The wider horizon more clearly seen

While obviously less than ideal from the perspective of not being able to drive or lead Knepp safaris, etc, I have to say I am weirdly enjoying this period of enforced reduced travel and hyper local nature study. I have always said I am someone who would struggle to ever become bored and have kept myself busy the past couple of weeks with regular 1km area walks as well as rekindling my love for vismigging and nocmigging, and occasionally moth trapping when time allows (although this is a little trickier to manage with only one fully functioning arm!)

From a migration point of view, it's clear we have very much turned a corner now from the dregs of summer to the days of peak autumn proper. It's still a little on the slow side but as I write this I have just enjoyed a spectacular day of Redwing passage as well as my first Fieldfares and Merlins of the season, while the straggling hirundines are still to be seen trickling south most days. It's not just migrant birds that have featured either. This morning there was another Hummingbird Hawkmoth in the garden (my third record of the autumn after a relatively poor summer for them) and southward Red Admiral migration on a scale I haven't seen for many years has been a daily feature of late. A few migrant moths have been turning up in the trap too... All in all, perhaps not the most spectacular or memorable autumn so far (albeit not for good reasons!) but it's always nice to see the seasons changing gear at this point in the year.

Again, sadly rather a lack of decent photos this time, due to not being able to use my proper camera. 

1st October

So, a whole week into my shoulder injury recovery, and with the weather looking good I decided to give one-armed moth trapping a bash. It proved a worthwhile decision as it produced various new for the garden species, including Red-green Carpet, Lunar Underwing and the migrant Clancy's Rustic.

Clancy's Rustic

Red-green Carpet

Before emptying the trap I tried a spot of vismigging from the high ground to the west of home, which proved quiet aside from 55 Meadow Pipits mostly west and a few Swallows south. Late morning, Kate dropped me off at Pulborough for a whizz round, where I had a catch up with Steve B and Josie N. Highlights here included the lingering Curlew Sandpiper (my first anywhere this year!) among the usual waders, increased numbers of ducks, a Marsh Harrier and two Hobbies.

2nd October

A walk from home to Waltham Brooks this morning was fairly quiet. Highlights on the reserve were two Little Grebes, 20 Swallows, singles of Kingfisher and Snipe and a rather late Willow Warbler among the Chiffchaffs by the main lake. Down at Thorndale Bridge were a Stonechat, a flock of 25 Siskins spooked from Alders by a Kestrel, and another 17 Swallows south. 

While having lunch in the garden I picked up an Osprey circling quite low just to the east. It was in view for a couple of minutes as it gained height before drifting south. My first record anywhere this year, and just in time as it was one that I thought was going to evade me altogether as I'd reached October without seeing one. Unfortunately I was only able to get a very ropey one-handed record shot with my little bridge camera - better than nothing though I suppose! 

Osprey

3rd October

A check of Waltham Brooks this morning produced my first Pintail of the autumn here among the Teal, Shoveler and Gadwall on the main lake, plus a single Little Grebe and heard-only Kingfisher. A few Swallows were moving south which bode well for a follow-up skywatch from the field near home. In an hour, around 160 hirundines moved south here, roughly half and half Swallow and House Martin. The only other movers during this session were a single Linnet and two Herring Gulls south, and a few Siskins south-west. Another hour vismigging later in the day proved very quiet in almost summer-like conditions, with just a few hirundines and Meadow Pipits south, although two Lesser Black-backed Gulls going the same way were my first locally for a while. The warm sunshine also encouraged a few raptors into the air including a trio of Buzzards, a Red Kite and one of the White-tailed Eagles over Amberley.

4th October

Following on from my first Merlin of the autumn north-west over the garden first thing, a lively skywatch from the high ground on the western side of Watersfield produced a pleasing selection of species including a single late Sand Martin among 114 Swallows and 62 House Martins heading south, three Skylarks west and the first Redpolls of the season here (two north-east and three south). I had planned to have a good go at vismigging locally this autumn and it's already proving rewarding, although by all accounts not a vintage vismig autumn yet.

My vismig watchpoint this morning

5th October

In sharp contrast to yesterday, this morning's skywatch from the high ground near home failed to produce much excitement, despite early promise in the form of a Snipe flying north-west. Swallows and House Martins were in notably smaller numbers. 

Late afternoon I headed over to Thorndale Bridge which produced a juvenile Marsh Harrier flushing at least three Snipe from the near side of Amberley Wildbrooks, a light southerly passage of Swallows and House Martins (16 and 7, respectively) and a weird calling Chiffchaff in the scrub by the railway, which seemingly was just a vocally aberrant collybita rather than anything more interesting. 

6th October

A skywatch from the local farmland produced a bit of movement in the form of 30 House Martins south, four Skylarks west, a couple of Siskins south and a Chiffchaff 'bush hopping' its way south through the landscape. 

Waltham Brooks, meanwhile, held singles of Marsh Harrier, Snipe and Little Grebe, a couple of Stonechat, 34 House Martin and three Swallows flying south and a single Redpoll flying south-west.

