27th - 30th July 2025

Wednesday, 30th July: Sunny periods and cloud through the day, but feeling quite warm and muggy, in a moderate WSW breeze 3-4.

Bilsham farm: A couple of afternoon visits to the local reservoirs, starting with the nearest one at Bilsham. There was nothing out of the ordinary today and it was all rather similar to my last visit, with just a single Common Sandpiper, six Tufted Ducks, five Little Grebes, a few Mallards and 20+ Coots. A small number of hirundines - Swallows, House Martins and Sand Martins - were coming and going to feed over the water - but the main difference was the number of gulls present, washing, preening and resting. There were c.120 Black-headed Gulls, 60 Herring Gulls, four Great Black-backed Gulls and a single adult Lesser Black-backed Gull, before about 60 Mediterranean Gulls began to arrive, dropping in from the fields. Nearby, a male Yellowhammer gave weak bursts of song and a Buzzard went over.

Common Sandpiper on Bilsham reservoir

Lidsey WTW area: The sewage works itself was rather quiet for birdlife, with three or four Swallows and a Pied Wagtail being the only birds of interest, but the nearby reservoir was more productive, although it is much smaller then the previous site at Bilsham. There were three Common Sandpipers present, plus four Little Grebes, six Gadwall, and two female Mallards each with a brood - one being of well grown young and the other much smaller ducklings - with nine other adults also present. Several House Martins and Swallows were also feeding over the water, a couple of Whitethroats were in the hedgerows and two Buzzards were soaring high above.

At Lidsey this afternoon: Common Sandpipers (top two), Gadwalls (lower) and Mallard with brood of young (bottom)

Monday, 28th July: Sunshine and cloud, but remaining dry in a pleasantly bright sort of day with a light to moderate W/NW breeze.

Climping Gap: I did a circuit taking in the Atherington - Bailiffscourt - old campsite areas, which produced a bit of variety, including a few Willow Warblers and a Yellow Wagtail - although none of the scarcer migrants I was trying for! My log below:-

Little Egret - 8

Grey Heron - 2

Curlew - 3W

Oystercatcher - 6

Mediterranean Gull - fewer today; c50 perhaps (no count)

Buzzard - 2

Great Spotted Woodpecker - 1

Green Woodpecker - 4

Skylark - 12

Swallow - 30+

Sand Martin - 20+

Yellow Wagtail - 1

Sedge Warbler - 1

Reed Warbler - 6

Blackcap - 2

Whitethroat - 12

Willow Warbler - 7 (one in full song several times)

Chiffchaff - 1

Greenfinch - 9

Linnet - 20

Yellowhammer - 2

At Climping this morning: (above) Common Buzzard, (below) Greenfinch, (lower two) Reed Warblers and (bottom) Sedge Warbler

Sunday, 27th July: Rather cloudy with some brighter intervals and a moderate N/NW breeze force 3-4.

Elmer Rocks: Having been away on a week's holiday I was still feeling a bit weary this morning after yesterday's late flight, but it was good to be back on the local patch again. However, there wasn't too much to report, apart from Mediterranean Gulls, which seemed to be everywhere. It was dead low tide and I scanned to the west with my scope, where several hundred Med's were present amongst the rockpools area at Middleton (M-o-S). I then walked as far as Poole Place, where I scanned east  along the beach and especially the rockpools nearby, and easily estimated 500 Med's present, as far as Atherington/Climping. Overall then I think a reasonable estimate from M-o-S to Atherington would be c.1000 Mediterranean Gulls, with several hundred Black-headed Gulls present too.

A single Common Gull was on Elmer beach, plus a couple of Oystercatchers, and two Sandwich Terns went west. A count of eight Little Egrets was made from Poole Place. Behind the beach were several Linnets, up to ten Goldfinches, four Greenfinches and two Green Woodpeckers, before I decided to move on.

Just a single Common Gull was on the beach at Elmer amongst the throng of other gulls.

