Butser Rouzel Hunt.

With mist and fog predicted, an early start seemed fruitless and so I arrived a little before 10:00 am when the radio mast was still hidden - but the mist was being burnt off very quickly.

A look around the usual area and down the southern slope produced nothing but M'ipits, Skylarks and plenty of Chiffchaffs in tit flocks. The first three Redwings of the autumn included one bird perched up nicely and later a couple of invisible Siskins flew over.

But no Ring Ouzels.

Down to QECP for coffee and a walk with lots more Chiffs and a heard only Marsh Tit.

Just about to leave when JD posted the male Ring Ouzel was showing, so back up to Butser where I had to wait until 12:15 for the smart male to show himself albeit briefly. A female type left the same patch of scrub and flew low to the right and vanished. A little later another 'black bird' did the same but was too quick to see if it was the male Rung Ouzel. Unlike most ouzel hunts these didn't utter a peep. 

Three kites put on a great display in the glorious light and were joined by two Ravens and a Kestrel. Two or three Stonechats, a couple of flyover Yellowhammers and another Marsh Tit near the parking meter were it for the day.

Oh, and for the first time no Clouded Yellows!!

Last seven days

Saturday 

Lunch with KM at Southwick with Sparrowhawk and Buzzard overhead. Later, a walk at Portsdown produced just Clouded Yellows and tatty Common Blues.

It wasn't until later when I got home and enquired via social media that I found out from PG that the recent Long-tailed Blues were a few hundred yards further west from where we walked!!

Monday

Home with car in for MOT.  Phew... passed, not even any advisories.

Wednesday

Popped to Arundel where MJ was the only cafe customer in a pleasantly quiet cafe. A female Kingfisher entertained us whilst we 'swapped notes'.

At SMH a Great White Egret fished briefly before flying off to perch in the egret/Cormorant tree. One of the adult White-tailed Eagles was very distant over the estate. A juvenile Peregrine flew past and a Hobby put in a couple of displays during the morning.

Plenty of Chiffchaffs all over the reserve and a Clouded Yellow but little else. 

(Digiscoped Mallard and GWE, Dark Bush-cricket)

Thursday

Short walk at Butser in glorious weather where, yawn(!) Clouded Yellows, about 25+ Skylarks, 100+ M'ipits, three kites, two Kestrels, one flyover Siskin and a couple of heard-only Yellowhamers. Sadly, no 'tuck-tuck' of Ring Ouzels from the Yews near the carpark and, worst of all, no cafe!!  EDIT Four R'ouzels behind cafe Saturday and two or more Sunday.

Lunch at SC with heard-only Marsh Tit, Goldcrest and Firecrest and just three or so remaining Hummingbird Hawkmoths on the now gone-over Buddleia. Despite the nice weather that may be the last of them for me.

(Possibly Phaeolus schweinitzii, Stictopleurus spp and Tachina fera)

Friday

Coffee at SHP with M. The only wildlife being a noisy Buzzard and a lady in the carpark rescuing a Pale Tussock moth caterpillar. I'd never seen one before but two days ago, and indeed today after returning home, there were videos and pictures of these caterpillars elsewhere. Had it not been for that I wouldn't have been able to provide the lady with a confident ID.

Saturday

Pagham ringing session. Too tired so failed to attend 

Sunday

Locally, Cetti's Warbler, several Chiffchaffs, a surprise calling Chaffinch - uncommon here - one very high Buzzard, a Grey Heron and a few Migrant Hawkers.

TH Monday and SHP Tuesday

 

The start of a week's worth of Indian Summer weather.

This week

This week saw the start of inbound M'ipits with the odd Grey Wagtail at home, on nature reserves and even on a Sainsburys visit!!

Still Clouded Yellows at all sites including a helice at the TH west entrance today.

Arundel, Wednesday, was very quiet with just good numbers of Chiffchaffs and a few Kingfisher sightings. A couple of hundred mixed hirundines soon dispersed.

Caught up with MJ.

Locally, a Cetti's Warbler was in the very dense reeds adjacent to the library.

Today at TH a long chat with DH about bats, bat recording and bat recorders and later with one of the volunteers; I was able to point out Kingfisher and Glossy Ibis to him but little else.

Found myself excluded from tomorrow's local bat walk as I don't have access to any 5 to 15 year olds!! No kids - then not welcome!! I wonder if the same applies to single women??

Local -  Syrphus spp male, Red-legged Shieldbug, Chicken-of-the-woods, Jumping Spider spp possibly Pseudeuophrys lanigera?