Swallow

7th October

An early morning stroll out to Thorndale Bridge to skywatch from the river bank here proved reasonably lively with a pleasing trickle of Swallows, House Martins, Meadow Pipits and Siskins overhead plus a couple of Redpolls. Two Stonechats were kicking about and a Kingfisher briefly perched up on a post near where I was stood. The alarm call of a Green Sandpiper alerted me to two birds flying up from just across the river on the near side of Amberley with a Sparrowhawk in hot pursuit, which narrowly missed catching one of them. As I was heading for home a Yellowhammer flew west, not a particularly common bird here.

Mid-morning, Kate kindly dropped me off at Pulborough Brooks where I met up with Steve Baines (and later Paul Davy) for a stroll round the trail. Highlights included the continuing Curlew Sandpiper on the North Brooks with two Ruff, around 80 Lapwing, 50+ Snipe and 550 Teal; the whole lot flushed by a passing Marsh Harrier a few times. A rather late Yellow Wagtail flew south over the Hanger, while the South Brooks held three Cattle Egrets among the cattle and a couple of Stonechats. Three Clouded Yellows were noted during the circuit.

Early after a cream cap Marsh Harrier made an appearance drifting south high over the garden, my first record of the species from here.

8th October

Despite huge numbers of Redwings arriving further north yesterday and this morning, the conditions just weren't in my favour in Watersfield and an hour up above the recreation ground in clear skies and virtually no wind produced little in the way of movement aside from 20 Linnets south-west, 18 Swallows, a few Meadow Pipits and a single Skylark south. Perhaps most interesting was a single flock of 13 Lesser Black-backed Gulls high south, which tallied with similar movements over Capel in Surrey (per Wes Attridge). Clearly a few of these on the move today. 

Looking east from the hill above Watersfield

Fast forward a couple of hours and I arrived in Merrow in Surrey to visit my mother-in-law. A 15-20 minute watch from her garden proved lively, with a few Swallows, Linnets, Meadow Pipits and Siskins over, topped off by my first two Fieldfares of the autumn chuckling their way south. 

9th October

Well, it had to happen at some point. This morning was evidently the day that the vismig tap was turned fully on in the south-east. Heading out on foot from home at around 07:45 I immediately started seeing and hearing Redwings - my first of the autumn. Fast forward two and a half hours later and I had seen over 1,500 of them, streaming mostly west in waves, with around 200 being the biggest single flock. Watching from Thorndale Bridge, it was far and away my most enjoyable local vismig session to date, with 52 species recorded including a Merlin powering west, two Woodlarks south-west (and one grounded at Waltham Brooks), Cattle Egret and Peregrine south, plus Fieldfares, Skylarks and Swallows among many others. 

A rather frustrating moment came towards the end of the session, when I noticed a line of geese tracking south-west distantly over the Downs. I'm sure they had to be Brent Geese, but the distance, lack of scope or DSLR camera and only being able to hold bins with one hand, meant I just couldn't get enough on them to be 100% certain. Still, an amazing session and a timely reminder of just how enthralling vismigging can be when it's good! It also nicely took my Thorndale Bridge eBird hotspot list to 100 species with the addition of the various aforementioned goodies!

10th October

After yesterday's vismig fireworks I was hoping for more of the same but it sadly never quite delivered despite two bites of the cherry, first at Thorndale Bridge then later up on the hill to the west of Watersfield. After an initial flurry of 70 Redwings west between 07:50 and about 08:10, no more were recorded. Indeed, there were considerably fewer birds moving in general. A few late hirundines were drifting south/south-west late morning and Skylarks were trickling south-west throughout the morning. The main mover in the second session though was Red Admiral, with 31 flying strongly south in around 90 minutes. It really has been a remarkable year for this species and the spectacle of so many of them vismigging at this time of year never fails to impress. 

Blink and you'll miss it...

Well, somehow it's almost the end of April already. Not quite sure how that happened! Still, we're well and truly in the thick of the freneticism of peak spring now, which is partly why it's taken me a bit longer than usual to finish this latest update on my local birding.

I haven't been able to get in the field quite as much as usual this spring, for various reasons, but it's clearly already been a good one, with a decent arrival of migrants in the past fortnight. One thing that is encouraging about this spring is that, after several atypically dry and cold Aprils on the trot, it all feels a little more 'normal' this year, with the ideal mix of warm sunshine, showers, and winds from all directions. Indeed, it really feels as if no hour is the same, let alone each day.

I'm heading towards May with my local year list standing on 131 and my 1km list on 109. So it's certainly not looking like a record-breaking year but, as was the case in 2022, I am just trying to embrace the mantra of enjoying birding as and when I can get out and relishing the special moments that make it all worthwhile.

 12th April

Another one of those days where I went out briefly, not expecting much. After a very unusual lie-in I decided to just dash out to check the local fields before starting work, and almost immediately stumbled across a spanking male Redstart in the horse paddock halfway down our road. I fired off a few record shots (it was quite flighty) before the ominous black cloud towards the south-west arrived and it started to pour down, so I sprinted home.