Bilsham farm: A check of the reservoir for waders this morning produced just a single Common Sandpiper, whilst on the water were five Little Grebes, six Tufted Ducks, a female Mallard with a brood of five and 24 Coots, four of the latter having a prolonged dispute. Hirundines were more obvious today, with perhaps up to 30 Sand Martins and a dozen House Martins passing through and a few Swallows also visiting. Two noisy Green Woodpeckers and a Buzzard were also noted.

Common Sandpiper on Bilsham reservoir - the only wader present this morning

Little Grebes on the reservoir (with single Tufted, centre).

Tufted Ducks in eclipse plumage, now well into their moult

House Martin feeding over the water

Sand Martins (above and below) over the reservoir

21st July 2025

 Where is the latest blog news? 

For the info of all, I'm taking a short break, but the blog should be returning to normal by the coming weekend. 

Thanks for your continuing interest.. 

The Elmer Birder 

16th - 17th July 2025

Thursday, 17th July: Cloudy with sunny periods, hazy at times, but quite warm with a light SW breeze 2-3, increasing to force 4 later.

Elmer Rocks: It was slow going again, but the first returning Common Gull was of note, whilst a steady westward trickle of Mediterranean Gulls was going on, together with a few flocks along the beach, giving an estimated total of c.150 during my visit, whilst there were also 15 Sandwich Terns, with most heading west. There was little else of note, though an Oystercatcher went east and a flock of four Curlews went west, and a small flock of ten Linnets were along the back of the beach.

Common Gull on the beach, my first returning bird of the autumn (above), Sandwich Tern (centre) and Mediterranean Gulls flying west (bottom)....there was a steady trickle of them passing through this morning.

Wednesday, 16th July: A generally warm and sunny day with plenty of scattered cloud, but still rather blustery with a fresh W/SW breeze force 4-5.

Bilsham farm: A fairly typical mid-July day with not a great deal to report, but still one or two things of interest. On the reservoir there were no waders today, but two Great Crested Grebes had appeared since my last visit, whilst four Little Grebes, 11 Tufted Ducks and a female Mallard with her brood were also present. There was a gathering of 50 Herring Gulls of various ages, washing and preening, but one bird roosting/sleeping away from all the others had an obviously darker mantle and turned out to be a near-adult Yellow-legged Gull, before the whole lot spooked and flew off for reasons unknown. There was also a small movement of hirundines passing through, consisting of c.30 Sand Martins, half a dozen each of House Martin and Swallow and a couple of Swifts.

At Bilsham reservoir this morning: (above) Great Crested Grebe, (centre) House Martins and (bottom) sleeping Yellow-legged Gull, which eventually showed briefly before suddenly flying off with all the other gulls present.

Shripney area: My circuit took in the farm reservoirs here but it was not productive today, producing just two pairs of Little Grebes (one with three young still being fed), a female Mallard with a well-grown brood, a lonely juvenile Black-headed Gull and a few Coots. A Yellowhammer was singing and a couple of Whitethroats were also seen briefly, with a family party of Linnets along the main path. Two Buzzards were fairly active and were probably a pair, whilst a single Kestrel was more distant.

Buzzard at Shripney

13th - 15th July 2025

Tuesday, 15th July: Heavy grey cloud and a strong wind, W/SW force 5-6 gusting to 7 through the morning, with the occasional heavy shower but also interspersed with sunny interludes. 

Elmer Rocks: It was difficult trying to watch without being sheltered from the wind, so a sea-watch was the only practical option this morning. I managed to put in two hours, but overall it was a painfully slow, with Mediterranean Gulls dominating proceedings again. There were around 50 along the shore, with other small flocks also moving through in a mostly westward direction. Additionally, a flock of c.150 were just east of Poole Place on the rockpools area, with some departing as time went on....probably about 250 logged in total.

Offshore, there was a fair gathering of gulls feeding at some distance, with c.20 Gannets amongst them, of which about half were dark, juvenile birds. Several Sandwich Terns were also present, eventually drifting off westwards, whilst a single Curlew also headed west, but that was about it in my two hour session!

