Brooklands delivers again

Bluethroat - Brooklands Lake

 

                                                                          Nick Bond

Brooklands Park is a small oasis of green along our largely urban seafront and can act as a magnet for migrants with its small lake, stream, sewage works and wooded areas. It can be an attractive resting area for newly arrived summer visitors with an outside chance of an early rarity such as a Hoopoe, or something rarer such as the famous Great Spotted Cuckoo, which took up residence for nearly a week in early April 2005. More realistically it will be Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Willow Warblers or perhaps a Pied or Spotted Flycatcher later in the Spring, however you never know what’s lurking in the reeds or sallows along the stream. 

On the morning of Tuesday 25th March Dave Sadler found a 2cy female Bluethroat in a muddy reed fringed area along the lake, which has been a regular spot for Water Rail in recent weeks. Naturally this was a very popular bird and it remained on site until dusk on Wednesday 26th March. Most local birders managed to catch up with the Bluethroat on day one and it’s visit attracted the great and good from across Sussex and Beyond. Although typically elusive with patience most visitors went away delighted with their views. It wasn’t seen on Thursday 27th March presumably having continued it’s migration overnight.

Also reported from Brooklands this week were two Firecrests by the sewage works, two flyover Ring-necked Parakeets and the usual vocal Water Rail and Cetti’s Warbler.

                                                             Bluethroat crowd ( Nick Bond)

23rd-30th March

Expectation levels begin to rise by the last week of March along the south coast, with the imminent arrival of common Spring migrants, departing winter visitors and continuing seabird passage. There is always the chance of an early surprise and this week certainly delivered.

The warmer weather also produced the first reports of Hummingbird Hawkmoth in an East Worthing garden and Dotted Beeflies were reported from Cissbury.

Seawatching

It was something of a struggle for birders watching the sea this week with poor visibility hampering their efforts for much of the week. However Brents continued to trickle through in small numbers with 150e (23rd), 93e (26th) and 43e (30th).  A few Wigeon were also noted with 20e and 30e on 23rd and 28th respectively. 

After early reports of 20+ birds heading east from Selsey on Sunday 23rd, four Little Gulls were picked up from Marine Gardens amongst Black-headed Gulls and another was seen there the following day (R Ives). This can be a tricky species to catch up with in some years, so this is a good early local record.

A single Velvet Scoter amongst a flock of nine Common Scoter on Sunday 30th past East Worthing was another welcome addition to the year’s seabird list.

Summer Arrivals

A very early male Redstart was found on Sompting Brooks on Thursday 28th, which mirrors a similar early record of a female at the same location last year.

A Swallow flying low over Cissbury on Saturday 29th March could be the first locally reported bird of the year, unless anyone has an earlier sighting. On the 30th another was seen flying over a Sompting garden whilst three Sand Martins were seen flying in off sea.

Single Wheatears were reported from Marine Gardens (24th), Goring Gap (25th and 28th) and two birds near the pier (30th), those that have yet to record this classic Spring migrant will surely have more opportunities in early April. 

There was a clear arrival of singing Willow Warblers with birds  heard from Ferring Country Centre (27th), three birds at Ferring Rife (28th) and four birds together on the edge of Sompting (29th) and one still present along  Ferring Rife (30th).

Two White Wagtails, a migrant continental form of our resident Pied Wagtail, were present in horse paddocks along Ferring Rife on 28th with another bird briefly on 30th. Meadow Pipits were also on the move with 72 heading north over Worthing beach on Sunday 30th. 

Wintering Departures.

Perhaps the most interesting news of the week was the nocturnal movements of Redwing heard calling over Ferring and East Worthing on Thursday 27th March. Given the paucity of local records this winter they must have been moving from further west or continental birds. Three grounded Redwing and two Fieldfare were seen at Ferring Rife on Saturday 29th March.

Another good local sighting was a Short-eared Owl seen heading inland over South Street on Friday 28th, which was presumably a bird migrating from the continent back to its upland breeding territory (R Ives).

Three Jack Snipe along Ferring Rife (26th) were clear passage birds as none had overwintered at this site. 

Roll on April.

17th - 22nd March

It remained bright and sunny but cold with a northerly wind that eventually swung around to the south east later in the week resulting in more seabird passage. Cissbury and the Downs seemed to be firmly trapped in winter with the only signs of the approaching Spring being the first Blackthorn and a few female Adders basking in favoured sheltered spots.

We were still in the depths of winter on Sunday 16th March where a single Redwing in the hedgerows by the football pitches at Goring Gap was only notable due to their virtual absence so far this year. However by Thursday 20th March temperatures were in the high teens and the first two Willow Warblers of the year were singing in a birder’s garden in Lancing.

A steady trickle of Meadow Pipits were noted arriving over the sea and heading north over Goring Gap and East Worthing on Thursday 30th March whilst another Wheatear was found on the beach opposite Brooklands that afternoon. 

