22nd - 24th November 2015

Tuesday, 24th November: A return to milder but changeable weather; wet and windy overnight, giving way to drier but cloudy conditions by morning with some occasional brightness, accompanied by a strong W/NW wind and the risk of a heavy shower....

Selsey Bill (0800-1200hrs): Despite the brisk north-westerly there was a bit of movement again, including three Red-necked Grebes reported heading west before 8am (JD/DS/DF). Among other species noted were 25+ Great Crested Grebes and a Slavonian Grebe west, a couple of Red-throated Divers east, at least four Great Northern Divers in the area, a few Common Scoter and Red-breasted Mergansers going in both directions and there were 50+ auks going mostly east, of which all, bar a couple of Razorbills, were Guillemots among those positively identified. Also, a dark phase/morph Arctic Skua was offshore for several minutes before eventually drifting off.   (Obs: JD/DS/DF/AH/C&ME/BFF/DIS). Log below....
Red-throated Diver - 3E
Great Northern Diver - 3os
diver sp - 2E
Slavonian Grebe - 3W
Great Crested Grebe - 7E, 57W
Red-necked Grebe - 3W
Gannet - 11E, 1W
Shag - 1E
Brent Goose - 9W
Shelduck - 2W
Goldeneye - 1os (drake)
Common Scoter - 32E, 8W
Red-breasted Merganser - 15E, 22W
Arctic Skua - 1 os (d/p)       
Kittiwake - 11W
Mediterranean Gull - 2os
Razorbill - 4W                
Guillemot - 62E, 11W    
auk sp - 174E, 7W 
                       

Great Northern Diver (above), Common Scoters, Shag & Mediterranean Gull at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: There was a Green Sandpiper again this morning, along with three Avocets, half a dozen Black-tailed Godwits and 100+ Lapwing. The Shoveler count had risen to 90, with lesser numbers of Wigeon and Teal also present. (AH/BFF/DIS)

Avocets, Shelduck, Black-tailed Godwit and Lapwings on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: Pretty quiet on the big tide, with the Whimbrel present again among large numbers of roosting waders, including 30+ Knot and 100+ Grey Plovers. There were three Red-breasted Mergansers in the harbour and another offshore, where the only other birds present were up to 22 Great Crested Grebes.

Very few small birds around again, with just small parties of Goldfinch and Chaffinch evident. (AH/BFF/DIS)

Whimbrel and Brent Geese (above), pair of Brent Geese & Redshank and Wigeon at Church Norton (AH)

Runcton: After a couple of sightings in our neighbours garden a few days ago, a Treecreeper made it’s way to our back garden early afternoon (only second record). Also present 2 Coal Tits, 3 Great Tits, 4 Blue Tits, a Chaffinch and a Robin. (CRJ)
 

Medmerry Beach: There were 10 female/immature Common Scoters offshore this morning. (BFF/DIS)  

Fishbourne Creek/Apuldram:There were two Firecrests in the church car park, 12 Yellowhammers around the horse paddocks, and five Rock Pipit and three Goldeneye along the creek this morning. (BFF/DIS) .


Monday, 23rd November: Another still and cold morning with a frosty start and a light northerly breeze, followed by pleasant sunny spells and some cloud....

Selsey Bill: (0745-0845hrs) (AH)
Great Northern Diver - 4os
Red-throated Diver - 1E
Slavonian Grebe - 1os
Great Crested Grebe - 1os
Gannet - 1E
Brent Goose - 3W
Common Scoter - 10E, 4W
Red-breasted Merganser - 2E
Turnstone - 25obs
Common Gull - 2os
Guillemot - 1os

Common Gull at the Bill (AH)

Ferry Pool: There were a Spotted Redshank, five Common Redshanks, two Green Sandpipers, five Snipe and a Dunlin on the pool this morning, alongside 20 or so Black-tailed Godwits and c200 Lapwings. There were also 40+ Shoveler and Teal and as many as 200 Wigeon, plus 24 Canada Geese. (AH)
Also a Short-eared Owl was hunting the grassland/scrub between the visitor centre and tramway/harbour wall at 12.45 today. (PH)

Green Sandpiper (above) & Snipe on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: There were four Slavonian Grebes offshore this morning, along with half a dozen Great Crested Grebes, plus another three of the latter in the harbour, as well as at least 50 Pintail and numerous Teal, Wigeon and Brent Geese. There were at least 20 Knot among the roosting Dunlin and Grey Plover, and the Whimbrel was showing well near the bench. 