Redstart

Thereafter it was a typical April day, with sunshine and showers and a strengthening chilly wind. After finishing work I headed over to the farmland and reservoir near Petworth, just as the most biblical rain and hail arrived. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say... so I put both my coats on, grabbed my umbrella and headed out of the car. In the end, it wasn't particularly worth the soaking, although I enjoyed 45 minutes or so under the umbrella watching the 120-130 hirundines feeding low over the reservoir, the 15 or so Swallows in particular almost hovering and skimming the surface of the water like Storm-petrels. There were at least five House Martins too, otherwise the rest were all Sand Martins. 

13th April

Not much birding today but I was leading a dawn safari at Knepp first thing which produced at least three singing Nightingales, including two together in the same tree.

Up at my mum's house later in the day, I saw my first Speckled Wood of the year in the garden. 

14th April

Some light drizzle and a light south/south-westerly wind this morning felt good. I headed out on foot to check some of the local fields. The best bits for my efforts were my first Cuckoo of the year, singing distantly to the east, the nearby singing Nightingale again and a singing Skylark. Also noted were a Raven carrying food, a Greenfinch with nest material and a flyover Little Egret heading south-west - surprisingly my first one in this hotspot since we moved to the area back in September!

After dropping B off at nursery I briefly stuck my head in at Waltham Brooks which yielded presumably the same Cuckoo I'd heard earlier, seemingly singing just across the river towards Amberley. Other bits of note were singing Willow Warbler, two each of Sedge Warbler and Whitethroat and around 25-30 hirundines, mostly Sand Martins but with a few Swallows and a single House Martin mixed in.

In the evening I was heading over to Petworth for Roger Morgan-Grenville's book launch, so decided to pop into the farmland and private reservoir there for a little look. The low cloud and easterly element to the wind felt absolutely ideal for producing something good, especially Little Gull, but in the event there wasn't a great deal doing aside from the largest congregation of hirundines I've seen so far this year (around 200, mostly Sand Martins but a good 20 House Martins and 10-15 Swallows) and a singing Willow Warbler.  

15th April

This morning I headed over to Pulborough Brooks for a walk around, and a catch-up with Joe Bassett, the former warden. Aside from an attempted rescue on a sadly nearly dead female Mallard hung up in a barbed wire fence, it was an enjoyable couple of hours with at least five each of singing Nightingale and Whitethroat, two pairs of Avocet, two Mandarin, four Tufted Duck, decent numbers of Swallows and Sand Martins and a singing Woodlark as we were leaving. 

An evening walk around the local fields was relatively quiet aside from a single House Martin and four Swallows, and flyovers of Raven and Grey Heron. A pair of Sparrowhawks were also up together near Besley Farm. 

Later in the evening, a text from Mark McManus alerted me to two Garganey showing well on the main lake at Waltham Brooks (Pete H and Alice P had had three birds there earlier in the day) so I made an impromptu decision to dash over to see them. Typically, as I arrived Mark said they had just vanished! Still, it was nice to catch up with Mark and we enjoyed several singing Sedge Warblers, a heard-only Barn Owl and also at least two Snipe calling in the darkness.

16th April

An early start this morning for a dawn safari at Knepp, the highlights of which were my first visuals on a Cuckoo this year and my first Lesser Whitethroat of the year, along with multiple singing Nightingales.

On the way home from Knepp I decided to stick my head in at Waltham Brooks for yet another bite of the Garganey cherry. I'm pleased to say I connected at last! A single drake deigned to show itself on the main lake for a few minutes, even giving a few croaky calls at times. There were also at least two Nightingales singing - one near the main lake and another up by the railway bridge.

Garganey - at last!

Much of the rest of the day I was up in Surrey doing non-birding stuff, but an evening walk round the local fields produced various spring goodies including at least seven Swallows zipping about over a field of cattle, and a Mistle Thrush with its bill stuffed full of worms and caterpillars.

Mistle Thrush

17th April

I spent the majority of today leading a Wildstarts tour for a couple from West Sussex. Their target species were Kingfisher and Dartford Warbler at Burton Mill Pond and a nearby heathland. Three hours at Burton Mill Pond produced almost 50 species but sadly (and unusually!) no Kingfisher. Highlights here were at least two singing Reed Warbler, three singing Firecrest, two Mandarins, two House Martins and seven Egyptian Geese. Weirdest of all was the strange grunting call we heard three times in reeds towards the south-east corner of the main pond. It was reminiscent of the flight call of a Bittern but clearly coming from dense vegetation near the water's edge. We couldn't see anything, but I did wonder afterwards whether it might have been a Night Heron... Sadly, further visits later in the afternoon and in the evening didn't yield any more clues as to what it might have been, so unfortunately one that got away!

On to the heathland site, where I'm pleased to say we connected with a Dartford Warbler, much to the couple's delight! Other highlights here were at least six Woodlark, a singing Whitethroat, two Ravens, a single Swallow and lots of Brimstone butterflies, including my first females of the year. Also noted on the wing towards the end of the (by now quite warm) walk here were Speckled Wood and Peacock.

Woodlark

18th April

A switch to north-easterly wind again and a rather brisk morning, which didn't feel particularly 'rare'. Nonetheless, I headed out early to check the local fields near home which yielded a 'new in' singing Whitethroat, the now regular singing Nightingale (that's already been present two weeks!), and a Barn Owl in flight over a field literally just a couple of houses behind ours. A brief check of the river, Wharf Field and the north-west side of Amberley Wildbrooks, meanwhile, produced two more singing Nightingales, a pair of Grey Wagtails and the singing Cuckoo again.

