10th - 13th May 2025

Tuesday, 13th May: A warm and bright morning in just a fairly light south-easterly breeze.... ...

Selsey Bill: There were up to five Black Terns offshore this morning, but not much was on the move beyond two Arctic Skuas, a Black-throated Diver and a steady flow of Common Scoters, whilst the male Serin dropped in briefly on the Oval Field before departing again. Full log below. (PM/JF/MRe/PA/IP/AH/LP/SR/OM/CRJ  et al)

(0530-1300hrs) (SE, F2-3)

Great Northern Diver - 2os
Black-throated Diver - 1E
Red-throated Diver - 2E
Great Crested Grebe - 3E
Gannet - 7E
Brent Goose - 7E
Shelduck - 7E
Tufted Duck - 4E
Common Scoter - 178E
Oystercatcher - 1E, 6W
Grey Plover - 1E
Sanderling - 32E
Whimbrel - 6E
Turnstone - 1E
Arctic Skua - 2E
Mediterranean Gull - 250E and c100os
Kittiwake - 14E
Sandwich Tern - 39E
Common Tern - 5E
‘Commic’ Tern - 4E
Little Tern - 9E,5W
Black Tern - 5E
auk sp - 2E
Swift - 5
Swallow - 6E
Sand Martin - 1E
House Martin - 10
Meadow Pipit -1N
Linnet - 8
Chaffinch - 1N
Serin - 1
Bottle-nosed Dolphin - 6W

Serin (above), Tufted Ducks (PM) Common Scoters, Brent Geese, Sanderlings (AH) & House Martin (AH top, CRJ lower) at the Bill

OM continuing his forlorn search for a Serin at the Bill!

Ferry Pool: The pool looks just right for migrant waders, but it continues to just hold the regular species, this morning comprising a Little Ringed Plover, two Avocets, eight Redshanks and 21 Black-tailed Godwits, along with three Little Egrets, a pair of Shovelers and c20 Shelducks. (PA/AH/CRJ)

Black-tailed Godwits (AH) (above), Little Egrets & Four-spotted Chaser (CRJ) at the Ferry

Church Norton: It was very quiet here this morning, with just a handful of Whimbrel and a couple of Bar-tailed Godwits in the harbour, a Cattle Egret along the west side, a Blackcap and a Whitethroat in the Mound/hide area and a few more Whitethroats, a couple of Reed Warblers and a handful of Linnets along the Severals. (AH)

Blackcap (above), Linnet & Whimbrel at Church Norton (AH)

Fishbourne Creek: A Grasshopper Warbler was reeling and occasionally showing well in Fishbourne Meadows at the north end of the creek this morning. (PH/AB)

Grasshopper Warbler at Fishbourne Creek (AB)

Medmerry: A Collared Pratincole - presumably the one present at Farlington on Sunday - was seen hawking over the southern end of the serve mid-morning before promptly disappearing and had not been relocated by mid-afternoon. (PA)

Disappointingly, there was no further sign of the Collared Pratincole into the evening, though two Short-eared Owls and a Marsh Harrier were hunting over the reserve and Common Terns appeared to have taken up residence on the rafts on the pool opposite the Stilt Pool. There were also a pair of Little Ringed Plovers around that pool, and another pair on the Stilt Pool, along with three Dunlin, and there were also a Cuckoo and a pair of Stonechats about (AW/PA/IP/MRe et al)

Short-eared Owl at Medmerry (AW)

Monday, 12th May: After some welcome overnight rain, a fairly cool, grey and hazy morning, with the odd spell of drizzly rain, in just a light south-easterly breeze.... ...

Selsey Bill: There was a good selection again this morning, including up to ten Black Terns drifting through the feeding flocks, a party of 16 Arctic Terns, a Pomarine Skua, seven Arctic Skuas and a Black-throated Diver going east, a first-year Little Gull among the flock on the shingle bar and the Serin once again appearing, sitting briefly in the Tamarisk by the east wall before flying off again. Full log below. (MRe/BI/IP/SR/AH/BFF/SL/PA et al)

(0545-1100hrs) (SE, F3)

