Shoreham area and Sherwood Rough (08-19 February 2026)

Sunday 08 February 2026. Widewater seawatch 07:45-09:15, light SE, clear and cold: Eider 1E (male), Common Scoter 1E, Great Crested Grebe 2 on sea, Kittiwake 2E:1W, Razorbill 3E, Red-throated Diver 35E:5W:8 on sea, diver sp. 4E (1 thought likely Black-throated), Fulmar 1E, Gannet 7E:1W. Harbour Way: Black-headed Gull T13H. Shoreham Harbour/Fort with Megan and Otis: Purple Sandpiper and Rock Pipit.

Purple Sandpiper at the base of the Western Arm of Shoreham Harbour

Black-headed Gull T13H at Harbour Way, a bird I'd previously seen here in February 2022. It was ringed in Poland in April 2020 when it was an adult and seen there in April 2021 and elsewhere in Poland in June and July 2025

Monday 09 February 2026. Cissbury with Megan and Otis: Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers, 8 Skylarks, single Linnet and male Yellowhammer. Sullington Way before dusk with Otis: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets.

Lord Derby's Parakeet above Sullington Way

Tuesday 10 February 2026. Adur Toll Bridge to Widewater with Otis: 5 Coot, 8 Little Grebes, 101 Lapwings, 2 Grey and 17 Ringed Plover, 37 Dunlin, 25 Turnstones, Greenshank and 250 Black-headed, 2 adult Mediterranean, 130 Common and 850 Herring Gulls. Sullington Way before dusk with Otis: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets.

Wednesday 11 February 2026. Widewater seawatch 08:00-09:30, mod/strong WSW, viz < Rampion: Pintail 1 prob. E, Great Crested Grebe 2 on sea, Oystercatcher 2E, Ringed Plover 4E, Dunlin 8E, Guillemot 1W, Razorbill 1E:6W, Red-throated Diver 2E, Fulmar 1E, Gannet 2W, Shag 1E, Cormorant 4 offshore. 

Thursday 12 February 2026. Shoreham Harbour (East side, breakwater closed) with Otis. 6 Cormorants.

Friday 13 February 2026. Adur with Otis: Little Grebe, 5 Oystercatchers, 60+ Lapwings, 3 Grey Plover, Dunlin, 6 Turnstones, Common Sandpiper (from Toll Bridge), 6 Redshank, 250+ Black-headed and 5 adult Mediterranean Gulls. Sullington Way before dusk with Otis: female Lord Derby's on its own.

Mediterranean and Black-headed Gulls on the Adur

nice to have my camera back - Dunnock by the Adur

Saturday 14 February 2026. Mile Oak/Truleigh Hill circuit with Otis: 28 species including 100+ Stock Doves, 2 Red Kites, Buzzard, Green Woodpecker, 2 Kestrels, 2 Ravens, 20+ Skylarks, 2 Song Thrushes, Redwing, 4 Stonechats, 15 Meadow Pipits and a flock of 450+ Linnets in set-aside/supplementary feeding. Sullington Way before dusk with Otis: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets. Crown Road: 1000+ Starlings flying E to roost.

large Linnet flock at Perching Manor Farm set-aside

countable part of the Linnet flock (195 birds here)

more of the Linnet flock

Ring-necked Parakeet above Sullington Way

Sunday 15 February 2026. Sullington Way before dusk with Otis: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets.

Monday 16 February 2026. Adur/Saltings at high tide with Megan and Otis: 25 Teal, single Little and Great Crested Grebes (latter opposite airport), 2 Oystercatchers, 2 Grey Plovers, 150 Common Snipe and 40+ Redshank.

Tuesday 17 February 2026. Sherwood Rough with RP, 11:10-15:00, noisy & muddy due to forestry work: 4 Stock Doves, 3 Buzzards, Kestrel, 2 Chaffinches, 8 Hawfinches, 3 Linnets and Crossbill and Siskin heard. Rackham Watchpoint with RP: 2 Egyptian Geese, 50+ Pintail, 100+ Teal, 500+ Lapwing, 4 Great Egrets, 2 White-tailed Eagles (adult & immature) and Coal Tit heard.

Wednesday 18 February 2026. Adur with Megan and Otis: Little and Great Crested Grebes, 95 Lapwing, 2 Grey Plover and a Dunlin.

Thursday 19 February 2026. Mill Hill with Megan and Otis: Buzzard, Green Woodpecker heard, 5 vocal Skylarks, 2 Song Thrushes, 8 Redwings and 9 Goldfinches. The Herdwicks had been moved on since our last visit.

Caspian Gull confusion in the Shoreham area (28 January-07 February 2026)

Wednesday 28 January 2026. Adur with Megan and Otis: Little Grebe, 105 Lapwing, 2 Grey Plover, 83 Dunlin, the adult Little and 2 adult Mediterranean Gulls, Skylark heard, Chiffchaff and Rock Pipit.

