12/10/2026

Todays excellent sea watch

Juvenile Long-tailed Skua that flew west this morning behind the sea watch hide over the power station

Juvenile Long-tailed Skua over the power station

Brent Geese migrating West along the beach at the fishing boats

Gannets off the fishing boats

Common Scoter off the fishing boats

Red-throated Diver off the fishing boats

11/10/2026

It's a 4 mile cycle ride mostly along an excellent cycle path to The Midrips from my house. The cycle path allows me stop and scan the Scotney Pits and also the the fields of Walland Marsh, so the 4 miles can often take me a couple of hours with many stops.

The Midrips Pools, East Sussex

As is usually the case I was the only person there. When the MOD are firing there is strictly no access for obvious reasons, they do sometimes fire from 8.00-23.30 though usually they are finished by 16.30, they do post all the coming firing times at the various entrances to the ranges. The Midrips however is difficult to access in fact almost impossible if you are infirm. At low tide you can take the steps onto the beach and walk along the beach to access, how ever at high tide it is a dangerous scramble over the sea defence rocks which can be very slippery and dangerous as Steve Gale can attest to, which is why I am almost always the only person there. I do have to padlock my bicycle to the fence outside as I cannot get it over the rocks.

This juvenile Merlin was just about to land on the concrete walkway on the sea wall when it suddenly realised I was standing there, it wuickly powered off over the beach and away, another superb experience for me.

Juvenile Merlin powering away over the beach

Juvenile Merlin powering away over the beach

As well as the Merlin, Grey Plovers, Knot, Dunlin, Golden Plovers, Oystercatchers, Green Sandpiper, Greenshank, Redshank, Curlew, Brent Goose, Sandwich Terns, Stonechats etc were seen.

Grey Plovers coming into the pools to feed and rest

09/10/2026

Due to the poor weather most of my day was taken up with sea watching

A few images taken from the fishing boats

Juvenile Arctic Skuas at the fishing boats this afternoon

Gannet off the fishing boats this afternoon

Red-throated Diver at the fishing boats

Juvenile Kittiwake

 

08/10/2026

One of several Song Thrushes I encountered wandering around The desert this morning

A very distinctive Common Buzzard over The Desert this morning

A chilly wander around The Desert this morning in a stiff cold NW wind. In the sun traps out of the wind a few Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps. Song Thrushes and the odd Redwing were enjoying Rose Hips, Hawthorn and Sloes, but were as usual very jumpy, 3+ Sparrowhawks probably didn't help though most birds were keeping well down due to the wind.

A rather striking Common Buzzard being harassed by a Crow in The Desert

Common Buzzard being harassed by a Crow in The Desert

 

I couldn't cycle past the local Little Owl without a quick snap

Redshank at Scotney main pit

Turnstone at the western end of Scotney main pit

Ruff at Scotney. The adult male has very distinctive white patches in the wings

Red Kite over Bretts late morning

5 of 13 Cattle Egrets present by the chicken sheds late morning

Kestrel at The fishing boats this afternoon

At the fishing boats this afternoon the highlight was probably the Butterflys coming in off the sea, mainly Red Admirals and Small White, with a couple of Small Tortoiseshell and even a Clouded Yellow.

5-6/10/2026

The lovely Yellow-browed Warbler trapped and processed by the DBO ringing team who kindly showed the bird to me and David G. yesterday

 

Black Tern feeding off the fishing boats yesterday

With flat a calm conditions the sea watching has been grim, so poor that I even spent the afternoon in my garden tidying things up for the winter.

Bothe Little Owls were out this morning and still there 2 hours later.

A small flock of Ruff disturbed from the ploughed fields at the back of Scotney farm.

Once the fog lifted this morning I cycled all around the Scotney Complex. Highlights of a couple of hours out there were 11 Ruff, 3 Green Sandpipers, 11 Dunlin, 4 Ringed Plover, a Greenshank, 6 Redshank, 400+ Golden Plover, 300+ Lapwing, 250 Linnets, 30+ Skylarks, 20+ Tree Sparrows, a Merlin, 3 Marsh Harriers, several Common Buzzards and several Clouded Yellows, downside was large numbers of feral Greylag, Canada and Egyptian Geese.

Ruff over the ploughed fields at the back of Scotney farm

A Common Buzzard with a raucous Rook for company over my garden this afternoon

The 3rd Dialectica scalariella to turn in my trap a nationally scarce leaf miner, specialising on Vipers Bugloss. 

A colourful example of a Vestal from my trap