22nd - 25th August 2025

Bank Holiday Monday, 25th August: After a fresh and slightly chilly start, it soon became a very warm and sunny day - and a Bank Holiday at that (!) - with prolonged sunshine, blue skies and a moderate SE breeze 3-4.

Bilsham farm: An early morning visit to the reservoir found it to be similar to my last visit, with three Common Sandpipers and two Pied Wagtails around the edges, and ten Little Grebes, two Mallard, a drake Pochard and 11 Tufted Ducks on the water. A mixed flock of hirundines was present; mainly Swallows but with a few House and Sand Martins, whilst at least two Willow Warblers were in the hedges.

Common Sandpiper (and Coot) at Bilsham reservoir

Climping - Atherington: It was notably quieter here this morning, during a fairly short visit, my highlights being a total of four Spotted Flycatchers, one at Bailiffscourt and three together in the trees at a nearby uncultivated field,  and also two Redstarts.  These apart, I logged just four Whitethroats, two Blackcaps, three Willow Warblers and a Chiffchaff, with 50+ Swallows and about 20 House Martins over the fields.

(above) Spotted Flycatcher at Bailiffscourt and (below) Spotted Flycatchers in the trees at an uncultivated field, Atherington.

Saturday, 23rd August: Another fairly calm and pleasant day of sunny periods and cloud after a cool start and still remaining very dry. Wind light to moderate N/NW at first, soon becoming variable then backing to S/SW 2-3.

Climping - Atherington: Another early visit to the Atherington area, which started rather slowly but soon picked up when I re-visited yesterday's Pied Flycatcher site. It wasn't long before a Pied Fly showed, using the same hedge to drop down for a quick feed in the field, then returning to the safety of the hedge. However, any doubts I had had about two birds being present were quickly dispelled when I got a view of the two birds simultaneously dropping into the field, albeit well spaced apart, before one and then the other returned to the hedge. Also present were two Redstarts, one an obvious male.

I made a check of other areas and the set-aside for migrants, recording just a few Whitethroats, Blackcaps, Willow Warblers and a couple of Chiffchaffs, plus low numbers of hirundines, but including about five Swifts, but otherwise there was nothing exciting to report and I decided to move on.

Pied Flycatcher at Atherington this morning

Bilsham farm: There were three Common Sandpipers and two Pied Wagtails around the reservoir this morning, whilst on the water were nine Little Grebes, a couple of Mallard, three Pochard and 12 Tufted Ducks. A good number of hirundines were visiting to feed over the water before moving on, and in the time I was there at least 150 Swallows, 30 House Martins and 20 Sand Martins passed through. A couple of Linnets were on the perimeter fence, one of which was joined by two Willow Warblers, with a couple more of the latter nearby. A few Goldfinches and Greenfinches were also around but nothing out of the ordinary.

Common Sandpipers at Bilsham reservoir this morning (plus Pied Wagtail in lower image)

House Martins over the reservoir (above), Linnet with two Willow Warblers on reservoir fence and family of Goldfinches

Friday, 22nd August: A pleasant sunny morning, still very dry, but with the brisk NE wind that has dominated for some while finally abating, backing to a fairly light to moderate SW force 3-4.

Climping - Atherington: At last a change from the blasting north-easterly, and with it a change of fortunes which produced an interesting morning. I stayed in the Atherington area, initially finding a few of the commoner migrants, including three Chiffchaffs, each one singing briefly, until I stumbled across a pocket of activity in a long hedgerow near to the Bailiffscourt entrance.

First up was a female-type Redstart, before a second bird, a male, also appeared. As I was scanning, a more brown and white bird appeared, flicking out of the hedgerow to feed briefly on the ground, then back again, although more distant - but the white wing flash gave away its identity as a Pied Flycatcher. This sudden excitement saw me trying to watch whilst grabbing a few photo's - never my strong point - but I got some sort of images. 

Later, it transpired there were at least three Redstarts along this hedge and a fourth nearby, whilst what I assumed was the same Pied Flycatcher showed better and nearer, still flicking out of the hedge, to feed briefly on the field, then back again. However, on this occasion it struck me that the flycatcher seemed to show much more black in the wing than I recalled from my first views and I began to wonder if in fact there were two different birds, although I never actually saw them in the same field of view and hesitate to say for certain.