TH - Boletes spp, Common Carder and Dock Bug, Common Darter, Mallow spp - Musk?, Garden Cross Spider, Halictus rubicundus x2, Boletes spp

Titchfield and moths at home

A bit grey and breezy but dry. From inside Harbourside, and over a coffee, four Eiders were distantly visible. About a hundred Turnstones in the harbour along with the perplexing 1cy Black-headed Gull with ring TJXY - I thought the ring was a mucky blue but couldn't find anything close on CR Birding.

Better luck with two 1cy Med Gulls in close to Meon Shore Hide :- 

1) White EK84 - one of Renaud's but his out of office message indicates a wait of a month for a reply. 

2) Yellow 2205, a Solent bird so a response shouldn't be too long.

Chatted to Mark R, Tony, Ivor, Daz and Ian C.

The Glossy Ibis was on the river when I arrived and still there when I left.

Six Snipe jumped from the newly manicured shore in front of MSH as I opened the window and a little later this obliging Water Rail came out whilst a second called nearby. First attempt at hand-holding the Balance and the TG7 - not great but a record shot.

Three or so Sedge Warblers, one Common Sandpiper and one juvenile Marsh Harrier.

Prior to the above a moth trap produced 50/14 with fifteen Large Yellow Underwings but more surprisingly ten Clancy's Rustics - until today I'd only caught three in three years. Nothing else of note.

One lucky (?) moth-er in west Cornwall, with multiple traps, pulled in 1500(!) Large Yellow Underwings last night. Hellish !!

EDIT PP replied soon after getting back from Spain and the yellow ringed bird was processed on Nap Island as a youngster three months ago and was seen by others at TH yesterday. 

The Ivy Beee nesting bank along the steps up from the promenade was heaving with bees, the most I've  seen since the eradication by a pest controller a few years back. Difficult to do it justice in photos.

(Least Carpet and Clancy's Rustic from home)

More RSPB moths.....

 ... at Pagham. 

Arrived early and had a quick stroll to look over the Ferry Pool but didn't realise there were two Little Stints there but too close-in to be visible from the hide. By the time we'd finished with the moths they'd departed.

A few Blackcaps, one Sparrowhawk, one Greenshank and a couple of distant, calling Whimbrel were all I could find in 15 minutes.

The staff made my coffee and we chatted whilst waiting for other visitors to arrive; Ant obviously thought he'd give this session a miss.

Lots of moths from both Mike's home traps and the RSPB's one but nothing too exciting although Cosmopolitan and Scarce Bordered Straw were both new for me; Delicate may also have been new. Frosted Orange, Plumed Fan-foot and Vestal were best-of-the-rest. Hopefully a full list will be sent out in the not too distant future.

Headed back via SHP for lunch and then home.

Glad I went back for 'seconds'  of the shrike yesterday as it wasn't seen today.

Booked in for local bat walk and another ringing demo, this time at Pagham.

Rather envious of this morning's missed TH ringing session as Short-eared Owl and Honey Buzzard flew over!! I wonder what they caught?

EDIT Scarce Bordered Straw was new last Seprember with Chris at Selborne. Delicate wasn't new but I've not got a record of when I last saw this. Rolled Grass-moth (Pedisia contaminella) was new as was Euchromius ocellea.

EDIT 2 Sadly, the RSPB only listed the moths from that one trap and not Mike's etc.

(Scarce Bordered Straw, Vestal, Angle Shades, Plumed Fan-foot, Orange Swift, Dewick's Plusia)

Thursday and Friday Shrike

Went to collect car from dealership and decided to try to see the Red-backed Shrike at Farlington prior to weekly shop.

Bought a take-away coffee from the very twee Piaggio Ape in the car park. The smallest mobile coffee shop I've ever seen!!

Plenty of people at the shrike which had tucked itself away but it eventually came out and showed well. My first in the UK since the Hayling Oysterbed bird back in 2015.

With only Swaro 12x50s and overcast sky it was tough to pick through the waders. The high tide combined with much lower lake levels than last Saturday meant there were considerably more birds including Grey Plovers and Knot.

An Osprey was perched on North Binness and was seen hovering much nearer the east shore but still very distant.

A nice Wheatear was best-of-the-rest.

Friday out to SC for coffee with the usual audible only birds, Marsh Tit being the best. Still ten or more Hummingbird Hawkmoths.

Back to Farlington for much better views of the shrike with the Balance scope.

Osprey on the same tree as yesterday and still a couple of Curlew Sandpipers amongst the waders which also included a surprise Golden Plover plus much better views of a good number of Knot in better light than yesterday.

And, of course, still lots of Clouded Yellows.

I think the shrike was a site tick, the first here since the Eastern Olivaceous Warbler seven years ago.

On leaving, a Harbour Seal popped up just south of the carpark. 

Following photo courtesy/copyright photographer (Andy?)