Busy rabbit..

Ridiculously busy at the Black Rabbit yesterday with only one car park space left at 2pm at the far end; and not much better two hours later. All of Mill Road jam-packed. Three Buzzards en route, plus a Long-tailed Tit flock in the garage forecourt area. Strange to be so close to WWT and not visit, something that's not happened for many a year.

Yesterday in glorious Indian summer weather, a circuit of the pond, lunch and lower circuit at the park. Ivy Bees were the most notable and abundant insects after Vespulas. Three hornets, Mellinus arvensis, Red-legged Shieldbug, Sargus flavipes female (specific ID via FB then off to irecord) plus good numbers of Small Copper on the heath and Speckled Wood in shadier spots. Water mint near the carpark was by far and away the most productive area with Tachina fera and numerous common hoverflies. The usual mixed flocks featured Chiffchaffs.

At QE Nowickia ferox, a few vocal Firecrests in a mixed flock, yet more Ivy Bees, Hornets, Southern Hawker and several Common Darters; still at least one Figwort Sawfly in the usual spot.

Today only half the moths of the previous catch, it being a cold clear night, with just L-album Wainscot and Brimstone in good nick.

Red-legged Shieldbug

Mellinus arvensis

Nowickia ferox

Sargus flavipes

A brief visit to Sidlesham produced little other than this flighty Spot'shank in the Long Pool, heard Greenshank, Whimbrel, Kingfisher. With a strong breeze in your face and the constant noise and vibration from traffic plus having the view obscured every few second by articulated lorries pushes this hide into joint worst along with Ivy North!! Small Tortoiseshell was the best of the few wind-blown inverts

Photogenic fungi...

Mostly birdless barring 500 (ish) martins (no obvious Swallows), heard only Kingfisher and Yellow Wagtail. The edges of the lichen heath butting up to trees and scrubs held the most insects but still little on a breezy, totally overcast day; a couple of Colletes spp, Eupeodes latifasciatus, Dasysyrphus albiostratus, Syrphus spp, Episyrphus balteatus, Eristalis tenax, Melanostoma spp; Small Copper and Small Heath.

Not able to find the Autumn Ladies Tresses despite RC's best efforts so either going blind or (hopefully) misinterpreted directions!!

Fuligo septica ( a plasmodial slime mould, sometimes known as troll butter) and Coprinellus micaceus group above - both beside the main path

A brief pre-dental half-hour at QE produced a few new looking Small Coppers, three blues all so badly worn they could have been anything(!!) and three Firecrests in a mixed flock including two which were singing well and one of which responded strongly to my pishing, giving nice binocular-less views.

Post-dental, a walk around Farlington in a strong westerly breeze over high-tide produced a few birds, notably waders on the lake. Estimates here were 500 Redshanks, 300 Black-tailed Godwits, 125 Black-bellied Plovers, twenty Dunlins, three Snipe, three Knot and twenty Pintail, some here below. On the deeps a fine juvenile Spotted Redshank was snoozing, some more Dunlin and twenty Ringed Plovers. Also, difficult to count, but about 50 roosting Little Egrets. The Osprey was on its usual North Binness perch giving rather better scope views than previously from Broadmarsh. Insectwise just Migrant Hawkers, this male Leafcutter bee and a few fresh Small Coppers, Small Heaths and Common Blues in more sheltered area.

On the last leg this Whichat and a nearby Wheatear were pretty much the only passerines other than M'ipit and Swallow.

And earlier no Deaths-head Hawkmoth for me, just the usual stuff, although six L-album Wainscots was as many as the rest of the summer's total.

'I' marks the spot...

Yesterday, off to the bank for another tedious session which resulted in more confusion but nice weather lightened the mood and three Buzzards were over the main road en route At the garden centre one or two invisible Tree Pipits went over as did a few Swallows, and a sunbathing Painted Lady was the first I've come across for a few weeks.  With various hovers in amongst the plants I rather wished I'd brought the camera and macro!! At Bosham, prior to a light lunch, two more Buzzards were circling up into the blue and causing a local Kestrel to go a-kek-kekking.

Today was another TH Temminck's twitch, this time successful, but typically as far from any hide as possible. Still Ruff, Greenshank and three or four each of Common and Green Sandpipers A nice Whinchat perched up at the north end for a few minutes, two Ravens were playfully soaring to the west with  Sparrowhawk for company and 150+ mixed hirundines were off to the north, mostly very high.

Highlight of the day were the first Ivy Bees near the roadside viewpoint.

Black Poplar feeding frenzy

The trap had just 25/14 with two fresh L-album Wainscots the best, one here above in egg box ; plus some more Box-tree Moths.

A shortish stint at Pulborough with Pete (Carey, Gary T, Celia etc) produced a smart, juvenile Marsh Harrier and a single Whinchat on the South Brooks, just one Platycheirus rosarum but precious few other hovers. With so little on offer,  a post-lunch jaunt to WWT  was a better option.

Typically lots of strimming noise throughout and the deafening sound of the Sand Martin lure with up to 50+ birds being attracted, although non were using the perches.  A Kingfisher appeared very close in the Little Crake 'cutting' and it or others were heard around the site; the Ramsar hide was 'staked out' with Kingfisher togs so didn't stay there long. A distant Red Kite, a female Peregrine and a flyby Mandarin were best-of-the-rest.

The as yet unstrimmed edges held plenty of Water Mint etc which in itself attracted lots of Heliphilus pendulus plus a few hybridus, three Rhingia campestris and mostly Common Carder Bees. Rather surprised not to encounter any Volucellas.

Finally, the Black Poplar area was smothered in passerines as it has been in previous early Septembers with lots of tits, Chiffchaffs, a couple of Willow Warblers, two Reed Warblers a Garden Warbler and two Cettis one of which was almost close enough to touch. Sadly, the best of the light was gone and the still well-leaved trees made photography pretty much impossible.

On packing up a nice chat with Claire who I've not seen in a while.

On the bright side the HA have finally repaired all the westbound A27 so no more dodging potholes at 70mph!!

Yesterday at TH was pretty fruitless being 'Temminck's- less' with the bird, unsurprisingly, reappearing briefly just before closing and then again today. No chance to revisit 'til Friday at the earliest. Singles of Ruff and Greenshank and Turnstones up to 70+.

Today was an Ivy Bee day at PHP but sadly none found just the Colletes spp above being one of very few. The Ivy was either insectless or swarming with Vespulas. A few Tachina fera (as above) and this Small Copper was about it; the 'insect-alley', as per last year, has been cleared ready for this weekend's SotH event.

A family of Egyptian Geese have five goslings about a week old, similar to this time last year and a dozen Cormorants were showing three coarse fisherman how it's done😀. A few calling and one or two singing Chiffchaffs, a single Swallow and barely double figures of House Martin.

Finally, a brief stop at Broadmarsh produced lots of Curlews feeding at the low tide and the expected Osprey perched up on North Binness.