Thursday 29 January 2026. Widewater, 08:10-09:40 in mod SE: Brent Goose 22E, Common Scoter 4E, Red-breasted Merganser male and female E then W, Kittiwake 2E:6W, Razorbill 5E:2W: 4 on sea, auk sp. 7E, Red-throated Diver 5E:35W, Black-throated Diver 1E, Fulmar 1E:1W (crossed paths) and Gannet 25+ offshore. Widewater lagoon-Lancing Beach Green with Megan and Otis: just 20 Mute Swans, red-head Goosander, 4 Little Grebes, Moorhen and 7 Coot.

red-head Goosander on Widewater

Friday 30 January 2026. Stock Dove in our garden. Adur, very wet afternoon low tide with Otis: 2 Little Grebes, 108 Lapwing, 200+ Black-headed and 540 Common Gulls, a classic first-winter Caspian Gull and another first-winter with seemingly minor imperfections (some barring on greater coverts and rather coarse mantle plumage which might have been due to it being rather wet).

first-winter Caspian Gull on the Adur. Phone-scoped in heavy rain, My usual camera is in for repair (water damage) and the old backup inexplicably switched to 'macro' mode after 2 images. I had taken a small camera for emergency use with my scope but its battery only managed 3 unusable images before dying.

it had a colour ring (I thought green R|C) from a mixed colony in the Netherlands

it looked like a classic first-winter Caspian Gull to me with a black bill, sloping forehead, clean white head and underparts, greyish mantle, brown unbarred coverts, thin white edges to tertials, black primaries and long pale flesh legs. Despite all that it came back as a hybrid Herring x Caspian Gull ringed as a chick at Bataviahaven, Lelystad, Flevoland, Netherlands on 31 May 2025. It rather dented my confidence in identifying even what seem to me rather obvious Caspian Gulls until a week later the ringing group contacted me saying the gull's ring was actually R|G which is a pure Caspian Gull

also in the flock was another first-winter Caspian Gull contender (front right) that looked good structurally but with courser plumage which I put down to it being wet although I'm not sure that explained the barring on its outer greater coverts

Saturday 31 January 2026. Widewater seawatch 08:10-09:10, clear, bright, mod S: Teal 10E, Common Scoter 4E,  Red-breasted Merganser 5E? (very distant), Great Crested Grebe 2 on sea, Kittiwake  8E:17W (3 juvs), Guillemot 1W, Razorbill 5E:59W:16 on sea, Red-throated Diver 14E:7W, diver sp. 5E:1W and Gannet 26W. On lagoon: red-head Goosander, 11 Little Grebes, Moorhen, 7 Coot. Buckingham Park with Megan and Otis: Stock Dove and a drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker. Adur, late afternoon low tide: Little Grebe, 96 Lapwing, Common Sandpiper, adult Mediterranean, 300 Black-headed and 250 Common Gulls. Also better views of yesterdays imperfect first-winter Caspian Gull. With better views (it not being wet for a start) it appeared to have more imperfections than I'd previously noticed and might be best referred to as what some are calling 'Cactus' Gulls (cachinnans x argentatus). Thanks to Dave Cooper and Matt Palmer for comments.

yesterday's Caspian contender not looking quite so convincing in better weather with a full set of barred greater coverts on its right side. Back up camera no longer on macro!

Sunday 01 February 2026. Shoreham Fort/Boardwalk with Megan and Otis: 3 Turnstones on the West Arm and a Red-throated Diver on the sea. Sullington Way: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets in their favoured tree late afternoon.

Monday 02 February 2026. Southwick Canal with Megan and Otis: nothing of note. We had intended crossing the lock gates to walk to the harbour's Eastern Arm but first the small lock was closed to us then just as it was opening the large lock closed to pedestrians. Memories of being stuck on the way home from work for 10-15 minutes in poor weather made us divert to Southwick Canal. We were level with the Power Station by the time the lock gates opened.

Tuesday 03 February 2026. Shoreham Harbour East Arm with Otis: Great Crested Grebe on sea, 2 Purple Sandpipers (one on East Arm, one below wooden jetty, 13 Turnstones, 51 Razorbills, 17 auk sp, 20 Gannets and 6 Cormorants. Shoreham College: Jay. Sullington Way: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets in their favoured tree late afternoon

Scottish trawlers returning to Shoreham Harbour

The Cornelis-GertJan passing the wooden jetty where it disturbed one of the two Purple Sandpipers there causing it to fly onto the East Arm

Purple Sandpiper on the East Arm of Shoreham Harbour

Wednesday 04 February 2026. Rackham Woods, brief scan of Amberley Wild Brooks and Parham Park with Megan and Otis: 2 Egyptian Geese, 100+ Wigeon, 20+ Pintail, 500+ Lapwing, very distant White-tailed Eagle sat in a tree, 2 Red Kites, 7 Buzzards, Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers, Jay, Coal Tit, Nuthatch heard, Treecreeper, Redwing and 4 Goldfinches.

Thursday 05 February 2026. Buckingham Park with Megan and Otis: Goldcrest. No sign of any parakeets late afternoon.

Friday 06 February 2016. Adur with Megan and Otis: Little Grebe, 110 Lapwing, 2 Grey Plover, adult Mediterranean, 34 Great and 6 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Jay, Skylark heard singing (thanks to new hearing aids, still couldn't see it though), 2 Meadow Pipits and a Goldfinch. With camera mended I took Otis to look for the parakeets, both were present above the Sullington Way bus stop late afternoon.

Lord Derby's Parakeet keeping an eye on Otis and me as we loitered at Sullington Wat bus stop

Ring-necked Parakeet companion

Saturday 07 February 2016. Brooklands with Megan and Otis: 15 Moorhens, 60 Coot, Kestrel, Jay heard, Coal and Long-tailed Tits and 2 Chaffinches. Sullington Way: female Lord Derby's and male Ring-necked Parakeets in their favoured tree late afternoon.

both parakeets