Friday, 24th April: The spell of fine weather continues with another morning of more or less unbroken sun, though the wind remains cool and brisk and from the east............
Selsey Bill: It was another interesting morning for a good turnout of observers, topped off by a flock of seven Pomarine Skuas east, along with 108 Bar-tailed Godwits, 89 Whimbrel, 59 Sanderlings, 292 Sandwich Terns and 14 Little Gulls east, an Eider west and a little arrival of other species including a Redpoll and a Whinchat that both dropped briefly, four Yellow Wagtails, and, oddly, a Cattle Egret in the gardens. Full log below. (JA/SH/BI/MRe/PA/IP/MO-W/PM/PB/AB/IH/AH/OM/CRJ/JF et al)
(0515-1400hrs) (ENE, F4)
Great Northern Diver - 1E, 1W, 5os
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Great Crested Grebe - 2E
Fulmar - 1W
Gannet - 27E, 16W, 2os
Shag - 1E
Cattle Egret - 1
Little Egret - 2N
Shelduck - 4E
Teal - 4E
Eider - 1W
Common Scoter - 53E, 3W, 36os
Red-breasted Merganser - 2W
Peregrine - 1
Kestrel - 1N
Oystercatcher - 9E
Ringed Plover - 1E
Sanderling - 59E
Dunlin - 4E
Whimbrel - 89E
Curlew - 2E
Bar-tailed Godwit - 108E
Turnstone - 5E
Great Skua - 2E
Pomarine Skua - 7E (1046hrs)
Arctic Skua - 4E
Little Gull - 134E
Mediterranean Gull - 14E, 2os
Black-headed Gull - 24E
Common Gull - 21E
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 7E
Great Black-backed Gull - 51E
Herring Gull - 1200os
Kittiwake - 2E
Sandwich Tern - 292E, 40os
Common Tern - 44E, 15os
'Commic' Tern - 50E
Little Tern - 27E, 4os
auk sp - 2E
Swift - 1N
Swallow - 24N
Sand Martin - 11N
House Martin - 3N, 2 present
Yellow Wagtail - 4N
Wheatear - 3N
Whinchat - 1
Willow Warbler - 1N, 1 present
Redpoll - 1N
Linnet - 1N
Yellow Wagtail (above), Cattle Egret, Peregrine, Eider, Sanderlings, Bar-tailed Godwits, Whimbrel and Bar-tailed Godwits (AH), Little Tern, Sanderlings, Common Terns & Whimbrel (PM) at the Bill
There were more birds moving east this afternoon, including four Pomarine Skuas, six Arctic Skuas, four Manx Shearwaters and ten Little Gulls. Full log below. (SH/JA/AH/RHa)
(1530-1900hrs)
Great Northern Diver - 1os
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Manx Shearwater - 4E
Gannet - 11E, 15W, 3os
Shag - 1W
Common Scoter - 16E, 15os
Red-breasted Merganser - 2W
Whimbrel - 12E
Bar-tailed Godwit - 13E
Pomarine Skua - 4E
Arctic Skua - 6E, 2os
Little Gull - 10E
Mediterranean Gull - 4E
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1E
Kittiwake - 1E
Sandwich Tern - 68E, 40os
Common Tern - 9E
'Commic' Tern - 5E
Little Tern - 7E, 1os
auk sp - 1E
Swallow - 1N
Arctic Skua (above) & Arctic skua and Herring Gulls at the Bill (AH)
Ferry Pool: A Common Sandpiper was on the pool this morning, along with ten Avocets, an Oystercatcher, eight Shovelers and Gadwall, a drake Teal and 22 Shelducks, whilst the Spotted Redshank was in the channel opposite, along with a Black-tailed Godwit and seven Whimbrel. (AH)
Common Sandpiper (above), Spotted Redshank, Whimbrel & Avocet and Gadwall at the Ferry (AH)
Church Norton: There were at least 25 Little Terns and 200 Sandwich Terns present this morning, but the only waders were three Bar-tailed Godwits, five Whimbrel, a Curlew, a Ringed Plover and a dozen Oystercatchers, whilst a couple of singing Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs were all that could be found in the bushes. (AH)
Little Terns (above), Sandwich Terns & Whimbrel at Church Norton (AH)
North Wall: There was a Cuckoo in the paddocks and good numbers of Whitethroats and Sedge Warblers along the hedgerows this morning, and a Lesser Whitethroat was heard but not seen, in the Breech Pool there were just nine Shelducks, a Wigeon, a Great Crested Grebe and two Tufted Ducks.
