Wheatears again!

A bit of a chequered week on the birding front. Sitting on a park bench at Little Common paid dividends in the form of a high level fly by of the juvenile Black Stork - well worth seeing. Onward to Dungeness where I managed to locate one of the juvenile White-winged Black Terns plus several other Black Terns. Success which was paid for in the much delayed journey home. 

Wednesday was a visit to the North Wall at Pagham where things seemed to be very quiet, and just the opposite at Church Norton where the volunteers were cutting the grass in the cemetery and the RSPB gardeners were in the field next to the hide. A vigil on the beach, just in case the Wryneck was still in residence, gave no reward.

Thursday left me with a dilemma - where to go? In the end I returned to the North Wall at Pagham, not because I expected the birding to have improved, rather than face the diabolical traffic situation to the east. Also, on our previous visit, I had noticed a veritable cornucopia of blackberries and sloes and I couldn't miss the annual "forage".

When I arrived at the North Wall I met Owen Mitchell and Peter Callis, both reporting that there was little to be seen. Over on Halsey's there was a large herd of cattle and I thought there would be a good chance of Yellow Wagtails that would offer a photo opportunity. On the way I managed to capture a good looking male Wheatear on the seaward side rocks. In the pool the successful brood of Tufted Ducks watched me warily as I passed by on the upper path. One of the juniors displaying a wacky hairdo and had obviously found his voice.

At the western sluice I spooked a very bright Kingfisher that paused briefly before heading off west along the stream. Looking out over the fields I located the cattle, all lying down in one corner and chewing the cud. Yellow Wagtails were in evidence  and as I approached they flew off, very skittish indeed. I sat down in the middle of some 60 beasts, their digestive processes getting the better of their curiosity as they left me alone. The wagtails returned - three or four at a time but none came close.

I returned to the harbour via Owl Copse where I encountered a superb male Redstart, loads of Common Whitethroats and several Lesser Whitethroats. The tide was now on the up and birds were relocating. At Breech Pool I had a raptor show, one of the juvenile Peregrines doing two stoops from a tremendous altitude, both of which proved fruitless. A Hobby was leading the Swallows a merry dance above the stables, superb aerobatics through the trees but unfortunately no lunch for him. 

Then a "bird of prey" of an altogether different kind put on a display, Spitfire KJ-I performing aerobatics, but not quite the standard of the Hobby.

 

 Several Wheatears were now on the wall and of course I couldn't ignore them.

The previous day the Swallows had been perching on the rails above the sluice and I thought I might improve my shots, Sod's Law prevailed, they had moved on to some far more comfortable perch elsewhere.

Pectoral Sandpiper

When there are lots of postings of Brown Hairstreaks  on the web it means that the butterfly season is ending and it is time to resume birding. So, today I did. Martin picked me up and we made for our trusted venue - Breech Pool on the North Wall at Pagham. It was really nice to see the pool looking as it should - a balance of mud and water - rather than the dusty desert that it had become earlier in the year. Plenty of birds too - good numbers of Lapwings and Black-tailed Godwits, several Snipe plus the usual mix of waterfowl.

Peter was in attendance and he had seen what he thought was a Little Stint but it had subsequently disappeared round the back of the pool. I managed to locate a Ruff in with a flock of Redshanks but alas no LS. Then a bird appeared on the mud at the eastern end of the pool and we were on it like a flash, neither of us considered that it was anything other than the aforementioned Little Stint. Later analysis and reports from other birders confirmed that we had been a tad hasty and that it was in fact a Pectoral Sandpiper. Seasoned birders will wonder how one can make such a mistake - well with small shorebirds I find it incredibly easy - best practice is to take as many shots as possible and perform hindsight analysis at home. Another 20 years of birding and I might get the hang of it - problem is I will need someone to push the wheelchair.

The bird was then joined by a cracking Ruff, beautiful plumage and colour, unfortunately the sun refused to shine and all my photographs lacked that much required feather detail. Still the Pec was a new one for me and it is good to be out birding again.

Another record today - at the back of the pool a colour ringed Black-tailed Godwit was roosting with a few of his companions, I try to record these birds when I find them and send off a  sighting report with an accompanying photograph. Today was no different except that I sent the report to José Alves  who rings birds on the Tagus estuary in Portugal. I received a detailed reply in 12 minutes!!

OG(flag) + OB was ringed as an adult male on 4.02.12 at Seixal Tank, Tagus Estuary, Setúbal, W Portugal and there have been 12 subsequent sightings in Holland, Belgium. Portugal and the UK.

Black Darter and Keeled Skimmer

Having been laid low by a summer bug I was left bereft of energy, I just couldn't face lugging the gear up and over the South Downs so I opted for a day on the flat. I kicked off at Stopham Bridge in the hope of a dragonfly or two - nothing doing whatsoever. In a bit of a dilemma I finally decided to give Thursley Common a go - at least the boardwalk is flat. As I parked up I was starting to regret even going out but as soon as I got my sights on a dragon I was away.  I finished a short stay with three "life" ticks - Black Darter, Keeled Skimmer and Small Red Damselfly. Also on the wing were Emperors, Southern Hawkers, Brown Hawkers, sundry Blue Damsels, Black-tailed Skimmer, Common Darter and Emerald Damselfly.

 

 

 

 

Not forgetting the Common Lizards that have recently acquired a new scientific name  -  Zootoca vivipara.

 

 

 

 

 
A Bog Bush Cricket

 And finally, a Sand Wasp, Ammophila sabulosa ( I think!)

The garden pond has been productive too, with newly emerged Blue-tailed Damselfly, Common Darter and Southern Hawker.

Brown Hawkers

Today started with a visit to Tilletts Fields in a search for a Brown Hairstreak, we searched diligently in perfect conditions, alas not a sniff, However we did have Silver-washed Fritillary, a nice but worn female, Purple Hairstreak, Holly Blue and the usual browns.

We departed for Lords Piece, hoping to catch up with some dragonflies. As our route took us near to Billingshurst we decided to take a detour via New Bridge on the A272 between Billingshurst and Wisborough Green. This is a noted site for dragons, giving you a choice between the River Arun and the Wey and Arun Canal which run alongside each other.

As soon as we climbed over the stile we could see Banded Demoiselles on the river, just a few but as the sun came out they were numerous. We decided that some of them should be captured so we spent some time chasing both males and females along the bank. Several Brown Hawkers were about and finally we were visited briefly by a coupled pair. I think this is the first time I have actually got a shot of a Brown Hawker that was stationary and in focus.

Martin found another dragonfly perched up in a Hawthorn tree, as we couldn't get close we were not sure of ID but it looked suspiciously like a Migrant Hawker.

 

Finally we left for Lords Piece where, as we parked, we could see plenty of active dragonflies hawking up and down the pond. We found Black-tailed Skimmer, Broad-bodied Chaser, Common Darter and several Emperors.