Shoreham area (01-06 November 2011)

Tuesday 1-Friday 4 November 2011:  One or two peregrines were seen on Southwick Power Station chimney each morning on the way to work with 35 Greenfinches on the beach on 2nd.

Saturday 5 November 2011:  A visit to the Adur at low tide produced a Little Egret, Peregrine, 56 Ringed and a Grey Plover, 28 Dunlin, 400 Herring Gulls (of which 5 were colour-ringed) and a delightful Kingfisher catching a very small fish.

local Herring Gull A2FA, previously seen on the Adur in July and December 2010.  It was ringed as an orphan in Hastings in August 2003 and was seen in Cambridge that winter before returning to the South Coast where it was seen at Hastings in September 2005 and Dungeness in April 2007

local Herring Gull A3KA roosting on a sandbar in the River Adur at low tide

North Thames Herring Gull AR4T at low tide roost

North Thames Herring Gull UT7T, previously seen on the Adur in August, it was ringed at Pitsea as a 3CY on 19 March 2011

North Thames Herring Gull YW7T, previously seen on the Adur on 27 November 2010 having been ringed at Pitsea as a 1CY on 6 November 2010.

Little Egret hunting in the Adur at low tide

success!

few British birds are as good as this

Sunday 6 November 2011:  A couple of hours on Mill Hill produced a Sparrowhawk, 70 Wood Pigeons, 3 Redwing, a Siskin and 12 Redpolls.  A visit to the Adur at low tide produced a Little Egret, 98 Greater Black-backed Gulls (of which 3 were colour-ringed) and the Kingfisher put on another good display although the light was much poorer.

Norwegian Greater Black-backed Gull JY22, prevoiusly seen on the Adur in November 2010 and intermittantly since miod September 2011

Presumed Normandie Greater Black-backed Gulls 68H an d98H (not to be confused with H86 & H89!) roosting on the Adur at low tide

Kingfisher - still a stunner in poor light but rather less photogenic