Birding the Selsey Peninsula: 22nd

Friday, 24th June: A blustery morning, with some sun, but a lot of heavy cloud being pushed through on a brisk south-westerly breeze....

Selsey Bill Spring Summary 2022: Was it a good, indifferent or poor spring at the Bill this year? The annual summary has now been prepared by our official log-keeper JA, so to check it out, please click the link on the title bar. (Eds)

Selsey Bill: A Guillemot and two Bottle-nosed Dolphins east were the only things of note this morning. Full log below.

(0355-0440hrs) (JA)

Mediterranean Gull - 2W

Sandwich Tern - 16W

(0640-0810hrs) (SW, F4) (SR/AH/IP)

Gannet - 3W

Mediterranean Gull - 1W

Sandwich Tern - 20os

Common Tern - 2os

Little Tern - 3os

Guillemot - 1E

House Martin - 5

Bottle-nosed Dolphin - 2E

(1615-1715hrs) (SH)

Fulmar - 1W

Gannet - 2E, 1W

Kittiwake - 1W

Sandwich Tern - 36os

Swift - 1

House Martin - 4

Little Tern (above), Common Tern & House Martins at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: There were just an Avocet, four Redshanks and the Shelduck family on the pool this morning. (AH)

Shelduck-lings on the Ferry (AH)

Medmerry: Breach to Ham Farm - A female Marsh Harrier dropped into a reed bed near the Ham viewpoint, staying five or six minutes minutes before departing west.

There were also four pairs of Stonechats, with several juveniles with them, spaced along the sea bank between Ham and the breach, whilst two singing male Corn Buntings were on the fences near Ham and several Sandwich Terns were fishing out on the reserve. (JP)

Medmerry: Stilt Pool - There were four juvenile and six adult Avocets on the Stilt Pool this evening. (TH)

Church Norton: There were still lots of Sandwich Terns, plus the odd Little and Common Tern, bringing in fish, and a couple of fledgling Sandwich Terns and growing numbers of young Black-headed Gulls were sitting out.

Otherwise, though, it was quiet, with ten Turnstones, a single Dunlin and a couple of Curlews being about it in the harbour, and nothing but a handful of Linnets, a single Swallow and a brief snatch of Blackcap song on the land-side. (AH)

juvenile Sandwich Tern, Sandwich Terns, Linnet, Turnstones & Common Centaury at Church Norton (AH)

This evening there was a selection of waders on the mud, including a big increase to 32 Curlews, along with two Bar-tailed Godwits, two Knot, five Grey Plovers, four Ringed Plovers and a dozen or so Dunlin, whilst several Little Terns were feeding in the harbour and there were lots of Black-headed Gull fledglings. (AH)

Knot and Grey Plovers (above), Curlew and Grey Plover & Juvenile Black-headed Gulls at Church Norton (AH)

North Wall: Highlight this morning was brief views of a juvenile Marsh Harrier in flight behind the Breech Pool.

Otherwise, around 40 Lapwings were back and spending time around the sluice gates, whilst the west end of the Breech Pool is now completely dry and the east end wass occupied by a pair of Shelduck with six ducklings (seven yesterday).

The heronry continues to be busy, with many young egrets now accomplished flyers, whilst the Mute Swans on Pagham Rife have seven cygnets and the Green Woodpeckers are feeding young towards Summer Lane.

Water levels at Honer Reservoir have dropped considerably, with just a few Coot, Tufted Ducks and a Little Grebe being seen. (JDW)

juvenile Little Egrets at the North Wall (JDW)

Chichester Canal: The first Little Grebe chicks were out on the water today, with two broods of four dashing around, and there were also a noisy family of newly fledged Whitethroats in the hedge, as well as six families of Coots and three of Moorhens, plus a pair of Mute Swans with two cygnets.

A Red Kite flew overhead, as did a Common Tern, and there were two Green Woodpeckers, a Blackcap, three Chiffchaffs, singing Skylarks and numerous Reed and Sedge Warblers about, and a Snout moth was also seen. (SR)

Little Grebe family (above) & Reed Warbler at Chichester Canal (SR)

Thursday, 23rd June: A change to somewhat cooler and cloudier conditions, with a light north-easterly breeze, some light rain and the risk of thunderstorms later.....

Potential Avian flu at Pagham Harbour RSPB: We are pleased to include the following update from Wez Smith, the local Site Manager and wish he and his team all the best with this difficult situation..........

