Barn Owl

I first saw the Barn Owl sitting on a fence post by a frequently used footpath and spent some time watching it.  A lady came by with a dog and it took off and circled around the field flying low and periodically alighting on fence posts as it went.  It would spend a few minutes on each one and once or twice dropped to the ground but without seeming to catch anything.  Then it disappeared into some long grass for a couple of minutes, eventually flying up onto another post, carrying something in its beak.  Unfortunately, it sat with its back to me, but turned around to reveal a large black object, presumably a vole in its beak.  It threw its head back a few times and when it turned round again the prey item had gone.  Swallowed whole.  It rested for a while and then flew away over the tree tops.

I have watched Barn Owls in these fields on a number of occasions and I was struck this time by how frequently that it landed on fence posts and how long it remained on each one.  Clearly this is an energy efficient method of hunting and very appropriate for this cold weather.

Herons

How often do you see a Heron and how often do you see one catch a fish?  Herons are common enough around here; there is a heronry a mile or two up the river so we see them pretty frequently.  One even flew over our house today.  Usually you see them standing at the edge of a stream or pond wary and watchful, or hunched up and grumpy.  But it is not often you see one actually catch something and so we were thrilled to see a Heron fly up from the river with a large fish in its beak.  The fish was silvery and had bright pink fins, so a Rudd, I guess and about 20 cm long.  It flew across the fields and over the treetops to the east and I did not see where it settled to enjoy its lunch.

This came a short while after our first good views of a Barn Owl for some time.  We did get a brief glimpse of one a few days ago, but this time it was flying low in and out of the hedges north of the river bend.  

Snipe have moved in to the Bramber Castle meadows in large numbers and we counted 29 today.  Fieldfares are here in large flocks too and we have seen lots of Lapwing.  They now have to contend with sleet and it is good to see that some are finding food in the meadows around here.  A Fieldfare has taken to eating the apples in that we have put out into the garden and he defends them against all-comers, but has to take his turn when a Green Woodpecker tucking in to them.

Bramber Brooks

Bramber across the River Adur

Bramber Brooks

On Friday night there was about 8 cm of snow and our first bout of real winter weather so far.  In the early afternoon we set off to walk up the riverbank to see what this change in the weather might have brought in.  The first thing we saw was a solitary Snipe land in the Bramber Castle meadows.  I scanned the fields to see if there were any more, but it did seem to be on its own.  Overhead there were small flocks of Lapwing on the move and a Heron flew over.  Then about 8 Teal flew upriver and when we got to the riverbank we spotted a pair of ducks which were hard to identify in the poor light, but turned out to be Gadwall.  As we struggled through the mud and slush up the riverbank they took off and retreated further upstream.  In the distance we could hear the sound of shooting and realised that there was a wildfowling party ahead and we became concerned that we were driving these ducks towards the guns so we turned round and headed for home.  

There were about 30 Fieldfares and a couple of Redwings on the meadows: the largest numbers I have seen so far this winter.

Today we set off in light snow in the morning to cross the river and walk around the eastern meadows, meeting up with some old friends with the same idea.  We put up a Snipe in Bramber Castle brook and watched it zig-zag away. Perhaps it was the same one we saw yesterday. There were no ducks, but half a dozen Greylag geese were feeding in the fields in an area I had not seen them in before.  

Meadow pipits are a common bird here, but they are usually hidden in the long grass and you do not normally see them until they fly off.  Today, a flock of eight were clearly visible against the snow.  

Pagham Harbour

We could hear the Brent Geese as we approached the hedge that screens off the northern corner of the harbour long before we could see them.  They maintained an excitable chatter as groups of them started to take off and rise above our heads in angled lines and fly low towards the golf course, presumably planning to graze on the fairways.  More and more rose up and passed over until, when we arrived at a point where we could get a clear view of the mud flats, only a few remained.  The tide was low and a few remained on the edge of the channel where water was still flowing down.  

Over on the great expanse of mud that constitutes the northern end of the harbour area there were great flocks of Lapwings and Golden Plover.  There were perhaps several hundred Shelduck scattered about, some Teal and Wigeon, mostly at the edge of the channel and a couple of Pintail.    A few were actively feeding, most just hanging out.  About 130 Black-tailed Godwits were lined up with their backs to us most with heads tucked under their wings and standing on one leg.  

For more photos of Pagham Harbour see: http://www.flickr.com/photos/112963374@N07/11689415403

Redd Count

It is a few days since we had any significant amount of rain and this has enabled me to carry out a Redd survey of one of our local streams.  (Redds are places where female trout scrape a hollow in a patch of gravel to lay their eggs).  The Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust have carried out a lot of work in this stream in the last few years and this is starting to pay off.  We have removed obstacles to fish passage and we have introduced gravel to create areas where trout might spawn.  We have not done this for the benefit of anglers, but to improve the river habitat.  It is perhaps a simplistic view, but if the water conditions are good for trout, they will probably be good for many other species.  I did not see any fish this time but there were several new redds to record since my last visit and some changes to existing ones. It looks as if our hard work has paid off.

Reporting a bird ring

Wondering how to while away the fifteen minutes it would take for my marmalade to boil to setting point, I glanced out of the kitchen window and noticed that the bird feeder was nearly empty.  When I arrived at the feeding station with my jug of seed I saw a dead Blue Tit on the ground.  I filled the feeder and picked up the little bird and was wondering how best to dispose of it when I spotted a ring on one of its legs.  After I had returned to the kitchen and dealt with the marmalade (14 Pounds and setting nicely, thank you), I returned to where I had placed the bird in the woodshed away from scavengers.  I got the ring off the bird’s leg and examined it with a hand lens: NH MUSEUM LONDON Y561990.  I had not reported a ringed bird before, so I tried the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) website and that redirected me to the Euring website.  There you select the type of ring from a range of options and then fill in a simple form with the details of ring number, location, species etc.  Very quick and easy and well worth doing.

