4th - 6th March 2020

Friday, 6th March: A marked improvement this morning, with a cold, but bright and sunny morning and just a light north-westerly breeze.....

Selsey Bill: It remains quiet, with just a couple of Great Northern Divers and a handful of Red-throated Divers about, plus a newly-arrived Chiffchaff which flicked up from the beach into the Bill House hedge. Full log below.... 
0715-1030hrs:  (wind NW3-4)   (OM/SR/IP/BI/MO-W/AH)
Red-throated Diver - 2E, 4W
Great Northern Diver - 1W, 1os
Shelduck - 4W
Common Scoter - 6W
Red-breasted Merganser - 14E, 1os
Sparrowhawk - 1
Mediterranean Gull - 1W
Common Gull - 2W
Pied Wagtail - 1N
Meadow Pipit - 1N
Chiffchaff - 1

Red-throated Diver (above) & Red-breasted Mergansers at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: There was just the usual mix this morning, including a dozen Shelducks, c30 Shoveler and c40 Wigeon. (AH)

Church Norton: A Red-throated Diver went west offshore and c100 Brent Geese were in the harbour, along with the usual mix of Knot, Dunlin and Grey Plovers, whilst at least half a dozen Snipe were in the floods by the horse field and a few Long-tailed Tits were in the adjacent hedgerow and a Water Rail was calling from the fist Several.
Also, there were several hundred Black-headed Gulls and a few Mediterranean Gulls busy re-colonising Tern Island. (AH/IP)

Snipe (above), Long-tailed Tit & Mediterranean and Black-headed Gulls at Church Norton (AH)

North Wall: The hedgerows along the Wall were a little more productive this morning with five Chiffchaffs, pairs of Yellowhammer and Reed Bunting and a relatively confiding Cetti's Warbler. A Kestrel and a Buzzard were also present around the Welbourne stable fields.
There was also a pair of Greenfinches towards Halsey's Farm and a pair of Goldcrests in the path back to the lane. The fields, more flooded again, contained modest numbers of Curlew, Wigeon and Teal and also a few Shoveler and Shelduck. (IH/TH/GHi)
Later a female Marsh Harrier was behind the Breech Pool and out in the Harbour there were 1600 Brent Geese and an impressive 1200+ Black-tailed Godwits, whilst the footpath across the Honer (1) field remains impassable. Also a female Blackcap and 2 Goldcrests were in gardens along Church Lane. (JDW)

Buzzard (above), Kestrel & Shelducks at the North Wall (GHi)

Spot the footpath! The flooded Honer (1) field at the North Wall (JDW)

Late this afternoon the Barn Owl showed briefly before disappearing off west and two Marsh Harriers were up at the same time over the reeds.

Also, the Spotted Redshank was in White's Creek, a couple of Chiffchaffs and Cetti's Warblers were along the wall, a Grey Wagtail was in the paddocks and there were still vast numbers of Brent Geese and Black-tailed Godwits in the flooded fields. (AH/TG/SB et al)

Marsh Harrier (above), Spotted Redshank, Grey Wagtail, Black-tailed Godwits & Cormorant at the North Wall (AH)

Pagham Spit and Lagoon: The Lagoon was only inhabited by a Great Crested Grebe and the Spit was also quiet other than a Stonechat, three Skylarks and seven Ringed Plovers, whilst in the harbour there were about 500 Brent Geese, two more Great Crested Grebes and a Red-breasted Merganser. (IH/TH)

Medmerry: Ham Farm - Two Corn Buntings were over towards the breach and there were also two or three Reed Buntings, a Chiffchaff, at least ten Stonechats and 20+ Meadow Pipits and Skylarks about, whilst several Yellowhammers were sat out along Ham Road.
Also, five Jack Snipe and at least 50 Snipe were in the flooded fields and other areas and c100 Brent Geese dropped into the breach area. (AH/HB/MW)

Corn Bunting (above), Stonechat & Reed Bunting at Medmerry (AH)

Medmerry: Stilt Pool - There were 15 Avocets on the Stilt Pool this afternoon, including a pair that were mating. also, another Jack Snipe and a Peacock butterfly were nearby. (HB/MW)

Thursday, 5th March: A truly awful day, with persistent heavy rain falling on waterlogged ground and a cold north-easterly breeze.....

