Our first morning walk up to Cissbury Ring for a while started well with a report of a Wryneck showing well just as we headed up the downs. “Showing well” was very suggestive of a different bird to the nightmare bird in mid-week. Whinchats, a Wheatear, Spotted Flycatchers and Yellow Wagtails as we walked along Lychpole Hill towards Cissbury was a promising start, with a few more Spot Flies and many Blackcaps added as we neared the Ring. Arriving at the Yew, it wasn’t a long wait before the Wryneck turned up and sat in the sun, posing for photos. This does look like a different bird – the line on the side of the neck was much more striking on the first bird, and the elongated stripe through the eye was also longer. A few more good views over the next couple of hours, and the addition of Tree Pipit to the on foot-list sent us homeward happy.
The journey back took longer than expected when we walked into a small flock, which were mainly Pied Flycatchers (I’ve never seen more than one on passage). There were at least three, but possibly as many as six, as well as a couple of Spotted Flies. Not a bad walk at all!