Walk out to Winter

We've really had all weathers so far this winter. The proper cold snap before Christmas gave way to a typically mild, wet and windy Christmas and New Year period which lasted until the middle of this month, but the cold has returned again and the last week or so has produced some of the hardest frosts yet. As I write this, many of the local water bodies have partly or totally frozen again, which seems particularly odd now as the water levels were so high when the ice formed and now the levels have dropped, leaving sheets of ice hanging in thin air. There has been no great evidence of hard weather movement as a response to this cold spell, although a couple of odd records have occurred in recent days which I will detail below. I was going to talk about the absence of owls on my year list in this introduction as, at the start of this period I still hadn't connected with a single species so far in January, but I'm pleased to say that Tawny, Barn and Short-eared have since all made themselves available.

11th January

A bright and sunny (but windy) morning saw me heading to Burton Mill Pond for the first proper walk around the site I've done since before Christmas. One of the hoped-for species was literally the first bird I saw as I crossed the road from the car park, as a Great Egret sprang up out of the reeds right by the boat jetty, flushing a Kingfisher in the process, with both birds flying at their respective speeds across to the east side of the pond. The Kingfisher was typically vocal, whistling away as it went, but unusually so was the egret, making some very strange gutteral croaks and grunts as it flew. I'm not actually sure if I can recall ever hearing Great Egret call before.

Great Egret

Aside from this initial excitement, Burton Mill Pond itself was rather quiet so I headed off down the footpath towards Chingford Pond. Bits of note along the way included a singing Marsh Tit and several vocal but unseen Teal in the wet woodland past the vineyard, and at least 25-30 Redwings foraging in between the rows of grapevines. Round at Chingford Pond I found another Great Egret roosting in a tree and a Little Egret which flew right down to the southern end. Duck numbers were relatively very poor, with just 16 Tufted Duck, 19 Pochard and a handful of Gadwall and Mallard to be found. There were a couple of Little Grebes on Burton Mill Pond but I haven't seen Great Crested Grebe here for several weeks now - presumably the last cold snap before Christmas sent them all packing off to the coast and they've opted not to return just yet.. 

On the walk back I heard a Lesser Redpoll and noted one alighting briefly in a birch tree near Lodge Green, then a few minutes later the same bird or a second one was in another birch towards Black Pond. At Black Pond itself were just a few Mallards and a Grey Heron while a scan of Burton Park Farm sadly didn't produce the hoped-for Little Owl. My first Woodlark of the year, singing beautifully over New Piece, on the walk back was a welcome bonus though.

Lesser Redpoll

12th January

Foul weather today. No birding of any note.

13th January

This morning I headed to Waltham Brooks for the first time in a few days. The water levels here were now so high that access through from the railway line to the main lake was not possible. Instead I checked the main lake via the road, which produced 3 Pintail among the usual ducks, plus a Kingfisher fishing in what is normally a footpath! A quick check of the sewage works produced at least 20 Chiffchaffs busy flitting around the trees and bushes, while a Marsh Harrier cruised over the lake, flushing everything in the process.

An afternoon walk down River Lane from home didn't produce much of note, although a Marsh Tit was feeding on crab apples in a nearby garden as I walked home.

Marsh Tit

Something a bit different in the evening as I headed out for a short loop around the Watersfield Common area after dinner. The target species was Tawny Owl which I connected with at Alban Head Playing Field, with both male and female calls heard. More unexpected though was a couple of calls from a Barn Owl, unseen but presumably hunting over the rough grassland to the north of here.

14th January

Another awful wet and windy morning, but I dragged myself out for an hour or so mid-afternoon. Taking in one of my favorite areas of the 1km recording area so far, I managed a respectable 35 species, including year tick Mandarin Duck - my first record of the species so close to home - with both male and female calls heard emanating from the patch of flooded woodland near Thorndale Bridge. Also heard here were Gadwall and Moorhen while several Teal flew out from the tree cover as I passed and at least 3 Coots were on the flooded fields. This is a really interesting area which has also yielded Green Sandpiper and regular Woodcock records in recent weeks. It just screams Lesser Spotted Woodpecker to me, so I'll be sure to check it regularly in early spring. Local Big Year list now stands at 92 with the 1km from home total on 80.

