Sussex Birding (1 Viewer)

[pestie]

A great evening out last night with a group of friends from BF found us on Ashdown Forest trying to get Nightjar on the yearlist.

It was a lovely still evening......perfect for Nightjar and we weren't disappointed as we found up to 5 birds with great flight views,calls and claps as well as up to 3 flyover Woodcocks.

Other birds in the area consisted of Tree Pipit,Cuckoo,Kestrel,Sparrowhawk,Linnet,Marsh Tit and Coal Tit.

A lovely evening.........thanks all......you know who you are.

sounds like i need to get down to ashdown to see the nightjars

 

[da2m]

hi folks
i'm nearly a devon boy now but i was born in eastbourne and alot of my family still live there in fact my great grandad helped plant friston forest instead of going to war cos he had tb. anyway i have not seen any photos of the river warb and i'm so jealous of some of the birds you have had in the last week, the fall didn't reach us down here.
did anyone digiscope it?

 

[joannec]

did anyone digiscope it?

I don't know that anyone did. I've checked some websites that often show pictures of rare birds in Sussex and there weren't any. If any turn up I'll post a link here. I gather it was very hard to see. I didn't even go for it, knowing the terrain of Whitbred Hollow, very steep and hard (for me anyway).

Joanne

 

[da2m]

I don't know that anyone did. I've checked some websites that often show pictures of rare birds in Sussex and there weren't any. If any turn up I'll post a link here. I gather it was very hard to see. I didn't even go for it, knowing the terrain of Whitbred Hollow, very steep and hard (for me anyway).

Joanne

thanks for that, where abouts was the bird, i sort of still know the area?

 

[joannec]

thanks for that, where abouts was the bird, i sort of still know the area?

I think it was seen in several places near Beachy Head and at Whitbred Hollow.

 

[da2m]

top bird, must have made someones day. happy birdin.

 

[joannec]

There are lots of nice birds in Sussex now. The red-backed shrike was showing really well at Shopham Bridge on Wednesday, firecrest at Burton Mill. I stopped at Pulborough on the way home and saw the spoonbill and big highlight of the day was a white stork , a lifer for me.

Also 'did' my Ashdown Forest patch today (where I report all birds that I see) and saw just fledged dartford warblers with dad still feeding them, really nice sight. I watched them for ages; they were extremely co-operative. A hobby hunting over the heath was the crowning glory.

 

[pestie]

sounds like you had a cracking day

 

[Mark43]

There are lots of nice birds in Sussex now. The red-backed shrike was showing really well at Shopham Bridge on Wednesday, firecrest at Burton Mill. I stopped at Pulborough on the way home and saw the spoonbill and big highlight of the day was a white stork , a lifer for me.

Also 'did' my Ashdown Forest patch today (where I report all birds that I see) and saw just fledged dartford warblers with dad still feeding them, really nice sight. I watched them for ages; they were extremely co-operative. A hobby hunting over the heath was the crowning glory.

Wow Joanne.........White Stork........nice one :t:

 

[pestie]

spoonbill was showing well at pullbrough again

 

[pestie]

anyone know where i can see a goshawk as i just carnt get onto one this year

 

[Patrick_L]

where abouts was the bird, i sort of still know the area?

I understand that it was in the rides along the top of the Hollow, and was found by someone (well done Geoff!) looking for the Rose-coloured Starling that had flown in-off the sea over Whitbread Hollow earlier that morning.

Could only have dreamt of such birds in my Beachy Head days! (OK, it wasn't that bad!).

 

[joannec]

anyone know where i can see a goshawk as i just carnt get onto one this year

The Sussex Bird Report lists goshawk as "rare visitor, mainly in winter; has bred and now appears to be resident in the county". There is only one accepted record for 2006 in Sussex and the location is kept secret to protect the birds.

Nice you saw the spoonbill and that it is still around.

 

[joannec]

Did my BBS square today at Ridgewood, on the edge of Uckfield and had a hobby over! Completely unexpected. It flew off to the west. I wondered if it was one of the AF birds coming down to feed. (Lots of swifts around.)

 

[joannec]

All day birding for me today |=)|....we went to Pagham; not a lot around, just common birds. It was really windy so the little birds were keeping their heads down apart from goldfinch and swifts which seemed to be everywhere. Definitely feeling the lack of waders today and no year ticks:-C.....the end of migration blues. Things briefly livened up with a newly fledged kestrel at Church Norton. We called in at Ivy Lake on the way back....I was tired. My two friends wondered on and I sat by the lake and had a happy hour just sitting and watching the common and sandwich terns hawking for insects and diving for fish, a great opportunity to just sit and watch behaviour. On days like today I sometimes think the best option is to find a good place and just sit and wait for the birds to come to me.

Coming home and in a traffic jam in Brighton, we were entertained by one of the Brighton peregrines chasing pigeons, that put a sparkle on the end of the day.:king:

 

[teamsaint]

saw the Red-backed Shrike at Shopham Bridge last sunday. a very nice bird and a very easy and relaxed twitch. anyone else get it? I don't know if it's still there.

 

[joannec]

saw the Red-backed Shrike at Shopham Bridge last sunday. a very nice bird and a very easy and relaxed twitch. anyone else get it? I don't know if it's still there.

Yeah, I went for it too Tom a couple of weeks ago; certainly a very obliging bird. It flew between dead tree, bramble clump, elder bush and hedge, each time showing very well.:king:....very nice bird.

 

[pestie]

i have been to see it a few times now had some cracking views of it

 

[joannec]

I spent the morning on Ashdown Forest doing my patch work. Garden of Eden is 'my' bit; the patch opposite the the police training place on the Hartfield Road. Loads and loads of birds around today and especially chuffed to find two male crossbills:king: in the big pine trees. Also a very nice coal tit family, at least 5 on the same bunch of trees......even the sheep liked it there. They were peaceably grazing on the grass beneath.... or asleep, so busy looking up I nearly didn't notice them. ....more goodies; stonechat families galore, two displaying kestrels in the distance to the west. Yellowhammer males singing from young trees twice, linnets, probably a new family flew chattering over. A redpoll pair circling around again and again on territory, skylarks, presumably with young in the heather. Several dartford warblers, one unfortunately put up by a dogwalker but they were mostly keeping their heads down. And as I was just about to leave a spotted flycatcher appeared, my first of the year!......one of my better mornings on Ashdown Forest.

Some bad, heavily cropped crossbill pictures:

 

[Mark43]

Oooh.......well done on the Crossbills Joanne.

Certainly seems to be a fair few around at the moment.Going to do our patch at the weekend........you never know we might get lucky also.