Selsey Bill: Four Slavonian Grebes were offshore together, along with a Great Northern Diver, but again nothing was moving, save a Fulmar and four Common Scoters west. Full log below. (SR/AH)
(0720-0850hrs) (ENE, F5)
Great Northern Diver - 1os
Slavonian Grebe - 4os
Fulmar - 1W
Gannet - 1W
Common Scoter - 4W
Red-breasted Merganser - 1E, 2W, 1os
Turnstone - 1

Slavonian Grebes at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: Two Buzzards were sat out on fence posts, whilst the pool held four Gadwall,14 Shelducks, 45 Shoveler and ten Teal, with c80 Wigeon on the field. (AH)

Buzzard (above), Gadwall & Shoveler at the Ferry Pool (AH)

West Itchenor: A look along the side of the harbour produced five Bar-tailed Godwits, eight Grey Plovers, c40 Dunlin, a couple of Curlews and a dozen Turnstones, whilst there were also c100 Brent Geese spread about and six Red-breasted Mergansers on the water. (AH)

Bar-tailed Godwit (above), Grey Plover, Brent Geese & Dunlin at West Itchenor (AH)

Wednesday, 4th March: A cold, grey and dank morning, with a moderate easterly breeze pushing through a succession of drizzly squalls....

Selsey Bill: Almost nothing was moving save two Pintail, three Common Scoter and a few Red-breasted Mergansers, though five Great Northern Divers on the sea was notable. Full log below. 

(0720-0900hrs) (ESE, F3) (AH/SR) 

Great Northern Diver - 5os

Great Crested Grebe - 1os

Pintail - 2E

Common Scoter - 3E

Red-breasted Merganser - 14E, 7W, 10os

Turnstone - 4

Red-breasted Mergansers at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: There were very few wildfowl this morning, with just ten Shelducks, c20 Shovelers and c40 Teal around the pool and c50 Wigeon on the field. (AH)

Shelducks and Shoveler at the Ferry (AH)

North Wall: A Barn Owl was hunting early this morning and a walk along the Wall produced two Chiffchaffs (one singing), two Reed Buntings, calling Cetti's Warblers and - before they flew in the direction of Marsh Farm - 18 Cattle Egrets were in Owl Copse.  
Out in the harbour were about 500 Brent Geese  and at least 300 Black-tailed Godwits, while White's Creek contained the usual Redshank, Wigeon, Teal and a single Great Crested Grebe. (IH)

Fishbourne Creek: A redhead Goosander - looking like a first-winter male - was feeding busily in the channel north of Dell Quay this morning, with the Long-tailed Duck and a Goldeneye also in the vicinity, along with half a dozen Red-breasted Mergansers and Great Crested Grebes, with similar of the latter two on the south side, too. 

A Kingfisher and a Greenshank were at Dell Quay, too, whilst along the channel there were at least 300 Black-tailed Godwits, 500 Wigeon, a few Teal and at least 300 Brent Geese.

Also, about 40 Knot were around the Lavant outflow, along with plenty of Dunlin, Ringed Plovers and Redshanks, whilst a couple of Lesser Black-backed Gulls and c80 Common Gulls were among the gull roost and four Greylag Geese flew over, heading east. (AH/SR/TH)

Goosander (above), Long-tailed Duck, Red-breasted Merganser, Greenshank, Kingfisher, Greylag Geese & Lesser Black-backed and Common Gulls at Fishbourne Creek (AH)

1st - 3rd March 2020

Tuesday, 3rd March: Another bright and breezy morning, with the fresh westerly keeping the temperature down.........

Selsey Bill: Highlight was a drake Goosander west at 7.20am, whilst just a few Common Scoters and Brent Geese went east and a couple of Great Northern Divers were offshore. Full log below.... 
0715-1045hrs:   (wind WNW4)   (SR/IP/MO-W/OM/AH)
Red-throated Diver - 2E
Great Northern Diver - 2os
Great Crested Grebe - 1os
Brent Goose - 24E, 1W
Shelduck - 1NE
Common Scoter - 7E, 9W, 4os
Goosander - 1W
Red-breasted Merganser - 5E, 2os
Curlew - 1E
Oystercatcher - 1E, 4W
Sparrowhawk - 1
Sandwich Tern - 1os
Mediterranean Gull - 3W
Common Gull - 2W
Meadow Pipit - 2N
Greenfinch - 2W

