Breakfast/brunch and a few birds

 

Out to Stansted for a fry-up - all nice and hot and, being early, mostly freshly cooked. And mostly old and quiet clientele!!

A birdtrack list for the morning was a meagre 31 species with many heard-only - Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Goldcrest, Firecrest and Tree Creeper. Six or more Buzzards, three Red Kites and a pair of Kestrels were enjoying the fine soaring conditions. Curiously, not a peep out of any Song Thrushes.

Once it warmed up Brimstones and a single Peacock were on the wing and above, one of a few Andrena flavipes and plenty of similarly sized Nursery Web Spiders. 

On the way back a side-trip to Warblington produced twenty or so Cattle Egrets amongst the cows. Passing through the gate and heading down to the exit gate on the south-west corner there was a lot of gull cacophony - I assumed the usual Buzzard would be the cause but, lo and behold, an eagle. I wonder if this was a recent release or one of last year's home-grown youngsters??

Plenty of Lesser Celandines around the gravestones.

A rare treat

Wednesday's journey into PB was considerably less painful than last week and was in glorious blue, warm weather. 

A coffee on arrival whilst waiting for PW and a brief catch up with SDOS members before setting off down the zig-zag (or at least the straight path) as contractors were on site re-laying it.

A gaggle of people were watching a day-roosting Woodcock on the left side of the path found by a volunteer with a thermal aid following up a couple of other sightings in previous days. It barely moved other than looking up once in a while and was still present at leaving time. This was a real pleasure not having seen Woodcock at Pulborough nor anywhere else for a dozen years!! And, being slightly concealed, the ATB came into it's own again; being , let's say, vertically challenged(!) I doubt I could have seen it with a conventional scope and tripod.

The floodwaters hadn't noticeably changed since last week and the only extra birds of note were a single Great White Egret and two Ruff until one of the adult eagles arrived, frightened everything and then departed off towards Rook Wood where crows saw it off and a little later when seven or eight Egyptian Geese were keen to help it on it's way.

Further around, Libby was pointing out one of the 'Winpenny' Adders to everyone; it had crossed the path into a sunnier, warmer area. A little later a second one, curled up tight, was spotted nearer the hide before slithering away.

Maybe half a dozen Pochard were the only duck of interest on both the North and South Brooks.

Three each of Cettis and Chiffchaff were noisy.

Plenty of Brimstones on the wing all round the reserve and a single Peacock.

Lunch (pasty) on the tea terrace in t-shirt for the first time this year and some welcome vitamin D followed by the first Magnum icecream of the year!

Before leaving a quick check of  the bee slope produced lots of Early Colletes - I'm  sure these were probably my earliest ever.

(Woodcock below copyright B Clough)

The previous day, in similarly welcome bright conditions and just a local walk, produced a birdtrack list of 35 species in half an hour, the best being calling Firecrest in a back garden, a day-roosting Little Egret in the company of five terrapins and three noisy Cettis.

Some Andrena flavipes and a Hairy-footed Flower Bee were NfY and there were plenty of Honeybees on the gorse; curiously no early butterflies.

And the forecast for the next few days is back to wind and rain **sigh**.

Little on offer

Last week,  Tuesday, a short visit to Pulborough produced zilch; the water had receded a little but nothing on offer and, despite Adders having been seen days before, the weather was noticeably cooler and I couldn't find any.

The following day at Stansted, another brief visit, and just Raven, again in tall ornamental conifers.

This morning, soon after first light, a very healthy looking Red Fox casually strolled passed the bedroom window - almost within touching distance! - across the conservatory, along the top of the gate and off across the gardens.

Today, the first trip this year to Southsea Castle produced two Shag, one Great Crested Grebe and a Great Northern Diver but, sadly, no first-for-year Purple Sandpipers - my last here being thirteen months ago.

Hopefully this week's Pulborough visit (an SDOS walk) might produce more.

PS It's a shame that the Newlyn's Ross's Gull is so far as it would be a lifer!

