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A bit of sun has brought out the butterflies on our usual circuit of Cissbury Ring and the Monarch’s Way, as well as our first Bee Flies of the year, including a cooperative one at home.  We also had a total of 11 Wheatears, although none came close enough for a worthwhile photo.  Best of all was a field with five Hares in, three of which were spooked by the farmer moving some sheep and ran right past us.  Once they had got further away from us they settled down and did a little bit of boxing, although too far away for any photographs.

Our first Comma of the year

Peacocks were plentiful

A Bee Fly in the front garden

The Mad Hatters formation flying team prepare for a flypast

It’s got to stop!  I’m not on about the landowners, estate managers and gamekeepers who think that breaking the law is OK to improve their profits when it’s just as corrupt as bribery and other forms of malpractice that are taken more seriously by the courts.  That needs to stop too, but I’m on about persecution of me by raptors.

First there is the Hen Harrier that has spent the last two winters just over the Down from me, an area where walk often.  Everyone else has seen it, but have I?  Of course not.  Now it’s spreading: a long walk last week had none of the released White-tailed Eagles that have been seen by everyone.  A return visit yesterday as part of a 30 mile walk did have a Hen Harrier (not the bird), but, having sat for a while and watched the area, a White-tailed Eagle  drifted across literally 4 minutes after we turned our backs and left.  Thanks heavens it’s only a plastic bird.

The corn Buntings are returning to their territories.

Kestrel

This Roe Deer was surprised to see me so early in the morning.

This Yellow-browed Warbler had us waiting for three hours in cold grey conditions on Friday afternoon without ever showing. On Saturday morning, when I only had the small camera, it was waiting for us in the sunshine.

The first Wood Anemones of the spring.

Willow

Little Egret

What can compete with the glorious sound of a singing Skylark?

Another Skylark can

A 16 mile walk at speed on Friday meant that I wasn’t carrying my camera (or seeing any birds).  A lazy day on Saturday meant there were no photographs either, and a 21 mile walk to Shoreham and up the Adur and back over the Downs meant that I was carrying my small and not very impressive camera.  It was a glorious day and successful bird-wise (apart from the blasted Rock Pipit at Shoreham Fort), but all the birds were too far away, so there was no need for the camera.  Until we got to about a mile and a half from home, when our local Barn Owl turned up, sitting on a fence post ahead of us.  We hardly ever see this bird in daylight, and it wasn’t bothered by being seen, allowing us to sneak up on it a bit, and then flew to a closer post to check us out.  Eventually it decided to go hunting, but still allowed fantastic views.  What a shame this never happens when I have my good camera with me.  Ah well, the shots I got will have to do.

There was a distinctly spring feel in the air today, a glorious day with the birds singing.  It certainly raised the spirits.  The highlight was another encounter with the Cissbury Ring Dartford Warbler – this time it actually cooperated, a bit.

Yesterday a walk down to the sea found very little, but a horribly backlit Grebe on the sea slowly came closer and the light improved to show it to be a Red-necked Grebe, a new bird for the on-foot list, before it drifted west into the late afternoon sun.

A Fieldfare from a couple of weeks ago when it was cold

It took a while to find these Tawny Owls

Gulls following the plough

If you’re looking for the Dartford Warbler on Cissbury, find the Stonechats…

… the Dartford Warbler will be nearby

It’s all been a bit quiet of late, with a combination of lockdown and bad weather keeping me in (and hardly anything has been worth photographing when we have been out).  Here’s a Red Kite from a walk which did have a bit of sun, and a terrible picture of the Dartford Warbler (one of two?) on Cissbury Ring. It’s a really uncooperative bird as you can see.

It did turn round, but only after the focus had shifted to the gorse behind it

A happy new year to you all.  2021 seems to be starting as gloomily as 2020 ended, but for us the year started at 0530, getting up on a frosty day for a 29 mile walk to Rackham and Burpham in search of White-fronted Geese and Bewick’s Swans.  We were successful seeing our targets, distantly, and 69 species was an excellent start to the on foot list.  On 3rd we topped it up with a walk along the coast to add some waders and seabirds.

