RIP Les Hemblade

A trip back to West Sussex to see my old birding mate Les Hemblade, with whom I spent many weekends birding round Sussex and beyond off on his final twitch. 

 As I arrived early I spent an half an hour at The Burgh watching from the triangle. Where a flock of 20+ Corn Buntings were in the hedge by the paddock along with several Yellowhammers and several Song Thrushes. Across the fields a covey of c15 Grey Partridges could be seen and others that were hidden could be heard heard. 4 Common Buzzards soared over hill with Red Kite and 2 more Red Kites flew down the Arun Valley. On the way back to the A27 30 Bewick Swans could be seen in the fields between Wepham and Warningcamp.  

After seeing Les off  I made a brief visit to Shoreham fort where 8 Purple Sandpipers were on the wooden pier. On the sea nothing worth mentioning.

More of the same

First thing this morning at the ARC Pit found 1 Great White Egret, 2 red head Smew and 4 Goldeneye among the common wildfowl. In the Willow Trail the Tit flock still had 1 Chiffchaff and 3 Goldcrest also a Woodcock flushed from the sallows and a Marsh Harrier over. At the south end another Great White Egret and 2 Chiffchaffs. The other side of the road on New Diggings 3 Smew (2 drakes) before they relocated to Burrowes.
At The Point several hundred Guillemots and Razorbills tooing and froing with a few Red Throated Divers, a flock of 5 Pintail came in as did c20 Skylarks.
At Scotney I was unable to locate the 2 Slavonian Grebes I missed yesterday, 2 Marsh Harriers flew through upsetting the Herring Gulls and Wigeon and despite spending along time going through the Greylag flock I could find nothing interesting amongst them. By the concrete road to Scotney Court Farm 30+ Fieldfare and 2 Redwing.
On Burrowes from Dennis's hide another 2 Great White Egrets along with 6 Smew, 6 Goldeneye and an elusive Goosander. From Scott Hide a Kingfisher, 2 Chiffchaffs and 2 Marsh harriers were the highlights.  
Late afternoon on Walland 9 Bewick swans with the Mutes opposite Midley barns, 30+ Tree Sparrows and 4 Yellowhammers in the bushes opposite the feeders. By the spoil heap in Tickners Lane 2 Common Buzzards, 6 Yellowhammers, 8 Reed Buntings, 14 Corn Buntings and c40 Chaffinches.  
  

A plod along the beach

 Mid morning at the ARC Pit: In the Willow Trail 2+ squealing Water Rail, a Cetti's Warbler, a Green Woodpecker and in the  Tit flock, still 1 Firecrest, 2 Goldcrest and a Chiffchaff. From Hanson 3 Smew (1 drake), 5 Goldeneye and a Marsh Harrier. At the south end a single Great White Egret and much reduced numbers of the common wildfowl.

At the fishing boats far fewer Razorbills, Guillemots, Grebes and Red Throated Divers on a rough sea than of late, but the ever present 3w Glaucous Gull was on patrol. 

 With little moving at sea I walked along the beach to the lifeboat station. On the way a party of 10 Brent Geese, 18 Teal and 5 Wigeon flew east.

Dozens of dead Dogfish littered the high tide line and were much appreciated by the Gulls and Turnstones.

 250+ Oystercatchers, 8 Bar Tailed Godwits, 2 Grey Plover and 6+ Dunlin were in a high tide roost by the lifeboat station.

 The reserve was disappointing with the reduced numbers of wildfowl. The highlights were a single red head Smew on Burrowes, a party of 10 Snipe over and 2 Marsh Harriers.
Scotney was also disappointing with little of note present.
On Walland all I could find was 2 Bewick Swans in the potato field and a family of 5 with the Mute swans opposite Midley Barn, nearby the usual Tree Sparrow flock and 2 Common Buzzards. 

Harrier Count

A late start this morning at a bitterly cold point. Still plenty of  Razorbills, Guillemots, Great Crested Grebes,and Red Throated Divers tooing and froing off shore with small numbers of Gannets and Kittiwakes. A few Common Scoter, Wigeon and Shoveller moved east along with 300+ Brent Geese and a Single Red Breasted Merganser, a single drake Eider flew west.