Great Northern Diver - 1os

Black-throated Diver - 1E

Gannet - 27E, 8W, 3os

Little Egret - 1

Common Scoter - 121E, 40W, 4os

Oystercatcher - 1E

Sanderling - 9

Dunlin - 1E

Curlew - 4E

Whimbrel - 2E

Bar-tailed Godwit - 1E

Turnstone - 2E

Pomarine Skua - 1E (0858hrs)

Arctic Skua - 7E

Mediterranean Gull - 250os

Common Gull - 3E, 5os

Great Black-backed Gull - 50os

Lesser Black-backed Gull - 5os

Herring Gull - 1000os

Kittiwake - 9E, 24os

Little Gull - 1os

Sandwich Tern - 33E, 4W, 10os

Arctic Tern - 16E

Common Tern - 35E, 38os

'Commic' Tern - 45E

Little Tern - 3E

Black Tern - 7E, 3os

Guillemot - 1E

Razorbill - 1E

auk sp - 3E, 2W

Swift - 3

Swallow - 4N

House Martin - 1N, 4 present

Serin - 1 (0750hrs)

(1245-1630hrs) (SR/AWi)
Great Northern Diver - 1os
Gannet - 5E
Brent Goose - 12E
Common Scoter - 40E
Oystercatcher - 3E
Turnstone - 2E
Mediterranean Gull - 8E, 20os
Sandwich Tern - 10os
'Commic' Tern - 5os
Black Tern - 2os
Bottle-nosed Dolphin - 3E
Common Seal -- 1os

Arctic Skuas (above), Pomarine Skua, Arctic and Common Terns, Black-throated Diver, Black-tailed Godwit, Sandwich Tern & Serin at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: Eight Avocets were on the pool this morning, along with a Little Ringed Plover, the Snipe, 20 Black-tailed Godwits and seven Redshanks, with four Shovelers and c25 Shelducks also about, whilst three Cattle Egrets were among the cows. (AH/BFF/SL)

Cattle Egret (above) & Black-tailed Godwits at the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: There a dozen Sandwich Terns, ten Little Terns and c50 Mediterranean Gulls in the harbour this morning, with waders comprising a Knot, eight Dunlin, c50 Ringed Plovers, four Whimbrel, two Curlews and six Bar-tailed Godwits, plus the ever-present 20+ Oystercatchers.

There wasn't much else in the harbour, beyond two Great Crested Grebes and a dozen Shelducks, whilst a singing Whitethroat and Blackcap were about it in the hedges. (BFF/SL/AH et al)

Sandwich Terns (above), Bar-tailed Godwit & Whimbrel at Church Norton (AH)

North Wall: It was very quiet along the wall this morning, with just the regular selection of warblers singing from the reeds and bushes, a Gadwall and a Shelduck on the Breech Pool, and a pair of Swallows around the paddock. (LP/MJa)

Sedge Warbler (above) & Swallow at the North Wall (LP)

East Side: On the rising tide there was a good selection of waders along the East Side, including 47 Grey Plovers, 41 Dunlin, 28 Ringed Plovers, ten Knot, five Bar-tailed Godwits, a Black-tailed Godwit, 14 Oystercatchers, a Curlew and a Sanderling.
Also, a Wigeon and a Great Crested Grebe were on the water, four Sandwich Terns flew across the harbour, and four Common Seals were hauled out on the mud. (LP/MJa)

Knot and Grey Plovers (above), Sanderling, Dunlin and Ringed Plovers, Dunlin and Grey Plovers & Black-tailed Godwit and Grey Plovers along the East side (LP)

Chichester GPs: It was good to find three Norfolk Hawkers back on Nunnery Lake this afternoon, along with two Downy Emeralds and a few Emperors. (AW)

Norfolk Hawkers (above) & Downy Emeerald at Chichester GPs (AW)

Sunday, 11th May: Yet another bright and blustery morning, though slightly warmer as the breeze shifted towards the south-east.... ...