It was all about Mediterranean Gulls again this morning; with small flocks along the beach at Elmer (as above) and flocks heading westwards, (as below).

Monday, 14th July: A bit of a change; dry but with plenty of grey cloud and sunny periods in much fresher conditions, accompanied by a brisk wind W force 5, gusting SW 6 later.

Elmer Rocks: It was a notably slow morning bird-wise, with little offshore except half a dozen Sandwich Terns going west, plus a single Gannet, a Curlew, an Oystercatcher and a Little Egret all doing likewise.

As it turned out, the morning was again dominated by Mediterranean Gulls, which at first were widely spread out, feeding across Cudlow's field, just east of Poole Place. This cereal field, which just days before had singing Skylarks above, was suddenly harvested at the weekend, leaving it now as a stubble field. It seems the extreme warm weather has meant that harvesting is taking place early this year, so the fate of the Skylarks is unknown and they were silent today. However, the flock of c.400 Med Gulls, with a few more of other species therein, was soon disturbed when some EA workers turned up with a large digger and began working on the adjacent beach and groynes; after a while the birds dispersed in all directions, with most eventually re-locating to the Elmer side after some while.

There was little else to report; about ten Goldfinches, a couple of Greenfinches and several Linnets were around the telegraph wires, a couple of Blackcaps and a Whitethroat were heard in the hedges behind the beach and a Green Woodpecker and a Buzzard were seen.

(above) Curlew heading west offshore at Elmer Rocks, whilst (below) a team from the EA turned up with a massive digger, to commence beach works, and the resultant disturbance soon caused the flock of c.400 Med Gulls to disperse from Cudlow's field.

Sunday, 13th July: More of the same as the heatwave continues; very warm, sunny and dry, with a blue sky, little or no cloud and a light to moderate SE breeze 3-4.

Bilsham farm: An early visit this morning to a couple of the local reservoirs seemed the best bet, in the continuing hot and very dry conditions, so first up was a visit here. There was nothing special, but just a single Common Sandpiper and a bit of a wildfowl influx with 20 Tufted Ducks, a single Pochard, two Gadwall and three broods of Mallard with their respective mothers, plus five Little Grebes and 24 Coots. A few hirundines also visited briefly before passing through and I noted five Swallows, four Sand Martins and two House Martins. Other species logged included the regular Yellowhammer and Whitethroats, a Blackcap, a Jay and a Buzzard.

Common Sandpiper (above) and Tufted Ducks with Little Grebes on Bilsham reservoir.

Lidsey WTW area: The bird of the morning appeared just after I arrived, when a juvenile Cuckoo unexpectedly flushed from a hedge near the WTW entrance and flew over towards the oil well compound, before being lost to view. A small reservoir nearby held four Little Grebes, five Tufted Ducks and two female Mallards each with a brood of small ducklings, plus a post-breeding flock of 65 Black-headed Gulls, which contained three juvenile birds. Other species recorded included two Blackcaps, two Jays, two Pied Wagtails, six Swallows and two Buzzards.

Adult Black-headed Gulls with juvenile (above) and Mallard with brood of small ducklings at Lidsey

8th - 11th July 2025

Friday, 11th July: Hot, sunny and very dry, with little or no cloud and just a light E/SE breeze.

Elmer Rocks: A fairly early visit this morning to avoid the heat of the day and the many beach-goers. There were just a few Mediterranean Gulls about and many more Black-headed Gulls today, plus a Gannet and at least 16 Sandwich Terns that went west. More unexpected was a Grey Wagtail that flew east along the beach, almost overhead, then a single Teal which flew west offshore close in, followed soon after by a flock of 11 Shelducks that went east, quite some way out. Other species noted included a Little Egret on the beach, nine Oystercatchers on the rocks, a singing Blackcap and two Greenfinch at Poole Place and two Skylarks singing over a cereal field at Cudlow's, where they are probably nesting.