There were also a number of other migrants logged through the morning, as per my log below:-

Grey Heron - 1

Sandwich Tern - 2

House Martin - 25+

Buzzard - 3

Swallow - 50

Sand Martin - 20+

Swift - 1

Green Woodpecker - 3

Yellow Wagtail - 1+ heard

Wheatear - 6

Whinchat - 1

Skylark - 12

Pied Flycatcher - 1+

Redstart - 4

Whitethroat - 5

Blackcap - 2

Willow Warbler - 6

Chiffchaff - 3 (all briefly singing)

Pied Flycatcher in the field at Atherington, where it was back and forth to the hedgeline

This poor, rather blurry and fairly distant image of the initial flycatcher view seems to be different from the above two views, but it is hard to be certain.

Male (above) and female Redstarts this morning

Wheatears at Climping (lower pic with Blue Tit) and (bottom) Whinchat

19th - 21st August 2025

Thursday, 21st August: A brighter sort of day, with plenty of sunshine and white scattered cloud, but still with a brisk NE wind force 4-5, taking the edge off the temperature in unsheltered locations. 

Elmer Rocks: Only limited time available today, but an hour or so was enough, as wader numbers were much reduced after yesterday's good totals. I logged just a dozen Oystercatchers, 25 Ringed Plovers and a couple of Sanderlings, but I struggled to find a single Turnstone, although a Grey Plover flew over westwards. A Yellow Wagtail flew over calling, but remained unseen, and the bushes were generally quiet, producing four Whitethroats and four Willow Warblers. Three Green Woodpeckers, two Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a few Goldfinches and Greenfinches were the best of the rest. A nice Small Copper butterfly also caught my attention on the set-aside behind the beach.

Willow Warbler and Small Copper butterfly on the set-aside area behind Elmer beach

Elmer & Ancton: A brief visit to the Ancton horse paddocks area found things very quiet this morning, the highlight being a Raven, which flew over cronking but was only briefly seen as it passed overhead, quickly disappearing from view when it was obscured by the woodland edge. Other species recorded included Willow Warbler, Whitethroat (2), Swallow (4), Stock Dove (4), Green Woodpecker (2) and Goldfinch (10).

Stock Dove at Ancton horse paddocks

Wednesday, 20th August: Fairly similar to yesterday weather-wise; a cool, dry and cloudy start with a blustery NE wind force 4-5, especially along the coast, before becoming much brighter and warmer with sunny periods as the cloud eventually cleared.

Elmer Rocks: There was quite a gathering of waders this morning, roosting on the rock islands and adjacent beach as the high tide approached. Turnstones were the most numerous species and I counted at least 85, whilst there were also 40+ Ringed Plovers, eight Sanderlings and 23 Oystercatchers. Offshore, a total of five Sandwich Terns were moving back and forth and two Shelduck flew west, though it was otherwise quiet bar just a few Mediterranean Gulls and several Little Egrets, whilst along the rocks at the back of the beach were two Wheatears.

The persistent and blustery NE wind and bright sky that we have at the moment does no favours for the coastal birder, with most small birds laying low or keeping well hidden, and a search around the woods and fields behind the beach produced little. A total of two Blackcaps (one singing occasionally), five Whitethroats, four Willow Warblers, several Greenfinches, a few Swallows and two Jays were the best I could muster.

At Elmer Rocks this morning: Turnstones (above) and Oystercatchers (below) roosting near high tide, with Sandwich Tern (bottom) offshore.

The two Wheatears on the rocks at Elmer

Tuesday, 19th August: Cool, grey and cloudy again to start, in a brisk NE wind force 4-5, but warming up through the day as the wind eased a notch or so and some hazy brightness broke through, though remaining very dry.

Elmer & Ancton: A visit to the nearby horse paddocks this morning produced a nice Tree Pipit, which popped up conveniently on a fenceline for a short while, inviting a photo; not the best moment then for my little camera to flash up 'lens error' and malfunction! So be it - and this bird of the morning quietly slipped away.

