It was an absolutely perfect morning when Sarah and I started the day's Sussex Birding Mini-Trip at Iping Common, with the sun out and only a very gentle breeze. The birds were out in force, with our first good find being a couple of Lesser Redpolls feeding in a birch tree. We were soon watching Chiffchaffs singing and feeding, freshly arrived from south-west Europe, and watching Linnets and Yellowhammers throw their voices too.
A Song Thrush hopped along the path ahead of us and we enjoyed lovely views of a couple of Goldcrests. At one point, a Dartford Warbler popped up just in front of us — a brief but close encounter!
Eventually we heard the calls of a Woodlark and tracked the bird down to a fallen tree, where it was preening. Later on, the bird broke into beautiful song! Great Spotted Woodpeckers drummed and showed nicely, and a couple of Green Woodpeckers ‘yaffled’ in the distance.
A small group of Long-tailed Tits led the way back towards the car park, and we picked up a pair of Stonechats and some fly-over Siskins along the way.
We headed down to Pagham Harbour, starting at Church Norton. A scan of the mudflats revealed a mix of waders, including the resident Whimbrel, a Turnstone and a scattering of Dunlin, Curlew, Grey Plover and Redshanks.
Several Mediterranean Gulls were mixed in with the Black-headed Gulls and were very vocal with their ‘surprised-sounding’ yelps as the flock took to the sky, while the Shelducks and Wigeon carried on feeding on the mud.
Looking offshore, we found a pair of Eider in the distance, with a pair of Long-tailed Ducks even more distantly behind them. Otherwise, the sea was quiet, so we headed to the churchyard, finding a Firecrest on the way!
A Green Woodpecker afforded excellent views as it foraged between the gravestones and a Stock Dove flew over.
The RSPB centre seemed like a good way to wrap things up, with a look at the Ferry Pool producing a Green Sandpiper, about 20 Avocets, over 100 Black-tailed Godwits and several Lapwings, as well as a mix of Shoveler, Teal and Wigeon.
A couple of Little Egrets patrolled the edges and a Kestrel was hunting over the fields while the feeders behind us were busy with Greenfinches and Chaffinches.
A Marsh Harrier put everything up when it flew through and we notched up around a dozen Buzzards circling high up.
A walk along the Long Pool eventually saw us clap eyes on a couple of the very loud Little Grebes, and we also added Dark-bellied Brent Goose and Cetti’s Warbler to the day list. Two fly-over Redwings on the way back to the car were a nice surprise!