The weather felt conducive to grounding some waders (and, sure enough, later in the day there were plenty of inland records of Bar-tailed Godwit popping up on BirdGuides and the first Greenshank of the year at Pulborough) so I made two visits to the private reservoir near Petworth. Sadly, no unusual waders were to be found here, although it was nice to see the pair of LRPs displaying. A Willow Warbler was still singing nearby and there were at least 70-80 hirundines feeding low over the water, mostly Sand Martins. 

It was also nice to confirm the first egg in our garden Robin nest this afternoon (thanks to Paul Stevens, who is tall enough to see in!).

Robin egg

19th April

No real birding today, but it was great to see the local Swallows back on territory on our street, whizzing around over our garden and in and out of our neighbours' car ports.

20th April

Not a great deal of birding today, though a lunchtime walk around the local fields produced a very welcome Swift, flying west. Not quite my earliest ever, but very close! Also of note was a newly arrived Whitethroat singing in a hedgerow near home, though it still feels like numbers of these are quite low at the moment.

21st April

An early start this morning for a walk from home to Waltham Brooks and back via the local farmland. Highlights in the latter were the continuing Nightingale singing well near Besley Farm and two singing Willow Warblers in close proximity just west of the western entrance to Waltham Brooks. Highlights actually on the reserve itself were a good selection of warblers including at least two each of Sedge Warbler, Cetti's Warbler and Whitethroat. There were at least two Nightingales singing there again too, near the main lake and another near the railway line, and the Cuckoo was in fine voice again over beyond the river. 

After dropping B off at nursery I swung by Pulborough for an hour on the southern side of the reserve, viewing the South Brooks from Hail's View. Best from 51 species here were a local year tick Greenshank, single Avocet, at least four Redshank, a distant singing Nightingale and a singing Firecrest in Black Wood. 

Back at home late morning, and my working efforts were temporarily distracted by two Shelduck flying around over the garden - the first garden record.

Finally, a late afternoon visit to the private reservoir near Petworth produced (amazingly/shamefully) my first Green Sandpiper of the year, plus a single Little Ringed Plover and a displaying pair of Great Crested Grebes. At least 220 Herring Gulls were drifting about, heading roughly east, with at least one Lesser Black-backed Gull among them.

22nd April

Again, not loads of birding today. A short walk around the local farmland was largely uneventful save for the usual couple of Swallows, the singing Nightingale again and Starlings with nest material.

In the evening I was at Knepp, leading a dusk safari, which produced several singing Lesser Whitethroats, Nightingales and a Cuckoo.

23rd April

Another rather grey and drizzly start to the day, so I headed out to check out a few local water bodies and wetland sites. First up, a brief look at Fittleworth Water Meadows in passing, which produced a displaying Lapwing and four Little Egrets. Next, the private reservoir near Petworth for my monthly WeBS count, which didn't hold a huge amount aside from two Great Crested Grebes, four Gadwall and a Little Ringed Plover, as well as a few Swallows and Sand Martins. On the way home I stopped off at Burton Mill Pond for a quick look, which yielded my first Common Sandpiper of the year as well as the rather incongruous sight of the resident pair of Great Crested Grebes doing a few flying circuits before settling back down on the water. I actually can't recall the last time I saw this species properly in flight in an inland setting. Last of all, I stopped to check the flooded field near West Burton which yielded a single drake Gadwall along with a few Mallards, including a brood of ducklings. No waders here today but it really is looking very good at the moment so it's a spot I plan to check semi-regularly in the coming days and weeks. 

Common Sandpiper

Great Crested Grebe

Great Crested Grebes

24th April

A rather cold and sunny start to the day, so I decided to head over to West Burton for my first South Downs Farmland Bird Monitoring survey visit of the season. In all honesty, this square was pretty underwhelming last year, and so it proved again this morning, with not a single Skylark, Yellowhammer or Linnet to be seen. In fact, the only bits of note were singles of Willow Warbler and Whitethroat and a couple of pairs of Swallow.

After this, I decided to pop back and have a look at the flooded field/scrape just north of here, as mentioned earlier. Encouragingly, as soon as I pulled up in the car and started scanning, a Green Sandpiper flew up and across to the far side. After a while, I lost it altogether, but still not a bad start to my first proper check of what I suspect will become a regular haunt in the coming weeks.

Hadworth Farm scrape, near West Burton

  

25th April

After dropping B off at nursery this morning I decided to head up the Downs - specifically Amberley Mount again - in the hope that the chilly north/north-easterly wind might have dropped in some passerines. Sadly, it wasn't to be, as the only migrants noted were a couple of Swallows, Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs and a single Whitethroat. Other highlights from an hour and a half up there were two Yellowhammers, a pair of Grey Partridge and a Peregrine. 