Common Scoter (above) & Mediterranean Gull at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: Ten Curlews and c50 Lapwing were on the field and six Gadwall, 12 Shelducks, c50 Teal and Shoveler and c100 Wigeon were spread around the edge of the pool. (AH)

Curlews and Lapwing at the Ferry (AH)

North Wall: The Barn Owl was out hunting over the backs of the fields again this morning and a Chiffchaff and several Cetti's Warblers were along the wall, though much of the water had receded from the fields, which just held a few dozen Black-tailed Godwits and a few Curlew and Wigeon.
A Spotted Redshank was in White's Creek, along with c80 Wigeon, whilst c400 Black-tailed Godwits were further into the harbour and c800 Brent Geese flew in from the Slipe Field. (AH)

Also, a Marsh Harrier was hunting over the reeds this morning and further out in the harbour there were about 1,000 Brent Geese thinly spread, whilst in the much less flooded fields were about 50 Curlew and a few Teal, Wigeon and Black-tailed Godwits. The hedgerows contained two Chiffchaffs, several Cetti's Warblers were calling from the reeds and at least eight Herons were active at Owl Copse. (IH/TG)

This afternoon at least five Chiffchaffs were feeding actively along the hedges, the Spotted Redshank was still in White's Creek and at least 200 Golden Plovers were sat out on the mud. (PB)

Barn Owl (above), Spotted Redshank, Black-tailed Godwits, Wigeon & Brent Geese at the North Wall (AH)

Selsey (North): Two Stonechats were present on the rough ground at the rear of the factories, at the north end of the town, and a Sparrowhawk went over late afternoon. (SH)

Sidlesham SF & Medmerry trail: Ten Stonechats were present in the scrub around the sewage works and trail late morning, plus eight Chiffchaffs, several of which were singing, and a Cetti's Warbler close to the compound gates. 
Also, around 25 Pied Wagtails were commuting between the flooded fields and the settling tanks, whilst a pair of Buzzards was showing some early display, a Kestrel was hunting, two Jays went noisily back and forth, a Great Spotted Woodpecker took a liking to a telegraph pole and three Roe Deer kept a wary eye on things. (OM) 

Stonechats around the sewage works fields, Buzzard, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Roe deer. (OM)

Monday, 2nd March: A mix of sunshine and cloud, pushed through by a fresh west-north-westerly breeze, but milder away from the wind.....

Selsey Bill: Highlights were two Great Northern Divers and five Sandwich Terns offshore, plus a Slavonian Grebe west. Full log below... 
(0745-0940hrs) (NNW, F4)  (IP/MO-W/AH)
Great Northern Diver - 2os
Red-throated Diver - 1W
Slavonian Grebe - 1W
Great Crested Grebe - 1W
Brent Goose - 4E
Red-breasted Merganser - 3E, 4W, 2os
Sparrowhawk - 1
Common Gull - 1E, 9W
Mediterranean Gull - 1os
Kittiwake - 5W
Sandwich Tern - 5os
Common Seal - 1os

Sandwich Tern (above) & Common Gull at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: There were still six Gadwall among the c50 Teal and Shoveler and c150 Wigeon present this morning. (AH)

Gadwall on the Ferry (AH)

Long Pool: A look along here this morning revealed, as the cut vegetation dies back, just how much destruction has been caused by Nature's Way's contractor, with whole swathes of mature Hawthorn hedge cut back to the stumps for no apparent discernible purpose other  than to devalue it as a wildlife site.
The only birds noted were two or three Meadow Pipits and four Stonechats, with c50 Teal, c20 Wigeon and c20 Redshank in Ferry Channel. (AH)

Meadow Pipit (above) & images of the destruction of habitat along the Long Pool (AH)

Church Norton: At least six Stonechats were along the beach this morning, and at least four Snipe, ten Wigeon and six Teal by the horse field, but the harbour was very quiet, with just a few Mediterranean Gulls and a thin scattering of common waders to be seen.
A look round Greenlease Farm was equally quiet, though at least five Jays, two Green Woodpeckers and a dozen Long-tailed Tits were seen. (AH)
This evening there were seven Stonechats around the horse field and concrete spit, plus three Red-breasted Mergansers in the harbour and two Peregrines on their island. (SH)

Stonechats (above), Jay, Snipe & Teal at Church Norton (AH)

