22nd - 24th September 2016

Saturday, 24th September: Much breezier than yesterday, though the southerly direction meant another warm day, though with the prospect of rain this evening....

Selsey Bill: Bird of the day was undoubtedly a Sooty Shearwater, that cruised through west, fairly close in, at 8.40am, first spotted by PB. It was totally out of context to an otherwise quiet morning, with little other movement bar a Guillemot, a Shag and a few Sandwich Terns east, a few Wigeon west and a feeding gathering of Gannets far out to sea. There was a steady eastward flow of Swallows, with the odd House and Sand Martin among them, plus a few Meadow Pipits, whilst the Dartford Warbler put in a brief 5-second appearance late morning before skulking off again.   Full log below....

0630-1130hrs: wind SSE5-6 easing slightly later (Obs: SH/JA/PB/SR/AH/OM)
Gannet - 31E, 101W
Sooty Shearwater - 1W (0840; c. one-third mile out)

Shag - 1os

Brent Goose - 3W

Common Scoter - 3E

Wigeon - 18W

Guillemot - 1os

Sandwich Tern - 11E, 2W, 4os

Mediterranean Gull - 2E, 6W

Meadow Pipit - 25E

Pied Wagtail - 4 ob

Swallow - 660E

House Martin - 19E

Sand Martin - 12E

Dartford Warbler - 1 Bill House garden

(1330-1430hrs) (SH)
Gannet - 9E, 2W
Mediterranean Gull - 1W
Sandwich Tern - 1E, 3W
Swallow - 11E

Selsey: a Hummingbird Hawkmoth was hovering around the guttering of a bungalow in Manor Lane, and a Hobby was over Park farm. (SH)

Shag (above) & Sandwich Tern at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool:/Ferry Channel: The pool was still quiet - just a Dunlin, a Black-tailed Godwit, 16 Lapwing and ten Teal this morning, plus a Grey Wagtail briefly by the pumping station.
Along the channel there were still up to six Curlew Sandpipers feeding with c40 Dunlin, plus two Spotted Redshank, a few Grey Plovers and 50+ Redshank and 300+ Teal. (AH/MJ)

Curlew Sandpipers (above), Curlew Sandpipers, Dunlin, Teal and Moorhen & Spotted Redshanks, Grey Plover and Teal in Ferry Channel (AH)

This evening there were at least eight Curlew Sandpipers and 25 Dunlin at the far end of Ferry Channel as the tide rose, along with a few Grey Plovers and Redshank. (AH)

Curlew Sandpipers and Dunlin in Ferry Channel (AH)

Church Norton: The Osprey was again in the harbour, first fishing near Tern Island and then sitting out to eat its catch on the adjacent mudbanks. Also a Hobby was over the Priory Wood and the hide area, and a couple of Sparrowhawks and Buzzards were also on the wing.
There were very few passerines about in he windy conditions, though a couple of Stonechats and a Whitethroat were in the horse field and one or two Chiffchaffs were in the hedges.
In the harbour there were at least eight Bar-tailed Godwits, 40+ Grey Plover and a few Knot among the Dunlin, along with large numbers of Wigeon and Teal. 
Also a covey of ten Grey Partridges was in the fields behind the Severals.(AH/IP)

Osprey with fish (above), Bar-tailed Godwit & Grey Plover at Church Norton (AH)

Medmerry: Easton Lane to the Stilt Pool - A Spoonbill was roosting on the Stilt Pool this afternoon, and there was also a Greenshank and a couple of Common Sandpipers present. along the banks there were two Wheatears, four Stonechats, 100+ Meadow Pipits and 200+ Linnets, but just six Swallows were seen. Also a Buzzard and a estrel were about, and there were still at least 500 Mediterranean Gulls among the flock near te first sluice. (S&SaH)

Spoonbill (above) & Wheatear at Medmerry (SH)

Friday, 23rd September: A truly glorious 'Indian Summer' day after a brisk start, with sunshine and almost no breeze...

