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...

4th - 6th July 2025

Sunday, 6th July: After some steady rainfall overnight, the morning began dry but generally grey and cloudy. with a moderate W/NW breeze 3-4, gradually brightening up to give sunny intervals later.

The last couple of days have seen me birding off the patch, at the Selsey Peninsula area and doing an early WeBS count, so on my way back homewards today I had time to make a quick visit to two of the local reservoirs, though nothing exciting was found!

Lidsey WTW area:  The small reservoir held just three Tufted Ducks, three Little Grebes and a few Mallard, including the female with a brood of young. Several Swallows were feeding over the water  and two Pied Wagtails and two Stock Doves were drinking around the edges. In the hedgerows were two singing Blackcaps, a Whitethroat and a Chiffchaff.

Bilsham farm: On the reservoir were just seven Tufted Ducks, 20 Coots, four Little Grebes and several Mallards, including a female with a brood of small young. Two House Martins and a few Swallows also fed over the water briefly. The only gulls present on my arrival were two juvenile Black-headed Gulls, looking somewhat bemused, before they were joined by other gulls later. There wasn't too much else: two singing Whitethroats were logged, and a Blackcap, whilst a male Yellowhammer was also singing from its favourite perch, in a hedge near the reservoir and a male Kestrel was hunting along the reservoir banks for a while, with two Buzzards higher up and more distant.

Two juvenile Black-headed Gulls (above), Mallard with brood of young and Yellowhammer singing from its regular perch at Bilsham farm.

Friday, 4th July: Another lovely summer's day - pleasantly warm with prolonged sunshine, blue skies, some high fluffy cloud and a fairly light NW breeze.

Elmer Rocks: A lovely day for beach visitors and on my arrival at 07:45hr it was unsurprising to find people already swimming on the high tide and calm sea or settling in for a longer stay. Inevitably, some of the roosting gulls were being  pushed around a bit, but without too much of a problem for a persistent birder!

There was little offshore except for Mediterranean Gulls and Sandwich Terns. A fairly accurate estimate of about 80 Meds and a dozen Sandwich was my final tally, with some birds on the shore at Atherington being disturbed by walkers and then eventually settling on the Elmer side. These apart, the only highlight was a sighting of two Dunlin heading west just offshore - an early return date for the species. Behind the beach, the family party of four Linnets was near Poole Place, as were a singing Blackcap, two Greenfinch and eight Goldfinch. I eventually left at 09:45 as the beach began to get busier.

(above two) Mediterranean Gulls at Elmer Rocks area, moving around at times to avoid the beach-goers, whilst (below) five Sandwich Terns heading west

1st - 3rd July 2025

Thursday, 3rd July: Back to warm and sunny weather, with plenty of sunshine, some high white cloud and a light to moderate SW breeze.

Bilsham farm: With the prolonged dry conditions I decided to visit three sites locally where there was at least some fresh water still remaining. First up was the farm reservoir here, but it proved to be quite disappointing today....

There were just three Tufted Ducks and five Mallards, (including a female with a brood of fairly small young), four Little Grebes and 22 Coots on the water, plus a few of the commoner gulls. Four House Martins and five Swallows were feeding above for a while, whilst the surrounding hedgerows held a singing Yellowhammer, a Blackcap and a family of Whitethroats, with one of the latter singing almost continuously, but that was about it, except for two noisy Jays making their presence felt.

Shripney area: On my way to two small and adjacent farm reservoirs, the hedgerows held a singing Yellowhammer, ten Goldfinches, four Greenfinches which seemed to be a family group, four Linnets (a pair and two juveniles), a Chiffchaff, two Blackcaps, two Whitethroats and a Reed Warbler carrying food to its nearby nest in a patch of reeds. A pair of Buzzards was also noted in the area.

On reaching the reservoirs, the larger one held just a single Little Grebe and two female Mallards - one with a brood of six well-grown young and the second with a brood of six much younger and smaller ducklings. Three Swifts and a couple of Swallows were also feeding above the water here for some while. The smaller reservoir held five Coots and a surprise pair of Little Grebes with small young.