Stansted etc

Two Buzzards in a blue sky over the SHGC car park and later a Raven into one of the very tall ornamental conifers (Sequoiadendron giganteum); ten minutes later it headed off - looked good for a nest site.

At Warblington St Thomas's car park was basically one big pond and exit from the south west gate was impassable without wellies.

All the fields seemed to be empty of cattle and hence the only Cattle Egret was a singleton from the east heading towards the mill pond.

Locally, the pond has overtopped, mostly into the fishing bays. Shovelers at exactly twenty are probably as high as they'll get this winter. In the sunnier, warmer spells three terrapins have been taking advantage of the rising temperatures.

Today the Brent numbered 650 ish.

  Birdtrack entry 

And as usual none of days have been dry; the day after tomorrow looks the best bet.

WWT again

With so much flooding and only a few hours available it was off to Arundel again rather than PB. Both Peregrines perched up on arrival at 10:30 were still sat there at 13:30 when I left. Much the same as last week in terms of numbers although the usual geese were joined by three partially white 'farmyard' types creatures which apparently arrived Monday.

Still about twenty or so Snipe in the usual spot, two Cattle Egrets, male and female Marsh Harriers getting frisky and chasing each other around out over the river and a brief Kingfisher flyby.

Passerine-wise pretty thin pickings with just male Stonechat, single calling Reed Bunting and three Skylarks.

Brief chat with Alex.

Birdtrack list here

Today was the first time in months I'd taken a camera out so a few pictures below.

A new month

After one of the wettest Januarys (6th wettest since records began), February has started with more of the same until today when a much quieter, brighter forecast was on offer.

The west side footpath from the castle northwards was so flooded you'd need wellies to reach the park benches and inside WWT the pumps were working full time.

The silt removal from the front pond seems complete and all the entrance reeds have been cut down so no Reed Warblers here in the summer!

Rather busier than usual with this weeks free entry due to World Wetlands Day.

The two Peregrines were soaring above the restaurant when I sat down disturbing a handful of Lapwing - over 100 were present later. Geese totalled 130+ mostly Greylags but including the regular four Cackling/Barnacle hybrids.

The scrape was birdless due to cutting and burning but the main pool held plenty of Teal and Shoveler, three Pochards and a single Pintail. Snipe were about 25 in the usual place and about 15 Cattle Egrets were flying over the river.

A brief fly past of one Kingfisher into the sun was just a tiny  black shape zipping past just inches off the water and it or another heard a couple of more times later.

Nice to meet up with GK and wife for the first time since well before Covid and also Lizzie although very sad to hear that Sam had left for pastures new a while back; it'll take them a long time to replace her expertise and enthusiasm.

Small birds were pretty absent although I think I could hear one or two Firecrests but drowned out by either people noise or the pump.

At least eight Buzzards were overhead intent on playing on the wind on such a nice almost spring-like day.

Snowdrops were just flowering.

A very brief visit two days ago in the rain to QECP prior to  bank visit saw the pond, leaking since it was installed a couple of years back, now being redone, hopefully better than last time. It will be interesting to see what might have survived this work come the summer.

Postcript:- According to staff this attempt is using a natural clay bottom rather than another liner

Pulborough

Today, a drive over to PB was in fine weather conditions with glorious blue sky until Houghton when, like last visit, the river valley mist thickened enough for front and rear fog lights. On arrival PW was 'booting up' and with none of the reserve visible we killed half an hour over coffee. Luckily the mist lifted remarkably quickly.

Out on the south brooks lots of wildfowl but nothing more interesting than two distant Marsh Harriers, both cream-crowns. Talking to others its seems most likely that last weekend's five Water Pipits were Meadows!!

At lunch one of the eagles was soaring out of view but went high and well behind us out of sight.

Nothing else of note although the usual Adder site had been well mown; only a few weeks until they reappear unless we have a cold snap.

What looked like another day of chaos on the A27 saw a police car running a rolling roadblock from Chichester until just after the four-miles-from-Havant sign due to a broken down vehicle.

Below a view of the floooding with at least four sections of the riverbank overtopping.