On the ARC a Great White Egret, 2 red head Smew and 6+ Goldeneye among the very much depleted numbers of common wildfowl. In the Willow Trail a Cetti's Warbler tacking and a Water Rail squealing, the Tit flock held a Firecrest , Chiffchaff and 3 Goldcrests.

The track to The Pines found another Firecrest and Chiffchaff with 2 Marsh Harriers over. 

A freezing Walland Marsh this afternoon

Scotney wildfowl numbers were also much depleted from last weeks 1000s. The Red Crested Pochard roosting at the Sussex end and a male Marsh Harrier were the only notable birds seen.
On Walland 74 Bewick Swans in the potato field but no sign of the Whoopers.
The reed bed I was watching had a single male Marsh Harrier roost, the smart male Hen Harrier flew over and returned a few minutes later dropping in to the reed bed in front of me, a few seconds later it came out and flew into a nearby roost. While waiting for the Harriers 2 Common Buzzards flew over along with a few Fieldfare, Snipe, Golden Plover and Lapwing, but once again nothing like last weeks numbers.   

Easterly passage

08.25-10.30  From the fishing boats saw another good movement of Auks with 5,000+ moving east, along with 230+ Red Throated Divers and smaller numbers of Gannets and Kittiwakes. A surprise easterly movement of 639 Brent Geese also a Bonxie off shore.
New Diggings held 2 Great White Egrets, 3 red head Smew and 5 Goldeneye, among the much depleted numbers of common wildfowl which seems to be the case on all the pits.
A walk round the reserve found 2 more Great White Egrets, 3+ Marsh Harriers a Firecrest on the return trail but little else of note.
The ARC pit had another 2 Great White Egrets making probably 6 individuals, from Hanson 7 Smew(1 drake), 6 Goldeneye, a Kingfisher, a Bittern and 3 Marsh Harriers. In the Willow trail the Tit flock held another Firecrest, 4 Goldcrests and 2 Chiffchaffs.
On Walland Marsh the Bewick Swan herd has risen to 88 with Whoopers all feeding on the potato fields. Nearby 30+ Tree Sparrows opposite the feeding station and c15 Marsh Harriers out by the windmills.

Swimming Bittern

1of 250+ Red-throated Divers off shore today

 From the fishing boats this morning the sea was not quite as busy as yesterday but still a very entertaining morning.
07-50-11.00 TG,DW,OL,MH,PT,MC a full count was not made for the whole period (lots of chat and laughs)
Red-throated Diver: c250 tooing and froing
Great Crested Grebe: c2,000 off shore
Gannet: c50 off shore
Brent Goose: 16E
Shelduck: 16E
Common Scoter: 14w  3E
Teal: 18 E then W
Wigeon: 13E
Oystercatcher: 41E
Mediterranean Gull: 2 off shore
Kittiwake: 142E
Auks: 5,593 moved east in the first hour with a rough split of 70% Razorbill 30% Guillemot. The total for the whole period was probably well in excess of 10,000

On The New Diggings of note 3 Smew (1 drake) and 1 Great White Egret.
On the ARC Pit from the screen hide a Bittern watched swimming from 1 reed bed to another, behaviour that I have never witnessed before. Also there of note 1 Great White Egret, 1 Marsh Harrier, 5 Goldeye, 2 red head Smew, 2 Chiffchaffs, 8+ Goldcrests and a Great Spotted Woodpecker.
Scotney held c1000 each of Golden Plover and Lapwing, 30+ Dunlin and 2 Ruff.
Many thanks to Richard Smith Bird Watching Days Out for all his help with getting my 7D fixed.  

Auk Spectacular

A photo cannot convey the extent of today's Auk passage 

 08.00-12.40 watching from the fishing boats TG,DW,MC.  We estimated that the Auks were moving west at a rate of c150-250 a minute and were still moving when we left all be it at a slower rate.
Red Throated Diver: c300 tooing and froing off shore.
Great Crested Grebe: 2,000+ off shore
Fulmar: 1w
Gannet: c50 off shore
Common Scoter:  22w    6E
Velvet Scoter: 1w
Wigeon: 18w
Gadwall: 3w
Mallard: 2 in
Pintail: 5E
Oystercatcher: 504E
Turnstone: c16 on beach
Kittiwake: c250 off shore
Mediterranean Gull: 3 off shore
3w Glaucous Gull: on beach
Guillemot: 12,000+ W
Razorbill:  18,000+W
Grey Seal: 1 bull off shore