Scanning the recently cropped arable fields behind the reservoirs, a large falcon resting on the ground turned out to be a Peregrine, probably a young bird.

Pair of Little Grebes with young and female Mallard with six small young on Shripney reservoirs

Moving on to the Lidsey WTW area I was pleased to catch up with a wader at last when a Common Sandpiper was located. On the water here were three Little Grebes, a Mallard with a brood of small young and seven Tufted Ducks. A pair of Greenfinches were active and six Swallows were feeding over the water.

At Lidsey this morning: Common Sandpiper, Tufted Ducks and Mallard with brood of small young, and Greenfinch

Tuesday, 1st July: A very warm day right from the outset, with prolonged sunshine and some high white cloud, but feeling quite muggy in just a light SW breeze, before the wind brought some relief as it gradually increased to force 4 along the coast. 

Elmer Rocks: A predictably quiet morning for birding in the calm and very warm (hot!) conditions. There was little to report, with hardly any Mediterranean Gulls about now, perhaps just three or four in a large mixed flock of gulls moving about offshore, whilst a total of six Sandwich Terns were fishing and moving back and forth. Four Little Egrets and a Grey Heron were also feeding along the shoreline on the low tide, before too many walkers and beach-goers were around. 

A circuit of the fields behind the beach found at least three Blackcaps present and singing quite frequently, plus two Whitethroats and a Chiffchaff, whilst high up and at distance were at least four Swifts and a Buzzard. Around Poole Place there four Linnets, a couple of Greenfinches, around ten Goldfinches, a Chaffinch, two Green Woodpeckers and four Stock Doves.

Little Egrets feeding along the shoreline at Elmer Rocks, and Sandwich Tern fishing close inshore

26th - 30th June 2025

Monday, 30th June: The mini heatwave continues: a very dry and warm day with prolonged sunshine, little or no cloud and blue skies, but with a welcome light SSE coastal breeze taking the edge off the temperature and making conditions more bearable.

Elmer & Ancton: A family party of at least four Swifts were screaming about over the village in the general area of the Beresford pub....and it is quite probable they have bred at that location or, if not, then close by.  This has been a regular nesting site over the years, but following maintenance works I and others could not locate them last year, so it is to be hoped they have returned. Any sightings or further info re. nesting would be appreciated.

Bilsham farm: A visit to the reservoir seemed a good bet in the dry conditions this morning, although  nothing beyond the expected species was seen again. A Great Crested Grebe was again present, having been absent for some while, whilst four Little Grebes consisted of two adults and two juveniles, so presumably breeding has occurred there unseen, or nearby. Six Tufted Ducks, now well into their eclipse moult, were new in, and likewise a female Mallard with a brood of fairly small young, whilst six Swallows and two Swifts were feeding over the water at times. As usual a gathering of resting and preening gulls was present, with over 50 Herring and six Great Black-backed Gulls, and another single fledged juvenile Black-headed Gull. There were fair numbers of commoner butterflies around the reservoir banks, including plenty of Meadow Browns and five Marbled Whites.

Along the periphery hedges a Yellowhammer was again singing, as were a Chiffchaff briefly and a Whitethroat frequently. Along the small ditch and creek off Bilsham Lane a Moorhen was with a couple of very small fledged young, whilst nearby a Jay and a Buzzard  were also seen.

(above) drake Tufted Ducks on Bilsham reservoir; note the rear bird still sports his dark head tuft and mainly white flanks, whilst the other two have largely lost these features. Also (below) a solitary juvenile Black-headed Gull and (bottom) not a great shot of a Marbled White butterfly.

Friday, 27th June: A mostly cloudy sort of day, with few sunny breaks, though fairly warm and humid despite the fresh SW wind force 4-5....the sunshine being far more limited than was forecast, at least along our coastal patch!

Elmer Rocks: Only limited time for birding available to me over the next couple of days, so a short return visit to the beach area this morning seemed the best bet. Once again Mediterranean Gulls featured strongly, but unlike yesterday there seemed to be none on the beaches. I counted 120 passing west in small groups and another 80+ were well offshore feeding amongst a gull flock, so a total of at least 200 were present today. 

