Monday, 3rd April: After an early frost, a cold, but bright, morning in a brisk north-easterly breeze..........
Selsey Bill: A very quiet morning, with the two 'regular' Long-tailed Ducks briefly offshore and the first two Mallard seen at the Bill this year the very modest highlights! Later, a Wheatear came in but there still wasn't much going on! Full log below. (ABi/AH/SR/IP/MO-W/OM)
(0710-1040hrs) (NNE, F3-4)
Great Northern Diver - 1os
Great Crested Grebe - 1E
Fulmar - 2W
Gannet - 3E, 10W
Mallard - 2E
Shelduck - 1W
Long-tailed Duck - 2 os
Common Scoter - 4E, 3W, 37os
Red-breasted Merganser - 4os
Oystercatcher - 6
Grey Plover - 1E
Sandwich Tern - 7E, 5os
(1130-1230hrs) (ESE, F4) (BI)
Great Northern Diver - 3os
Gannet - 2E
Common Scoter - 5E, 31os
Red-breasted Merganser - 1E, 2os
Sandwich Tern- 2E, 5os
Wheatear - 1 in off
Fulmar (above) & Gannet at the Bill (AH)
Northcommon Farm: A brief visit found no migrants present bar a singing Chiffchaff, but worthy of mention were a flock of 40 Curlews feeding in the damp fields and the noisy Rookery which on an imprecise count looked to have c.65 nests. (OM)
Ferry Pool: There were c120 Black-tailed Godwits roosting on the pool, with eight Avocets, three Gadwall, a dozen Teal and c50 Shovelers also present, whilst a Stonechat and a few Skylarks were on the fields, a Buzzard went over and the Spotted Redshank was again in the channel. (AH/TG-P/ABi)
Spotted Redshank (above), Gadwall & Black-tailed Godwits, Avocets and Shovelers at the Ferry (AH)
Long Pool and west side: A Short-eared Owl was over the fields and then settled in the trees, whilst a Marsh Harrier flew over towards Church Norton and two Buzzards were also about. (S&SaH)
Short-eared Owl along the West side (SH)
Church Norton: A very quiet morning, with a handful of scattered Chiffchaffs and Linnets just about the only small birds seen, and very little was in the harbour, too, beyond a flock of c40 Black-tailed Godwits and large numbers of Sandwich Terns, Mediterranean and Black-headed Gulls around the island. (AH)
Sandwich Tern (above), Black-tailed Godwits, Chiffchaff & Linnets at Church Norton (AH)
North Wall: Out in the harbour on the rising tide there were 20 Wigeon, 12 Teal, two Pintail, 60 Grey Plovers, 30 Dunlin, 40 Black-tailed Godwits and a Common Seal, with plenty of Mediterranean Gulls overhead.
The pair of Great Crested Grebes were on the Breech Pool and two Kestrels were in the bushes further back, whilst along the wall there were two Reed Buntings, a Greenfinch, three Chiffchaffs and couple of Cetti’s Warblers and in the fields, there were 28 Curlews.
There was plenty of activity at Owl Copse with 22 Cattle Egrets, nine Grey Herons and two Little Egrets, but it was quiet at Halsey’s Farm with just two Jackdaws and two Herring Gulls along the rife. (LP)
Chiffchaff (above), Cattle Egrets & Jackdaws at the North Wall (LP)
Chichester GPs: Ivy Lake complex - The Alpine Swift was seen briefly, high up over the western end of Ivy Lake at 1030hrs, with a Swallow and ten Martins also feeding up high, and a Red Kite was also seen.
The two adult Little Gulls were about again, with up to four Egyptian Geese and a few Pochards on the lake, whilst the paths held a few Chiffchaffs, a Willow Warbler, a Cetti's Warbler and a Reed Bunting, plus a pair of Greenfinches carrying nesting material. (ABi/CRJ/AH et al)
Little Gull (above), Cetti's Warbler (CRJ), Little Gull & Reed Bunting (AH) at Chichester GPs
Sunday, 2nd April: A fairly cold and grey morning in a moderate northerly breeze..........
