Pea-souper

Still hoping for MdeJ in the trap but all-time-low today with just a caddisfly and one L-bAM!!

Very foggy, so front and rear foglights on for part of the journey to Titchfield; amazing how many people driving with no lights at all!! The coast seemed a better bet than inland for improving weather and that proved to be the case with nice still warm and sunny weather by late morning.

First day for ages with no Red Admiral; plenty of Common Darters though, lots of diptera buzzing about but just Marmalade Fly and The Footballer representing hovers.

Two very noisy Kingfishers at Suffern Hide but limited visibility reduced time on this side.

On the west side a perched up Sparrowhawk, juvenile male and later it put in a spirited chase of a flushed Snipe coming within a couple of feet.

First five Golden Plovers (barely visible in photo)  of the winter plus 25+ Snipe, three Curlew and a very photogenic Water Rail for the 'togs.

Single Swallow and the odd ping from invisible Beardies.

Spot the Goldies!!

WWT etc

Over to Arundel where I'd forgotten it was half-term. An hour or so was enough with just Water Rail, a few Snipe, a couple of Kingfishers and a Sparrowhawk.
Still the odd Chiffchaff calling.

At Butser, fifteen or so Yellowhammers, four Bullfinch and two flyover Lesser Redpolls.
The communications tower was, at times, totally or partly hidden by low cloud with sometimes the top half visible and sometimes the bottom half only.

This Green Woodpecker was feeding on the turned-over soil outside Tern Hide with a few Pied Wagtails, single Grey Wagtail and one or two Rock Pipits.

Walter White was on the far shore with five Little Egrets and a few Grey Herons, one of which took exception and chased him off along the north shore.

The juvenile Osprey appeared out of thin air, very low, and landed in the shallow water over a shingle bar separating two 'Cormorant Islands'. Here it stayed for 20 minutes bathing before departing southwards with a few gulls and Lapwings in pursuit.

The very monochrome looking Black-necked Grebe was distant; a Curlew (maybe last week's bird?) was present on an island and called a few times as it was flushed by the Osprey.

Just one or two Hornets in a brief visit to the south side.

Pavement Plover aka Arenaria interpres pedestrianus,  a shore-feeding Pied Wagtail maybe with aspirations to be a wader!

A smart but unidentifiable ichneumon and some large and obvious fungi along the boardwalk, waiting FB identification (Gymnopilus junonius, probably).

First day here for a while with neither Sprawk nor Marsh Harrier. Quite quiet on scrapes due to ongoing work - just a few Snipe, 15 Wigeon and 25 (ish) Pintail. About twenty or so Ringed Plovers came in at high tide.

A Rock Pipit on the groynes and 100+ Brent Geese plu these Pintail dropping in.

Briefer than usual visit to Butser with little or no birdlife; a large group of Rooks had a strikingly white-winged individual amongst the. Several Goldcrests around carpark.

At QECP the sun came out and the well illuminated trees were reminiscent of a New England Fall. The pond was alive with egg-laying Common Darters.

At Iping just two Dartford Warblers, some flyover Siskins, a couple of Buzzards. No sign yet of any Great Grey Shrike.

Only hovers were Syrphus spp and only butterfly a Red Admiral; also plenty of Fly Agaric, mostly chewed or knocked over.

On the way back one of the QECP buzzards was very low over the A3.

PBDD

Moth trap - just two specimens - this Red-line Quaker was at least NfG (158). Will that be the last NfG for 2016?

Rubbish drive to Pulborough stuck behind big, slow traffic - so taking an hour.

On site, two calls and a subliminal view of the Yellow-browed Warbler, single Marsh Harrier (cream-crown), White-fronted Geese (up to 15) Sparrowhawk causing a stir amongst the grotty, white doves and late in the day a very brief Ring Ouzel.
Something like 75+ each of Linnets and Goldfinches out by the river bank.

Insect wise Southern Hawker, Migrant Hawker, plenty of Common Darters and Hornets, single Red Admiral but no obvious Ivy Bees on the few patches of Ivy I checked.

Very fit and well-antlered Fallow Buck in Uppertons Field with just one doe.
Pretty much the same journey back but this time slow oldies rather than lorrues