Grey Partridges

A lunch break walk around the local fields proved to be fairly lively, with the local Cuckoo and Nightingale both in fine voice, at least 30 Linnets busily flitting and chatting away in the hedgerows and Dandelion-covered fields, and both Orange-tip and Comma on the wing. Over a hundred hirundines were swirling around high over Waltham Brooks, with two each of Swallow and Sand Martin flying fast and low over the rooftops on the edge of the hamlet.

Early afternoon, I lifted my head from my laptop and a glance out of the window produced a couple of very high Buzzards followed by my first Hobby of the year - two in fact! - hawking high over the garden. 

26th April

Another cold and blustery start, with spots of rain blown in on the stiff east/south-easterly wind. After dropping B at nursery I decided to stick my head in at Amberley Wildbrooks for the first time in a little while. Here I found a good gathering of Swallows (35 or more) feeding over the east side, where I also found a Greenshank lurking among the Lapwings and Redshanks. A flyover Shelduck was, surprisingly, an Amberley tick (well, according to eBird anyway!). One of my small-scale ambitions from my birding in 2023 is to get my Amberley list past 100, to join the likes of Knepp, Burton Mill Pond and Pulborough Brooks in my top-scoring local sites. Greenshank was 99...

On the way home I stopped to check out the fields and reservoir near Hardham for a few minutes. Here I noted a Linnet with nest material and a singing Whitethroat, but my attention was suddenly grabbed by the close call of a Little Ringed Plover. I crossed the road to check the field to the south and, sure enough, found a pair in the stubble field there. Quite an unusual sight to see them scurrying about among the Jackdaws!

Little Ringed Plovers (you might need to look closely...)

Working from home later in the day, my gaze was distracted by a Hobby and at least three Swifts dashing past the window, so after lunch Kate and I headed out for a walk round the local farmland. This proved to be quite a lively session with first a Peregrine dashing low west with prey then three Hobbies up together, hawking over towards Waltham Brooks. A bit later on I noticed three over towards the south and quickly realised these were different birds, as the other three were still in sight. This really put the wind up the local Swallows which were whizzing about, alarm calling over the stables and cow fields! A Nightingale was singing well over towards the back of Coldwaltham Sewage Works. 

Finally, I dropped in at Pulborough late afternoon, as it sounded from messages from Chris and Juliet Moore as though a mini wader fest was underway there. Pleasingly, I quickly managed to locate the Wood Sandpiper and two Greenshanks from Winpenny hide, later joined by a summer plumaged Dunlin, while at least one Ringed Plover was heard but not seen. Seven species of wader in just over an hour wasn't a bad haul at all, and served to remind me just how good this site can be at its best. Indeed, I have been guilty of neglecting it a little this year, what with one thing and another, but given the condition of the habitat at present and the selection of species on offer today, I think I will make more of an effort to visit less infrequently in the coming weeks!

Greenshanks

Wood Sandpiper

Winter begone!

After a few false starts, I think it's fair to say that spring has well and truly arrived now; both in terms of the weather and migrant birds. Since my previous blog post I have seen several sub-Saharan travelers, my first flowering Blackthorn and my first Brimstone butterfly of the year and each birding session or even just a local walk from home is again garnished with anticipation at the thought of what might be seen. It doesn't matter how many springtimes one experiences, it never gets any less exciting or reassuring to see all the pieces of the jigsaw falling into place at this time of year.

9th March

This morning I headed over to Heyshott Down with Paul Stevens to follow up on a recent report of a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker there. Sadly it really wasn't the weather to go looking for this species, with low cloud and intermittent rain and sleet and still a fair bit of snow on the ground as we climbed the hill. Highlights here included two Marsh Tits, at least four Yellowhammers, at least two singing Skylarks and a very territorial pair of Ravens perhaps trying to distract us from a nest nearby.

Mid-afternoon I was heading up to Aldershot so dropped in at one of my old birding haunts, Cutt Mill Ponds, for a quick look. The House Pond was relatively quiet apart from ten Gadwall and four Mandarin, but I was pleased to find three Goosander on the Tarn (two drakes and a redhead). 

10th March

Just a 1k walk this morning through the local farmland towards the river. Unfortunately, the flood water had risen again to such an extent I couldn't get through under the railway bridge and, indeed, struggled to get through at various other points on my walk back home. All in all, a fairly underwhelming session with only 36 Redwing in one of the horse paddocks and 38 Meadow Pipits in another nearby field of note. 32 Common Gulls flew south over River Lane and a Siskin was heard in flight but not seen. Six Gadwall and two Snipe flew up from the marshy ground west of the railway near Thorndale Bridge. 

11th March

Not much in the way of birding today but a short stroll round the local fields in the morning did produce a little flurry of Lesser Black-backed Gull movement, with a dozen north in around 20 minutes (flocks of five, four and three).

Later in the day, I saw my first Blackcap of the year (a male) in my mum's garden in Aldershot. Presumably a wintering bird rather than a freshly arrived migrant but still very nice to see.

Lesser Black-backed Gulls

12th March

It was WeBS day so I headed over to my private reservoir site near Petworth for the monthly count of the birds here. Not much of note on the reservoir itself (I was hoping for an LRP or Sand Martin) but still three each of Shoveler and Gadwall and a few gulls drifting over including a Lesser Black-backed Gull. The local Skylarks and Yellowhammers were in fine voice though and a flock of at least 130 Fieldfare were in the fields near the reservoir.

