Tuesday 1 July 2014

1st - 3rd July 2014

Thursday, 3rd July: The fine summer weather continues, the forecast indicating unbroken sunshine today with a light SW wind and becoming very warm, though perhaps staying a little cooler on the coast.

Ferry Pool: Much the same as recent days, but it is very nice to see the Ferry so full of bird-life. The Spotted Redshank, Common Sandpiper, 5 Green Sandpipers and 4 Little Ringed Plovers all still present, along with a dozen Black-tailed Godwits and Avocets, up to 10 Lapwings and 50+ Redshank. There are exactly 20 young Shelducks in the creche. (AH)
 
Spotted Redshank (above) & juvenile Avocets on the Ferry (AH)
 
Spotted Redshank being chased by Avocet (above) & Shelducks on the march on the Ferry (AH)
 
Long Pool/West Side: As quiet as would be expected - a bit of Reed and Sedge Warbler song and a couple of Reed Buntings singing, too, around the Long Pool, and along the West Side plenty of Linnets, including some youngsters, and several families of Whitethroats. There was also a profusion of butterflies - mostly Small Skippers, Gatekeepers and Meadow Browns. (AH)
 
Linnet (above), Whitethroat and Small Skipper along the West Side (AH)

 
Wednesday, 2nd July: A day set fair to be fine and sunny with a light E/SE breeze. A reminder that a brief Spring summary has been added to the migration data page (see yesterday's header). 

Ferry Pool: A Grey Wagtail flew over this morning, and  the nice selection of waders were all still present, namely Spotted Redshank, Common Sandpiper, 5 Green Sandpipers, 4 Little Ringed Plover, 21 Avocets, 30 Black-tailed Godwit, 6 Lapwing & 50+ Redshank. There are now three chicks - two quite well-grown ones and a very small one. The young Shelducks are getting very well grown now, there are also two or three pairs of Reed Warblers busy taking food back to youngsters. (AH)
 
Lapwing with a Redshank chick (above), Reed Warbler & two Green Sandpipers on the Ferry (AH) 
 

North Wall area: Goldfinches flocking up along Church Lane. A new Robin family at Welbourne and 2 calling Blackcaps at the same location. The second brood of Swallows at Welbourne have fledged and 5 young were being fed on a ledge behind the old sluice gate. At the Breach Pool there were 2 Curlew and 2 Lapwing on a thin ribbon of mud. Oh for more muddy margins!. For several years 5 White Geese have frequented the Pool but they are now down to one. Lots of Little Egret activity at Owl Copse, I counted 7 flying juveniles. All the fields have had a hay cut. (JW)
Juvenile Robin (above) & juvenile Swallows waiting to be fed at the North Wall (JW)

 




Marsh Farm, Sidlesham area: A walk round from Rookery Lane and back to Halsey's Farm produced a pair of Yellowhammers with at least one fledged young, several Skylarks, numerous Whitethroat families and a surprising amount of warbler song, including two different Lesser Witethroats, Chiffchaff, Blackcap and several Sedge Warblers in the weedy ditches. (AH)

 

Skylark (above) & Yellowhammer at Marsh Farm, Sidlesham (AH)

Medmerry: At the breach this evening there were about 20 Sandwich Terns, 4 Common Terns, 10 Grey Plover and about 5 each of Dunlin and Turnstone. There were up to 100 Sand Martins over the barley field, and a few Skylarks and Corn Buntings singing in the distance. (AH)

Sandwich Terns at Medmerry (AH)
 
Tuesday, 1st July: The second half of the year starts today, with a blustery easterly wind, but still dry and with a fair bit of sun. A quick count-up of species seen on the peninsula at the half-way point gives an approximate total of between 185 and 190, so we need a few rarities this autumn to get up towards last year's total of 215 or so. It's not for the lack of trying though, and surely additional species will fall as the year progresses. Looking back on the spring, it was certainly not a classic, with low  or very low numbers of some species logged, particularly terns and waders, and only the Pom Skua 'big day' that stands out. Even so, our log-keeper Justin has prepared a Spring summary of this year's somewhat meagre results, which can now be found on the Selsey Bill Migration data page - just click the relevant page heading below the title bar.

Selsey Bill (0800-1100hrs): Dry, sunshine and cloud, wind cool E/NE 3-4.
(Obs: DF/DS/JD/OM/BFF/DIS/DM/C&ME). A strange morning really; nothing moving at first, then it turned into a bit of a duck day, with small flocks of several species moving east on what is surely a most unlikely date!
Gannet - 20E, 5W, 15 os
Great Crested Grebe - 1W then settled os
Eider - 1 os
Common Scoter - 32E, 60 os
Shelduck - 13E
Gadwall - 2E
Shoveler - 10E
Curlew - 1E
Sandwich Tern - up to 10 fishing os
Common Tern - 4 fishing os
Little Tern - 1 os
Swift - 4p and os, probably local breeders

 Duck surprise at the Bill: hastily taken and poor record shots of (above) the flock of Shelduck (all adults) and (below) the flock of Shoveler (at least 2 drakes)... now where have they come from?  (OM)
 
Ferry Pool: Still the main focus of interest around the harbour - this morning the Spotted Redshank was still present along with 5 Green Sandpipers, the Common Sandpiper, 5 Little Ringed Plovers, 20 Black-tailed Godwits, 16 Avocets, 4 Lapwing, 59 Redshank (plus 2 chicks and a smaller one), and a few Swifts over. (AH/OM/BFF/DIS/DM)

Five Green Sandpipers with Redshank (above), Spotted Redshank with Redshank, & Avocet landing on the Ferry (AH)

 
Church Norton: By contrast, the harbour was bleak in the easterly wind, with few birds about - 20 or so Curlews, 8 Little Egrets, about 10 Common Terns around the island and a juv Peregrine on the new island, being occasionally bombed by terns. Along the hedgerows very little birdsong was to be heard; a Blackcap was singing by the car-park and there was a family of young Chiffchaffs flitting about and a short burst of song, plus a few Gatekeeper butterflies keeping out of the wind. (AH/OM/BFF et al)
 
Common Tern at Church Norton (DM)
Little Egret (above) & Gatekeeper at Church Norton (AH)

North Wall:  20 Sand Martins hawking over the pools, a single Yellow-legged Gull roosting nearby in the harbour and around 120 Curlew. Autumn is slowly on the way! (BFF/DIS/DM).

Medmerry: West Sands to the new breach entrance...19 Grey Plover, 39 Dunlin and 2 Little Ringed Plovers. Hunting over the new salt marsh was a 1st sum Hobby (BFF/DIS/DM)
 
Only saw the male stilt tonight but still in the same area. Up to 50 Sand Martins and a few Swallows over, plus 5 Yellowhammers, 4 Reed Warblers and 1 Reed Bunting. Also the Little Owl was at Marsh Farm. (S&SaH)

At Porthole Farm there were half a dozen Yellowhammers (including at least one juvenile), 4 young Goldfinches, 4 Stock Doves, 6 Linnets and a couple of families of Whitethroats, plus a few Sand Martins and Swallows over. (AH)

 Young Goldfinch (above) & young Yellowhammer at Porthole Farm (AH)

Sidlesham: Our breeding Swallows are just getting started on their second brood of the summer, which is encouraging. (AH)

Swallow in a Sidlesham garden (AH)
 

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