At the bottom of the wall there was a lone Brent Goose, with another in Honer 2 and a single Wheatear was at the western end of the rocks.
Also, the Grey Heron chick showed well, with five Cattle Egrets nearby, whilst the Marsh Harriers could be seen taking nesting material down in to the reeds, and at Halsey's Farm there were two Gadwall and two Whinchats in the nearby fields and two Kestrels flew though the area. (GHi/MJa)
Whinchats (above), Wheatear, Sedge Warbler, Whitethroat, Brent Goose, Gadwall, Grey Heron (GHi), Cuckoo & Orange-tip (MJa) at the North Wall
.JPG)
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Mill Pond Marsh: A Marsh Harrier was around again this evening, along with half a dozen Swallows, a Lesser Whitethroat and a Whitethroat. (AH)
Chichester GPs: Having not been seen at all this spring, the female Red-crested Pochard appeared at Quarry Lake today with ducklings in tow.
There were also families of Egyptian Geese and Greylag Geese there, too. (K Heather)
Red-crested Pochard family (above), Greylag Goose family & Egyptian Goose gosling at Chichester GPs (K Heather)
Thursday, 23rd April: Another bright morning, and a bit warmer as the still fresh breeze eased a little and tilted towards the east........
Selsey Bill: It was another morning with a wide range of species seen, though volume was fairly modest, with highlights being a Pomarine Skua and 65 Whimbrel east, a splendid pair of Eider sat close offshore and a bit of visible migration including a Tree Pipit, three Yellow Wagtails and all three hirundine species. Full log below. (SH/BI/PA/MO-W/AH/CRJ et al)
(0535-1120hrs) (ENE, F4-5)
Great Northern Diver - 2os
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Gannet - 23E, 49W
Shag - 1E
Shelduck - 7E
Teal - 5E
Shoveler - 3E
Mallard - 1E
Eider - 2os
Common Scoter - 25E, 6os
Red-breasted Merganser - 2W, 2os
Oystercatcher - 4E, 2W
Ringed Plover - 2E
Sanderling - 8E
Whimbrel - 65E
Bar-tailed Godwit - 2E
Turnstone - 10E
Great Skua - 1os
Pomarine Skua - 1E (1113hrs)
Arctic Skua - 2E
Little Gull - 4E
Mediterranean Gull - 9E
Common Gull - 5E
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1os
Great Black-backed Gull - 10os
Kittiwake - 1E
Sandwich Tern - 231E, 9W, 40os
Common Tern - 75E, 2os
'Commic' Tern - 35E
Little Tern - 6os
auk sp - 3E
Swift - 6N
Skylark - 1N
Swallow - 62N
Sand Martin - 7N
House Martin - 6N, 2 present
Yellow Wagtail - 3N
Tree Pipit - 1N
Meadow Pipit - 1N
Willow Warbler - 4
Linnet - 10W
There was more activity this afternoon, including a flock of 11 Black Terns and 3000 Herring Gulls going east. Full log below. (SH/JA)
(1615-1800hrs)
Red-throated Diver - 2E
Gannet - 1E
Shag - 1W
Oystercatcher - 1E
Grey Plover - 5E
Common Gull - 2E
Herring Gull - 3000E
Sandwich Tern - 44E, 30os
Common Tern - 6E, 1os
'Commic' Tern - 17E, 30os
Black Tern - 11E (in one flock)
Swallow - 2N
Eider (above), Whimbrel, Common Scoters, Swallow (AH) & Sanderlings (AW) at the Bill
Ferry Pool: There were at least 60 Whimbrel spread around the harbour off the Tramway this morning, with a Greenshank in the main channel and another and a Black-tailed Godwit in Ferry Channel, and there were more waders further out, including c25 probable Bar-tailed Godwits.
The pool was much the same as recent days, though, with a Green Sandpiper in the meanders at the back and a total of eight Avocets present, along with ten Shovelers, eight Gadwall and 47 Shelducks, plus seven Swallows over.