'Just wanted to give you a quick update on this. Since the first suspected case on the 12^th we’ve had a dozen corpses of various species appear around the harbour, plus a currently unquantified number in the colony. From observations so far, we know we’ve a few dead adults scattered around tern island but not a massive amount. This is cautiously good news as the feared acceleration of potential cases and bodies hasn’t materialised yet. With only another few weeks left in the main part of the breeding season, there’s a chance we could squeak through without major losses. Fingers crossed. All else is looking good so far. We’ve not actually had avian flu confirmed yet but are still awaiting DEFRA to collect corpses and test.' Wez Smith, Site Manager – Eastern Solent Reserves

This too from the Sussex Wildlife trust: Avian Influenza (bird flu) is having a devastating impact on wild bird populations across the UK and sadly, we are increasingly seeing sick and dead birds in Sussex. Please do remain vigilant and follow the guidance from Defra. It's really important that you DO NOT touch any sick or dead birds. If you find any sick or dead waterfowl (ducks, swans, geese), gulls, seabirds or birds of prey, please report them to Defra on 03459 335577.

Selsey Bill: Another very quiet morning, the main feature being feeding terns offshore. Full log below...(SR/IP/AH)
(0650-0805hrs) (NE, F1-2)

Gannet - 2E, 1W

Oystercatcher - 1E
Mediterranean Gull - 1W
Little Tern - 9 os
Common Tern - 1 os
Sandwich Tern - 25 os
Swift - 9
House Martin - 3

Little Terns at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: A not unexpectedly quiet morning here too, with just three Avocets, a single Black-tailed Godwit, six Redshank and the Shelduck family present, plus a House Martin over. (AH)

Avocet (above) & Shelduck family on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: The quiet theme continued here, with just 12 Dunlin, 16 Curlew and the lone Brent Goose of note, whilst there were plenty of juvenile Black-headed Gulls and a few juvenile Sandwich Terns amongst the throng on Tern island.

There were very few passerines about, with just a singing Sedge Warbler, a Reed Bunting and a few Linnets along the front. (BFF/DIS/DM/AH)

At 1409hrs there was a report of an adult Curlew Sandpiper viewable from the benches (per Birdguides).

This evening there were three fledged juvenile Sandwich Terns - two on the island and one on the old harbour mouth metalwork, where there were also 43 Turnstones, and the summering Brent Goose was still present. (S&saH)

Sandwich Tern (above), Linnet & Reed Bunting at Church Norton (AH)

Wednesday, 22nd June: A fine, sunny and dry morning with blue skies and a light easterly breeze, becoming hot through the day......

Selsey Bill: There was a large gathering of feeding Sandwich Terns offshore, but it was otherwise predictably quiet with little of note. Full log below. (SR/IP)
(0640-0855hrs) (NE, F3)
Gannet - 8E, 3os
Oystercatcher - 2E
Sandwich Tern - 82os
Little Tern - 2 os
Swift - 2
House Martin - 5
Painted Lady - 1

Ferry Pool: A Sandwich Tern was sitting on a post toward the back with two Little Ringed Plovers nearby, and there were now two pairs of warring Shelducks with the eight ducklings. A male Stonechat was in the hedge, Sedge Warblers could be heard, a Lapwing was on the mud and a Moorhen was the only other bird on the water. In the channel opposite was a Little Egret and a Great Crested Grebe.
The walk around the Tramway produced half a dozen calling Chiffchaffs and Whitethroats, a Blackcap and two Kestrels. Insect life included a Great Diving Beetle and an Emperor Dragonfly in the Discovery Area pool, and Green-veined White, Comma, Painted Lady, Red Admiral, Holly Blue and Meadow Brown butterflies. (SR/AH)

Lapwing (above), Kestrel (SR), Little Ringed Plover & Sandwich Tern (AH) around the Ferry

Long Pool: At least three Sedge Warblers and half a dozen Reed Warblers were singing early this morning, along with at least four Reed Buntings, but that was about it beyond a couple of pairs of Linnets and Whitethroats, whilst Ferry Channel held two Curlews and c30 Redshank and a Grey Heron flew in. (AH)

Sedge Warbler (above), Whitethroat, Reed Bunting & Grey Heron at the Long Pool (AH)

Church Norton: The first fledged Sandwich Tern was seen this evening. (SR)

North Wall: A couple of Cattle Egrets and a dozen Little Egrets were around Owl Copse early this evening, whilst the Shelduck family and four Lapwings were on the Breech Pool, along with a few Reed and Sedge Warblers.

It was generally quiet, though, beyond the odd Chiffchaff and Blackcap, whilst a Marbled White was at Halsey's Farm. (AH)

Later on, the female Marsh Harrier was out and two Cuckoos, including a female, were seen, with three Sand Martins and c20 Swallows over. (S&SaH)