Woolbeding Common 30/05/25

After purchasing some really nice new football boots (Nike Mercurials:), it turned out the location to pick them up was very near to Woolbeding- who couldn't resist a short detour for some birding? 

Upon arrival, the sun was directly in front of the viewpoint, so looking out over the view was a bit difficult due to the terrible haze, and it was very, very bright! 

A few Long-tailed Tits, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush and Linnets were heard around, and a family of Blue Tits were in the tree behind us. A few Common Buzzards were about, and at least one probable Honey Buzzard distantly. 

After about 20 minutes, a Sparrowhawk flew around way out in the distance, and all of a sudden another shape appeared rather close, that upon further investigation turned out to be a Honey Buzzard, and it showed brilliantly for another minute or so before flying off. 

This one had shown so much better then last time, so I was very pleased with the views, and sat down taking in the view again. 

A Common Buzzard was again circling in the distance, but the short trip sadly had to come to a close as time was getting on, and I needed to get back home to finish off a Lasagne I had started making earlier. 

Although the trip had been short and very little had actually been seen, the incredible views of the Honey Buzzard had allowed me to get much better photos  than last time, and it was great to see this species so close up!

Woolmer Pond 28/05/25

 With another free afternoon, I got down to Woolmer in good time, hoping for something decent, as Woolmer had been rather quiet recently.

In the woods by the entrance, two Great Spotted Woodpeckers were on a tree, and a few Goldcrest and a single Firecrest were calling.

The pond was very busy, with at least five Black-headed Gulls, the three Little Egrets, now two Herons, and, best of all, two Greylag Geese that had dropped in- a species that has been absent from the pond for a good while. 

A total of three Hobbies were around, giving great but fleeting views.

The cottage and field were very quiet, with only a Mistle Thrush, two Song Thrush and a singing Garden Warbler seen.

I decided to head round towards the south side of the pond again to see if the Hobbies were on the trees on the pond, and seeing as they were, I settled down to get some photos of them- absolutely love these birds!

After a while watching the Hobbies, I headed off again to the cottage to see if anything had surfaced. A Pied Wagtail was on the field, but nothing else new was around the cottage. 

As I was heading back toward the south side of the pond, which had been much more productive so far today, two Lesser Black-backed Gulls flew past, and a Woodlark was singing overhead.

Around the other side of the pond, two Spotted Flycatchers were heard calling in the woods just out of view, the two Greylags were still swimming around along with two Canada Geese, and a few Stonechat were flying around. 

The Egyptian Geese were around the back of the pond, but not much else was about, so I went back to the cottage, hoping the flags would go down soon. Whilst I was checking the pond behind the cottage, the harsh call of a Jay was good to hear, not at all the most common species here. 

I decided to go back towards the Hobbies again, and as I was leaving the cottage, a Greenfinch calling was also very good.  

Thankfully, the flags were finally put down, so I readily went in and started to bike around the pond, with a smart male Stonechat perched on a branch.

At the back of the pond, the Egyptian Geese were again about, and a Teal was heard. 

As I was heading towards the woods by Cranmer, a Chaffinch was calling, and one of the Hobbies flew overhead. Then the bird I had been finding tricky for a while flew right across the path in front of me! It flew into some bushes, before flying back across the path, showing its bright red tail- this was a stunning male Redstart. Sadly, I couldn't relocate it for photos, maybe another day. This species puts my patch list onto a tantalising 99, and my daylist onto 55- a new record for this site. What a way to break your daylist record!

I walked down a path that went alongside Cranmer, and a family of Stonechat were around, and a distant Tree Pipit was heard. Also, a deer was along the path- brilliant animals. 

With no sign of the Redstart, I decided to go to the southeast side of the pond to sit down and have a snack, a rather unusual combo of Hobnobs and chocolate spread. Gotta try something new every now and then:)

I was kept company by some Swallows catching insects over the water, good fun to watch!

With time fast leaving, I had one more look around the cottage, where a Song Thrush was singing on the cottage itself, and a Kestrel flew overhead. 

Sadly, I had to leave as it was nearing time to get home for dinner, but I didn't leave empty-handed. A patch tick, a new site record of 56, and a really good, fun afternoon. 

