Eyes to the skies

Expect the unexpected is a good rule to abide by in birding, and it's fair to say the period covered in this blog post has produced some surprises. Firstly, I didn't think I would be writing this with one arm in a sling (more on that later) and that I would have got very good at using my binoculars with the remaining good arm. Secondly, I didn't have such an inland wader curveball as Knot on my list of expected species when I set out on this year's local big year list effort a few months ago, having only had one previous local record six years ago. Even more unexpected was the fact that it was a migrating individual flying over the farmland a few hundred metres from home! Again, more on that later. 

It's fair to say though that September has been unexpectedly good in a local context (albeit free from the influx of American passerines further west...), and even an enforced period of close to home birding on foot has produced some quality moments and a number of local year ticks or eBird hotspot ticks. Indeed, the 1km area from home is receiving a good amount of daily coverage now, which is oddly well-timed as we head into autumn proper. 

Weather-wise, September has evidently been warmer overall than either July or August this year and as I write this in early October, it is still pleasantly warm and largely fine. It's hard to believe we are entering the season of Redwings, Fieldfares and Bramblings when it still feels like late summer. A staple of my birding time during these dying days of September though has been the more or less constant southward trickle of hirundines and Meadow Pipits reminding us that, whatever the weather, the days are now longer than the nights for the next six months, and the cold and dark are on their way, sooner or later. 

21st September

A brief stop-off at Waltham Brooks en route to Knepp this morning produced just a handful of Gadwall and at least two heard-only flyover Siskins. 

An hour at Hail's View on the way home was more productive, with highlights including three White Storks, two Great White Egrets, a fly-through White-tailed Eagle (mobbed by a Raven which was making the most extraordinary high pitched, wader-like call as it did so), two Marsh Harriers, two Green Sandpipers and a juvenile Hobby. What an unthinkable line-up most of those species would've been round these parts not so long ago!

White Storks and Great White Egret

Great White Egret (left), Little Egret (top) and White Storks

Raven and White-tailed Eagle

22nd September

A walk from home in the morning was largely uneventful aside from a few Swallows and Meadow Pipits flying through south/south-west. Upon arriving home, a juvenile Hobby flew over the garden, mobbed by a Jackdaw. 

Hobby and Jackdaw

A session up at Amberley Mount late morning proved quite lively, especially for Meadow Pipits which must have numbered at least 300 across the various fields, with a few trickling south. Also on the move overhead were Swallow (78 south) and House Martin (255 west/south-west). Ten Red Admirals were also noted flying powerfully south. One of the adult White-tailed Eagles was drifting about over Rackham Hill then later flew straight overhead towards Arundel. Also of note were a Wheatear at Downs Farm and five Cattle Egret with the cattle down at Amberley Wildbrooks. 

Wheatear

White-tailed Eagle

A brief look at Waltham Brooks in the afternoon produced a single Little Grebe, two Snipe and four Tufted Duck at the main lake and a strong easterly movement of Swallows. 

23rd September

A beautiful early autumn morning saw me heading out from across the farmland towards the river, which was soundtracked by Meadow Pipits and Siskins overhead plus a heard-only Yellow Wagtail going south. Around 07:15 I was alerted by an unfamiliar call to a wader flying fast overhead heading south-west. It called again 'whet whet' and i managed a few seconds good views through bins of a relatively compact medium sized wader with long wings, greyish underwings but otherwise plain underparts and a medium length bill (longer than say Golden Plover but not as long as Dunlin). It took a while of checking calls online and my Collins app to be sure what I had seen and heard was a Knot - a wholly unexpected addition to the the local farmland hotspot and 1km year list! Amazingly, it's six years to the day since my only other local record of the species - when one was on the North Brooks at Pulborough in 2017.

Later in the day, highlights from the garden included a basking male Migrant Hawker and 33 of the White Storks from Knepp drifting over Amberley.

Reed Bunting

White Storks

Migrant Hawker

                                        

24th September

No real birding today thanks to skateboarding related misadventure which ended me up in hospital with a dislocated and fractured shoulder!

25th September

My first day of convalescing from my shoulder injury started with a short walk from home around the local farmland. Aside from a light trickle of Swallows and Meadow Pipits south/south-west it was relatively quiet on the bird front. Once the sun started to get up further the insects sprang into action and I ended up spending a good while watching a patch of ivy near home which was heaving with Ivy Bees, various wasps and hoverflies and a couple of Red Admirals.

Batman Hoverfly

Tiger Hoverfly

Red Admiral

26th September

Skywatching from the local fields mid-morning and early afternoon proved to be fairly quiet for the most part, with just a light trickle of House Martins south/south-west. The first vismigging Skylark of the season was nice though, heading west, as were ten Siskins (seven east and three south-west).

27th September

Another day restricted to birding on foot near to home which ended up being dominated by some fairly lively vismig. A morning session split between the high ground to the west of Watersfield and the farmland close to home yielded 252 House Martins, 95 Swallows and 27 Meadow Pipits south and a few Siskins in various directions. I'm unlikely to be able to use my proper camera for a while due to my knackered shoulder but photographic interest today came from the scenery and a Common Marbled Carpet moth which flew across the lane in front of me on my way home. 

Looking south from one of my local vismig spots

Common Marbled Carpet

A late afternoon session back out in the local fields started well with a flock of 12 Golden Plover south. A rush of Swallows east/south-east were followed by a Hobby which dropped down to just inches above the ground as it powered through, while at least 60 House Martin drifted through south-west as I was heading for home. 

28th September

A really enjoyable and lively couple of hours out this morning, a mix of vismigging combined with a check of the lake and the scrub at Waltham Brooks. At the latter, the highlights were three returning Wigeon (my first of the autumn) and around 80 Lapwings which took flight from Widney Brooks, plus two flyover Ravens. There were the usual two or three vocal Water Rails about plus a similar number of Cetti's Warblers.

Vismig was lively too and produced a few bits of interest, starting with two Woodlarks south over the farmland near home - my first record for this eBird hotspot (107 for the hotspot and my 127th species in my 1km from home recording area this year). This was followed by a little wave of Swallows heading east/south-east and a few House Martins south/south-west. Then, on the walk home, two Snipe flew high west - my first vismiggers of this species this autumn. Vismigging continued in the garden with two Yellow Wagtails north, another Snipe south-west and further little pulses of Swallows and House Martins.

29th September

Not much birding today but a brief skywatch from the local farmland produced a flurry of Swallows and Meadow Pipits south and two Reed Buntings south-west.

30th September

Seven Raven west over the garden first thing set the scene for another relatively lively early morning vismig session. Meadow Pipits were the main movers today, with 55 south in an hour plus a few Siskins and Swallows over and two Skylarks west. Water Rail and Kingfisher were heard along the river at a misty Thorndale Bridge. The Meadow Pipit movement continued throughout the day, when I was able to step outside and check, with direction of travel shifting to more of a west/south-westerly track late morning. A Hobby was over the fields near home late morning, taking the opportunity to harass some of the passing Swallows and House Martins. In the afternoon I checked Waltham Brooks which produced a female Marsh Harrier flying downriver and a few Swallows heading south-east. 

Looking east across the Arun from Thorndale Bridge