It was very quiet for small birds, with the Dartford Warbler along the Severals only showing briefly, a Meadow Pipit over and c20 Skylarks, plus similar of Linnet and Goldfinch and a Green Woodpecker along the spit. (AH)

Slavonian Grebes (above), Whimbrel, Skylark, Pintail & Knot, Dunlin and Grey Plover at Church Norton (AH)

Medmerry, Breach Viewpoint: Low tide midday and the highlight was a Short-eared Owl hunting along the banks. There was also a hunting Kestrel, a Peregrine in the centre of the reserve and c200 Woodpigeons flew over.  Not much out on the mudflats; c50 Wigeon and 16 Grey Plover were about the best, whilst the remaining rough ground behind the viewpoint held a pair of Stonechats, 5 Linnets and 4 Meadow Pipits (and sadly a number of surveyors!)  The reeds around the sluice held a pair of Reed Buntings and the only Black Redstart I could find was along the fence separating the caravans from the beach. (SR)

Sunday, 22nd November: A beautiful autumn day, with a crisp and still start followed by a light northerly breeze and sunshine and cloud....

Selsey Bill (0715-1315hrs): Sunny, N/NW2. (Obs: JA/SH/AH/SR/OM/RJS et al). Despite the near still conditions, there was a good sea-watch this morning, with the highlight being four Velvet Scoter and two Sandwich Terns east, and a steady movement west, including two Black-throated and some Red-throated Divers, a couple of Eider, 150+ Brent Geese and 50 Red-breasted Mergansers, several flocks of Wigeon and a few auks and Common Scoter, whilst there were five Great Northern Divers and a Slavonian Grebe on the sea. Also, there was a Chiffchaff and a flock of Long-tailed Tits (rare at the Bill tip) around Bill House garden. Full log below....
Red-throated Diver - 2E, 23W, 2os
Black-throated Diver - 2W
Great Northern Diver - 5os
Diver sp - 13W
Slavonian Grebe - 1os
Great Crested Grebe - 4E, 8W, 1os
Little Egret - 1W
Grey Heron - 1W
Shag - 2E
Brent Goose - 5E, 235W
Eider - 2W
Shelduck - 1E, 13W
Common Scoter - 34E, 38W, 8os
Velvet Scoter - 4W
Red-breasted Merganser - 8E, 50W, 4os
Wigeon - 15E, 83W
Teal - 2W
Pintail - 5W
Dunlin - 25W
Sanderling - 1W
Turnstone - 30 ob
Oystercatcher - 19 ob
Razorbill - 1W, 1os
Guillemot - 3W
Auk sp - 6E, 16W, 4os
Stock Dove - 2W
Woodpigeon - 301W
Sandwich Tern - 2E
Kittiwake - 5W
Mediterranean Gull - 3W, 3os
Skylark - 1N
Pied Wagtail - 3W, 2ob
Long-tailed Tit - 9 gardens
Chiffchaff - 1 gardens
Goldfinch - 80W
Also a Red Admiral on the wing and a Grey Seal offshore

Eiders (above) & Great Northern Diver off the Bill (AH)

 Oystercatchers on the beach at the Bill, Red Admiral and panoramic view of the Bill House area (OM)

North Wall: The White-fronted Goose was with a Greylag and 100+ Canada Geese on the Breech Pool this morning at 8.15am, and there were a pair of Stonechats nearby. (PC)

Ferry Pool: Plenty of Wigeon and Shoveler on the largely frozen pool, but not many waders - just a few Black-tailed Godwits and Lapwing. (AH)

Lapwings and Black-tailed Godwits (above) & Wigeon on the Ferry (AH)

Church Norton: There was a Dartford Warbler on the first Several this morning - a female, so different to the one here a couple of weeks ago which was male. Also there were two Stonechats and two Chiffchaffs around the horse field, 60+ Shelduck, 36 Wigeon and 6 Pintail went west offshore, there were three Bar-tailed Godwits and 50+ Knot on the winkle beds, two Avocets and a Kingfisher in the harbour and a Buzzard and a Sparrowhawk were in the vicinity. (S&SaH)

Dartford Warbler at Church Norton (SH)

The two Dartford Warblers were still present at the end of Reedy Marsh. Also a Firecrest in the churchyard with a few Goldcrests this morning, half a dozen Redwings flew out and a Siskin went over. There was a female Goldeneye and three Red-breasted Mergansers, plus a couple of Peregrines in the harbour. (BI/C&ME/C&JM)

Long Pool: There was possibly a fourth Dartford Warbler at the end of the Long Pool this morning around the same time the others were being reported. Also there was a Spotted Redshank in the creek just beyond the end of the pool, four Little Grebes on the water and at least a dozen Reed Buntings about. (AH)

Spotted Redshank (above) & Little Grebe from the Long Pool (AH)

