A nice mornings walk around Church Norton.

Friday 21st January 2022.

A Robin made use of one of the Statues in Church Norton Churchyard!

I had another day off today and had a good think last night on where to spend my day off. Birding was on my mind and so after checking the various websites, I decided to give Pagham Harbour a try. Obviously, getting out of Portsmouth from where I live can take a long time and so I left it just before 9am to set off to West Sussex. It was another very cold start to the morning and I had to melt the ice of my windscreen again first thing before I set off, but at least it was going to be a bright blue sky morning and being wrapped up in warm weather gear, I was itching to get out there.

The female Peregrine in Pagham harbour this morning.

Both the male and female Peregrines out on the favourite island. Look at the size difference between them!

I made my way into the small car park at Church Norton and was a little dismayed at all the work vehicles taking up a lot of the parking spaces due to work being carried out somewhere in the Priory. Nevertheless, I grabbed my gear and made my way down the path to the harbour. I knew high tide wasn't going to be till around 1pm and said I would make use of checking out the waders out on the mudflats. Almost immediately, a large flock of small waders took off over the harbour and this was due to a pair of Peregrines, including a large female bird, hunting over the harbour. The raptors soon landed on the favoured island and perched on the posts, the female with a kill in one of her talons (my first of the year and a good start to the day).

A flock of Knot with Grey Plover out on the mudflats. 

Teal enjoying the morning sunshine.

A large flock of Knot was feeding in the harbour among the many Dunlin and Grey Plover (my second year tick), but always remained fairly distant. From the viewpoint with the two benches, one can get some nice photos of the waders feeding quite close in the channels that include the Redshank, Grey Plover and Curlew. I did check thoroughly for the overwintering Whimbrel, but there was no sign of the bird during my stint here. Behind me, in the woodland, there were at least two ‘drumming’ Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a ‘yaffling’ Green Woodpecker though both species were never seen. A Mediterranean Gull flew north low over the water and then I found the adult Yellow-legged Gull sat in the middle of the harbour, not too far away from where the Peregrines were perched. The Gull was also my first of the year, a species I regularly get here most winters. 

A Redshank keeping a watchful eye over the harbour.

This Curlew showed well in the harbour, one of many seen today.

I took a slow walk to the sea to check if anything of note was upon it and came up with a big fat zilch! Though the sea was dead calm, I could not find anything whatsoever upon it, though I got lucky with three Red-throated Divers passing by, though distant. Two birds flew east and another west and jumped aboard my year list thank you very muchly! There was no point staring at an empty sea and so I turned round and took a walk to the Severals to check out the small woodland that splits the reedbeds. The footpath led to the wooded area and in here, there were a lot of passerines flitting about. A flock of around 20+ Goldfinches also held a few Chaffinch feeding on the Birch seeds and also seen was at least two Goldcrests, a small flock of Long-tailed Tits and a few Blue and Great Tits among them. Though nothing really exciting, it was enjoyable being amongst them in their frenzy in search for food.

The footpath to the south of the Severals. All the puddles here were iced over still.

When waders get close, I cannot resist in taking a photo of them, no matter how common they are. Here, a Dunlin came in close enough for a reasonable photo.

 

I took a walk back to the harbour entrance and looking up, I was very pleased to see my first Marsh Harrier of the year, a female bird sporting a nice creamy crown. The bird circled briefly then headed off northbound towards the woods by the Priory. On reaching the harbour entrance, I checked the waders again. I could not find anything new among them and so took a walk north to take the footpath leading to the Cemetery. Unfortunately, probably due to weather erosion, the steps leading up to the path had nearly destroyed the steps and so I had to turn back from whence I came! Ger-rumble! I took a few more photos of the waders and a Black-tailed Godwit had joined the other waders close by within the channel. Taking a walk within the Churchyard, I could not find the Firecrest or Chiffchaff that was seen yesterday here and only a few Blackbirds and Robins present for my effort.

A Grey Plover close in within the harbour.

A Black-tailed Godwit passing by with a Dunlin in the background.

Back in the car, I decided to give Chichester Gravel Pits a try and though I had to negotiate a very muddy and slippery path at times, surely I would pick up some more ‘year-ticks’? Nope! I was hoping for an Egyptian Goose or a Cetti’s Warbler, but all was very quiet here. There were good numbers of both Tufted Duck and Pochard on Ivy Lake and both Gadwall and Shoveler were in much smaller numbers. Nearing the end of Ivy Lake, a large skein of Grey Lag Geese flew over, probably 50+ birds in total, but no sign of any Egyptian on the smaller pools. A single Chiffchaff was seen flitting about in the Willows and at least two small flocks of Long-tailed Tits, but little else of note.

A Great Crested Grebe swimming on Trout Lake.

A skein of Grey Lag Geese flying over the Lakes.

A quick check on Birdguides revealed that the Glossy Ibis had been seen in the field by the Info Centre on Farlington Marshes this morning and I was tempted to go and view the bird, but it turned out the bird was a brief sighting and flew off eastbound. While driving back home along the A27, a suicidal Common Buzzard flew low across the road, only just avoiding the speeding traffic as it headed off northbound over the fields. I got a message from Sussex birder Sarah Russell to say the Glossy Ibis flew over the harbour again today. I am wondering now if I am going to track one down, though they can be very elusive at times. The Hook-with-Warsash area currently has a Yellow-browed Warbler and Glossy Ibis in the vicinity, plus a Firecrest! 

Tufted Duck on Ivy Lake.