Woolmer Pond/Forest 26/05/25

During such a busy season for good birds, it's been difficult to find time to find free time to get down to Woolmer, so with a free morning, I got up and biked straight up for a good morning's birding. 

Upon arrival, a Firecrest was calling from the woods, and a few Coal Tits were around as well. Very little was on the pond, so I went straight for the path around. Two Cormorants flew over, a bird I've only seen here a handful of times, so that was a good start to the day.

A very good number of Stonechat and Sand Martin were about, and a few Woodlark were calling overhead.

A bit more was viewable from the other side of the pond, with the Heron out fishing, a few Tufted Ducks, Little Grebes, Egyptian Geese, and a Canada Goose flew over.

The Heron flew off towards the cottage, and as I biked round, I could hear a Cuckoo calling from the woods, a few more Woodlark and a Chaffinch calling.

Around the cottage, a few Goldfinch and Blue Tits were about, and two Song Thrush were on the lawn. 

After a quick check around the other side of the cottage on the pond, I noticed a white shape behind some plants, and it soon formed into the shape of a bird I've not seen many times here- a Little Egret. Upon further investigation, it turned out there were three of them fishing around the pond before they flew off to another part of it. 

A Garden Warbler was singing out of view, and I couldn't find anything else, so I decided to check the woods to see if anything was there.   

A large family of Long-tailed Tits were there, along with a calling Great Spotted Woodpecker and a young Robin.

After a bit more of a look around, I checked the field, with just two Mistle Thrush all seen. I decided to walk around the pond again before heading into the middle to see if anything was there. On the south side of the pond, a call I recognised rather well caught my attention, and before long I easily found the bird I was looking for- a Reed Bunting. 

Although a common species, this is not the most common species here, and my first this year at this site (I think!).

After circling the pond, I went up through the woods towards the heathland, with a single Spotted Flycatcher seen catching insects along the way.

On the heathland, a few Stonechats and Tree Pipits were around, and at least one Cuckoo was calling again. A Kestrel was hunting around, but not much else could be found. 

As I was heading back to the cottage, the two Hobbies flew over. 

At the cottage, a Blackcap was singing and a Pied Wagtail flew over, but everything had really quietened down, so I decided to head home, happy that I'd been able to get some patch birding in again.

Although nothing special was seen today, the highlights were the Little Egrets, Reed Bunting, and a good scattering of other species, had made the time very enjoyable, and a total of 53 species were seen, my highest total for ages, just below my site record of 54 species- hopefully I'll beat that soon!

Woolbeding Common 23/05/25

After the enjoyment of seeing the Hudsonian Godwit on Wednesday, I had a good day's rest on Thursday, before heading out this morning with Dad to Woolbeding Common in the hope of seeing quite a special bird of prey. 

Upon arrival, a few Cuckoos could be heard calling, and a good number of birders, twenty I counted, were at the viewpoint looking out over the valley. It was quite a slow start, with quite a few Common Buzzards causing a bit of a stir, but no sign of the target species.

The view was absolutely breathtaking, and I often found myself just gazing into the distance, instead of looking at the birds! Quite a few Stock Doves were flying through, and a Yellowhammer perched on a bush, calling. 

After a while, a distant bird of prey caught our attention. The very long tail and unusual appearance gave it away, yes, this was our bird- a European Honey Buzzard!

It circled around for a while toward Butser Hill, before heading our way, and coming pretty close, but very high. 

The European Honey Buzzard is a pretty rare breeding bird in Britain, with Sussex being a stronghold in the south. 

The bird continued to circle for a while before heading off, replaced by a Peregrine.

After the excitement of the Honey Buzzard, there was a bit of a lull, but a Sparrowhawk flew past. 

After a while, another hawk flew along the ridge before diving quickly down into the trees. Due to its very chunky overall look and large size, it was presumably a Goshawk. The fun didn't stop there, however, as a very distant shape soon morphed into the shape of a White-tailed Eagle.

It was mobbed by two Red Kites, and below it, a few more Common Buzzards were circling, along with another small raptor that was probably a Hobby. The eagle continued to circle for a while, always staying very distant- not quite the views I had at Pulborough a week ago! 

A Raven flew across the ridgeline, and a slightly peculiar raptor showed very briefly before disappearing below the line of trees, and sadly didn't surface again. A Great Spotted Woodpecker was flying around, and just one Cuckoo was calling now. 