Selsey Bill: There was some variety again for another good turn-out, the star bird being a Long-tailed Skua east, close in at 1318hrs, but also including a male Serin that appeared to come in off the sea at 0637hrs and was then seen/heard circling overhead at 0712hrs, a Cattle Egret east over the houses, and, more remarkably one in the gardens by the beach, whilst offshore interest included four Arctic Skuas, a couple of Black-throated Divers and a few waders. Full log below. (JA/BI/MRe/JF/IP/AH/JFi/SR/LP/SP/MO-W/OM/PG et al)

(0510-1400hrs) (NE, veering to SE, F4-5)

Great Northern Diver - 1os

Black-throated Diver - 2E

diver sp - 1E

Gannet - 13E, 5W, 3os

Cattle Egret - 1E, 1 present

Brent Goose - 1E

Shelduck - 2E

Common Scoter - 168E

Hobby - 1N

Oystercatcher - 9E

Grey Plover - 15E

Ringed Plover - 22E

Sanderling - 35E 

Common Sandpiper - 1

Turnstone - 7

Arctic Skua - 2E, 2os

Long-tailed Skua - 1E (1318hrs)

Mediterranean Gull - 14E, 158os

Black-headed Gull - 123os

Common Gull - 22E, 9os

Herring Gull - 900os

Lesser Black-backed Gull - 6os

Kittiwake - 3E, 18os

Sandwich Tern - 26E, 8os

Common Tern - 18E

Little Tern - 6E, 2os

auk sp - 7E

Swift - 2

Swallow - 18N, 3 present

House Martin - 3N, 6 present

Pied Wagtail - 1

Jay - 2

Serin - 1N (at 0637hrs & seen again 0712hrs)

(1400-1930hrs) (JA/BI/MRe/IP/SR/JFi)

Great Crested Grebe - 1E

Gannet - 10E, 2W, 1os

Oystercatcher - 4E

Grey Plover - 7E

Sanderling - 19W, 7 present

Whimbrel - 1E

Bar-tailed Godwit - 1E

Turnstone - 12E

Pomarine Skua - 5E (2 @ 1435hrs, 1 @ 1720hrs, 1 @ 1740hrs & 1 @ 1745hrs)

Arctic Skua - 6E, 1os

Mediterranean Gull - 45E

Kittiwake - 20E, 45os

Sandwich Tern - 1E, 18os

Common Tern - 1W

'Commic' Tern - 2E

Little Tern - 5os

auk sp - E

Swallow - 2N

Cattle Egret (above), Arctic Skuas, Black-throated Divers, Sandwich Tern, Brent Goose, Grey Plovers, Sanderling & Ringed Plover and Turnstones at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: Early on, there were a Common Sandpiper, a Little Ringed Plover and a Snipe on the pool, whilst later there were just two Avocets, but an increase to 21 Black-tailed Godwits, with three Shovelers and c25 Shelducks also present. (AH)

Common Sandpiper (above), Little Ringed Plover, Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit & Shovelers on the Ferry (AH)

East side: Along the east side of the harbour on the rising tide this morning, there were a Sanderling,  four Knot, six Dunlin. six Ringed Plovers and 46 Grey Plovers, along with a Bar-tailed Godwit, a Whimbrel, a Curlew and a Brent Goose. (ARK)

Chichester Canal: At least one Nightingale was still present this morning by the old Tramway bridge. (RBe)

Long Pool: A look late this morning produced half a dozen Reed and Sedge Warblers, a couple of Cetti's Warblers and Whitethroats, plus a Reed Bunting, all of which were keeping low in the wind, with three Tufted Ducks the only birds showing on the pool. (AH)

Tufted Duck on the Long Pool (AH)

Saturday, 10th May: The incredibly long run of high pressure - bringing mostly bright skies and a blustery and cool north-easterly breeze - continued this morning, producing exactly that....

Selsey Bill: There was a bit of action again this morning for a good crowd, including two close Pomarine Skuas, three Arctic Skuas, two Black-throated Divers, 88 Common Scoters and a good selection of waders east, whilst a Black Tern lingered offshore and a Sand Martin came in, and there was a considerable increase in Mediterranean Gull numbers, too. Full log below. (JA/SH/BI/IP/RWh/KT/PA/MRe/AH/MO-W/SR et al)

(0450-0935hrs) (NE, F3-4)

Great Northern Diver - 1W, 1os

Black-throated Diver - 2E, 1os

diver sp - 1W

Gannet - 11E, 11W, 4os

Shag - 1E

Shelduck - 3W

Mallard - 4

Common Scoter - 88E, 6W

Oystercatcher - 3E, 1W

Grey Plover - 7E

Sanderling - 18E

Knot - 14E

Whimbrel - 4E

Bar-tailed Godwit - 16E

Redshank - 1E

Turnstone - 6W, 2 present

Pomarine Skua - 2E (0855hrs)