Our bird had probably been hit by a Sparrowhawk at the time that I went out to the garage to get the birdseed and the noise I made scared the predator off its kill.  It was still warm when I picked it up and had fresh blood around its beak.  We see Sparrowhawks making passes through the garden - the bird feeder is an obvious target- but it is many years since I actually saw a kill.  They are fast and agile, flying through the apple tree where the bird feeder hangs.

Widewater

Widewater is an odd sort of place.  A long, narrow saline lagoon separated from the sea by a shingle bank, and on the landward side a mixed collection of houses with their gardens descending to the water’s edge.  On the one side suburbia, on the other, the sea: today high tide, grey and truculent.  The lagoon supports a population of birds, some resident and some visitors.  

It seems to be quite a rich habitat as there are several groups of birds actively feeding.  Up to ten Little Grebes are diving repeatedly in the water and three Red-breasted Mergansers are also feeding.  While we watch, two more arrive, a male and a ‘redhead’ (female or immature).  They fly in fast and low coming down on the water in what almost seemed like a crash landing.  The male threw his head back in a display posture a couple of times, but did not persist.  Then they both started to dive, coming up almost immediately with food which they swallowed at the surface.  A couple of Little Egrets were active in the shallows and two Redshanks prodded and poked around the edge.

Further along at Lancing Beach Green, an Environment Agency team was hard at work shifting and grading the beach shingle.  Longshore drift inexorably moves the shingle eastwards between the breakwaters and the diggers and dumper trucks move it back again.    My observation over forty years is that this activity has gradually increased in size and complexity and will become more urgent and demanding as sea levels rise.

Recent high tides and strong winds have thrown seaweed and marine debris high up the beach and this has attracted a lot of Carrion Crows.  These have acquired the trick of picking up molluscs and flying up about 10 metres and dropping them onto the shingle. It usually seems to take three or four attempts to break the shell, but the birds persist and seem to succeed more often than not.  I do not recall seeing, or hearing of, Carrion Crows behaving like this in other areas.  But they are smart birds and learn quickly.

Floods, kites and a limping Roe deer.

The best place to be on a bright, clear, sunny New Years Day is on the crest of the South Downs.  We took the easy option and drove up the escarpment to Chantry Post above Storrington and then walked west towards Amberley Mount.  So did lots of other people and the South Downs Way was very busy.  Northwards views extend over The Weald to the North Downs and to the south you look over Blackpatch and  Harrow Hill to the sea and to the far west the Isle of Wight.  It is like being on top of the world.  At Rackham Banks we looked down on the floods in the Arun Valley.  Amberley Wild Brooks looked like a vast lake and Pulborough Brooks to the north seemed as if it was a lake lapping at the edge of the town. These places regularly flood in winter, but there did seem to be a lot of water down there.  Flocks of birds could be seen moving over the water, but too far to be sure what they were.
A steep coombe reaches up from the south towards Rackham Banks, funnelling a stiff breeze on which three Red Kites circled together, wings angled, primary feathers splayed out like fingers and wedge-shaped tails twisting this way and that to keep them balanced.  They circled closely around one another and I am not sure if the interaction between them was friendly or not.  Gradually they climbed higher and their circles widened and we, having to watch our footing on the muddy path, eventually lost sight of them.  Later three buzzards circled languidly above the coombe in their place.  
From Amberley Mount we turned south towards the Burgh.  This is the Angmering Park Estate, rightly famous for its wildlife-friendly farming practices.  Fields are left overwinter in stubble and there are broad headlands, often sown with plants which provide winter feed for wild birds.  A great flock of goldfinches rose and fell over a patch of teasels and in every hedge there seemed to be a flock of yellowhammers.  These are common enough on the Downs, but I do not think I have ever seen so many in one day.  There was even a Reed Bunting, a long way from its normal summer haunts
With so many people taking a New Years Day hike and the sound of shooting coming from two directions, it is not surprising that deer were disturbed and on the move.  Around the plantation on Springhead Hill we saw one group of three Roe deer and a little later another group of four.  It is unusual to see so many in one area at one time as they are not a herd animal.  Sadly, one was struggling with a bad limp and seemed to have lost a rear hoof.

Sea Shells and Sanderling on a Seashore

As the tide receded at East Head we made our way along the beach towards the end of the dunes.  A dozen Sanderling were running to and fro along the edge of the sea.  They are the most engaging birds, reluctant to fly when approached by people or dogs, but scurrying along like clockwork toys over the sand.  
I like to pick up a selection of shells and other bits and pieces of marine life on a beach as it gives a good indication of the sort of habitats and the diversity of life offshore.  By far the most numerous shells here at West Wittering are Slipper Limpets Crepidula fornicata outnumbering all other species combined many times over.  They are not native species, but an alien from North America and a pest of oyster beds.  But there quite a few other species to be found: Dog Whelk Nucella lapillus,  the intricately sculpted Common Piddock Pholas dactylus, Variegated Scallop Chlamys varia with its one sided ‘wing’, Common Topshell Calliostoma zizyphinum, and the Turban Topshell Gibbula magus, Pullet Carpet shell Venerupis pullastra, Common Cockle Cerastoderma edule.  There are usually quite a few razor shells and the one I picked up was the smaller Curved Razor Ensis ensis. It was a cold day with a biting wind, so the rest of the party were not keen to linger on the beach picking up shells, so this is a small selection of what might have been found given more time.