Wednesday 29 July 2015

29th - 31st July 2015

Friday, 31st July: A fine and mainly sunny day, becoming warm later, with a light to moderate mainly easterly wind....

Selsey Bill: (0745-0900) (C&ME)
Gannet - 24E

Common Scoter - 6E
Arctic Skua - 1W
Sandwich Terns - 60+os (over mile basket then coming in to feed)
Sand Martin - 15E
Pied Wagtail - 4E 

Runcton: Two Green Sandpipers flew over south, calling, at 8am this morning. (CRJ)

Ferry Pool: Still virtually birdless for the time of year - just a Common Sandpiper, a Lapwing and six Black-tailed Godwits present this morning. (AH)

Church Norton: There were one or two Willow/Chiffs, a Blackcap and a few Whitethroats around the churchyard and Severals area, plus a few Linnets and Swallows at the latter, but generally very quiet. Half a dozen Sandwich and Common Terns were in the harbour, plus four Whimbrel, 30 Curlew and a mobile flock of c80 Dunlin. (AH)
Later on this morning at there were six Willow Warblers and a Lesser Whitethroat about, and a Raven was harassing a Kestrel overhead. Also, a Clouded Yellow was at the end of the path to harbour. (A&YF)

Willow/Chiff (probably a Willow Warbler?) (above) & Linnet at Church Norton (AH)


Fishbourne Creek: There were four Greenshank present this morning, along with half a dozen Whimbrel and Black-tailed Godwits, c20 Curlew and c200 Redshank, plus two Dunlin which flew off from the mud and went off high over the fields to the east. Almost no passerines about, bar a Yellowhammer and a Whitethroat, but there was quite a selection of gulls, including a single Yellow-legged Gull, two Common Gulls, c75 Mediterranean Gulls, a few adult and juvenile Lesser and Greater Black Backs, plus the inevitable Herring and Black-headeds. (AH)


Greenshank (above), Whimbrel, Yellow-legged Gull, Mediterranean Gull, Lesser & Greater Black Backed Gulls at Fishbourne Creek (AH)





 
 

Thursday, 30th July: Dry with sunny periods and cloud; wind W/NW 3-4 but feeling pleasant and less chilly than the last few days...

North Wall: No sign of yesterday's Wood Sandpiper or Spotted Redshanks on the Breech Pool early this morning, but there were 62 Black-tailed Godwits, 10 Redshank, 4 Dunlin and 9 Teal, and also a Kingfisher whizzing about. White's Creek held rather few waders, but out on the saltmarsh were 2 Greenshanks and 5 Yellow-legged Gulls (4 adults, 1 sub-ad, probably 3rd w - 3rd sum). (OM)
Later on the two Spotted Reshank were back, along with three Snipe and a calling Water Rail on the Breech Pool, whilst a Willow Warbler and a Lesser Whitethroat were among warblers seen. (E Stubbs)

Ferry Pool: Surprisingly few waders are using the pool at the moment - early on there was just a Little Ringed Plover, a Common Sandpiper, eight Black-tailed Godwits and the three Avocets present, whilst later on all but the Avocets had gone and there were just 16 Lapwing present, though admittedly a Buzzard was circling overhead! (AH)

Little Ringed Plover (above), Black-tailed Godwits & Lapwing and Buzzard at the Ferry (AH)




Church Norton: 3 Common Sandpiper, 3 summer-plumaged Knot, 2 Sanderling, 5 Whimbrel, 2 Grey Plover and 200 Dunlin. No sign of any Little Terns today but small numbers of Sandwich & Common Terns noted, plus a Gannet offshore. (BFF/DM/E Srubbs)

Sidlesham Quay: A Sand Martin was among many Swallows over, and 15 Whimbrel were on the saltmarsh at high tide. (E Stubbs)

Medmerry: Easton Lane to the Stilt Pool - A reasonable selection of waders was present this morning, including four Green Sandpipers, at least six Common Sandpipers, 95 Black-tailed Godwits, 20 Lapwing, 40 Dunlin seen in flight, plus at least five Avocet families, the Oystecatcher pair plus chick and the ever watchful Redshank parent, though no Little Ringed Plovers. Also the Shelduck and Tufted Duck families were still on the Stilt Pool.
In the hedges there were several Chiffchaff and Whitethroat families, plus a Corn Bunting and a dozen or so Yellowhammers, whilst there at least 100 Sand Martins and a few Swallows were moving south, and there were a couple of families of freshly-fledged Meadow Pipits among the Linnets and skylarks along the banks. (AH)

Green Sandpiper (above), Avocet chick, Black-tailed Godwits, Redshank, Chiffchaff, Whitethroat, Meadow Pipit, Sand Martin & Skylark at Medmerry (AH)









Wednesday, 29th July: A fine and dry day with sunshine and some cloud, but remaining breezy, with a cool, brisk W/NW wind...

North Wall: Wood Sandpiper was on the Breach Pool this morning, though it was very flighty, twice taking off and circling round, once dropping back on the pool, the second time landing in White's Creek, before finally heading inland and dropping in somewhere towards the trees at the back of the uncropped fields. 
Also on the pool were two Green Sandpipers, two heavily-moulting Spotted Redshank, a Whimbrel, three Dunlin, a dozen Redshank and c30 Black-tailed Godwits. Apparently the Environment Agency had to open the sluices in response to the heavy weekend rain but, as a consequence, they have left the water level just perfect!
Not much else to report - there were a few Reed and Sedge Warblers in the reeds, a Swift and a few Sand Martins went over with the ever-present Swallows, a Kingfisher was briefly by the sluices, and in White's Creek there were three Common Sandpipers, along with 40 Lapwing and c150 Redshank. (AH/PC et al)


Wood Sandpiper (above), Spotted Redshanks, Common Sandpiper, Sedge Warbler, Swallows and fighting Black-tailed Godwits from the North Wall (AH)






There were plenty of birds on Breech Pool this afternoon on the low tide, but frustratingly the Wood Sandpiper remained absent. A Snipe probed the mud at the water's edge and a Water Rail was out in the open, whilst there was also a Green Sandpiper, a Spotted Redshank, 18 Redshank, 63 Black-tailed Godwits (one with an injured leg), 9 Lapwing, 18 Teal and 8 Canada Geese. (SR)
In addition to the above, looking at the back of the Breech Pool through the gap in the hedge in the adjacent field, I  found two Snipe, another Green Sandpiper, and a Common Sandpiper, along with a juvenile Little Ringed Plover. (CRJ)

Selsey Bill: (0705-0830) (C&ME)
Gannet - 10E, 6W
Fulmar - 1W
Common Scoter - 3W
Common Sandpiper - 1E
Common Tern - 5os
Sallow - 2p
House Martin - 10p

Ferry Pool: By contrast, the Ferry was dead - just a single Little Ringed Plover, the three Avocets, eight Black-tailed Godwits and six Redshank on the pool. (AH)

Long Pool: On a quick look it was pretty quiet, too, though there was a mother Tufted Duck with three well-grown ducklings, a pair of Reed Buntings gathering food, a couple of families of Whitehroats, and three Buzzards over. (AH)




Tufted Ducks (above) & Reed Bunting along Long Pool (AH)


No comments:

Post a Comment