Birding the Selsey Peninsula: 26th

Friday, 28th August: An unforecasted wet start to the day, with a succession of very heavy showers and black skies, before the freshening breeze finally brought some sun......

Selsey Bill (0700-1100hrs): (Obs: C&ME/JA)
Balearic Shearwater - 2W (0923hrs)
Fulmar - 4W
Gannet - 9E, 23W
Red-throated Diver - 1E (1055hrs)
Common Tern - 2W
Sandwich Tern - 9W
Kittiwake - 1W

Medmerry: A Wryneck was present this morning near Marsh Barn, but unfortunately not in an area with any public access. Also four Wheatears on the beach and a few Yellow Wagtails flying over (PH)

Ferry Pool: The two Ruff were still present, and there were eight Avocets on the pool, along with a Common Sandpiper, 24 Black-tailed Godwits, 55 Lapwing, 12 Shelduck and 40 Teal. When the sun did pop out there was a Lesser Whitethroat and several Whitethroats, Willow/Chiffs and Blackcaps around the Discovery Area. (AH)

Ruff (above), Avocets, a rainbow, Teal in the rainbow, Lesser Whitethroat & Chiffchaff around the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: The Wryneck was still present this morning, along with six Wheatears, a Whinchat and a Redstart, and there were plenty of Whitethroats still around. (BI)

Further update...The Wryneck showed well, four Redstarts on beach, Pied Flycatcher, three Spotted Flycatchers and two Redstarts behind the hide. Grey Plovers, Common Terns in the high tide roost. (BI) Late afternoon news of a Red-backed Shrike in the area of the horse's field (BI/ CM et al)

Red-backed Shrike at Church Norton (BI)

Church Norton selection: Two Redstarts, Wheatear, Wryneck and Sandwich Tern (BI)

Park Farm, Selsey: Early this evening around the farm there was a Grey Partridge, and overhead 20+ Swallows, two House Martins, one Sand Martin, a Swift and a Sparrowhawk. (S&SaH)

North Wall: Not a wader was to be seen on the Breech Pool, though there were quite a few Sedge and Reed Warblers and Whitethroats present, and a dozen Sand Martins were among the Swallows.

A Kingfisher and two juvenile Grey Wagtails were briefly in White's Creek, as was a Spotted Flycatcher, along with a couple of Spotted Redshank and Common Sandpipers and 100+ Black-tailed Godwits.

Out in the harbour there were half a dozen Greenshank and plenty of Dunlin and Grey Plovers, and there were a couple of Wigeon about, too. (AH/PC)

Spotted Flycatcher (above), Grey Wagtail, Sedge Warbler & Spotted Redshank from North Wall (AH)

Thursday, 27th August: Less rain than yesterday, though not as dry as forecast, but still with a strong south-westerly wind and heavy cloud.....

Selsey Bill: Not much moving early on, bar a few Gannets and Common and Sandwich Terns, and a Wheatear dropped in briefly. though there was a good turn-out of hopeful watchers so something may yet appear.... And it did - at 11am three reasonably close Balearic Shearwaters went west, as persistence was rewarded; also a pale-phase Arctic Skua moved through. Unfortunately though, many of the assembled watchers had got restless and had moved on by now to check the bushes elsewhere - perhaps a mistake today? (AH/OM/PC et al) Thereafter a good number of observers came and went, but although I thought about leaving several times myself, I decided to stick it out to 1400hrs, by which time another six Balearics had been added - much to the pleasure of a number of locals and also some visitors from further afield - when with tired eyes it was good to hand over the log to the late shift (OM).

Log 0730-1400hrs: Cloud, showers, wind SW 6-7 easing slowly. Many observers:
Great Crested Grebe - 1 os
Balearic Shearwater - 9W (3W 1100hrs 2/3 way to Mile basket, 3W 1157hrs just behind it, 3W 1233hrs just inside it)
Shearwater sp - 1W - distant (1355hrs)
Gannet - 3E, 20W
Common Scoter - 1E
Dunlin - 1W
Turnstone - 30 ob
Redshank - 1W
Whimbrel - 4W
Common Tern - 11W
Commic Tern - 15W
Sandwich Tern - 9W
Arctic Skua - 1W (l/p)
Mediterranean Gull - 1 ob
Wheatear - 1 ob