15th January

A rather impromptu trip down to the Hampshire coast to see the Sabine's Gull that had been wowing the crowds for the past week or so. Here I met up with Ed S and Sam J, among various other familiar faces, and we walked along the seawall to find the bird sat on an island in the lagoon at Southmoor NR. After a little while it took flight and showed off its distinctive flight style and the black, grey and white upperwing. On the sea were a Black-necked Grebe and a few Goldeneye and Red-breasted Merganser, among other usual bits.

Sabine's Gull

In the afternoon I met up with Steve B and Josie N at The Burgh where we enjoyed great views of the 2-3 Short-eared Owls hunting near the new dew pond along with a Barn Owl. On the walk back to the car a ringtail Hen Harrier gave a flypast too, before disappearing over the hedgerows.

Short-eared Owl

16th January

Not much birding today aside from an hour's walk down the lane near home, scanning the fields and sky watching. The wet woodland west of the railway line and Amberley Wildbrooks (where I heard the Mandarin Ducks on the 14th) that I could hear plenty of Teal, a Moorhen and Coot calling from quite some distance away. At least two Red Kites were patrolling the area and a Raven called somewhere off to the south, unseen.

17th January

The first properly frosty morning since the cold spell before Christmas saw me crunching my way over the fields from home to Waltham Brooks. It was quite surreal seeing so much flood water combined with a hoar frost. The route from the railway crossing to the main lake was pretty much impassable so I walked round via the sewage works to the road and in the entrance on that side to check the main lake. Despite the expanse of mostly unfrozen water, there were remarkably few ducks. A Raven flew over, heading west, and the ever-present Cetti's Warbler and Water Rail were vocal, otherwise really not much to report here at all. Walking back by the sewage works, the morning sun had started to warm things up a little and there were plenty of passerines actively feeding in the bushes around the fenceline including 2-3 Bullfinch, a Goldcrest and at least 5 Chiffchaff.

Goldcrest

18th January

I was a bit short of birding time this morning so just pitched up at Greatham Bridge for a scan of Waltham Brooks and a sky watch for 25 minutes or so. Not a great deal to report, although the sight of so much water right up to the roadside, some of it starting to freeze over, was quite something. Best of the birds here were a Sparrowhawk which drifted overhead and two Pied Wagtail and a Meadow Pipit scurrying about on the ice.

A flooded and frozen entrance to Waltham Brooks and a Pied Wagtail on the ice

Despite the cold, it was feeling just the tiniest bit spring-like by mid-morning, with both Coal Tit and Mistle Thrush singing with gusto in earshot of the garden. 

Early afternoon, Kate and I went for a walk round the local farmland, which was largely uneventful bird-wise save for a Snipe which shot up from the footpath a little way in front of us and flew off towards Waltham Brooks. Clearly evidence of the cold weather affecting feeding opportunities.

19th January

Day three of this cold spell and I decided to take a walk north-west from home, up to Watersfield Common and back round via Lodge Hill, hoping to connect with some woodland species missing from the local year list - namely Brambling. Sadly no joy, with the best birds being a couple of flyover Ravens and at least 500 Lapwings whirling around over the fields between Stopham and Fittleworth. Despite the deep frost, the morning sunshine coaxed a few species to sing, including Song Thrush, Stock Dove (also seen displaying) and a couple of Great Spotted Woodpeckers drumming. 

Another short walk round local farmland early afternoon also didn't produce much, although a small flock of at least ten Meadow Pipits were restlessly flitting from tree to tree in the hedgerows down River Lane - not something I've seen here before.

20th January

A mid-morning wander up to the higher ground to the north-western side of my 1km recording area, optimistic of some raptor action or possibly some hard weather movement. Sadly there wasn't much of either, although a Woodcock in flight over Coldwaltham Farm was perhaps in search of some unfrozen ground.

Coldwaltham Farm - living up to its name!

21st January

A morning walk round the local farmland produced a Marsh Harrier flying west, perhaps another species displacing in search of feeding opportunities, with most of Pulborough and Amberley both still flooded/frozen over.

In the afternoon I headed back out to do my WeBS count at a private site near Petworth. The water here was thankfully still unfrozen which, perhaps surprisingly, didn't yield great numbers of wildfowl - with just 23 Shoveler, a few Tufted Ducks, 15 Coots and 4 Little Grebes present. This site sometimes produces well over a hundred ducks and almost as many Coots!