Yellowhammer

Later in the morning I headed out into the local farmland near home for a short walk, which ended up turning into an impromptu sky watch, as it was clear there were a fair amount of gulls on the move. In 15-20 minutes I noted 176 Black-headed Gulls, 16 Herring Gulls, 10 Common Gulls, 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a single adult Mediterranean Gull, all moving north. Various other birders in West Sussex and Surrey were also reporting Meds on the move, so clearly a good day for the species inland.

Mediterranean Gull

13th March

A very blustery morning. I headed over to Waltham Brooks for a quick circuit after dropping B at nursery. The water levels were way up since my last visit. The main lake held at least 60 Wigeon, a few Shoveler, Teal and Gadwall plus a single Little Grebe, while two Snipe flew up from the water's edge. More Wigeon (40-50) were on the flood just across the river on the north-west side of Amberley. Best of all was a female/immature type Merlin which came in from the north and made a couple of fast low passes over the main lake before regaining height and heading off back to the north-east.

Merlin

14th March

En route to meet Ed at his near Godalming I dropped in at my WeBS site near Petworth for a quick check of the farm reservoir, in hope of an LRP or Sand Martin. Sadly neither revealed themselves and it was generally fairly quiet, save for a Great Crested Grebe among the Coots and usual ducks on the water.

After a few hours' work, Ed and I headed out for a wander around some of his 1k area, specifically Eashing Farm where we found at least 60 Chaffinch still on the stubble field just above the river, and 30 Linnet and at least 8 Skylarks in the fields up Halfway Lane, where there were also two Little Grebes on the private farm reservoir. 

Towards the end of the day we decided to head over to Lydling Farm at Shackleford to see if the long-staying Corn Bunting trio were still present. Thankfully we found them straight away associating with around 100 Linnets in the field nearest Chalk Lane. A Surrey lifer for me - and they showed beautifully in the late afternoon sunshine. Other bits from our session here included a couple of Stonechats, a Ring-necked Parakeet (my first of the year!) and a tight flock of around 40 Starlings powering north-east at height.

Corn Buntings

15th March

On my way from my mum's in Aldershot back to Ed's I dropped in at one of my old haunts, Crooksbury Common, for a quick wander around. Here I found at least two each of Woodlark and Dartford Warbler singing as well as a heard-only Siskin and two Grey Herons over, heading east. 

Woodlark

After a couple of hours work at Ed's, it was abundantly clear that there was quite an arrival of common migrants going on in Surrey and Sussex and the draw of the birding opportunities outside the window proved too much, so we headed up to Eashing Fields for a quick scan for a Wheatear. There was no sign of any, although a Stonechat was nice here (and Nuthatch was a hotspot tick for me) but really our attention was distracted by events at Beddington Farmlands where a Stone-curlew had just turned up. We quickly made the decision to head up the A3 to scratch this particular itch (a Surrey lifer for both of us) and, thanks to Zach Pannifer, we were allowed access to the southern section of the site where we clapped eyes on the bird - amazingly the first proper migrant either us had seen this spring! Thanks again must go to Zach for persuading the site manager to allow a few birders to gain access, and of course to the finder, Glenn Jones.

Stone-curlew

With that rather extended lunchbreak out of the way we got back to work on the book, although Ed was soon on the road again - off to twitch the first local Wheatear of the year, found by Abel at Shackleford. On my way home I swung by Burton Mill Pond, hoping for a Sand Martin, but sadly no joy. Tomorrow is another day!

16th March

This morning I was at Knepp, leading a safari for a group from Compassion in World Farming. With the shift to southerly airflow, it felt considerably more spring-like, especially when the sunshine really started to break through around noon. This coaxed up a few raptors, mostly Buzzards, although Peregrine and Sparrowhawk also made an appearance. The White Storks were busy pair bonding and spring cleaning their nests too.

On the way home I stopped off for a quick look at Waltham Brooks. Highlights here included at least half a dozen Chiffchaffs, several singing in spots away from the water treatment works which felt like they were probably 'new in' rather than lingering wintering birds. Hard to be sure though, of course. Also of note were 2 Little Grebe and 6 Tufted Duck on the lake, 2 Stonechats in the scrub and a flyover Peregrine.

Greenfinch

Late afternoon I went for a little wander round the local farmland which produced another singing Chiffchaff in an area I've not heard one before, so this must surely have been a newly arrived bird, and also a female Stonechat in the hedgerow down our lane - also a 'new in' migrant from somewhere. Things are picking up!

Stonechat

17th March

A drizzly morning with continuing southerly winds sounded like an ideal combination to produce some migrants, so I headed back over to the private reservoir near Petworth, hoping for some sub-Saharan goodies. It was clear from the get-go there had been a little arrival of Chiffchaffs, with at least four singing around the area. An initial scan of the reservoir didn't produce anything, although I did think I heard a Little Ringed Plover, but dismissed it as part of a nearby Song Thrush's repertoire. A few minutes later though I picked up what was definitely an LRP in flight, circling over the reservoir before heading off to the west. It returned a minute or two later and circled again before disappearing off to the west/north-west, perhaps dissuaded from landing by the high water levels. Nonetheless, a very welcome first for the year! A couple of minutes after this, two Sand Martins dropped out of the cloud before continuing off north-east - also my first of the year. A little while later three were feeding low over the reservoir, so a minimum of three today or possibly five in total.