Wheatear (above) & a gathering of hopeful gentlemen of a certain age (with one youthful exception) at the Bill (AH)

At the Bill this morning: another view of the Wheatear, record shot of Balearic Shearwaters and juv Mediterranean Gull (DM)

Additional 1400-1615hrs: (Obs: CN)
Shearwater sp - 2 distant W (1430) briefly seen
Gannet - 2E, 5W
Fulmar - 1W
Little Egret - 1W
Common Tern - 7W
Sandwich Tern - 12W
Wheatear - 1ob

Ferry Pool: The two Ruff were still present, along with a Common Sandpiper and four Black-tailed Godwits. There were also three Shoveler, around a dozen young Shelducks and 30+ Teal. (AH/OM)

Ruff on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: A Redstart was in the field by the mound, and there were still at least three Spotted Flycatchers in the vicinity, though not much else was evident. There were at least five Wheatears around the concrete slabs, along with 30-40 Linnets, and there were at least six, and up to eight, Common Sandpipers between there and the creek by the horse field.

The tide was very high in the harbour, but there were eight Sandwich Terns and a couple of Common Terns, plus a few Grey Plover and Teal, a single Whimbrel and 100+ Redshank. (AH/A&YF) The Wryneck was again reported, though it was being elusive popping in and out of the bushes in its usual area near the beach (per IL). Also 8 Knot and 30 Grey Plover later (BFF/DM).

Common Sandpiper (above), Wheatears, Grey Plover & Sandwich Terns at Church Norton (AH)

North Wall: An Osprey flew over and eventually drifted off south towards Pagham beach; also in the area a good count of 14 Greenshanks and 2 Spotted Redshanks (ARK)

There were also 10+ Wheatears along the wall. (ES)

Medmerry: Stilt pools, (09.30 - 10.00)

Very full of water! At least 1 Wood Sandpiper remains (on back of large flat island); also 2 Green Sandpipers, 2 Ruff, 1 Greenshank, 1 Dunlin, 2 Common Sandpipers, c.60 Mallard, 20 Gadwall, 50 Teal and 30 Black-headed Gulls (PH)

Runcton: After a recent occurrence of 3 Garden Warblers together in an Elder in my Runcton garden, this 1st year Reed Warbler appeared this afternoon by my shed less than 10 feet from my back door, obviously tired, it soon sloped off into the undergrowth around my pond. It just shows that migration is often visible away from the coast. (CRJ).

Reed Warbler in observer's Runcton garden (CRJ)

Wednesday, 26th August: Another truly awful morning's weather, with gale force winds and persistent drizzle interspersed with waves of heavy rain. This afternoon is meant to be better, but little evidence of it so far!

Selsey Bill: In forty-five minutes from 7.15am there were just 25 Gannets west and 4 east, and nothing else! (AH)

(1200-1430hrs): Southerly 7-8, rain, heavy at times (CRJ)
Fulmar - 2W
Gannet - 15E, 20W
Sandwich Tern - 10W
Arctic Skua - 2W (d/p)
Kittiwake - 1W
(I also had a brief glimpse of a single Balearic Shearwater distant for about a second, but it didn’t seem to be going anywhere, and nothing I could write a description for... CRJ)

(1615-1730hrs) (SH)
Gannet - 2E, 2W
Common Tern 2E, 5W
Sandwich Tern 1E, 5W
And that was it! So despite yesterday's Balearic excitement and further records from elsewhere in the Channel today, it seems like they stayed too far out for Bill-watchers today!

Ferry Pool: The two Ruff were on the pool early on, but the high water level meant they were the only waders present, though there were three Shoveler, 13 young Shelducks and 25 Teal on the water, and half a dozen Sand Martins went over. (AH)

Ruff on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: Three Spotted Flycatchers and a Blackcap were sheltering from the weather behind the hide, but they were the only passerines on show, bar a few Swallows.

In the harbour there were six Common Sandpipers in front of the bench, along with a Whimbrel and c100 Redshank, and there were also four Sandwich Terns and two Common Terns. (AH)

This evening there was a Spotted Flycatcher behind the hide, four Wheatears on the beach near the concrete slabs, two Common Terns and a Sandwich Tern in the harbour, and six Great Crested Grebes together offshore. (S&SaH)