Uninspiring Adur wanderings (28 June-05 July)

Monday 05 July. Cookie and I walked our Beeding Hill triangle - from the car park along the Monarch's Way towards Thundersbarrow, up to Truleigh Hill and over to view the Weald then back along the rim of Room Bottom. I recorded 29 species, the lowest since March, previous visits since then have been between 30-34. Highlights were 2 Swifts, 3 Buzzards, 2 Peregrines, 45 Sky Larks, 4 Swallows, 9 Whitethroats, 9 Meadow Pipits, 11 Linnets and 4 Corn Buntings. Above Room Bottom I saw what looked like a female Dark Green Fritillary but it only landed momentarily and then shot off. At home Megan, from the kitchen window, noticed an Elephant Hawk Moth on our fence. It remained into the evening.

Corn Bunting from the Monarch's Way

view north from Truleigh Hill escarpment

Meadow Pipits near Truleigh Hill

Bagot flock on Beeding Hill

Elephant Hawk Moth

'bird' of the week for me, by along way

Sunday 04 July. Megan and I took Cookie to Brooklands. The forecast was for drizzle although it didn't materialize while we were out. We saw the Mute Swan parents with their 7 cygnets, 2 Swifts, Little Grebe, Kestrel and 5 Reed Warblers. Cetti's Warbler and Chiffchaff were heard and the few gulls were all Herring. Two Stock Doves visited the garden, 2 Great Black-backed Gulls were on a nearby roof and a very tame Robin and 2 Goldfinches were at the allotment.

Coot on Brooklands

allotment visitor

Saturday 03 July. Megan and I took Cookie up to Mill Hill. We saw 2 Buzzards, 2 Kestrels, 2 Sky Larks, 13 Whitethroats and 2 Yellowhammers and heard 2 Chiffchaffs, Blackcap and the Lesser Whitethroat. Marbled Whites and Pyramid Orchids were much in evidence. Walking Cookie up our road in the afternoon a Swift flew over. over the garden in the evening.

Friday 02 July. Cookie and I walked along West Mill, out to the Downslink and back. I saw single Swift, Grey Heron, Sparrowhawk, 2 Buzzards, Kestrel, 2 Sky Larks, 4 Swallows, Chiffchaff, 4 Blackcaps, a Lesser and 5 Common Whitethroats, 3 Reed Warblers, male Stonechat, Greenfinch, 2 Linnets, 3 Yellowhammers and 6 Reed Buntings. Great Spotted Woodpecker and Nightingale were heard, the latter a single croaky call. No Turtle Doves, Lapwing or Cetti's Warblers were recorded. 

Beautiful Demoiselle along West Mill

Stonechat at West Mill

Reed Bunting at West Mill

Thursday 01 July. Megan and I took Cookie up to the Lancing Ring car park and walked from there to Steepdown and back. We heard a Quail (from the eastern footpath) and Yellowhammer and saw Buzzard, 9 Sky Larks, Chiffchaff, 15 b, male, female and juvenile Stonechat, 7 Meadow Pipits, 23 Linnets and 21 Corn Buntings.

Marbled White at Lancing Ring

Coombe Head from Steepdown

Cissbury Ring from Steepdown

Corn Bunting on Steepdown

Sky Lark on Steepdown

Steepdown from Lancing Ring

Wednesday 30 June. Megan and I took Cookie up to Mill Hill. I saw single Swift and Kestrel and 6 Common Whitethroats hearing 2 more, a Lesser Whitethroat, 4 Chiffchaffs and the Yellowhammer. Walking Cookie up our road in the afternoon a Sparrowhawk flew over but despite reasonable weather no Swifts were seen over the garden in the evening.

Tuesday 29 June. Walking from Harbour Way along to the Adur Ferry Bridge and back along the boardwalk and around the Fort with Megan and Cookie was expectedly quiet with Oystercatcher, a pair of Lesser Black-backed Gulls with two quite large chicks, a Gannet offshore, 4 Pied Wagtails and 3 Goldfinches.

Megan at Harbour Way

young Lesser Black-backed Gull on a roof opposite

Monday 28 June. At low tide Megan and I walked along the sandy beach from Widewater to Lancing and back. Other than 9 Sandwich Terns offshore, some resting on yellow buoys, we saw just a single Mute Swan on Widewater. In the evening 2 Swifts were seen over our garden during a brief dry spell.

a reminder that at its nearest point Rampion is over 8 miles off the Sussex coast