The plans for this weekend were for a walk to Pulborough, abandoned due to the lockdown, and then another trip to the coast, which we also abandoned, as it looks like the busiest place around here.  Instead we had three walks over the downs behind us, with almost no company, other than a lot of frost and mist.  A few waders and some Corn Buntings nudged the list onto 96.

Best of all was the Barn Owl that the cold weather has brought to the fields behind us.  The views haven’t been good, but it’s a treat so see such a beautiful bird out of your bedroom window.

A new year selfie with the hoar frost

These Stonechats are on the down above us, but with a bit of imagination they can be seen from home.

The foxes are wearing their woolly drawers

It was dark and distant, but who cares when you take the photo from the garden

Karen takes an atmospheric shot on her phone

Birding is winding down for the year now. Last weekend’s effort to pick up Tundra Bean Goose and Pink-footed Goose (in with various flocks of Russian White-fronted Goose) turned into a true wild goose chase, finding only Greylag and Canada Goose. 24 miles seems like a long way to add only a Siberian Chiffchaff to the foot list, so it seems like it’s stuck at 185, which is a pretty good effort considering the 6 or 7 species missed on the sea due to a lack of seawatching during lockdown.

In the wetland behind us, the fields look perfect for waders, but a walk around yesterday yielded only a Stonechat, only my second there.

Another twitch today, to Surrey, where a Little Bunting, rare enough on its own, and a Rustic Bunting, a UK lifer, have been hanging around during the lockdown.  Unlike the usual birds that clear off on Thursday night, before I can get there at the weekend, they waited until lockdown was over and still hung around into the weekend.

Early seems to be the most reliable time, and indeed we waited a whole 5 minutes after getting onsite at about 0800.  Unfortunately the light was shocking, and as it improved, but never became good, the birds became more elusive.  Eventually we had to go (just before the sun came out and the birds behaved, apparently), but we got nice views of a couple of special birds, even if the photos are ropy.

Rustic Bunting

Little Bunting

Two rarities in the same tree!

Rather than a long walk, we drove to The Burgh today and did 8 miles around, in the hope of raptors. While we weren’t unsuccessful, with a Short-eared Owl, Buzzards, many Kites, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel and a Merlin that bustled past, everything was a bit too far away for photography. Instead Karen test drove the camera on her new phone…

The plan for the day was to have a look at the sea off Widewater in Lancing, walk down to Shoreham and go up the Adur to Bramber in search of the two Goosander that had been seen there yesterday.  It was going to be a decent walk, but they had been seen flying south, so if they were downriver then we could go home earlier.

Calling in at Brooklands park early on we accidentally ended up counting finches, as there was a major passage of Goldfinch, with smaller numbers of Redpoll, Siskin and Chaffinch.  This took a couple of hours, as we ended up with 3438 going over in numerous flocks of 10-100.  It was a bit frenetic at times, but at least we were able to count without angry Republicans threatening us.  As well as the finches we had a late Swallow and a very late Common Whitethroat.  The sea was dead, other than a few Brent Geese and a single Red-throated Diver east.

At Shoreham we were entertained by a Kingfisher (a second bird was more distant) and waders including a Knot and four Grey Plovers, needed by Karen for her  on-foot list.  On we went up the river, but it was duckless.  Bramber was reached and passed without success and eventually Karen decided to stop, while I carried on round one more corner.  Nothing.  Returning to Karen I found three Goosander: I had walked past them on the way upriver – perhaps they were tucked in under the bank, or maybe I’m just blind.  They gave excellent views until some paddle boarders flushed them.  Species 182 on the year’s on-foot list and beating last year’s total.  On the way back two Kingfishers had a running battle alongside us, before we eventually left the river and headed over the Downs to home.  A long and slow, but rewarding, 20 miles.

I didn’t take the heavy SLR, so these are taken in bad light with compact cameras.

A very late Common Whitethroat

It’s always a treat to see a Kingfisher

Female Goosanders