As the time drew near to leave, another Buzzard species was seen overhead- soon identified as another Honey Buzzard! It was relatively close to start with, but it immediately flew away from us, revealing another bird behind it- a second Honey Buzzard.

As the two were flying away, one of them started wing clapping- a very cool sight. 

Nothing else seemed to be around really, and with our target species being seen, we headed home.

It had been great to see these wonderful birds of prey, and get yet another tick on my British list (these are not a lifer as I saw them in Spain last September). Although rather distant, it was still a great experience seeing them, and hopefully, we can get better views another time.

Titchfield Haven 21/05/25- HUDSONIAN GODWIT

 After frantically trying to find a free day to get down to the haven, we finally had a free morning, so after getting up and completing the usual things around the house, Mum and I set off towards the haven. The bad weather was a bit of a deterrent from going today, but we decided to go anyway. A report that it had flown out with some Blackwits was not at all good news, and I was expecting the bird wouldn't be there.

After arriving and paying to get in, we walked towards the haven itself, with a Black Swan in the harbour sleeping, the only thing of note seen there. After making it through the gate, I swiftly headed along the path towards the hide, expecting to be in for a pretty cold and drab morning waiting for the bird to turn up. But, after entering the hide, and walking over to my great friends Joe and Peter Honeysett, I received the great news that the bird was there- and showing well. After a few crazy seconds of trying to get my camera and binos out of my bag, I was onto the bird. Incredible- the Hudsonian Godwit. 

With only a meagre 7 records of this species recorded in Britain, this is by far the rarest bird I've seen, easily eclipsing my previous rarest of Least Sandpiper, which I saw last month at RSPB Medmerry. 

It was feeding pretty close to the hide, just in front of Island A- as seen here in this zoomed-out photo.

There were hundreds of Black-headed Gulls, many Avocets, including a few very cute chicks, and plenty of Reed Warblers in the reeds next to the hide.

The Hudsonian Godwit showed well, before flying off towards Island D, where its beautiful barred belly was visible.

As it preened on the island, an Avocet came very close to the hide, and a Marsh Harrier was in the distance.

A few very cute Mallard and Gadwall ducklings were about, and the Godwit had flown back nearer the hide. 

The Hudsonian started to come quite close, giving great views.

The Hudsonian Godwit is found in both North and South America, and is differentiated from our more common Bar and Black-Tailed Godwits with the barred belly, dark wings and slightly longer beak.

Due to its rarity and stunning looks, I was mainly paying attention to it and its movements, and not to the other species around, although the racket of all the calling birds could not be ignored. 

After being chased by a Coot, it flew off to the back of Island A and stayed there for a while.

A Tufted Duck flew in, and the Hudsonian Godwit was back feeding in front of the hide again.

Two of the Avocets started fighting and kept at it for a good while.

The Hudsonian Godwit had gone onto some slightly shallower water, allowing great views of its barring underneath.

A large group of Black-tailed Godwits flew over, before dropping down somewhere else. The Hudsonian had again gone back to its favoured patch by Island A, and was feeding the whole time, although it managed to find time to let out a large yawn.

A bit of amusement came from a group of Shelducks that had stationed themselves on top of the Prumfrett Hide before they flew off.

The Marsh Harrier flew past again, this time a bit closer, and after it flew off, I was back to watching the Hudsonian Godwit, trying to savour every moment of the incredible experience.

A large cloud overhead made the lighting despicable, so I had a look out over the reserve to see what else could be seen. Whilst I was doing this, 5 Spoobills flew over, heading towards Posbrook.

After the lighting had gotten a bit better, the Godwit was again chased by a Coot and flew off to Island D again, and would stay there preening for a while.

Sadly, the time had come to leave, as I had school to do, and nothing else seemed to be about. After one last look at the bird, we reluctantly, but happily, left. 

Well, what a bird, what a morning! I couldn't have asked for the trip to go much better! The brilliant views we had of this mega rarity were just incredible. The thrill of seeing such a beautiful and rare bird is still pumping through my veins, even as I write the words you are currently reading. My year and life lists both gained a valuable addition, and I saw my first mega rarity. Only one word to describe the morning- Wow.

Many thanks to the finder, Mark Francis, and well done on finding such a brilliant bird:)