St Mary's Churchyard, Sidlesham: This afternoon a Firecrest was in the bushes along with four Goldcrests, and six Redwings were feeding on holly berries alongside the many Blackbirds and a Song Thrush. There was also a Buzzard, a Jay, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, five Pied Wagtails and a flock of 12 Goldfinches in the area. (SR)

East Beach Pond: Late afternoon there was a Kingfisher, a Chiffchaff and a flock of 14 Long-tailed Tits around the pond. (SR)

Medmerry: Breach area - A Black Redstart was showing well at the very end of the caravans this morning, though otherwise there were just a few Meadow Pipits and Starlings. A Kingfisher was by the sluice, a couple of hundred Brent Geese were on the water with 50+ Wigeon, before flying off west, and there were at least a dozen Grey Plovers and Dunlin on the pools, plus a Peregrine and a Buzzard went over. (AH/RJS)

Black Redstart (above) & Grey Plover at Medmerry (AH)

Easton Lane to the Stilt Pool - The White-fronted Goose was on the Stilt Pools later on this morning, with a few Teal and Wigeon, a dozen Canada Geese and three Gadwall, plus a lone Black-tailed Godwit. A Peregrine was out in the middle of the reserve, and two small flocks of Yellowhammers, two Song Thrushes and four Stonechats were along the banks. (BI)

White-fronted Goose (above) & Yellowhammer at Medmerry (BI)

Porthole Farm - Late this afternoon there was a Grey Wagtail among a couple of hundred Pied Wagtails on the settling tanks and a couple of Chiffchaffs, a couple of Song Thrushes and a couple of Yellowhammers along the hedges. (AH)

19th - 21st November 2015

Saturday, 21st November: A notable change to much cooler conditions, with a strong NW wind now dominating and early cloud and rain, although things should brighten up considerably later....

Selsey Bill (0710-0930hrs): (Obs: JA/SH/PB/AH) - There was a bit of movement offshore, including a Black-throated and a few Red-throated Divers and Brent Geese west, four Great Northern Divers were offshore and a Black Redstart popped up a couple of times. Full log below....

Red-throated Diver - 3W
Black-throated Diver - 1W
Great Northern Diver - 4 os
Great Crested Grebe - 2E, 8W, 1os

Gannet - 1E

Brent Goose - 4E, 68W

Shelduck - 1W

Common Scoter - 1E, 1W, 1os

Red-breasted Merganser - 14W

Wigeon - 1W
Teal - 11W

Dunlin - 3W

Curlew - 1W

Kestrel - 1 area

Auk sp - 2E, 3W, 1 os

Kittiwake - 17W

Common Gull - 7W

Mediterranean Gull - 6W, 3os
Black Redstart - 1p
Goldfinch - 155W, 16N

 

Black Redstart (above), Common Scoter, Brent Geese & Mediterranean Gull at the Bill (AH)

Selsey area: Two Green Sandpipers, a Snipe and a Grey Wagtail were feeding in puddles near Park Farm reservoir, whilst a Kingfisher flew low over the fields towards Selsey! (SH)

Church Norton: Not much to report in the very windy conditions - two Peregrines were chasing each other about the harbour until the one carrying prey managed to shake its tormentor off and head off towards the North Wall. There were several hundred Brent Geese about along with lesser numbers of Grey Plover, Redshank, Curlew and Dunlin, but small birds were more or less non-existent save a few Goldfinches and a few calling Goldcrests. (AH)

Peregrines (above) & sheltering Redshank at Church Norton (AH)

Ferry Pool: There were 100+ Lapwing and Wigeon on the field, and a handful of Black-tailed Godwits and Snipe tucked in among the roosting wildfowl on hte sheltered bank, including 24 Shelduck, 40 Shoveler and 50+ Wigeon and Teal. (AH)

Shelduck and Shoveler on the Ferry (AH)

Long Pool: Not much along the hedges in the wind - just a couple of Goldcrests and Reed Buntings, on the pool there were three Littlle Grebes, in Ferry Channel there were a Grey Plover, 20 or so Redshanks and at least 30 Shelduck at the far end, and there were a few Red-legged Partridges on the ploughed fields. (AH/BI)

Red-legged Partridges (above) (BI), Grey Plover & Mallards (AH) from the Long Pool

Pagham Lagoon/Spit: This morning a fine drake Goldeneye (the first of the autumn) was on the Lagoon, along with 40 Little Grebes, 30 Tufted Ducks and a Kingfisher.

Along the spit at low tide, a Curlew was feeding in sea purslane, a drake Red-breasted Merganser was on the entrance channel and, unintentionally flushed from the beach, a Short-eared Owl was immediately blown over to the Church Norton spit thanks to the NW gale! (ARK per SOS)

Friday, 20th November: For once, a better morning than forecast, with rain not really amounting to more than heavy drizzle and fading away earlier than predicted, whilst a lighter breeze made for a pleasant change.....