On the way home I briefly stopped at Burton Mill Pond which produced Kingfisher and around 35 Gadwall but not a huge amount else.

22nd January

An early morning stroll over to Waltham Brooks was rather more akin to exploring an Arctic wasteland. I didn't see a soul in the 90 minutes I was out and the walk was soundtracked by the eerie bangs and cracks of the ice sheets giving way around the lake and tree line. When I first heard it, as I entered the reserve, I actually thought for a minute that it was the sound of people working on the railway line, or even distant gunfire.

Ravens

Marsh Harrier

The lake itself is totally iced over again so there was nothing here aside from a rather forlorn looking immature Mute Swan. Most of the action initially, was from flyovers, with a Marsh Harrier north and five Ravens west. The river was where the ducks were all hanging out, with at least 300 Wigeon and Teal combined, plus a few Mallards and Shoveler. Looking across at Amberley, the other side of the river, at least 250 Lapwing were huddled on the ice. At least three Water Rails were calling and 3-4 Cetti's Warblers gave their explosive songs from the reedy areas.

Late morning Kate and I headed down to Arundel to meet family, so I suggested dropping by Burpham (sort of) on the way... From the church here we barely needed to get out of the car to see the six adult Bewick's Swans and two Cattle Egrets. Later on we also saw another Cattle Egret at Mill Road Watermeadows. This species is honestly more common round these parts than Little Egret now, I swear.

Tufted Duck

23rd January

I didn't get too much birding in today but a 40-minute or so skywatch from local farmland proved fairly productive and hinted somewhat at a bit of the hard weather movement that's been largely missing from this latest cold spell. Two parties of three Lapwing flew south and I thought I heard a Golden Plover at one stage, though later put this down to an odd Starling call nearby. Gulls seemed to be moving a bit, with a light westerly trickle of Black-headed Gulls and a few Herrings mixed in, and an odd couple of a Great Black-backed Gull and Lesser Black-backed Gull high southeast together. Amazingly, my first Lesser Black-backed anywhere this year, and my first GBBG in the 1km recording area.

Later in the day a garden-first Firecrest very briefly flicked its way through our front hedge before flying off to a neighbour's garden and I also heard Marsh Tit calling nearby again - it seems we have at least one individual of this species wintering in the neighbourhood.

Great Black-backed and Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Lapwing

New year, new list

Yes, I'm back blogging! After a very hectic but thoroughly enjoyable year in 2022 where blogging pretty much went out of the window, I've decided to try and ease back into it with semi-regular diary-type updates on my day-to-day birding. (Thanks to Ed for the inspiration and encouragement!)

1st January

A leisurely start to the new year campaign saw me strolling over to Waltham Brooks for a couple of hours. Water levels were the highest I've seen them so far this winter, which produced good numbers of ducks, including five Pintail. Passing Peregrine and Marsh Harrier flushed all the ducks as they headed over towards Amberley. A check of the sewage works produced the usual scattering of Chiffchaffs and a Grey Wagtail, while a Marsh Tit was calling in the woodland just to the south as I departed.

2nd January

In keeping with seemingly most of West Sussex I headed over to Pulborough Brooks mid-morning. The regular White-tailed Eagles put on a great show, tucking into a carp brunch on the North Brooks. Just as I arrived Steve B and former Pulborough stalwart Jon W had just found a Water Pipit from the Hanger which was still present and showed well (for Pulborough) during our stay at the viewpoint here. Also on show on the North Brooks were a Kingfisher and various other year ticks including Common Gull and three flyover Skylarks. Round on the south side I also caught up with the adult Great Black-backed Gull found by Paul Davy the previous day - almost as rare here as Water Pipit! At West Mead four Snipe showed nicely on one of the islands; another year tick.

White-tailed Eagle

Kestrel

Snipe

3rd January

I'd resigned myself to a non-birding day today after a couple of hours working at Knepp early morning followed by a dentist appointment. Just as I was leaving the dentist though, my phone pinged with a message from Pulborough RSPB volunteer Gary T, saying he'd just found two Bewick's Swans on the South Brooks. I dashed round (it was on the way home, after all!) and enjoyed distant views of them from behind the visitor centre. I tried to get a closer look from the Black Wood side a bit further down the road towards home but, evidently, by the time I got there, the birds had departed.

