1st - 5th MAY

Sunday, 5th May: The early news from the Bill this morning was that it was generally very quiet for passage in a fresh W wind, with a single Bonxie, c.100 Commic Terns and a couple of incoming Yellow Wagtails being the meagre highlights - until 0815hrs when a single fully-spooned Pomarine Skua went east!! So, after a couple of dead hours it then picked up and suddenly  masses of Commic Terns began to pass - many quite distantly - giving a day total in excess of 3000. It looks like I chose to take the wrong day off from birding once again! Details of the sea-watch follow:-
Selsey Bill: (0515 - 1200hrs): Cloud/sun W/SW3. (Obs:JA et al)

Great Northern Diver - 1E, 6os

Black-throated Diver - 1E

Red-throated Diver - 8E

Diver sp - 3E

Gannet - 178E, 47W

Fulmar - 1E, 9W

Shag - 8os

Shelduck - 3E

Shoveler - 2E

Common Scoter - 341E, 8W

Mallard - 3p

Peregrine - 1 over gardens

Whimbrel -10E, 1W

Bar-tailed Godwit - 1E

Sanderling - 2E

Turnstone - 17ob

Oystercatcher - 3W, 1ob

Pomarine Skua - 1E (pale phase @ 08.16)

Arctic Skua - 1E

Great Skua - 3E

Kittiwake - 2E, 1W

Sandwich Tern - 36E

Commic Tern - 1,994E, 21W

Little Tern - 10E

Razorbill - 5E

auk sp - 5E, 7W

Swift - 21N

Yellow Wagtail - 5N

Swallow - 139N

Wheatear - 1ob.

more to follow...

1245-1900hrs: selected highlights  (Obs: SH/SAH/C&ME/JA/B&MC)
Red-throated Diver - 5E
Arctic Skua - 8E
Commic Tern - 1041E  (putting the total for the day over 3000)
Black Tern - 1E
Hobby - 2N
 

Peninsula: AH paid two visits to Medmerry/West Fields today: Morning: 24 Teal, 40 Shelduck, 6 Gadwall, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Greenshank, 3 Whimbrel, 8 Dunlin, 10+ pairs of Lapwing,  4 Skylark, 2 Yellowhammer, 4 Reed Bunting, 6 Whitethroat, 1 Sedge Warbler.
Evening: 2 Avocet, 2 Whimbrel, 4 Dunlin & 2 male Wheatears.

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Saturday, 4th May: I arrived at the Bill around 0700 this morning with MJ (not feeling quite at my best after last night's stay in Selsey) to find about a dozen observers already settled in and clustered around the bench seat, sheltering from the fresh WSW wind. It was apparent there was more bird activity today, though nothing special, but a steady stream of small Common Scoter flocks kept us busy, with several Bonxies and Arctic Skuas also being noted. A single Manx Shearwater was recorded and then our first proper 'debatable skua' of the season...high up and distant it surely wasn't a Bonxie, but passing behind the mile basket it looked heavy; majority view amongst the observers is that it was quite probably a Pom, but it was just too distant to be sure and so it rightly entered JA's official log as a 'skua sp.' Soon after an unscheduled rare visit by Mike Shrubb to his old stomping ground was a surprise to us all (for those newer visitors that may not know him, Mike previously farmed the area which included Sidlesham Ferry and was an influential character in the Sussex Ornithological Society and one of the Selsey pioneers back in the early 1960's.) He now resides in Wales and at 79 years of age is still well known to many in the birding establishment. He received a warm welcome from us older members of the group and after exchanging anecdotes had to leave due to commitments. You see - even now they just can't stay away as Selsey draws them back!

 

The gathering of observers around the bench seat this morning

 




Mike Shrubb (right) in full flow at the Bill, exchanging anecdotes with Chris Janman (left) and Mervyn Jones, 4th May



 Selsey Bill (0515-1230hrs): Sunshine and cloud, windy, WSW5-6, some brief showers afternoon.
(Obs: JA/SH/JF/IP/CRJ et al)
Great Northern Diver - 4os
Red-throated Diver - 2E, 1W
Diver sp - 3E, 1W
Gannet - 111E, 232W
Fulmar - 6E, 8W
Manx Shearwater - 1E
Shag - 1os
Brent Goose - 14E
Mallard - 2p
Common Scoter - 510E, 34W
Dunlin - 5W
Oystercatcher - 11E, 7W
Turnstone - 15E
Arctic Skua - 4E
Great Skua - 4E
Kittiwake - 5E, 4W
Sandwich Tern - 27E, 20W
Common Tern - 1E, 4W
C/A Tern - 48E, 13W
Little Tern - 1E, 14W
Razorbill - 11E, 5W
Guillemot - 2E
auk sp - 130E, 57W
Swift - 1N
Swallow - 51N
House Martin - 1N
Wheatear - 3 ob
Linnet - 6W.

afternoon watch (1500-1730hrs):   (Obs SH/JA)
Selected highlights:-
Black-throated Diver - 1E
Red-throated Diver - 2E
Kittiwake - 2W
Manx Shearwater - 1E (15.55hrs)

Peninsula: Pagham Hbr: Earlier today a Greenshank was on Sidlesham Ferry - my first sighting of a migrant wader there all spring! At Church Norton - 8 Bar-tailed Godwits, 24 Whimbrel, 150 Dunlin and 20 Ringed Plovers in the harbour; also Greenshank, Cuckoo and Lesser Whitethroat heard but not seen and 2 Willow Warblers and a Blackcap near the Hide, plus 6 Wheatears on the beach this evening (AH/OM/MJ).