Also, the Tramway circuit produced a scattering of singing Blackcaps, Whitethroats and Chiffchaffs and a Mistle Thrush flying over with food, but not too much else. (PA/AH)
Avocet (above), Whimbrel, Mistle Thrush, Whitethroat & Chiffchaff at the Ferry (AH)
North Wall: A Whinchat was on the fence at Halsey’s Farm, and a pair of Gadwall were along the rife, while in Owl Copse the Grey Heron chick in the visible nest was showing well. The two remaining Brent Geese were still in the fields and a Wigeon was on the Breech Pool along with two Great Crested Grebes and eight Shelducks, with the Marsh Harriers in their usual area and a Peregrine high overhead.
Out in the harbour, a Greenshank was by Heron Island, but the only other waders about were four Whimbrels, three Curlews and an Oystercatcher, whilst along the wall there were a few Linnets, Whitethroats and Sedge Warblers, with two Swallows around the paddock, as well as two Pied Wagtails, and a Greenfinch. (LP/MJa/TRH/JDW)
Whinchat (above), Swallow, Whitethroat, Grey Herons, Wigeon, Greenfinch, Linnet & Pied Wagtail at the North Wall (LP)
Church Norton: Five Bar-tailed Godwits and c25 Oystercatchers were the only waders visible at high tide this evening, though the colony on and around Tern Island was as busy as ever. (AH)
Bar-tailed Godwits (above) & Tern Island at Church Norton (AH)
Wednesday, 22nd April: A bright and sunny morning, but kept quite cool by the brisk easterly, freshening towards gale-force by midday......
Selsey Bill: A Pomarine Skua went east, fairly close in this morning, with two Bonxies, 17 Bar-tailed Godwits, 68 Whimbrel, 43 Common Terns and 201 Sandwich Terns also going east, whilst a dark-phase Arctic Skua and four Fulmars went west, and seven Swifts and 28 Swallows came in off the sea. Full log below.
(SH/PA/KT/LP/TR/MO-W/AH/OM/JDa/AWi)
(0545-1215hrs) (E, F6-7)
Great Northern Diver - 2os
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Fulmar - 4W
Gannet - 6E, 50W
Common Scoter - 10E, 1W, 1os
Red-breasted Merganser - 1os
Kestrel - 1N
Oystercatcher - 4E, 4W
Grey Plover - 1E
Whimbrel - 68E
Bar-tailed Godwit - 17E
Turnstone - 7
Pomarine Skua - 1E (0757hrs)
Great Skua - 2E
Arctic Skua - 1W
Little Gull - 3E
Mediterranean Gull - 2E
Common Gull - 9E
Great Black-backed Gull - 2E
Sandwich Tern - 201E
Common Tern - 43E
Little Tern - 2E, 5os
auk sp - 3W
Swift - 7N
Swallow - 28N
Meadow Pipit - 4N
House Martin - 2
Willow Warbler - 1
Linnet - 2
Pomarine Skua (above), Bonxie, Whimbrel, Little Tern & Swift at the Bill (AH)
At 1520hrs, a little group of waders went past the Bill, comprising of four Whimbrels, a Dunlin and a Knot. (AW)
Later in the afternoon there was more interest, with three Black Terns heading east and an unexpected Balearic Shearwater and three Eider heading west. Full log below. (SH/AW/AT/AH)
(1615-1800hrs)
Balearic Shearwater - 1W (1715hrs)
Gannet - 1E, 3W
Eider - 3W
Red-breasted Merganser - 4E
Kittiwake - 2E
Sandwich Tern - 13E
Common Tern - 115E
Black Tern - 3E
Swallow - 4N
House Martin - 1
.JPG)
Whimbrel, Knot & Dunlin at the Bill (AW)
Ferry Pool: The Spotted Redshank and Greenshank were both in Ferry Channel again this morning, but a fairly quiet pool just held seven Avocets, four Black-tailed Godwits, four Gadwall, four Shovelers, 22 Mallard and a good count of 54 Shelducks. (OM/AH)
Spotted Redshank (AH top two, OM lower)(above) & Greenshank (AH top & OM lower) at the Ferry
This afternoon a male Ring Ouzel was along the bank beyond the back of the pool, showing well, albeit distantly, into the evening, and there were also a Wheatear and a Green Sandpiper in the vicinity. (GRAB/PA/BI/AH/NM et al)
Ring Ouzel at the Ferry (AH)
Church Norton: A Swift went over this morning. (GR)