Selsey Bill: What was presumably the same Bonxie - and the first of the year - went west, east and then west again well offshore, and three Cattle Egrets went east way out to sea, whilst a summer-plumaged Black-necked Grebe, the pair of Long-tailed Ducks, a flock of 37 Common Scoters and seven Great Northern Divers were on the sea this morning, but there was again little actively on the move. Full log later. (SH/JA/BI/PB/MGB/SR/MO-W/IP/AH/RJS)
(0630-0930hrs) (NNE, F4)
Great Northern Diver - 7os
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Black-necked Grebe - 1os
Great Crested Grebe - 1os
Fulmar - 1W
Gannet - 1E, 20W, 14os
Cattle Egret - 3E
Shoveler - 2os
Long-tailed Duck - 2os
Common Scoter - 1E, 3W, 37os
Red-breasted Merganser - 2E, 2W, 6os
Oystercatcher - 4W
Grey Plover - 32E
Knot - 3E
Great Skua - 1os
Mediterranean Gull - 2os
Common Gull - 3E
Sandwich Tern - 19E, 11os
(1400-1500hrs) (SH)
Great Northern Diver - 2os
Great Crested Grebe - 2os
Gannet - 17E, 10W
Common Scoter - 20os
Red-breasted Merganser - 17os
Sandwich Tern - 9E, 13os
Razorbill - 1W
Great Northern Diver (above), Red-throated Diver & Gannets at the Bill (AH)
Ferry Pool: There wasn't much on the pool this morning beyond eight Avocets, three Black-tailed Godwits, three Gadwall, a handful of Teal and c30 Shovelers, whilst the Spotted Redshank was back in the channel opposite. (AH)
This afternoon there were two Spotted Redshanks in the channel, whilst an Osprey flew over and there were also two Blackcaps nearby. (D Boon)
Also, a Red Kite went over the Visitor Centre, seen earlier over Church Norton. (TG-P)
Spotted Redshank (above) & Avocets at the Ferry (AH)
Chichester GPs: Ivy Lake complex - Finally, the Alpine Swift invasion has reached the Peninsula!
One was seen over Hunston at 1030hrs (C Melgar), and then shortly afterwards over Ivy Lake (PB/MGB/IP), disappearing for a while and then reappearing over the eastern pits, (OM et al), particularly the East Trout Lake, showing well up till around midday, when it disappeared to the north-west
This is the fifth Peninsula record of the species, but only the second this century, after birds in 1970, 1972, 1984 and 2014, with it being a 'Peninsula first' for all those that saw it. (Eds)
Otherwise, there was plenty of other activity, too, with the pair of Red-crested Pochards re-surfacing on Ivy Lake, an adult and a first-winter Little Gull on West Trout Lake, three Willow Warblers and a male Blackcap along the path and plenty of Sand Martins, plus a few Swallows, overhead.
(OM/SR/IP/BI/AH/PB/MGB/AB/CRJ/RJS/B&MC/S&SaH/GM/RHa/SHa et al)
Alpine Swift (top two AB, lower three AH) (above) & Little Gull (AH) at Chichester GPs
All smiles as an Alpine Swift finally makes an appearance at Chi GPs (OM)
Long Pool: A quick look this morning was fairly unproductive in the biting wind, but a Raven and a Marsh Harrier both did fly over heading east. (BI)
North Wall: There wasn't much to report here, with the Breech Pool very full of water and devoid of birds, and the bushes quiet, too, though there were c120 Black-tailed Godwits, a dozen Teal and c50 Wigeon in White's Creek, with c100 Dunlin and c50 Grey Plovers a bit further out. (AH/RHa)
Black-tailed Godwits (above) & Wigeon at the North Wall (AH)
Medmerry: Easton Lane to the Stilt Pool - There were just 15 Avocets and a Ringed Plover on the stilt Pool this afternoon, whilst the banks held a Dartford Warbler, a Chiffchaff,, a Cetti's Warbler, a Stonechat and a Reed Bunting, with six Buzzards and a Sparrowhawk also about. (S&SaH)
Medmerry: Porthole Farm - There were four Swallows over the fields this evening, and a Merlin shot through, though otherwise there were just a handful of Chiffchaffs and a Cetti's Warbler in the sheltered hedges, a pair of Shelducks, c20 Meadow Pipits and a couple of Pied Wagtails on the fields and a dozen Mediterranean Gulls going over west. (AH)
Merlin (above) & Swallows at Medmerry (AH)
West Wittering: An Osprey flew over the house late this afternoon, being mobbed by Black-headed Gulls.