It was generally fairly quiet here, but a total of eight Willow Warblers included no less than six chasing around in one large bush, whilst at least two Blackcaps and two Whitethroats were also nearby. Four Swallows overhead may have been resident birds that nested at the stables, and two each of Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers were present. Six Greenfinches were very active and a noisy, presumably juvenile Buzzard was flying around giving begging calls and a second bird was more distant.

Buzzard over Lane End horse paddocks, Ancton

Bilsham farm: A quick visit to the reservoir didn't really pay off today and it was clear that a number of birds had moved on since my last visit yesterday. There was just one Common Sandpiper, eight Tufted Ducks, one drake Pochard and eight Little Grebes, so I called it a day and left early.

Today's Common Sandpiper at Bilsham reservoir

16th - 18th August 2025

Monday, 18th August: Grey, cloudy and somewhat cool at first, in a moderate NE breeze 3-4, before becoming brighter and warmer with sunny interludes breaking through the cloud by afternoon, as the wind shifted more to the E/SE, still with no sign of any rain again. 

Climping - Atherington: I covered the Atherington - Bread Lane area for a couple of hours this morning, hoping for some of the scarcer migrants, but I found it fairly quiet with nothing unexpected found. The best was probably the six Wheatears seen, whilst other species seen included Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Swallow (20+), Skylark (15), Whitethroat (10+), Willow Warbler (5) and Blackcap (2).

Wheatears at Climping (Atherington) this morning

Bilsham farm: Another visit to the reservoir, where this morning the highlight was four Common Sandpipers feeding around the water's edge, and there were eight Little Grebes, 20 Tufted Ducks, two drake Pochard and four Mallard on the water. Very little else to report; a few Swallows, plus a couple of Willow Warblers and Whitethroats.

Common Sandpipers at Bilsham reservoir this morning

Sunday, 17th August: A decidedly chilly start, with grey cloud and a moderate E/NE breeze, soon clearing to become a warm and sunny day, with a blue sky and a little wispy cloud as the wind backed SE 3-4, but remaining dry yet again.

Elmer Rocks: There was little happening offshore, but as the tide receded through the morning there was a notable influx of waders that dropped in, no doubt attracted by the rockpools, with their now thick layer of seaweed providing good feeding conditions all around. At times it seemed as if this area was alive with birds and although it was difficult to be exact, I estimated there to be 20 Sanderlings, 45 Ringed Plovers, 60+ Turnstones and 10 Oystercatchers. Also along the beach were four Little Egrets, a Common Gull and 40+ Mediterranean Gulls.

With the warm sunny weather attracting increasing numbers of beach-goers and walkers it was time to move on, so I did a circuit of the field and hedgerows behind the beach. There were rather few passerines to be found and I logged only three Willow Warblers, a single Chiffchaff (which oddly began singing for a couple of minutes before becoming silent again), two Blackcaps and several Whitethroats. Other species seen included Greenfinch (several), Goldfinch, Linnet, Buzzard, Kestrel, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Swallow (several) and Song Thrush.

On Elmer beach this morning: (above) Sanderling and (below) Mediterranean Gull

A nice thick coating of seaweed, with me probably being the only human present who was pleased to see it!! (above) Ringed Plovers and (below two) Ringed Plovers with Turnstones.

Saturday, 16th August: A dry but notably cooler day, with the wind having shifted to a brisk E/NE and with cloudy conditions dominating through the morning.

Climping - Atherington: After yesterday's success I made another earlyish start, hoping for more interesting migrants, but it quickly became apparent that the rather blustery easterly had caused a bit of a clear out and numbers of birds were well down today, so I didn't stay more than an hour and a half. The tide was well out and a number of walkers were on the beach, so I didn't see a single wader in a brief look, but amongst the regular gulls were four Common Gulls and a Lesser Black-backed Gull, whilst two Sandwich Terns were just offshore. 

A few Blackcaps, Whitethroats and Willow Warblers were seen, and one was actually heard singing, whilst three Buzzards were soaring together over Bailiffscourt and a Kestrel was also there. Nearby, three Great Spotted Woodpeckers - apparently a family group - were feeding together in a dead tree near Atherington cottages.

At Climping beach this morning: (above) Common Gull, (below) Lesser Black-backed Gull (front) and three Great Spotted Woodpeckers (bottom) feeding together in the same tree - presumably a family party.