(above) Mediterranean Gull (right) with Black-headed Gulls at Elmer Rocks and (below) flock of 11 Shelduck heading east well offshore.

Thursday, 10th July: A very warm and sunny day with an almost cloudless blue sky, tempered by a light NW breeze, as nationally, we enter another period of heatwave.

Lidsey WTW area: On the small reservoir it was very quiet, with just three Little Grebes, two Tufted Ducks, several Coots, a female Mallard with a brood of young, three Pied Wagtails around the water's edge and a pair of Stock Doves likewise. Initially it was quiet at the WTW too, until a party of 35 Swallows appeared, often gathering on the overhead cables and clearly showing that birding autumn is underway. However, closer scrutiny of the flock revealed that a good number of the Swallows were juveniles, and also that two juvenile Sand Martins were amongst them on the wires, plus a juvenile Pied Wagtail also.

 Pair of Stock Doves on a reservoir near the WTW

  

(above) Swallows and two juvenile Sand Martins on the wires around the WTW and (below) two juvenile Swallows with a juvenile Sand Martin (lowest bird).

An early gathering of Swallows, with two Sand Martins amongst them, and also a juvenile Pied Wagtail (lower wire, next to bird with outstretched wings).

Bilsham farm: There were no waders present today on the reservoir, although the number of Little Grebes had increased to five and Tufted Ducks to 12, whilst the two female Mallard with their broods were still present. A few Swallows were flying over the water but it was quieter than my last visit, with the exception of gulls, where at least 50 Black-headed Gulls on the water were my first decent-sized post breeding flock, (and which included two juveniles) and there were also five Mediterranean Gulls, amongst the other regular gull species. The regular Yellowhammer, Whitethroats and a Chiffchaff were also recorded.

Mediterranean Gulls (centre) with Black-headed and Herring Gulls

Tuesday, 8th July: It was back to summery conditions today, with clear blue skies and just a little light cloud, though also with a fresh and slightly cool NW breeze force 4, taking the edge off the temperature along the coast.

Elmer Rocks: The morning was again dominated by Mediterranean Gulls, with many on the sea or resting on the rock islands, before the majority of them eventually moved off in flocks heading west. A reasonable count/estimate was of at least 350 birds, but totals could have been higher. Interestingly, the species may not have had a good breeding season this year, perhaps abandoning their continental nest sites early and heading for our south coast. I may have missed a few, but I only actually saw one fledged juvenile amongst the flocks today!

A total of ten Sandwich Terns were also seen, most heading west, as did a single Redshank and a Little Egret, whilst seven Oystercatchers were roosting on the rocks on the high tide.

 Elmer Rocks this morning: Just some of the Mediterranean Gulls on the rocks, and the sea, whilst (bottom) Oystercatchers were roosting on the rocks...note also the sleeping bird front left, which is actually a juvenile Med Gull and the only one I saw! 

Bilsham farm: A good deal more interest and activity on and around the reservoir today than during my last few visits, with early returning birds hinting that birding autumn is almost upon us. Two Common Sandpipers were feeding around the reservoir edges, whilst a striking Black Swan was a surprise, Tufted Duck numbers had increased to eight, and the family foursome of Little Grebes was again present, the young now growing fast.

A female Mallard with a brood of eight very small ducklings was new in, joining another Mallard with a slightly older brood. However, the new brood of little ones kept coming ashore onto the reservoir sides; this had not gone unnoticed by a Kestrel watching closely from the boundary fence - and before long it made a couple of quick swoops to try and take a duckling, but just failed, before the raptor was driven off by a Magpie. Around the hedgerows,  a Yellowhammer was singing again from its regular perch, a Chiffchaff, a Blackcap and two Whitethroats were heard, and other species included Green and Great Spotted Woodpecker, Swallows, a couple of Jays and two Buzzards.

Black Swan on Bilsham reservoir and (below) Common Sandpipers

Kestrel watching from the boundary fence, and being driven off by a Magpie after an unsuccessful attempt to snatch one of the Mallard ducklings below...