Arctic Skua - 3E

Mediterranean Gull - 4E, 33W, 77os

Black-headed Gull - 66os

Common Gull - 6E

Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1E, 3os

Herring Gull - 440os

Kittiwake - 27E, 6W, 19os

Sandwich Tern - 19E, 10os

Common Tern - 2E

Little Tern - 3E

Black Tern - 1os

auk sp - 3E

Swallow - 19N

Sand Martin - 1N

House Martin - 2

Jay - 1

This afternoon, another Pomarine Skua went east, as did a few waders later on. Full log below. (JA/SH/SR/S Allan)

(1345-1530hrs)

Gannet - 7E

Common Scoter - 3E

Whimbrel - 1E

Pomarine Skua - 1E (1423hrs)

Mediterranean Gull - 53os

Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1E

Kittiwake - 29E, 3os

Sandwich Tern - 7os

Little Tern - 1os

(1645-1830hrs)(JA/SR/S Allan/ AH)

Gannet - 4E

Dunlin - 15E

Whimbrel - 10E

Turnstone - 4E

Mediterranean Gull - 47os

Kittiwake - 1W

Sandwich Tern - 20os

Common Tern - 4os

Little Tern - 4os

Swallow - 3N

Video of the Pomarine Skuas at 0855hrs is here: POMARINE SKUAS

Pomarine Skuas (above), Arctic Skuas and Sandwich Tern, Sand Martin & Sanderlings at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: A Little Ringed Plover was back on the pool edge this morning, and two Whimbrel were present, but otherwise there were just a Lapwing, two Black-tailed Godwits, six Redshanks, 14 Avocets, a pair of Gadwall, two drake Shovelers and c25 Shelducks present. (AH)

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

Park Farm, Selsey: A flock of five Swifts were over the north of the village, whilst numbers of both Swallow and House Martin are now in double figures around the farm. (IP/RWh)

North Wall: A Wigeon was along White’s Creek this morning and way out on the mud were 14 Grey Plovers and eight Ringed Plovers, but elsewhere it was just the usual selection of Reed Warblers, Sedge Warblers, Reed Buntings and Whitethroats along the reeds and bushes, and the pairs of Shelduck, Tufted Ducks and Great Crested Grebes on the Breech Pool.

At Owl Copse, the Grey Heron chicks were showing well, and two Sparrowhawks went over high up, a Cuckoo passed through, and a Kingfisher flew along the water, but at Halsey’s Farm there were just a couple of Skylarks and four Swallows over the fields. (MJa/LP/CT)

Grey Heron and chick (above), Shelduck & Gadwall at the North Wall (LP)

Church Norton: The harbour held c20 Bar-tailed Godwits, half a dozen Whimbrel, a couple of Curlews, c20 Dunlin, nine Grey Plovers, seven Ringed Plovers and a Turnstone this morning, along with a Great Crested Grebe and the regular Oystercatchers and Shelducks

Also, a Lesser Whitethroat, lots of Whitethroats and one or two Reed and Sedge Warblers were along the Severals, with a Jay, a Buzzard, a Kestrel and a couple of Great Spotted Woodpeckers in the vicinity, whilst a Meadow pipit and a few Skylarks were on the spit, with a Stock Dove, a Whitethroat and a couple of Blackcaps were in the Mound/car-park area.

There was also an Adder in Bluebell Wood. (IP/RWh/AH)

This evening a Knot was on the mud, along wth 12 Dunlin, 54 Ringed Plovers, three Bar-tailed Godwits, five Whimbrel and a Curlew. (MRe)

Bar-tailed Godwit (above), Whimbrel and Curlew, Stock Dove (AH) & Adder (RWh) at Church Norton

Medmerry: Easton Lane to the Stilt Pool - There was just the usual selection along the banks this morning, including a Lesser Whitethroat, a dozen Whitethroats, two Chiffchaffs, three Sedge Warblers, four Cetti's Warblers, seven Reed Warblers, two Stonechats, three Reed Buntings and half a dozen Yellowhammers, plus two Swallows and two Buzzards over.

Also, a Cattle Egret was on the reserve and just ten Avocets and a pair of Ringed Plovers were on the Stilt Pool. (S&SaH)