Bilsham farm: At the reservoir this morning were three Common Sandpipers feeding around the edges, whilst the number of Tufted Ducks had increased to 22, with seven Little Grebes and several Mallards still present, together with 35 Coots. A male Yellowhammer was seen carrying food into the perimeter hedge at the north end and a couple of Willow Warblers and a Whitethroat were also noted, but the hedgerows were otherwise quiet, although two Sparrowhawks were chasing each other around, probably an adult and a young bird. 

Common Sandpipers at Bilsham reservoir (lower with Coots)

Later, additional info was received (per D. Boon) of three Wheatears, a Whinchat and a Red Kite in the area of fields between the reservoir and the by-pass.

13th - 15th August 2025

Friday, 15th August: The prolonged fine and dry weather continues; very warm and sunny after some early cloud and haziness, with the light breeze veering from N2 to SW 3-4 as the day progressed.

Climping - Atherington: An early start paid off this morning and at last there were some interesting species to report. Soon after my arrival, in the Bailiffscourt area, a Pied Flycatcher and a Spotted Flycatcher were found in close proximity to each other, although both were quite elusive, and then a Tree Pipit was located on some telegraph wires in the same general area. A good start - and although things slowed down considerably thereafter, there were still a good variety of species, including three Whinchats. 

My log was as follows:-

Little Egret - 3

Mediterranean Gull - 40

Kestrel - 1

Buzzard - 1

Green Woodpecker - 3

Great Spotted Woodpecker - 2

Swift - 2

Swallow - 50+

House Martin - 30 

Sand Martin - 10+

Pied Flycatcher - 1

Spotted Flycatcher - 1

Tree Pipit - 1

Skylark - 15

Whinchat - 3

Wheatear - 2

Long-tailed Tit - 15

Reed Warbler - 2

Garden Warbler - 1

Blackcap - 3

Whitethroat - 12

Willow Warbler - 8

Chiffchaff - 1

Greenfinch - 8

Linnet - 8

Goldfinch - 15

Reed Bunting - 1

At Climping this morning: (above) Kestrel in the sunshine, (below) Tree Pipit on telegraph wires and (bottom) Whinchat in the set-aside. 

Thursday, 14th August: After a rather hazy and cloudy start, a sunny, bright and breezy day with a moderate SW breeze force 4-5, becoming quite warm by afternoon.

Elmer Rocks: Several domestic commitments ensured I only had a couple hours available for birding this morning (1000-1200hrs). There wasn't much happening, with most interest being along the beach at low tide. A flock of about 20 Sanderlings were feeding amongst the rockpools and along the shore, whilst at least 30 Turnstones dropped in to join them, followed by three Oystercatchers. There were also three Common Gulls and 40+ Mediterranean Gulls spread along the beach, especially near Poole Place, where two Sandwich Terns - an adult and a fledged juvenile - were roosting on the sand.

A look around the hedges, gardens and fields behind the beach revealed that it was notably quiet, but I eventually logged five Willow Warblers and two Whitethroats, whilst a Blackcap was 'tacking' from a blackberry bush. Other species noted included Stock Dove, Buzzard, Jay, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Greenfinch and Long-tailed Tit.

On Elmer beach: (above) Sanderling, (below) Sanderlings with Turnstones and (bottom) summer-plumaged Turnstone living up to its name and feeding by turning stones...."it does what it says on the tin!"

Wednesday, 13th August: Fairly grey and cloudy all morning and although quite muggy, noticeably a little cooler than of late. Some sunny breaks by afternoon in a moderate SW breeze 3-4, then a few showers with thunder before evening.

After spending much of the morning at Pagham Harbour and away from the local area, I called in at Bilsham farm for a quick look as I returned to the patch on the way home. There were two Common Sandpipers feeding around the water's edge, whilst on the water were 6 Little Grebes, 36 Coots, 10 Mallard, 17 Tufted Ducks and a single Pochard. A mixed gathering of gulls included a Lesser Black-backed Gull and a Mediterranean Gull. A couple of pulses of hirundines also passed through, with estimates of 25 House Martins, 10 Sand Martins and a dozen Swallows.

(above) Two Common Sandpipers at Bilsham reservoir, and (below) hirundines, mainly House Martins, feeding over the water