Ferry Pool: A Short-eared Owl flew over eastwards into the harbour as the rain eased, and on the pool a Snipe and three Avocets joined the regular roost of 300+ Lapwings. Also there were 50+ Black-tailed Godwits, 30+ Curlews, 60+ Wigeon and another 200 or so Lapwings feeding out on Ferry Field, which the birds have just started frequenting again. (AH)

Short-eared Owl over the Ferry (AH)

Long Pool/West Side: At least one of the Dartford Warblers was present again around the Hay-bales area, and half a dozen Yellowhammers were along the edge of the adjacent ploughed field. Also a Kingfisher flew along the rife and a Fieldfare and at least five Song Thrushes were around the far hedges, and a couple of Buzzards were being active, too. There was not much along the Long Pool - just a few Goldcrests and Reed Buntings, plus a flock of nine Snipe flew over. (AH)

At least one Dartford Warbler was also still showing a bit further along the harbour side at Reedy Marsh this morning, so hopefully both are still about Also a Goldcrest or two, a Chiffchaff, a Green Woodpecker and six Wrens were nearby (BI).

Dartford Warbler (above) & Yellowhammer along, & Snipe over the west side of the harbour (AH)

Selsey East Beach Pond: A very welcome patch tick this morning in the shape of a Kingfisher, though other than that very little activity in the torrential rain - just two Chiffchaffs, one Goldcrest and the usual fishing Grey Heron and Cormorant. (SR)

North Wall area: There were five Spotted Redshank in White's Creek this morning, along with several hundred Lapwing and 100+ Wigeon. Further into the harbour there were 50+ Golden Plover with more Lapwing, plus a few Grey Plover and Curlew and 20+ Pintail and 300+ Brent Geese. There were 30+ Reed Buntings along the hedge adjoining the Slipe field, plus a few Goldcrests and Goldfinches. (AH)

Spotted Redshanks (above), Wigeon & Grey Heron and Cormorant in White's Creek (AH)

There was little on Pagham Lagoon - just a dozen Little Grebes and Tufted Ducks of note, the Breech Pool held just a dozen Mallard, and Pagham churchyard held a big flock of Long-tailed Tits with a few Goldcrests among them. (AH)

Little Grebe on Pagham Lagoon (AH)

Medmerry: Ham ponds - A Marsh Harrier was present over the east side of the reserve this morning. (PH)

East Side/ Breach: A Black Redstart was around the caravans near "Island View," just before the Oasis Centre on the way down. On the rocks/rough ground there was a surprise in the form of a very late Wheatear, along with plenty of Linnets and Meadow Pipits and four Stonechats. A Kestrel was hovering over, whilst on the water from the viewpoint there were good numbers -  into the 100s - of Brent Geese, Teal and Wigeon, with thirty or so Pintail mixed in, and with more Brent Geese arriving all the time. (BI)

Pintail, Wigeon and Brent Geese (above) & Kestrel at Medmerry (AH)

Thursday, 19th November: What must be one of the most dismal days of the year, with a stronger westerly wind than forecast and heavy rain for most of the day......

Ferry Pool: There were five Avocets this morning, along with a dozen Black-tailed Godwits and c300 Lapwings on the pool, with more of the latter dropping in all the time, plus the usual Teal and Shoveler numbers. (AH)

Black-tailed Godwit (above) & Avocet on the Ferry (AH)

Long Pool: Not much about, though three or four Redwings were flying about with similar numbers of Blackbirds and Song Thrushes and Reed Buntings - all upset by a Sparrowhawk shooting through, whilst along the channel there were 20+ Redshank and a Grey Heron flew along its length. (AH)

Grey Heron over the Long Pool (AH)

Church Norton: Very little to report before the rain took hold - the Whimbrel was in the harbour with a scattering of commoner waders, plus a couple of hundred Brent Geese, and just a few unseen calling Goldcrests and Long-tailed Tits in the bushes and a pair of Jays over. (AH)

Whimbrel at Church Norton (AH)

Fishbourne Creek: Another wet and very dull day though it didn't rain here until 0900hrs! There were two delightful Firecrest in the trees in the Apuldram church car park and 48 Yellowhammers around the horse paddock and hedgerows, along with.20 Long-tailed Tits and 3 Goldcrests in the area. 

Around the harbour there were four Rock Pipits, six Greenshank and a Kingfisher that was hovering right under my nose! (BFF)

Selsey: While walking the dogs this evening there was a steady flow of calling Redwings overhead, heading north. (SH)