Selsey Bill: The Dartford Warbler showed again briefly, but was generally elusive around the Bill House garden (OM}, although nearby Chiffchaffs were more obliging. It was otherwise quiet, but 15 Sandwich Terns were roosting along the groynes offshore. Socially, there was also a nice moment when our longest-serving regular Beryl James met up with the Selsey exile now returned Mervyn Jones, to catch up on old times.....
0710-1140hrs: NW-SW 1-2, sea flat calm (Obs: OM/SR/MJ/JA/BJ}    Full log below:
Gannet - 3E, 3W
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Brent Goose - 1W
Common Scoter -1E
Sparrowhawk -1 over area
Great Spotted Woodpecker - 2 gardens/Oval field
Sandwich Tern - 15os
Mediterranean Gull - 3W, 4os
Wheatear - 2 beach/gardens
Meadow Pipit - 18NE, 6p
Grey Wagtail - 1W
Pied Wagtail - 3N, 1ob
Swallow - 35E, 25S
House Martin - 45E, 25W
Dartford Warbler - 1 Bill House garden
Chiffchaff - 18 gardens

At the Bill this morning: the early-morning sun rising, Sandwich Terns, and Mervyn Jones and Beryl James meet again and catch up on old times.... (OM)

North Wall: A Wryneck was briefly along the North Wall before flying off towards Owl Point this morning and unfortunately wasn't refound despite a good search. Along the hedges were a few Whitethroats and Reed Buntings, two Chiffchaffs, a Lesser Whitethroat and two calling Cetti's Warblers. Eight Stonechats were also present and there was a Whinchat and two  more Stonechats along the fence-line to the rear of the Breech Pool. On the Pool itself, ten Dunlin, three Snipe and the regular Black-tailed Godwits & Redshanks and with the cattle nearby were at least 50 Yellow Wagtails. In the harbour were two Egyptian Geese and along White's Creek ever increasing numbers of Wigeon, two Bar-tailed Godwits and more Redshanks whilst the Kingfisher was also nearby. (BI/PC/TG/DP)

Wryneck, top, & Stonechat along the North Wall. (BI)

Yellow Wagtail at North Wall. (DP)

Ferry Pool/Ferry Channel: There was an eerie low mist over the Ferry field first thing, but bird-wise just a Golden Plover, two Black-tailed Godwits, c60 Lapwings and 15 Teal roosting on the pool, plus up to a dozen Yellow Wagtails among the cattle.(AH/OM)

There was a minimum of eight, and possibly up to twelve, Curlew Sandpipers along the channel in the company of c30 Dunlin, the two Spotted Redshanks were at the far end and a Grey Wagtail flew over. (AH)

Curlew Sandpiper (above), Curlew Sandpipers and Dunlin, Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail & Golden Plover and Lapwing around Ferry (AH)

Low mist over the Ferry field early this morning (OM)

Church Norton: An Osprey west over the harbour at 10.45am, there were two Whinchats and six Stonechats in the horse field, and six Spotted Flycatchers and a few Whitethroats, Blackcaps and Whitethroats scattered around the hedges. (A&YF)

Thius evening there was a Spotted Flycatcher at Greenlease Farm, a Hobby hawking dragonflies over the Severals, six Stonexchats nearby (plus one by the railway-carriage houses), three Buzzards, two Sand Martins, ten Swalows and plenty of Chiffchaffs. (S&SaH)

Park Farm, Selsey: This evening a Hobby went over, as did a Sparrowhawk and three Buzzards, and there were a Wheatear, a Grey Wagtail and 100+ Meadow Pipits around the fields. (S&SaH)

Long Pool: This evening there were a Whinchat and two Stonechats in the fields adjacent to the pool, and several Chiffchaffs, Whitethroats and Reed Buntings along the hedges. At the far end of Ferry Channel there were at least six Greenshank, a Spotted Redshank, a Common Sandpiper and 20 Grey Plovers among the Redshank and Curlew. (AH)

Whinchat (above), Spotted Redshank and Greenshank & Common Sandpiper from Long Pool (AH)

Medmerry: Easton Lane to the Stilt Pool - There was plenty of activity, though nothing very unusual in the kind weather, with migrants represented by four Whinchats, four Wheatears, three Stonechats, up to ten Chiffchaffs, similar of Yellow Wagtails among the cattle, and several hundred Swallows going over east. There were also a couple of hundred Meadow Pipits around and 20+ Skylarks, Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings present, plus a Kingfisher by the first sluice.