The warm weather continued to bring in freshly arrived migrants with two Black Redstarts west of Angmering on Friday 21st March with an interesting “pale-looking” Stonechat found by Colin Jupp, which was still present on the Saturday. (Photos to be added later).

Seawatching

It was another good week for Brent Geese and the first Common Terns were reported along with a steady increase in Sandwich Tern sightings as you would expect as March progresses. but the highlight of the week were three Black-necked Grebes found on a flat calm sea off Widewater by Richard Fairbank on Thursday 20th March which were present until mid morning allowing Shoreham based birders to catch up with this scarce grebe. See link to Richard’s blog for details. 

Wednesday 19th March

A big easterly movement of 1692 Brents was recorded past Brougham Road in a three hour vigil from 06:30 with the largest single flock of 440, along with 38 Red-throated Divers, 38 Med Gulls, 13 Common Scoter 4 Shoveler and 2 Curlew.  In addition to the Brents a Sandwich Tern was seen past Goring Gap.

Thursday 20th March

                                                         Brents Goring Gap Nick Bond

Another good day for Brent passage with 1860 counted moving east from Widewater before 09:00 along with 130 Common Scoter, 16 Red-throated Divers and 3 Curlew (in amongst a Brent flock). A further 400+ Brents past Goring Gap between 08:50-10:00 along with 12 Teal. The best count of Sandwich Terns so far were 10 past Goring Gap with 4 recorded earlier further east past Widewater.

The Brent Goose movement can be observed anywhere along the coast and long lines of birds often pass close to shore making it quite a spectacle. Early morning is best with passage often dropping of by 09:30 though smaller numbers usually continue to trickle through.

                                                  Sandwich Terns Goring Gap Nick Bond

Good numbers of waders were present on the beach at Goring Gap with 40 Oystercatchers, 60 Turnstones, 30 Sanderling, 2 Grey Plovers and a Knot (which is probably the bird first reported last week on 12 March).

Friday 21st March

The sea was quieter today with only a handful of Brents present noted resting on the beach, though Sandwich Terns were reported from both Goring Gap and Marine gardens with a peak count of 11. Other birds heading up channel included Red-throated Divers18e, Common Scoter 72e and a single Kittiwake.

Saturday 22nd March

With good cover from 06:20 - 11:30 between Brougham Road and Marine Gardens this produced another decent count of Brents with 730e before 10:20 followed by another big flock of over 370 observed close inshore from both Marine Gardens and Widewater later in the morning. The main highlight however was the first reported Common Terns with two recorded by Colin Holter along with 61 Sandwich Terns. Other birds noted included Red-throated Divers 47e, Great Northen Diver 1e and Common Scoter 189e. 

10-16th March 2025

After a promising start to March the wind swung around to the north, the temperature plummeted and suddenly it wasn’t so Spring like. It felt like February but there was still a few noteworthy arrivals to make the weekly summary.

                                                 Wheatear Shoreham Fort - Richard Phillips 

After last weeks early Wheatear there were two more to report despite the blocking northerly winds, with a smart male found by Alex Rosenfield at Shoreham Fort on Tuesday 11 March and another male in the northern fields at Goring Gap found by Ralph Simpson the following day. These birds allowed some local birders to ease their annual Wheatear anxiety whilst for most the wait continues.

Goring Gap

                                                      Spoonbills heading east - Ralph Simpson

Two Spoonbills flying east past the Gap were another excellent find by Ralph on Monday 10th March during a quiet Seawatch and with winds generally from the North, up channel movements of ducks and geese were reduced to a trickle during the week.

The only significant report was 585 Brents east on Wednesday 12th March, with 30+ Great Crested Grebes and 12 Red-breasted Merganser scattered across a flat sea.

Patching Pond

                                                   Mandarins Patching Pond  - Duncan Kay 

With the exception of Brooklands Lake there are only a few areas of fresh water in our local area so a pair of Mandarin at Patching Pond were noteworthy and generated some local interest on Friday 14th March. They had probably wandered from Swanbourne Lake, Arundel, but it is fun to speculate that the same two birds were seen heading east past Widewater on Monday 17th March ! 

March - First Wheatear

The first week in March saw a clear arrival of Chiffchaffs with widespread reports of singing birds and the first reports of singing Blackcaps. The sunshine led to increased butterfly reports with Brimstones, Comma, Peacock, Red Admiral and Small Tortoiseshell all noted and Adders continue to be seen in favoured sunny spots on Cissbury. 

Sunday 2nd March

March is very much a transition month with most birders eagerly awaiting their first migrants of the Spring and Wheatear is top of the WANTED list, especially with a sprinkling of very early arrivals in the south west and warm(ish) southerly winds. Colin Holter didn’t have to wait long finding a stunning Wheatear in stubble fields along Monarch’s Way above Steyning. Also present were two Grey Partridges and a sizeable bunting and finch flock containing  100+Corn Buntings, 40+Skylark, Linnets and Yellowhammers.