Bewick's Swans

4th January

A brief check of Burton Mill Pond first thing yielded a lone drake Pochard, four Little Grebes, a squealing Water Rail and two Ravens tumbling overhead. This was planned to be my only birding of the day but, just as I was about to head home, news broke via Chris and Juliet Moore of a Little Gull over at Pulborough, so I dashed over there for the second time in two days. A 15-minute scan from Hail's View sadly didn't produce any gulls at all, with just the standard wildfowl and four Red Kites on show. I decided to head home via a short stop at Greatham Bridge, in the hope that the Little Gull had relocated to Waltham or Widney Brooks, given the amount of flood water in the valley at the moment. It hadn't, but a Cattle Egret hunched on the riverbank was a nice consolatory year tick, as was a Nuthatch calling in the trees just to the east of the bridge.

5th January

Another early morning stroll over to Waltham Brooks from home produced two new species for the local year list. The first came just as I had crossed the railway line into the main reserve when I picked up three Little Egrets flying north together just beyond the Arun. The second only made its presence known as I was heading home past the same area about 40 minutes later and heard the distinctive chur call of a Dartford Warbler. After a little while it appeared, typically with a pair of Stonechats in tow. This was in the exact same spot I had a Dartford on 17th October, so it seems likely it's the same bird that's been wintering in the area. Other highlights from this morning included two Snipe flushed from the marshy ground a little way east of the railway crossing, at least three squealing Water Rail and nine Tufted Ducks on the main lake.

Dartford Warbler

Stonechat

6th January

Only the second sunny start to a day so far this week/year saw me exploring a stretch of local woodland which produced my first Firecrest of the year as well as a few early hints of spring, including drumming and squabbling Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a vocal pair of Mistle Thrushes.

Back home for work, I watched the weather gradually deteriorate through the window, but it didn't dissuade two young Red Kites from putting on a great show low over the rooftops of our neighbourhood, one even swooping down into a nearby garden before lifting back up clutching a wad of grass.

Firecrest

Red Kite

7th January

A wet and windy morning which didn't encourage me to get out early. Eventually I dashed over to Pulborough Brooks for the fourth time this week, mid-morning, to see the three Brent Geese found by RSPB volunteer, Rob King. Viewing from the edge of Black Wood, it didn't take long to pick them out among the grazing Canada Geese. After a blank year in 2022, these were my first local Brents since May 2021.

There didn't seem to be much else going on here so I headed down to Amberley to have a scan of the flood water there, hoping for a Little Gull or even a Kittiwake which had been turning up at a few inland sites in recent days. Scanning from near Rackham Mill I found a drake Goosander, Marsh Harrier and at least 2000 Lapwing. A message from Paul Davy alerted me to the presence of the two adult Bewick's Swans, which I wasn't able to see from my angle. I got him on the Goosander before heading up the hill to meet him at Cross Gate. Luckily I stopped a little way further up to have another scan and picked up the Bewick's, as by the time I got to Paul they had departed south-west (later seen by others at their popular haunt of Burpham Water Meadows near Arundel). It was still good to catch up with Paul though and from the higher viewpoint we also had the two White-tailed Eagles drifting over the reserve.

Brent Geese

8th January

Not loads of birding today but a walk down the lane this morning produced a Grey Heron rather incongruously feeding among the Rooks and Jackdaws in a horse paddock, followed by a flyover year tick Sparrowhawk. Late morning we headed over to Waltham Brooks which was relatively quiet aside from at least 20 Tufted Ducks on the main lake and a flyover Red Kite. The local year list now stands on 86, with 73 of those species recorded in the 1km from home recording area.

Grey Heron

9th January

A walk around local farmland up to Thorndale Bridge this morning didn't produce anything particularly out of the ordinary but a Marsh Harrier was flushing Teal from the marshland near the bridge.

Bird of the day was the Marsh Tit which visited our garden very briefly mid-morning, attracting my attention with its sneezing call while I was working in the house. It stayed a matter of seconds before flying off west. 

10th January

Another squally morning, and a check of some local water bodies first thing didn't produce much other than some very wet optics and the need for a full change of clothes when I got home. 

A stroll round the local farmland mid-afternoon in a break in the rain was similarly uneventful, although it was good to see several hundred Lapwing wheeling about over Amberley Wildbrooks. Otherwise, today definitely felt like a 'roll on Spring' kind of birding day!

Roe Deer