An early afternoon skywatch from the local farmland produced a Peregrine and two Ravens over as well as an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull high west, but otherwise no real hint of movement, and no sign of yesterday's Stonechat. Always an annual highlight though, was the first Brimstone of the year dropping into our garden as the sun broke through mid-afternoon.

A short visit to Arundel with Kate and B in the afternoon produced 7 Cattle Egrets on Mill Road Watermeadows, a pair of Mandarin on the Mill Stream and at least one (possibly two) Marsh Harrier over Swanbourne Lake where there was also a Firecrest singing.

Marsh Harrier

Mandarins

18th March

One of those days where the amount of effort put in didn't quite produce the desired reward. A rainy start with a shift to south-easterly winds ought to have produced some goodies, and indeed it did, just not where I was unfortunately! I walked from home early morning out to the river and up to Waltham Brooks, then home via the sewage works and a check of some local paddocks and fields. Despite being out for two hours from first light, the sum total of highlights from this session were 16 Tufted Duck on the lake at Waltham (admittedly a high count here for me), 4 Shelduck over and a scattering of Chiffchaffs. Basically a soaking for nothing! Meanwhile, others were basking in the glory of finding White-fronted Goose and Little Gulls, there were Wheatears aplenty on the Downs and a Garganey turned up at Pulborough...

Later in the day I gave the reservoir near Petworth another go but this was equally without fanfare, with not even any sign of yesterday's LRP or Sand Martins.

Having decided to write the day off entirely as a bad job, I put my head down to work on the book for a couple of hours, after which time Kate suggested a little evening walk down the lane from home. I'm glad I said yes as, just minutes from the front door, I picked up three Sand Martins powering north high overhead - a 1k tick and my first proper migrants this close to home this year. Result!

19th March

Quite a contrast to the previous day, with bright sunshine and a light north-westerly wind to start. I got out early and headed to Waltham Brooks first, in the hope of a Garganey. Sadly no joy, though yesterday's Tufted Duck count was smashed by a total of 23 on the main lake.

Next stop was Pulborough Brooks where I was immediately greeted by the sound of distant Redshank calling on the South Brooks - my first locally this year. There were at least four out there, making themselves heard throughout my visit. I dashed straight over to the North Brooks first to try and find yesterday's Garganey. Sadly I wasn't able to but did find a few lingering Pintail among the usual dabblers, and a pair of Avocet. The walk round the main trail was soundtracked all the way by Chiffchaffs - at least ten singing males here now - and, as I approached Winpenny hide, I heard the distinctive call of a Water Pipit, just in time to see the bird flying off west towards the river. Once in the hide it didn't take me too long to find it again, showing rather distantly at the back of one of the pools. It really has been an extraordinary winter for this species here and elsewhere locally, given their traditionally scarce status in the Arun Valley.

Water Pipit

Later in the morning I headed out for a short walk with B and checked a few of the local fields in the hope of some migrants and was rewarded with a smart White Wagtail in a horse paddock just a few hundred metres from home. This is my absolute favourite thing about migration when birds which are only part-way through their epic journey drop in almost on your doorstep. It's amazing to think this bird will be continuing on its way to Iceland or the Faroe Islands in the coming days.

White Wagtail

As it was Mother's Day, Kate and I decided to head to Arundel for a stroll round Swanbourne Lake late morning. The best bits here were singing Firecrest and at least three Chiffchaffs plus an adult Great Black-backed Gull among the Herring Gulls on the water. Elsewhere in Arundel, highlights were two Cattle Egrets on Mill Road Watermeadows and two Oystercatchers low over the Mill Road car park.

Great Black-backed Gull

Spring?

Despite the cold and frosty start, today turned into a beautifully sunny and quite warm day. It was still icy as I headed out down the river from home at first light though, but as I approached the tree line from the Pig Run, the sound of a Chiffchaff singing came drifting through the crisp air. There had clearly been quite an arrival overnight as it turned out to be one of at least seven around the nature trail, plus another on the edge of Black Wood.

The North Brooks was fairly quiet, with a noticeable reduction in ducks, particularly Pintail. Two Black-tailed Godwits were the only waders of note here. I headed round to check the Mid Brooks which produced five Dunlin and singles of Ruff and Golden Plover among the hundred or so Lapwings. There was a clear distinction between the wintering flock and those preparing to breed onsite, with much displaying going on among the latter. 

Down at Hail's I sadly wasn't able to find the Red-legged Partridge that Paul Davy had yesterday afternoon, but it was nice to see the lingering male Hen Harrier again, quartering briefly before heading off to Greatham, flushing dozens of Snipe in the process.

Mid-morning I met up with Anna, Rob and Paula from the RSPB to help with a Woodlark survey. We each took up a post at likely spots between the visitor centre and the Triangle for an hour and confirmed the presence of two pairs. Rob also imparted news of a pair of Crossbills on the heath - a year tick for me - so I pretty hastily headed that way after saying my goodbyes and connected with three munching on pine cones near the new access gates. The male was even singing occasionally in the now very pleasant sunshine. A very nice way to reach 100 on the patch year list - the first time I've reached that milestone before March.