On the same day a walk through the Dover, Angmering Estate, produced c15 Redwings, which have been in short supply this winter. Nearby there were two Bramblings amongst a flock of 30+ Chaffinches feeding in stubble fields on the edge of the woods.

Monday 3rd March

A Ring-necked Parakeet flew over Durrington Rec.

Saturday 8th March

                                                 Caspian Gull Brooklands - Richard Fairbank

A first winter Caspian Gull was found mid morning by Richard Fairbank at Brooklands and a Firecrest was present along the stream the following day.

Sunday 9th March

Two adult White-tailed Eagles were seen over Worthing airspace early afternoon heading east over Sompting and were also seen further east from Bramber and Shoreham.

Seawatching Season - up and running

South easterly winds at the end of the first week of March was the signal for observers to head to their favourite sea watching spots along our coastline and they were rewarded with a good movement of geese and wildfowl. 

Wednesday 5 March

The first indications of seabird passage was a skein of  Brent Geese heard flying over Goring after dark.

Thursday 6 March

The first big push of Brent Geese was recorded this morning with coverage from Goring Gap and Brougham Road from 07:00-09:30 and continuing from Marine Gardens from 09:30-11:30 counting approximately 1050 birds. A single Sandwich Tern, 3 Shelduck and a Wigeon were also recorded from Brougham Road as well as a Shag with the Cormorants on offshore platform

Friday 7 March

More variety this morning with c145 Pintail, c80 Shoveler, 12 Common Scoter and 212 Brent Geese past Goring Gap between 06:40- 09:30 and another single flock of 49 Pintail at 10:45. An increase in waders on the beach included, 45 Oystercatchers, 60 Sanderling, 40 Turnstones and 3 Grey Plovers.

Saturday 8 March

Good coverage from Ferring and Marine Gardens recorded c150 Common Scoter, 70 Shoveler, 55 Brent Geese, 19 Pintail 12 Teal and 3 Red-throated Divers. A Sandwich Tern past Marine Gardens was most welcome as was a Peregrine hunting offshore. 

Sunday 9 March

A short Seawatch from Worthing beach this morning was rewarded with 2 Curlews, 6 Red-throated Diver, 11 Common Scoter and 3 Brent Goose, whilst 30 Great Crested Grebes and 6 Red Breasted Mergansers were counted on the sea.

February 2025

The weather continued to be wet and miserable during the first couple of weeks of February offering little encouragement for local birders,  but by the end of the month the sun put in a welcome reappearance and there were the first signs of the approaching Spring.

The main highlights this month were a Black-necked Grebe photographed off the pier on 10/2 and the first Sandwich Tern of the year recorded past Brougham Road on 15/2. Locally Barn Owls seemed to be doing well with very popular birds being seen regularly from Monk’s Park, Shoreham Airport and others at Sompting and Black Ditch, Rustington.

                                               Barn Owl Mike Galtry

Goring Gap - there were no significant numbers of wintering Great Crested Grebes or Red-throated Divers and even Red-breasted Mergansers were notable by their absence. The highest count was on 11/2 with 15 Mergansers, 8 Great Crested Grebes and 3 Red-throated Divers. A Great Northern Diver was then reported offshore on 12/2 along with a Black-throated Diver and 6 Red-throated Divers, whilst another Black-throated Diver was recorded further east off Brougham Road on 15/2.

The numbers of gulls using Goring Gap peaked early in the month with Common Gull (c160), Herring Gulls (200+), up to  24 Mediterranean Gulls and the first Lesser Black-backed Gulls (c5), whilst the welcome sound of singing Skylarks had returned to the fields by mid month.

Spring Seabird movements - The first Brent Geese started to head up the channel with c40 heading east past Sea Lane Cafe on 19/2 then on  21/2 there was a more obvious passage with over 600 Brent’s recorded east by observers stationed along the coast between Goring Gap and Widewater, as well as the first Pintail (23e).  

The Downs - again virtually no records of wintering thrushes reported from the downs between Cissbury, Steyning  Bowl and Steep Down. However the farmland around Chanctonbury Ring held flocks of up to 60+ Yellowhammers, 10 Corn Buntings along with Chaffinches, Goldfinches and Linnets and  the woodland feeders along the main track running north of Cissbury attracted a pair of Marsh Tits. Survey work on the Wiston Estate, Chanctonbury, during the month noted a sizeable roost of  60+ Red Kites and a male Hen Harrier on a couple of occasions.

Other downland sightings include an adult White-tailed Eagle over Chanctonbury (27/2),  a single Reed Bunting on Monarch’s Way (2/2) and Grey Partridges were seen at No Man’s Land (2/2) and Steep Down (28/2). Whilst the first notable period of sunshine from 27/2 resulted in the first local sightings of Adder on the west side of Cissbury, a Brimstone near Chanctonbury and a Small Tortoiseshell at Lancing Ring.

                                                           Adder Cissbury Nick Oliver

Brooklands Lake - quiet throughout the month with only reports being Little Grebes and Water Rail.