It was however rather slow going otherwise, with just eight Sandwich Terns, two Gannets and two Oystercatchers heading west and two Little Egrets feeding along the beach. The Carrion Crow family mentioned yesterday was briefly seen and about eight Swifts were high up over the back fields, but there was little else of note. A couple of Marbled White butterflies were also still to be found in beachfront gardens, together with a Painted Lady.

Mediterranean Gulls moving west at Elmer Rocks this morning

Thursday, 26th June: After overnight rain, a rather grey and cloudy morning, with some occasional light drizzle and feeling quite cool in a strong and blustery WSW wind force 5-6. Gradually clearing through the afternoon to give some long sunny intervals and feeling a tad warmer too.

Ancton & Elmer: A late entry from yesterday....in the afternoon a Coal Tit was singing from various gardens, whilst late evening after dark a Tawny Owl was hooting from the woods somewhere near the horse paddocks.

Elmer Rocks: A morning that was dominated by Mediterranean Gulls. Initially, there were c.100 along the beach and around the rock islands at Elmer, together with a fair number of other gulls, the vast majority being Herring Gulls. Further along, on the east side of Poole Place towards Climping, there was another much larger flock of up to 300 around the rockpools. Eventually, as people began walking the beaches, the whole lot were disturbed, but most eventually settled on the Elmer side and/or the sea, so I estimate a total of about 400 Meds present today.

Meanwhile, along the shoreline, the first returning Common Sandpiper was present for a short while, indicating that birding autumn is almost here already! It didn't linger long and headed off eastwards towards Climping  when disturbed by a walker. Then offshore, a total of five Curlews flew west, plus seven Gannets, eight Sandwich Terns and two Little Egrets. On the telegraph wires behind the beach, three Linnets and two Greenfinch put in an appearance, whilst nearby a family of Carrion Crows deserves a mention, not that it's a species that is usually considered noteworthy! An adult was sat on some rocks, literally supervising its noisy brood of four well grown and recently fledged youngsters below, squabbling and clumsily trying to feed themselves amongst beach debris and seaweed - most amusing.

(above) adult Mediterranean Gull and (two below) mainly Mediterranean Gulls with Herring Gulls along Elmer beach

(above) Family of four juvenile Carrion Crows squabbling whilst parent (out of shot) looks on and (below) four Curlew heading west offshore.

Bilsham Farm: A brief visit found it all rather quiet again and on the reservoir were just three Little Grebes. a Tufted Duck, several Mallard and the usual Coots. A small gathering of gulls - mainly Herring Gulls - was as usual washing and preening, but amongst them were five Great Black-backed Gulls and the first juvenile Black-headed Gull I've seen on the patch. The regular couple of Whitethroats and several Swallows were also noted.

(above) Great Black-backed Gulls and (below) juvenile Black-headed Gull - the first such juvenile on the patch this season

20th - 23rd June 2025

Monday, 23rd June: A bright and very breezy day, with plenty of sunshine, some cloud and feeler fresher than of late, with a brisk W/NW wind force 5-6.

Elmer Rocks: There was a large gathering of gulls well offshore this morning, with perhaps a thousand or more birds fishing and wheeling around. I spent some time trying to sort them out, but distance and heat haze prevented much accurate identification. Even so, there were clearly a good number of Mediterranean Gulls amongst the melee, though it was not possible to give an accurate estimation, but there were also about a dozen or so Gannets present and an uncertain number of Sandwich Terns.

Three Oystercatchers were roosting on the rock islands at high tide, then two Ringed Plovers were located on the beach, but a total of four Curlews heading west offshore were less expected. There wasn't much else of note, but along the beach footpath, from the kiosk to the boat compound, a total of four Marbled White butterflies were counted amongst the much commoner Whites and Meadow Browns.

Three roosting Oystercatchers (above), Ringed Plovers on the beach (middle two) and Curlews flying west offshore (lower two) at Elmer Rocks this morning.