North Wall: A female Blackcap was in my Pagham garden and a male Marsh Harrier and a Barn Owl were behind the Breech Pool this morning. Along White's Creek were 300 plus Wigeon and 3 Red-breasted Mergansers, whilst further out were 600 Brent Geese. It remains generally quiet along the Wall, but there were 89 Curlew in Honer 2 field, though the footpath across Honer 1 field remains impassable. (JDW)

Pagham Spit & Lagoon: Apart from a couple of Great Crested Grebes there was little on the Lagoon this afternoon. There were 4 Red-breasted Mergansers (3 males, 1 female) and 4 Pintail in the harbour together with a scattering of Brent Geese and Wigeon. A Peregrine was on the island, a Stonechat in the shrubs and a Peacock butterfly was basking in the sun. (IH/TH)

Sunday, 1st March: After a cold and squally start, a bright and breezy day, though with the wind still from the west and near gale-force.....

Selsey Bill: Very little to report beyond singles of Linnet, Meadow Pipit and Pied Wagtail in and a few Red-breasted Merganser offshore - with perhaps the scarcest bird being a Ringed Plover! Full log below....
0645-0915hrs:   (wind SW6)  (SR/SH/PB/IP/MO-W/BI/AH)
Great Crested Grebe - 1W
Fulmar - 3W
Gannet - 1W
Common Scoter - 1E
Red-breasted Merganser - 2E, 4W, 9os
Ringed Plover - 1ob
Sparrowhawk - 1
Guillemot - 1W
Mediterranean Gull - 2ob
Common Gull - 3E
Pied Wagtail - 1N
Meadow Pipit - 1N
Song Thrush - 1
Linnet - 1N

North Selsey & Park Farm: There were two Stonechats, five Chiffchaffs and a Sparrowhawk on the rough ground at the rear of the factories, whilst Park Farm held two Grey Wagtails, a Stonechat, a Green Woodpecker and a Sparrowhawk. (S&SaH)

Ferry Pool: A Grey Wagtail went over, but all the wildfowl - including four Gadwall, c50 Teal and Shoveler and c80 Wigeon - were tucked into the banks. (AH)

Shovelers and Teal on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: A Red-breasted Merganser, two Gadwall and four Snipe were around the flood by the horse field, along with a few Wigeon and Teal, whilst another Red-breasted Merganser and c100 Brent Geese were in the main channel.

A Marsh Harrier was over near the North Wall and a Peregrine was near its island, but apart from the regular Whimbrel there were just a few of the commoner waders and a few Mediterranean and Common Gulls out on the mud.

Also, a Stonechat was along the west side, along with a couple of Chiffchaffs and Long-tailed Tits, plus both Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers were seen and heard. (AH/IP/P&JW)

Later, there were two Chiffchaffs at Greenlease farm, three Stonechats, two Chiffchaffs and a Reed Bunting around the harbour, plus a Bar-tailed Godwit on the concrete spit and the Peregrine still on show. (S&SaH)

Red-breasted Merganser (above), Gadwall and Wigeon, Snipe & Whimbrel at Church Norton (AH)

Chi GPs - Drayton House pits: There were still respectable numbers of Shoveler and Pochard between the two pits - around 80+ of each - whilst a single Marsh Harrier put in a brief appearance. The regular pair of Coal Tits also put in an appearance at the North pit - with a bit of singing and display - and at least two Chiffchaffs were singing. 

Not too much else worthy of mention bar three Goldcrests, several Cetti's Warblers singing and the first two returning Reed Buntings I've seen here for a while. (OM)

 Coal Tits and Reed Bunting at Drayton House pits (OM)

North Wall: Just a brief visit today - the highlights being a Spotted Redshank, two Red-breasted Mergansers and some Grey Plover from the sluice. The flooded fields were similar to yesterday - though with only about 100 Brent Geese. (IH/PC)

Medmerry - Easton Lane - Stilt pool: Along the paths there were 21 Stonechats including 10 in one bush - obviously migrants - whilst on the marshes between the first two sluices were a Spotted Redshank and a Greenshank. Just the usual wildfowl were on a very full Stilt pool, with 50 Brent behind the beach and a Buzzard and a Kestrel along the banks. (S&SaH) 

Medmerry - Porthole Farm: There were four Stonechats (including a very pale female) together in a bush here, too - just about the only passerines seen, save a few Meadow Pipits, whilst a Barn Owl appeared briefly before heading off east. (AH)

Stonechats at Medmerry (AH)