Showing the anglers how it is done

Gannets

Another very gloomy start to the the day. The sea from the fishing boats was again carpeted with Great Crested Grebes, Guillemots, Razorbills, Red Throated Divers and Cormorants, with a few Kittiwakes and Common Scoter. A shoal of probably Whiting came close to shore encouraging the Gannets to put on a superb display. (Pity my good camera is still being repaired) Another highlight this morning was a party of 5 Eider moving west also a flock of 13 Shelduck. The Glaucous Gull was in its usual spot on the beach. 

 At The Patch a Little Gull was the star among 200+ Black headed Gulls. On New Diggings 7 Smew (1 drake), 3 Goldeneye and 2 Great White Egrets. A walk from the ARC car park round the reserve produced 30+ Tree Sparrows and another Great White Egret at Boulderwall Farm, the Slavonian Grebe was still at the back of Hookers. The rest of the walk was pleasant now that the sun was shining, but apart from 3 Marsh Harriers and plenty of common wildfowl  little of note was seen.

At Scotney once again few geese present, Lapwings, Golden Plover and Wigeon however were plentiful. While I was there 15 Ruff flew in, one them being colour ringed and flagged. Also present a female Red Crested Pochard asleep on the peninsular, which was well spotted by PT.   

Another Gloomy Day full of Birds

08.00-09.00 from the fishing boats this morning the sea was alive with birds. As it was fairly calm I counted the Great Crested Grebes and in one sweep counted 1,856. Razorbills and Guillemots were streaming out of Hythe Bay as the tide dropped. I estimated c2,000 Razorbills and c1,000 Guillemots moved out of the bay. As the range safety boat came out of the bay it pushed a flock of 192 Red-throated Divers before it. Smaller numbers of Gannets, Kittiwakes and Common Scoter came out of the bay.

Slavonian Grebe on Hookers 

New Diggings held 6 Smew (1 Drake), 4 Goldeneye, 2 Great White Egrets and the usual widfowl. The south end of the ARC pit held another Great White Egret, c100 each of Gadwall, Shoveller and Pochard and a Marsh harrier over.
A walk around the largely deserted reserve found large numbers of the common wild fowl on most of the pits, 3 red head Smew and another Great White Egret at Christmas Dell. The flooded hay fields on Dengemarsh were full of Lapwing, Golden Plover and Wigeon.  A wander round the back of Hookers Pit revealed a Slavonian Grebe and 3 vocal Marsh Harriers.
A search for Grey geese at Scotney at lunch time drew a blank, not even a Greylag, though still 100s of the common wildfowl and 1000s each of Golden Plover and Lapwing.
Early afternoon  back at the ARC, an hour spent in an empty Hanson Hide was rewarded with another Great White Egret, a red head Smew, 5 Goldeneye, a Bittern, 2 Marsh Harriers, 2 Cetti's Warblers, 1 Water Rail, 2 Chiffchaff s and Goldcrest with the Long-tailed Tit flock.
On Walland Marsh this afternoon 78 Bewick Swans and 2 Whoopers feeding on the old potato fields. Several 1000s each of Lapwing and Golden Plover being harassed by a Peregrine and Harriers. While watching a Harrier roost in which 13 Marsh Harriers dropped in, a smart adult male Merlin dashed through after a Skylark, later I watched it on a fence post plucking its supper. Also 2 Bearded Tits were seen and Water rails were squealing and in the distance the evocative call of the Common Crane going to roost.
  

Fog

This morning from the fishing boats produced a few Guillemots, Razorbills, Red-throated Divers, Kittiwakes and the occasional Gannet that loomed out of gloom briefly before disappearing back into the fog.

Very poor visibility on the peninsular today

On New Diggings at the south end 6 Smew could just about be seen,  provided they stayed close to the road as could a Great White Egret at the south end of the ARC.
Scotney was just as bad with most of the pit obscured, but 2 Egyptian Geese could just about be seen at the Sussex end on the near bank.
The fog seemed thicker on Walland  Marsh so much so that the Bewick Swans could be heard but not seen so I called it a day.