Woodlark

Crossbill

Full eBird checklist here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S82437322

On my way home I also saw my first Small Tortoiseshell of the year near Wiggonholt Church.

Small Tortoiseshell

Pulborough, 19th-20th January

A distinctly soggy and rather uneventful few hours on Saturday morning, though it was good to add a few species to the patch year list, the first of which was at least three Yellowhammers along the Arun as I walked down to the Brooks from home. A showy Kingfisher at Winpenny was another first for the year as was a Grey Wagtail which flew over the North Brooks as I was heading for home early afternoon.

Kingfisher

Other bits of note were singles of Dunlin and Little Egret on the North Brooks and a very confiding Firecrest near the picnic area, though always that bit too quick for my camera, sadly. As I was walking back towards the village an adult Great Black-backed Gull drifted northwest overhead.

A blurry Firecrest

Much more clement weather today and a better selection of birds to boot. Two Firecrests were closely associating in brambles near the visitor centre first thing. A single Golden Plover flew over Winpenny, calling - volunteers Graham and Neil reported at least four with the Lapwings later on - while five Ruff joined the Dunlin on the North Brooks though didn't return after one too many flushes, presumably from a Peregrine which I didn't see. Black-tailed Godwit numbers have really tailed off with a couple at West Mead yesterday and just 23 on the North Brooks, and three at West Mead and 25 or so from The Hanger today.

Black-tailed Godwits at West Mead

Best of all though was the now regular as clockwork Woodlark flock - 18 today - which flew up from Uppertons Field and away to the northeast at 16:15. My 79th species at Pulborough this year, and thanks must go to Alan Baker for the tips on the best place to stand!

Woodlarks

Meadow Pipit - nice view of the hindclaw!

Jay

Kestrel

Pulborough, 10th-11th March

A weekend of reasonably mild weather which saw an increase in birdsong and apparent seasonal movement, with three new birds for the patch year list taking my total to 99.

The Woodlark continues to announce its presence over the heath and on both days this weekend was heard straight away as I arrived in the car park. It was good to discover two birds now present and the RSPB locking the gates to the central section of the heath to prevent disturbance.

Woodlark

It's clearly not just the Woodlarks thinking about breeding as one of the seven Grey Herons seen on Saturday was flying over the visitor centre with an impressively large piece of nesting material. The large flock of Linnets is still favouring the area around the ploughed field immediately behind the visitor centre; certainly well over a hundred birds in total but hard to get an accurate count as they're always so flighty!

Grey Heron

Linnets

Meanwhile, it was good to hear my first patch Chiffchaff of the year singing intermittently near the top of the Zig Zag path on Saturday. The North Brooks held c.175 Black-tailed Godwits, an Avocet (only my second ever here after one on 13th January this year), ten Shelduck, three Little Egrets and a single Dunlin which flew off towards the South Brooks. Finished off Saturday's visit with a look at Hails View which produced another dozen Shelduck, two Dunlin, two Egyptian Geese, a Grey Wagtail and a pair of Gadwall.

Avocet on the North Brooks

On Saturday afternoon we took some non-birding friends for a little walk around The Burgh. Evidently we were in the wrong area for the Short-eared Owls but it was nice to run into the ringtail Hen Harrier again, with a supporting cast of at least eight Red Kites, two Ravens, four Lapwing, heard only Red-legged & Grey Partridge and a minimum of three hundred Common Gulls. I've still yet to have a bad session up here, no matter what the weather. Surely one of the best sites of its kind in the south-east?

Sunday at the Brooks began with the Woodlark and at least two Chiffchaffs again in fine voice. It was good to see a pair of Redshanks from Winpenny as well as three distant Dunlin. Something spooked all the waders at one point which revealed the presence of four previously unseen Golden Plover which flew north over the hide. Another single bird flew north-east over Brook Field later in the morning.

Golden Plover over Brook Field

Lapwings seem to be pairing up and getting territorial now, as do Shelducks, with the odd one flying around and checking out the grassy slopes of Hollybush Hill. At least 26 on site on Sunday was a patch record count of this species for me. On the North Brooks on Sunday morning were c.130 Black-tailed Godwits, three Little Egrets, a lone and vocal drake Gadwall and another couple of Dunlin, while a Raven cronked north-west high overhead. Highlights from Hails View, meanwhile, were two each of Peregrine and Red Kite and heard only Water Rail and Red-legged Partridge, the latter a Pulborough lifer! A quick scan from The Hanger in the afternoon produced the third and final year tick of the weekend in the form of a pair of Coots; a surprisingly infrequent sight here but right on cue as we're getting into peak rail migration season now - in fact I've heard one calling through the bedroom window the past couple of nights, presumably flying overhead. I experimented the other night with setting up my nocmig microphone through the attic window so as to get a bit closer to the action (and less background noise from the neighbours!) so will let you know how that worked out in a future blog post.

Raven over Jupp's View

Patch gold!