Wheatear, Bar-tailed Godwits and Dunlin at Church Norton (photos: Andy House)

 

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Friday, 3rd May: And so it goes on.....this morning's update from JA at the Bill (0530-1000hrs) is that once again it is dead passage-wise. Warm sunny and clear with a W/SW wind 3-4. The highlight was a single Arctic Skua, or perhaps the single Yellowhammer W, with little else of note; 6 Great Northern Divers offshore, a couple of Red-throated W, 85 Common Scoter, a handful of Sandwich and Commic Terns, a single Swift and just a few waders through. So little in fact that it's not even worth giving a full breakdown. Please note that today only there will be no late reports after mid-afternoon; (why I hear you ask - well I'm meeting Mervyn Jones later for a couple of hours more punishment looking at the sea, followed by a curry and an evening out!)
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Thursday, 2nd May: If I thought yesterday was bad, today was worse, with another lengthy sea-watch producing not a single skua and less birds overall - the best being an arriving Hobby - and no sign of the budgie either!! Conditions were much the same as yesterday too - though with less haze and clearer horizons - but despite that it just didn't happen again, leaving doubts as to whether it actually will during this curious spring. Place your bets! Evening update: News of a single Pom Skua this evening. Typical! Well done again to the evening shift.

 

Selsey Bill (0610-1310hrs): Sunny, dry, clear and quite warm. Wind light NE 3-4, decreasing 2.

(Obs: GJ/OM/SR/GH/S&ME et al)

Great Northern Diver - 4 os

Red-throated Diver - 1E

Diver sp - 1E

Shelduck - 2E

Common Scoter - 13E

R/b Merganser - 1E

Curlew - 1E

Whimbrel - 10E

Bar-tailed Godwit - 1E

Oystercatcher - 4E, 2W

Dunlin - 3E

Turnstone - 45E

Fulmar - 2W

Gannet - 15E, 40W

Auk sp - 11E, 3W

Hobby - 1N

C/A Tern - 5E

Sandwich Tern - 24E

Little Tern - 11E, 4os

Jackdaw - 18N

Swallow - 2N

evening watch (1800-1940hrs) (Obs:SH/JA et al)

Pomarine Skua - 1E (1833hrs)  

also a single Arctic Skua, but otherwise very little moving.

 

Peninsula: This morning in Chichester Hbr there were 40 Bar-tailed Godwits, 4 Whimbrel, 450 Dunlin, 1 Little Tern & 4 Common Terns from Ellanore, though Snowhill Creek was devoid of birds and few passerines were noted. A minimum of 7 Greenshank, 12 Black-tailed Godwits, 20 Whimbrel and 40 summer-plumaged Turnstone were at Fishbourne Creek. This evening along Pagham North Wall there were a minimum of 5 Greenshank, a dozen Whimbrel, a single Reed Bunting and a few singing Reed and Sedge Warblers. (AH)

 

Greenshank, Pagham North Wall, 2nd May (photo: Andy House)

 

 

                    

Wednesday, 1st May: The first day of this long-awaited month promised much but up to early afternoon at least delivered little - in eight hours watching the highlights were just two Bonxies, one Arctic Skua and an escaped budgie doing mini Bee-eater impressions! Conditions looked good for Poms with a reasonably light NE breeze, warm sunny weather, high pressure and hazy horizons - then news of four Poms passing Portland at 0923 gave hope things would improve whilst ensuring a long session of watching would take place. Regrettably though the Portland birds were not seen; by the time the last three of us observers left it was deadly slow, as the log was handed over to the incoming SR. I wonder if the late shift will be luckier this evening?



 

1st May morning on the wall; nice weather, high hopes, few birds (photo: Sarah Russell)

Suspect origins!! This budgie from a local aviary was sadly one of the few highlights this morning - it kept us entertained by flying around then 'arriving' from the beach, at times almost like a mini Bee-eater! (photo: Chris Janman).

 

Selsey Bill: (0615-1415hrs): Sunny, dry and quite warm with some sea haze. Wind NE3/4 - ENE2/3.

(Obs: MJ/OM/ES/CRJ/C&ME/MD et al):

Great Northern Diver - 3 os

Black-throated Diver - 1E

Diver Sp - 2W

Brent Goose - 2E

Shelduck - 2E

Common Scoter - 2E, 5W

R/b Merganser - 1E

Oystercatcher - 23E

Whimbrel - 3E

Turnstone - 23 ob

Fulmar - 2E, 4W

Gannet - 20E, 27W

Auk sp - 1E, 2W

Great Skua - 2E

Arctic Skua - 1E

C/A Tern - 10E

Sandwich Tern - 31E

Swallow - 6N

House Martin - 1N

Goldfinch - 4N

Linnet - 4N

1415-1615hrs (Obs: SR)

An additional couple of hours produced only 3 R/b Mergansers E, a few more Gannets and Sandwich Terns and a Swallow N - so still very slow. 10E, 2W
1715-1930hrs (Obs:CRJ)
Gannet - 19E, 5W
Sandwich Tern - 10E, 2W
gloom!
 

Pagham Hbr: North Wall: 51 Whimbrel, 2 Cuckoo, 12 Common and 1 Lesser Whitethroat but otherwise quiet (JW).

Fishbourne Creek: 16 Whimbrel and 9 Greenshank (GH).