Also, the hedgerows are full of Chiffchaffs and the last few Dark-bellied Brent Geese are still in the fields. (GM)
Brent Geese (above) & Chiffchaffs at West Wittering (GM)
Saturday, 1st April: The new month started where the old left off, with another wet and windy morning in a fresh north-westerly breeze, though both the wind and rain eased by early afternoon......
Selsey Bill: A fairly distant small grebe on the sea was most probably a Black-necked Grebe, but 16 Brent Geese east were the only other migrating birds on another quiet morning. Full log below. (SH/BI/SR/AH)
(0630-0830hrs) (WNW, F4-5)
Black-necked Grebe - 1 probable os
Great Crested Grebe - 2W, 1os
Gannet - 3E, 2W
Brent Goose - 16E
Common Scoter - 1os
Red-breasted Merganser - 8W, 5os
Oystercatcher - 1W
Turnstone - 2
Kittiwake - 1W
Sandwich Tern - 4E, 6os
Pied Wagtail - 1N
This afternoon there were two Black-necked Grebes about, with one going east, then another flying in from the west and settling close inshore, and a Velvet Scoter also went east. Full log below. (SH/JA)
(1530-1715hrs)
Great Northern Diver - 5os
Black-necked Grebe - 1E, 1os
Great Crested Grebe - 1E, 1os
Gannet - 1E, 20W
Velvet Scoter - 1E
Common Scoter - 1os
Red-breasted Merganser - 6W, 7os
Sandwich Tern - 10E, 5os
Ferry Pool: There were just c60 Black-tailed Godwits, five Avocets, four Shelducks and a dozen Shovelers on the pool this morning, whilst a pair of Gadwall flew over west. (AH)
East Beach: A Blackcap was in the garden this morning. (SR)
Chichester GPs: Ivy Lake complex - There were three Little Gulls (two adults and a first-winter) and the first Arctic and Common Terns of the year among the Black-headed Gulls feeding over the lake this morning, with around ten Swallows among the c200 Sand Martins present, too.
There were also up to ten Pochard on the water, whilst there was plenty activity along the path, including a Redwing, two Blackcaps, three Willow Warblers, ten or so Chiffchaffs, three Cetti's Warblers and five Reed Buntings. (S&SaH/BI/AB/MB et al)
Later, an adult Little Gull and the Common and Arctic Terns were over West Trout Lake. (AH)
Arctic Tern (AH top four, lower BI) (above), Common Tern (BI above & AH below), Little Gulls (AH) & Redwing (BI) at Chichester GPs
Long Pool: A Short-eared Owl was over the field adjacent to the pool this morning before dropping into the ditch on the far side. (PM)
Church Norton: One, and possibly two, Firecrests were in Bluebell Wood this morning, whilst at least two Willow Warblers were along the path to the beach and c20 Chiffchaffs were around the Mound/hide area, with otherwise two or three Reed Buntings along the Severals and a couple of Skylarks and a few Linnets at the start of the spit.
There wasn't too much of note in the harbour, beyond the mass of Sandwich Terns, Mediterranean and Black-headed Gulls, with a Red-breasted Merganser, four Gadwall flying over and a few Teal and the Shelduck the only wildfowl of note, and waders were equally few, beyond a dozen Black-tailed Godwits and just a few Dunlin, Grey and Ringed Plovers. (AH/IP/RM)
Willow Warbler (above), Chiffchaff, Gadwall, Dunlin & Mediterranean Gulls at Church Norton (AH)
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