Bilsham farm: A look at the reservoir late morning produced a Great Crested Grebe, three Little Grebes (two adults and a juvenile), 30 Coots. two Gadwall, six Mallard and a Tufted Duck, whilst amongst the 50 or more Herring Gulls washing and preening were three Lesser Black-backed Gulls (two adults and an immature). There wasn't much else of note, although the male Yellowhammer and two Whitethroats were singing from the periphery hedgerows and the regular Buzzard was soaring over.

Adult (left) and juvenile Little Grebes and (below) adult Lesser Black-backed Gull (with Herring Gull and Coot) on Bilsham reservoir.

Saturday, 21st June: A rather grey and windy start, with a fresh E/SE wind force 4-5 along the coast keeping the temperature down. Although high pressure is dominating and conditions improved to periods of cloud and sunshine, then some heavy showers, it certainly didn't feel like the predicted heatwave, in the local area at least.

Elmer Rocks: Another morning when a sea-watch seemed likely to be the best option and I'd started on my usual circuit before eventually meeting up with birding friend Bola, who was already watching from near Poole Place. We sea-watched together for some while, and it was slow-going, but several small flocks of distant gulls held a number of Mediterranean Gulls, with a total of perhaps 20 or so, plus a couple of Gannets. There were also a number of Sandwich Terns back and forth and feeding in the flocks; I logged about a dozen, but Bola who'd been watching for longer probably recorded more.

The highlight though was non-avian, when a pod of about eight Dolphins - almost certainly Bottle-nosed Dolphins - was spotted at about 09:50hrs heading generally eastwards, about half-way to the horizon (so binoculars needed really). There was at least one large male and a couple of smaller ones too; seeing them is one thing however, but trying to locate them in a choppy sea and in a heat haze is quite another, and a few snippets of action is the best that either of us could do!

After the excitement, Bola and I went our separate ways, and I added three Oystercatchers and a Little Egret roosting on the rock islands. A pair of Greenfinch were calling still from the long hedgerow, but there was little else of note bird-wise, however a couple of Marbled White butterflies were seen in beach-front gardens as I made my way back.

The Dolphins offshore from Elmer Rocks this morning; not the greatest shots and I missed the male leaping right out (!) but the best I could do in the circumstances.

Marbled White butterfly in beachfront gardens at Elmer

Friday, 20th June: The fine and very dry weather continues, but the morning started with rather hazy conditions and plenty of high cloud in a surprisingly fresh E/SE wind force 5, keeping the temperature well down along the coast, before becoming very sunny and considerably warmer later, especially inland.

Lidsey WTW area: A noisy post-breeding flock of 300+ Starlings, containing many juveniles, was present in the WTW, especially on the filter pans, whilst two Swallows were feeding above, but these apart, the works was very quiet bird-wise. On the small reservoir nearby there were four Tufted Ducks, which had clearly begun their annual moult to their duller eclipse plumage, whilst also present were six Mallard, two Little Grebes and the pair of Coots with their two young, the latter now quite well grown although now reduced in number from the original four which fledged. Around the periphery a Cetti's Warbler was singing frequently and three Blackcaps and two Whitethroats also sang briefly.

Pair of Tufted Ducks on small reservoir near Lidsey WTW;  the male (rear) in particular can be seen to be in moult to its dull eclipse plumage, with a head tuft not visible and the bright white flanks already mainly dingy and brownish.

Bilsham farm: It was again quiet on the reservoir, with just a Little Grebe, a Great Crested Grebe, a single drake Tufted Duck, six Mallard and 24 Coots. A small number of gulls were coming and going to drink and bathe - most being Herring Gulls - but including a fine adult (intermedius-type) Lesser Black-backed Gull which appeared for a very short time before departing. Four Swallows coming and going were probably the family visiting from the local donkey paddocks.

Around the hedgerows a Yellowhammer was singing for some while and nearby two Whitethroats were heard, though it was otherwise generally quiet. High up several Swifts were over the fields, no doubt alarmed by a soaring Sparrowhawk nearby, and then a Red Kite also drifted over

Yellowhammer at Bilsham farm