A Peregrine was hunting over the reserve and was then sat obligingly on the beach, a couple of Sparrowhawks, a Buzzard and a Kestrel also were enjoying the weather, but waders were thin on the ground - just a Green Sandpiper by the first sluice, two Common Sandpipers, a Greenshank and a dozen Lapwing on the Stilt Pool and three Dunlin on the sluice opposite.

There were still 5-600 Canada Geese about, along with plenty of Wigeon, Teal and a few Shoveler. (AH)

Peregrine (above), Sparrowhawks, Whinchat, Wheatear, Common Sandpiper & Meadow Pipits at Medmerry (AH)

Sidlesham: In our lane this morning there were half a dozen House Martins and 50+ Swallows sitting on the wires. (AH)

House Martin (above) & House Martin and Swallow in Sidlesham (AH)

Thursday, 22nd September: The autumn equinox....but still feeling quite warm overall.....a fairly pleasant day, dry with sunshine and cloud and a light to moderate SW wind.

Selsey Bill: Still nothing really moving, though there were a handful of Gannets and several Sandwich Terns offshore, and there were at least some migrants in the gardens, including a Spotted Flycatcher in the sycamores at Ursula Avenue. Log below.....

0715-0930hrs: SW2-3  (Obs: SR)  

Gannet - 1E, 1W, 6 os
Sandwich Tern - 1E, 5W, 2 ob
Meadow Pipit - 2E, 4W, 3N
Pied Wagtail - 4W
Swallow - 12E
Chiffchaff - 16 gardens
Blackcap - 3
Spotted Flycatcher - 1
Painted Lady Butterfly along the beach

Spotted Flycatcher at the Bill this morning (SR)

Ferry Pool/Ferry Channel: There was just a single Snipe, four Lapwings and 15 Teal on the pool, but the channel was quite interesting, with two Spotted Redshank, three Curlew Sandpipers, a Common Sandpiper, half a dozen Dunlin and a Whimbrel among the regular Redshank and Teal. Also the Kingfisher whizzed up and down several times and two Grey Wagtails went over, with a third settling briefly by the pump. (AH)

Curlew Sandpipers (above), Spotted Redshanks, Whimbrel & Grey Wagtail in Ferry Channel (AH)

Church Norton: Generally pretty quiet this morning, though there were a couple of Spotted Flycatchers, a Wheatear and half a dozen Whitethroats and Blackcaps scattered about, plus at least 40-50 Chiffchaffs present in the bushes from the churchyard to the second Several. 

At least four Jays were around, with 20+ Meadow Pipits and 50+ Swallows moving about (rather than migrating) overhead, five Brent Geese going west offshore, and a Merlin, a Peregrine and a Sparrowhawk all put in an appearance, but the harbour was very quiet on the low tide. (AH/A&YF/PC)

Peregrine (above), Spotted Flycatcher, Brent Geese, Whitethroat & Chiffchaff at Church Norton (AH)

This evening there were two Whinchats and three Stonechats in the horse field and 10+ Chiffchaffs and a lone Willow Warbler in with 30+ Long-tailed Tits nearby. There was also a Stonechat, three Chiffchaffs, two Swallows and two Buzzards around Park Farm, Selsey. (S&SaH)

Medmerry: Easton Lane - Not much beyond a couple of Stonechats and Reed Buntings among the small birds, but there were c700 Canada Geese, c1000 Mediterranean Gulls and several dozen Mallard, Teal and Wigeon on the maize stubble field, with many hundreds more Teal and Wigeon, with a few Pintail among them on the high tide by the poplars. (AH)

Canada Geese (above), Stonechat & Mediterranean Gull at Medmerry (AH)