Pagham, Cuckmere and Beeding Hill (01-03 September)

Friday 03 September. I took Cookie up to the Beeding Hill car park where we met David Buckingham. We walked along the Monarchs Way, difficult at first looking at Wheatears against the bright light, then up to Truleigh Hill. There, after checking the horse paddocks, we parted with DB heading back and Cookie and I returning on our more leisurely route via Room Bottom and the small quarry. An enjoyable day with fairly typical sightings I saw Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, 2 Kestrels, Sand Martin, 60 Swallows, 6 House Martins, 2 Long-tailed Tits, 5 Chiffchaffs, Blackcap, 3 Lesser and 5 Common Whitethroats, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, 2 Redstarts (one a smart adult male), 12 Whinchats, 2 Stonechats, 38 Wheatears, 4 Meadow Pipits, 10 Linnets and 30 Goldfinches. Surprising, given the numbers seen recently, no Yellow Wagtails crossed my path.

Wheatears along the Monarch's Way

Thursday 02 September. Megan and I took Cookie to Dacre Gardens from where we walked up the Adur to Bramber and back along the west of the valley. Few birds were seen but included 3 Common Sandpipers, a Raven and 9 Pied Wagtails. Back home news that yesterday's Wryneck at Cuckmere Haven had been seen again had me planning how best to approach it. Megan was out so I decided to take Cookie. We parked near Chyngton Farm and walked over into the Cuckmere and up to what used to be the Golden Galleon (no free parking there now), across the A259 bridge and back down the eastern river bank. It took about an hour to reach the beach and fortunately someone was watching the Wryneck when we arrived. It gave reasonable, if a little distant and sometimes rather obscured views, between periods of feeding on the ground out of sight. After a little over an hour and knowing it was low tide we left for the river mouth. Cookie didn't need too much encouragement to wade across with me, the 6-9 inch water reaching up to her middle. She even seemed to enjoy it despite her normal aversion to any water more than 3 inches deep. Returning along the west bank we saved about 20 minutes by not having to go as far as the A259. Other birds seen in the Cuckmere included 18 Ringed Plover, 22 Dunlin, Common Sandpiper, a Merlin, 4 Whitethroats, 2 Whinchats,  3 Wheatears, 33 Yellow Wagtails and 6 Rock Pipits.

Wryneck at Cuckmere Haven

Cookie having crossed the mighty Cuckmere

going back for seconds

distant Merlin in the Cuckmere

Yellow Wagtails in the Cuckmere

the white supercilium and appearance of black lores might suggest some Blue-headed influence

Wednesday 01 September. I met David Buckingham in Steyning and he took me to Pagham where we spent 8.5 hours birding at Sidlesham Ferry, the Severals (sadly no Wryneck), Church Norton nd the North Wall. An enjoyable if not completely successful day. We saw 7 Shoveler, 3 Pintail, 2 Swifts, 3 Avocets, Grey Plover, a Bar-tailed and 90 Black-tailed Godwits, 3 juvenile Curlew Sandpipers, 8 Spotted Redshanks (5 on the Ferry and 3 on the Breach Pool), 2 Greenshank (including the returning small-billed bird in Whyte's Creek), 4 Mediterranean Gulls (one each of juvenile, first-summer, second-summer and adult), a distant adult Yellow-legged Gull, a Sandwich Tern, about 25 Cattle Egrets, a Hobby (roosting on Tern island then hunting over Church Norton), Kingfisher, Reed Warbler, a Lesser and 9 Common Whitethroats, 4 Spotted Flycatchers, 3 Redstarts, 5 Whinchats, 6 Wheatears and 25 Yellow Wagtails.

Dunlin and Curlew Sandpiper on Sidlesham Ferry

Curlew Sandpiper about as close as they came

Spotted Redshank on Sidlesham Ferry

Spotted Redshank in the Breach Pool where the water level is much improved

the short-billed Greenshank in Whyte's Creek