Turn up for the Brooks

Arriving at the reserve in a stiff north-westerly breeze this morning I looked rather despondently at the water levels on the North Brooks which had again risen after yesterday’s rain, obscuring most of the muddy margins. “Not much hope for any waders today”, I thought to myself.  

An initial scan with the scope seemed to prove my suspicions, with just a scattering of Black-tailed Godwits and Lapwings on show. Further scans revealed a single Dunlin, soon to be joined by the lingering Ruff, and singles of Snipe and Green Sandpiper were also to be found lurking in the reedy edges. 

Another medium-sized wader then caught my eye, stood on its own with its back to me, which I briefly took to be another Green Sand hunkered down in the wind, until it stood up properly and turned to reveal its orange legs, dark face and breast band - Turnstone! I blinked a couple of times to be sure I wasn’t seeing things before punching the air. A patch tick, and something of a Pulborough mega - certainly a rarer wader than Pec Sand or Temminck’s Stint here. Species number 172 on my Pulborough life list, and 147 on the 2020 year list. A fab start to the day, despite the weather.

Turnstone

I'm pleased to say the Turnstone lingered long enough for fellow Pulborough regulars Chris and Juliet Moore to see it later in the day. They also stumbled across a Pied Flycatcher near the tractor sheds, along with at least eight Spotted Flycatchers. This followed on from another or the same Pied Fly at Fattengates earlier in the day (John Russell). Perhaps not surprisingly given the hundreds or even thousands turning up around the country in recent weeks, it's been an amazing few days for the species at Pulborough. Today's birds represented perhaps the fourth and fifth individuals this week, following on from one near the church on Saturday morning and two on the southern edge of the heath the same day (Andrew Rodgers/Martin Parker).

Spotted and Pied Flycatchers (Photo: Chris & Juliet Moore)

Pied Flycatcher