, Orange-tip, Peacock, Comma and a White (probably Green-veined White) were all noted on the wing. 

Holly Blue

Chiffchaff

A check of the scrape at Bignor on the way home revealed the water level to have dropped considerably since I last checked in here earlier in the week. I couldn't find the Green Sandpiper (or any other waders for that matter) but it was great to see some 25 Swallows flying about and generally being very vocal, with a couple of Sand Martins and House Martins mixed in with them. 

19th April

An early check of a few local sites proved reasonably fruitful. At the private reservoir near Petworth I found two Common Sandpipers and a single Little Ringed Plover - my first proper little 'fall' of waders here this year. The intriguing mixed singing Willow Warbler was still present and singing away, still seemingly yet to attract a mate. A scan of Burton Mill Pond from the northern shore yielded usual bits, although new in was my first Reed Warbler of the year at this site and only my second anywhere in my local recording area. Finally, the scrape at Bignor which is now rapidly drying up to just a muddy puddle but which today produced the birds of the morning: a group of three Tree Pipits flying north-west overhead, qiuite high but calling. 

Willow Warbler

En route to a work event in East Sussex I stopped for a short while at Waltham Brooks which I found to be teeming with hirundines, the bulk of which were Sand Martins (some 150 or so) and a few House Martins and the odd Swallow. 

20th April

A very early start this morning for the first Knepp dawn safari of the year. Nightingales were in fine voice as were multiple Lesser Whitethroats and my first Garden Warbler of the year.